UPDATED: Glen Ridge HS girls soccer team captures eighth straight North 2, Group 1 sectional title

GLEN RIDGE, NJ — The Glen Ridge High School girls soccer team captured the North Jersey Section 2, Group 1 state tournament for the eighth consecutive season.

Sydney Mansfield scored on an assist from fellow junior Ania Prussak in the second half to lift the fourth-seeded Ridgers to a 1-0 win at third-seeded New Providence in the championship game on Thursday, Nov. 7. Olivia Carbonell, a junior, made three saves for the Ridgers, who won their ninth straight game and 15th in the past 16 games to improve to 16-7.

GRHS is under 19th-year head coach Oscar Viteri.

The Ridgers will visit Mountain Lakes, the Section 1 champion, in the Group 1 state semifinals on Wednesday, Nov. 13, at 2 p.m. Mountain Lakes has a 17-7 record this season. The winner will face the winner of Shore Regional — the Central Jersey champion — and Audubon — the South Jersey champion —  in the Group 1 state final on Saturday, Nov. 16, at Kean University in Union.

The Ridgers are looking to get to the Group 1 state final for the fifth straight year. They lost to Shore Regional in three straight Group 1 finals from 2015-17 and lost to Audubon in last year’s final in a penalty-kick shootout.

It marked the second straight year that the Ridgers defeated New Providence in the sectional final. It also was the fifth straight year that the Ridgers beat New Providence in the tournament. GRHS beat New Providence in the quarterfinals in 2015 and 2017 and in the semifinals in 2016. The Ridgers have met New Providence in the sectional tournament 11 times in the past 12 seasons, going 7-4 in those meetings. They lost to New Providence in the final in 2008, 2010 and 2011 and lost in the 2009 semifinals. The Ridgers bea New Providence in the 2012 semifinals and 2013 final.

Editor’s note: This article updated the date and time of the semifinal game against Mountain Lakes.

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Joe Ragozzino

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