5/6/2011 - Vernon Girls Favorite To Win H/WS
Vernon’s girls lacrosse team has some unfinished business to take care of this season.
Last year, the Vikings walked off the wet turf field at Hunterdon Central knowing they missed an opportunity to win the first-ever Hunterdon/Warren/Sussex Girls Lacrosse Tournament after falling to the Red Devils 9-6 in the championship game.
The Vikings exacted their revenge a week later in the state tourney when they knocked off the Red Devils 11-10, but to a player the Vikes have that H/W/S tourney title on their mind this season.
And the Vikings (12-2) should as they were awarded the top seed in the tourney which will get under way next Wednesday with preliminary games at the higher seed.
The 10-team tourney will continue May 13 with the quarterfinals followed by the semifinal round May 16. The final is slated for May 18 at 4 p.m. at Vernon.
The boys’ tournament also starts Wednesday and will follow the same dates with the 13-team event concluding May 18 at 6 p.m. at Vernon. I will preview the boys in my next blog.
Vernon’s girls hare having a terrific season playing in arguably the toughest conference in the state, the New Jersey Interscholastic Girls Lacrosse League-Stars Division. The division houses the No. 1 team in the state in Ridgewood which topped the Vikes 16-11.
State powers Mountain Lakes, which beat Vernon this season, along with Glen Ridge also compete in the Stars which will make the Vikes battled-tested come tourney time.
Vernon is paced by its outstanding attack led by the Big Three of Leslie Werner, Jess Mills and Brittany Ast. Brittany Parak is terrific on ground balls and draws and Steph Peterson and Sam Fernot have also shown the ability to be a threat on the attack.
The key to the Vikes’ success will be its defense of keeper Nicole O’Keefe, Kelly Smigen, Jenna Harper, Julia Mabey and Heather Hastings.
Kelly Dahlin, Alicia Yaver and Taylor Cook have also been key contributors this season for coach Steve Carlson.
The way the Vikes are playing I don’t see anyone in the field knocking them off and they will join the Vernon girls soccer team as H/W/S champs after they top No. 3 North Hunterdon (7-9) in the final.
Here is a breakdown of the rest of the tourney.
(9) NORTH WARREN AT (8) PHILLPSBURG—P-burg is 2-11 and already owns a 15-4 win over North Warren (0-12) this season. The Stateliners look to Lauren Nunes, Ashley Jacobs and Molly Zgoda.
North has struggled but Taylor Collins has shown she can score and the Pats’ defense will count on Juliann Rinaldi in goal.
The pick here is P-burg as it will earn the long trip to Vernon in the quarterfinals.
(10) LENAPEVALLEY AT (7) POPE JOHN—Pope John (3-8) has had an up-and-down season as it plays a very competitive schedule in the Independence Division. The Lions played well for a half in their loss to Vernon and they beat an up-and-coming Jefferson team.
The Lions’ top player is senior Tara Fisher who can do it all. She recently scored her 100th career goal. Kelly Ferguson, Katie McCabe and Sam Stein are also threats to score while Mackenzie Logan anchors the defense in front of keeper Rachel Conway.
Lenape Valley (1-8) just picked up its first win of the season the other day with a 10-5 victory over Passaic Valley. The Pats count on Karen Duckles, Jen Trowbridge, Reilly Boyle and Alexis Kenny. Ashley Smith mans the goal for coach Kelly Kummerer.
Pope John should advance here and play No. 2 Delaware Valley (10-2). The Terriers have several quality wins in the Skyland Conference and are paced by keeper Allie Nordeen and on the attack by Tracy Novak, Kristen Vath and Lindsay Hughes.
(6) SPARTA AT (3) NORTH HUNTERDON—Sparta is enjoying a fine season under coach Kate Brennan with an 8-4 mark. The Spartans have topped Pope John and Jefferson and are in the hunt for the American Division title with just one loss in division play.
The Spartans are fast and athletic and love to score in the transition. Nicole Ham is a great finisher and is capable of scoring seven goals in a game. Julliana Vitolo can do it on both ends of the field while Taryn Rogalsky, Clair Schmitzer, and Emily Cacciguida play pivotal roles in the attack.
Sophomore keeper Ollie Fishstein has been terrific. If she can get hot, Sparta could pull the upset on the road because the Spartans can score.
North, under coach Stacy Ditze, plays a very tough schedule and the Lions own two wins over Hunterdon Central (10-9 and 7-5) and a 17-11 victory over Voorhees.
The Lions look to Liz Cocchiola, Lindsay Arnold, Marisa Tomsky and goalie Whitney Bercaw. In a good one, I see North prevailing.
(5) VOORHEES AT (4) HUNTERDON CENTRAL—Hunterdon Central graduated a lot of players from its championship squad, but coach Mary Driscoll is one of the best around.
The Red Devils are 1-12, but don’t be fooled, they play a very tough schedule. They played North Hunterdon tough in its two losses and the Red Devils have last year’s tourney MVP goalie Jaqi Kakaleick back. Rachel Aitkens paces the attack and Brittany Ribauld and Kristen Giler are also dangerous.
Voorhees (5-7) has a new coach in Tim Cullen and the Vikings are very athletic and are paced by Miller Hartsoe, also an outstanding hoops player, Kat Francis and keeper Courtney Gnash.
In another good one, I see HC advancing to play Vernon again in the semifinals.
I can’t wait for both the girls and boys tourneys to get under way. I think this season Sussex County has an outstanding chance to win two titles with the way Sparta’s boys have played.
Last year, the boys final was a Hunterdon County affair with North and Central, so let’s hope Sussex County can at least get someone in the final. Either way, it should be a great tournament.
That’s it for now see you on the sidelines.
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