The Belleville boys soccer team poses together prior to the game against Bloomfield on Saturday, Sept. 16, at Clearman Field.
BELLEVILLE, NJ — During the summer, as the team was playing in a summer league, Belleville head coach Gary Polewka approached his returning captain, Josh Nodong, and asked him about his goals for the season.
“I turned to him and I said ‘What’s your goal?’ and he said, ‘Division championship and a state run.’ ”
The Bucs were focused on winning the Super Essex Conference–Colonial Division championship. Sure enough, they achieved that goal.
The Bucs clinched the title with a 7-1-1 divisional record through Wednesday, Oct. 18. They were 11-4-1 overall. Belleville, who defeated crossover divisional West Essex, 2-1, on Senior Night on Oct. 18, has outscored its opponents by a whopping 38-15 margin.
Along with Nodong, the other captains are senior goalie Aiden Rodriguez and junior midfielder-backer Eric Castillo.
Castillo and sophomore Uriah Vergara were tied for the team lead in goals scored with eight. Castillo also had two assists and Vergara had one assist for the season. Sophomore Rafael Alves de Carvalho has been a strong contributor with six goals and seven assists.
Polewka was pleasantly surprised at his team’s great season, considering the heavy graduation losses from last year’s 11-4-3 squad that finished second to Barringer in the division with a 7-1 mark.
“Losing 14 seniors, me and my staff were a little skeptical,” Polewka said. “They have gone above and beyond what we thought they were able to achieve together. They are in a groove. It’s so beautiful to see. They are playing beautiful soccer.”
And it’s coming at the right time. The New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association’s North Jersey, Section 2, Group 3 state tournament began Wednesday, Oct. 25. The Bucs were No. 4 in the power-point rankings. The top 16 teams earned berths. The seedlings were scheduled to be announced on Monday, Oct. 23.
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