June
14, 2004
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| Marquis Liverpool, taken in the 33rd round of the recent MLB draft, was one of a host of talented athletes on Don Bosco Prep's undefeated football squad. |
Boys'
Co-Team of the Year:
Don Bosco Prep Football &
St. Anthony's (J.C.) Basketball
Both were undefeated, and not only attracted the attention of high school sports fans around the state, but around the country as well. Each finished as the America's No. 2 ranked scholastic team in their respective sports and neither got to take on the team ranked ahead of them to settle the score.
To state the obvious, Bosco's football team and St. Anthony's hoops teams are two of the best teams ever to play football or basketball in New Jersey and there was just no way to pick one over the other.
After taking many of its opponents by surprise in 2002 with a variety of offensive and defensive weapons, Don Bosco returned nearly all of its starters. After a vote among NNJIL athletic directors denied the Ironmen the opportunity to play the country's 'best' team, DeLaSalle (Calif.) and its national-record winning that surpassed 140 games this past fall, the Ironmen took the disappointment out on the teams on its schedule.
Don Bosco's closest regular-season game came in the opener against eventual North 1, Group 4 champ Ridgewood. They struggled in the first half, but pulled away in the second half en route to a 28-point win.
No team stayed within 35 points of the Ironmen the rest of the season until the Parochial 4 state final. Archrival Bergen Catholic took a beating earlier in the season, but took advantage of six Ironmen turnovers to take a 13-7 lead into the fourth quarter.
A great
team knows how to handle adversity, but it makes it much easier when you have
a standout like Brian Toal in the backfield. He took a swing pass and broke
three tackles during a 57-yard jaunt. Joe Marcoux kicked the extra point and
Don Bosco Prep achieved an undefeated, record-breaking season capped off by
a Parochial 4 state championship.
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| Marcus Williams led St. Anthony to a second straight T of C title and a No. 2 national ranking. |
Basketball on every level has turned into an offensive game. Whether it is breaking a player down off the dribble, throwing a no-look pass, or putting home a dazzling dunk, it is the moves of a player on the offensice end that turns the heads of college coaches, peers, and fans.
But there is always one team that lacks the glitz or the glamour, but not the fundamentals. St. Anthony head coach Bob Hurley Sr. has built his dynasty over the past 20 years by teaching the basics, team defense being at the top of the list.
This year was no different. Facing one of toughest schedules made up of in and out-of-state opponents, the Friars consistently locked down their foes, usually holding them under 30 percent shooting and forcing a bevy of turnovers. Like Don Bosco Prep in football, the Friars blew out almost everyone they faced before a single hiccup in the state tournament.
In the Tournament of Champions semifinal, St. Anthony could not get anything going offensively and its opponent, Group 3 champion Raritan, came out and grabbed the momentum early. Most coaches would call a timeout or maybe even two in an effort to try and settle things down, but the thought never even entered the mind of Hurley.
If the
Friars were going get out of the only double-digit hole they would face all
season, they had to look to their best weapon, full-court pressure defense.
Led by guards Derrick Mercer, Marcus Williams, and Sean McCurdy, the Friars
allowed just 15 second-half points and pulled away for a 56-42 win. In the
final, they opened up an early lead and cruised past upstart Bloomfield Tech
to a 12-point win, which polished off a 30-0 season, the fourth undefeated
season in school history.
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| Cristhian Acuna helped Harrison to a second straight Group 2 state championship. |
Runner-Up:Harrison Soccer
Coming off a 2002 Group 2 state championship season and a return to prominence, the already noticeable target on the back of Harrison grew considerably larger. Throw in the fact that the Blue Tide lost several key players and it seemed unlikely that they would be able to repeat as champs. But someone apparently forgot to tell the Blue Tide players and they proved that they were possibly the strongest offensive team in the state throughout the 2003 state tourney.
Led by center midfielder Cristhian Acuna, Harrison scored 13 goals in five state tournament games. Netminder Raphael Viana came up big in a pair of 2-1 wins in the North 2, Group 2 section final over Chatham and the Group 2 semifinal win over Tenafly. Although the year did not end with an outright state championship, tying Delran 2-2 in the state final, an overachieving Blue Tide team showed they have restored their winning tradition. They will lose more key players this upcoming fall, but Harrison will surely reload and be a contender for a third straight title.
Honorable
Mention:
Ramapo
Soccer
Fair Lawn Volleyball
New Milford Baseball
Rutherford Baseball
Ramapo Football
Tenafly Tennis
Ridgewood Football
St. Peter's Prep Hockey
St. Joe's (Mont.) Baseball
Ridgewood Lacrosse
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| Keren Barnea transferred into Demarest before the 2003 season and helped the Norsewomen win a second straight T of C championship. |
Girls'
Team of the Year:
Northern Valley/Demarest Volleyball
Bergen County has clearly dominated scholastic girls' volleyball throughout New Jersey in recent years. The team that has symbolized that dominance better than every other has been Northern Valley/Demarest.
The Norsewomen won back-to-back state championships, but there were several doubts heading into the 2003 season with four key starters lost to graduation and the top teams in the county like Pascack Valley, Cresskill, and North Arlington starting to catch up to the top dog.
But head coach Beth Powell could find some solace in the fact that they still had plenty of experience and arguably the top two players in the state in Daina Pucurs and Maribeth Martens.
The Norsewomen faced virtually no adversity over the past two and a half seasons, compiling a state-record 81-match winning streak, but it all caught up to with them in the Bergen County final when Pascack Valley mounted a huge comeback to win a five-game thriller.
But that loss only served as a wake up call for the the Norsewomen, who proceeded to roll through the state tournament. Their only test was in the Tournament of Champions final against a Caldwell team that was a mirror image of the Demarest, with its only loss heading into the match coming in the Essex County final.
With
everything on the line, Pucurs and Martens shined while the supporting cast
rose to the occasion. They won the classic match in five games to put themselves
among some of the state's best all-time teams.
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| Asia Rollins played a key role in Eastside's run to the T of C final. |
Runner-Up:Paterson Eastside Basketball
When people think of the Paterson Eastside girls' basketball team, the name Essence Carson comes to mind immediately. While she was easily the top player in the area and one of the best in the state, it was the growth, depth, and maturity of the team as the season progressed that helped the Lady Ghosts climb the hurdle that had tripped them up the past two years.
In the process of making it to the Tournament of Champions final, the Ghosts won their third straight Passaic County title, their third straight North 1, Group 4 crown, and added an overall Group 4 state championship to an already impressive resume.
Honorable
Mention:
Indian Hills Soccer
Cresskill Volleyball
Clifton Softball
Pascack Valley Tennis
IHA Basketball
Pascack Valley Volleyball
Glen Rock Soccer
Cresskill Basketball
Ramapo Soccer
Northern Highlands Soccer
Marist Basketball
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| Jarrett Solimando helped Demarest go from a 2-8 record in 2002 to the state sectional final in 2003. |
BOYS'
SPORTS COACH OF THE YEAR:
Scott Rubinetti, Northern Valley/Demarest Football
Coming into this season, Northern Valley/Demarest figured to be an improved team in head coach Scott Rubinetti's fourth year at the helm. The Norsemen were more competitive than they had been in years past, but the reality of a 2-8 record in 2002 still had to be dealt with
The general consensus was that reaching the .500 mark in 2003 while playing in the in the always-tough NBIL would be a miraculous achievement in itself, but Demarest wanted more. With each passing week, Demarest opened the eyes of teams within the league and gained respect, racking up several big victories in the process.
When the Norsemen qualified for the NJSIAA North 1, Group 3 state tournament, most people knew that this team should be commended for its efforts, but figured the end of the season was near when they had to go on the road against perennial powerhouse Teaneck in the first round.
Rubinetti had a gameplan to shut down the dangerous Teaneck running attack and the Norsemen carried it out. They squeezed out a one-point upset win, and the reward was a date with top-seeded West Milford.
By that time, the players not only believed they belonged in the same breath with most of the top teams in the area, but that they could beat them at any time on any field. Rubinetti kept his players performing at their maximum potential and they dismantled the Highlanders to make it to the section final against Ramapo, who thumped the Norsemen 37-0 in the regular season. The true test of a team to see if there is improvement is to face a team like Ramapo a second time, with much more on the line.
At Giants
Stadium, Demarest gave the Green Raiders everything they could handle and
then some. Although their unlikely quest for a state title fell one possession
short in a 31-28 loss, the point was made. Northern Valley/Demarest was among
the elite teams in North Jersey.
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| Christian Diaz helped New Milford win the school's first-ever state baseball championship. |
Runner-Up:Joe
Sutera,
New Milford Baseball
New Milford was was an unknown quantity before the season began, but with a solid group of younger players, the potential was there for a successful season. Sutera never put the pressure on his standout junior, PJ Saporito, to go out put the team on his shoulders, instead choosing to make it a team-first approach.
It worked
and the Knights allowed just two runs in the state tournament, shutting down
every team in its path and claiming the
Group 1 state title.
Honorable
Mention:
Mike Lauterhahn,
Rutherford Baseball
Bob Hurley, St. Anthony's (J.C.) Basketball
Evan Baumgarten, Ramapo Soccer
Tim Byron, Northern Valley/Old Tappan Baseball
Rich Hansen, St. Peter's Prep Football
Drew Marano, Emerson (U.C.) Basketball
Mike Rusek, Harrison Soccer
Bill Jaeger, Tenafly Soccer
 |
| Meredith Guerin led the Glen Rock to a second straight Group 1 co-championship in her second year as the Lady Panthers' head coach. |
GIRLS'
SPORTS COACH OF THE YEAR:
Meredith Guerin, Glen Rock Soccer
Meredith Guerin's first year at the helm of the Glen Rock girls soccer program in 2002 was an easy transition as she took over a team that had Kim Mineo and Leah Jerome, two of the top offensive threats in the state.
But with the two graduated, Guerin had to close off the middle of the field and switch to a more defensive style of play. The individual talent was not nearly as high as the 2002 squad, but the players bought into Guerin's system and in turn they became, statistically, the state's best defensive team.
Not even Guerin could have predicted how well the team would play together in 2003. From start to finish, the Lady Panthers were like a defensive machine that was almost always clicking on all cylinders.
They did not allow a goal in the first 17 games of the season, all wins. The Panthers then suffered their only loss of the season, 2-1 to Ramsey, in the Bergen County quarterfinals. The two goals Glen Rock allowed in its lone loss were the only two they would allow all season. They dominated every opponent en route to the Group 1 final, only to dominate the game for the second consecutive year and come away as co-champs in a 0-0 tie.
Although Guerin and her players were disappointed with having to share the championship for a second straight season, not much was expectedheading into the season and yet they finished with an impressive 20-1-2 record. Whether much is expected of Glen Rock next season or not, Guerin proved that she will make the adjustments and have the team ready to make a run at a third straight Group 1 title.
Runner-Up:Beth Powell, Northern Valley/Demarest Volleyball
Four starters lost, a huge winning streak that spanned two-plus seasons, and a giant target on its back. Those were just a few of the obstacles Northern Valley/Demarest had to face from start to finish during the 2003 season. But head coach Beth Powell believed that this team was going to end with the same reward for its hard work that her previous two teams achieved, a state championship and a No. 1 ranking in New Jersey.
The remarkable 81-match winning streak came to an end at the hands of Pascack Valley in the Bergen County final, but Powell kept the team focused on the task at hand. The Norsewomen defended their Tournament of Champions title and finished the season at 26-1.
Honorable
Mention:
John Von
Glahn, Cresskill Volleyball
Paul Heenehan, Ramapo Soccer
Jim Loudon, Indian Hills Soccer
Tara Madigan, Northern Highlands Soccer
Dave Majewski, St. Dom's (J.C.) Softball
Ed Black, Paterson Eastside Basketball
Jessica Alcorta, Northern Valley/Demarest Field Hockey
Jeff
Jasper, Pascack Valley Basketball
Jeff Kohler,
Tenafly Basketball
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