Northern Highlands’ Julia Pash, left, Claire Nam, center, and Hana Kerner will play a key role in Highlands success.
The second week of the girls soccer state tournament is upon us and North Jersey is well represented as we head into sectional semifinals on Tuesday.
Group favorites Northern Highlands (Group 3), Ramapo (Group 2) and Immaculate Heart (Non-Public A) eased into this round as expected but things figure to get tougher from here. IHA faces Pingry in a monster match up, Ramapo takes on a surging Pequannock side and Northern Highlands faces a brute against Pascack Valley’s defense.
There are plenty of other interesting story lines and big games (Ramsey at River Dell in North 1, Group 2; New Milford at Kinnelon in North 1, Group 1) so let’s go through them. Below is the sectional semifinal schedule with game times and a section by section breakdown of area teams.
Girls soccer state tournament
Semifinals, Tuesday
North 1, Group 1
No. 5 Pompton Lakes at No. 1 Park Ridge, 4
Cydney Borner, hugging her teammates, is New Milford’s second leading scorer
No. 7 New Milford at No. 6 Kinnelon, 2
Breakdown: Opponents beware: defending sectional champion New Milford has won nine straight, including a 4-1 win over No. 2 Waldwick in the quarterfinals. They face a Colts squad that has also peaked late, highlighted by a run to the Morris County tournament semifinals. This should be an exceptional battle between tournament-tested teams. New Milford is led by the high-scoring duo of Alexis Monroy (29g, 24 a) and Cydney Borner (24 g, 15a). Kinnelon is led by Casey Gray (20 g, 21 a).
Park Ridge has some unfinished business to attend to after losing in last years sectional final. But they can’t look past Pompton Lakes. The Cardinals have a steady defense that doesn’t give up many freebees. Still, the Cardinals D will have their hands full trying to slow down the Owls scoring trio of Mikaela Heyboer, Shayna Bohus and Nicole Thomas.  The Cardinals are led offensively by Carlyn Salus, Mary Dougherty and Danielle Jenkin.
North 1, Group 2
Geeja Martone, 16, is one of Ramsey’s top players in the middle.
No. 5 Pequannock at No. 1 Ramapo, 2
No. 3 Ramsey at No. 2 River Dell, 2Â
Breakdown: Pequannock’s 3-2 win over Glen Rock in the quarters was a surprise when you consider the pedigree of those programs. But The Golden Panthers are in the midst of their best season in program history and kept it going another day. The Green Raiders, with their depth and talent, are a different beast all together. They’re battle tested against the likes of IHA and Northern Highlands and have consistently improved throughout the year. Pequannock is led offensively by Dan Scillieri, Hannah Daley and Carly Klimek. Ramapo has a cast of characters who can score including Sommer Cochran, Sarah Scire, Kasey Finn and Lauren Brzozowski.
There wont be any mysteries when Ramsey and River Dell square off. It will be their third game this year, the previous two being a 2-0 win for Ramsey and a 1-1 tie. The tie came at River Dell, so that bodes well for the Golden Hawks. The win came just a few weeks ago, so that bodes well for the Rams. To me this comes down to the middle of the field. If Ramsey controls it with Courtney Dadinos and Geeja Martone, they have the advantage. If River Dell is able to neutralize that area and get the ball up to Rachel Sorkenn they have the advantage. But then again, both teams know their strengths and weaknesses, so this could also come down to another match up all together, like the outside midfielders.
North 1, Group 3
Casey Richards is a threat to score or assist on free kicks.
No. 4 Pascack Valley at No. 1 Northern Highlands, 2
No. 6 Morris Hills at No. 2 Demarest, 2
Breakdown: Northern Highlands rebounded nicely from its first loss in four years and is in a familiar spot as sectional favorite – by a wide margin. But Pascack Valley is a scrappy, defense-first squad. Don’t forget they played IHA to a 1-0 loss, one of IHA’s few close games this year. That should give the Indians confidence that it can stick close to the Highlanders and give them a game. But there’s no doubt it will be hard with all the offensive weapons Highlands has, including Hana Kerner, Casey Richards, Ariel Somple and Eva Hurm.
Demarest kept the best season in program history going with a 3-2 win over Wayne Valley. The key to it keeping that run going against Morris Hills is its defense. It can’t give up 2 goals again and expect to win. It has to keep Morris Hills off the board and be opportunistic in their offensive third and gut this one out. Look for Ariana Bresa and Meghan Lewis to create some chances on the offensive end.
North 1, Group 4
No. 5 Ridgewood at No. 1 Randolph, 2
Hannah Cermack, left, is dangerous in the middle of the field for Ridgewood.
Breakdown: The Maroons got by Clifton, 2-1, in the qtrs and now have a chance at a monster upset against the top-seeded Rams. It won’t be easy against an 18-1-1 squad. But the good thing is Ridgewood plays a similar, low-scoring game that Randolph likes, so they should feel comfortable in this match up. Expect a 1-0 game either way. Both teams will stack the box when the opponent is on O, making every goal hard to come by. Ridgewood is led offensively by Hannah Cermack, Dayna Bussanich and Riley Ricciardi.
The winner faces either No. 3 Kearny or No. 2 Montclair.
North 2, Group 1
No. 5 Glen Ridge at No. 1 Lyndhurst, 2
Breakdown: This is the Golden Bears toughest test of the season. The Ridgers are the two-time defending Group 1 state champions. Even though they’re the lower seed, they are still favored in this match up. The Golden Bears will have to play stout defense. They cant give up anything easy. At the same time their offense has to be on point because it will likely take two goals to beat Glen Ridge. Offensive weapons aren’t an issue for Lyndhurst with double-digit goal scorers Jessica Failace, Amanda Fulcher, Destiny Keith and Giana DiTonto leading the way.
The winner faces either No. 3 Verona or No. 2 New Providence.
North, Non-Public A
Alexandria Mesropyan, left, is one of IHA’s top offensive threats.
No. 4 Pingry at No. 1 IHA, 2
No. 3 Paramus Catholic at No. 2 Oak Knoll, 2
Breakdown: IHA and Pingry were expected to meet in the sectional final at the beginning of the year. Seeding did not allow for that. Either way, this is a monster match up between two of the top teams in the state. IHA has won two straight sectional titles and beat Northern Highlands, 2-1, in the Bergen final. The only thing left for it to do is win another group title, which it hasn’t done since 2010. Expect a fast-paced game where both teams try to possess and build their attack slowly. The difference here could be the Blue Eagles defense, which has given up just two goals all year. Offensively its led by Rebecca Jarrett, Alexandria Mesropyan, Sophia Gulati and Molly Younghans.
This is a monster test for the Paladins, but one they could pass. Oak Knoll, while talented, is beatable. The key, in my opinion, is Paramus Catholic’s defense. They can’t let Oak Knoll get out to an early lead because if they do Oak Knoll is going to pack the box. PC’s game plan will likely be to keep Oak Knoll scoreless in the first half and then slowly open it up and try to win late. If that happens looks for Gemma Perez or Karina Banas to be involved on offense. Nicole Cortellino is their leading scorer but is out with an injury.