Nutley HS boys’ soccer team displays strong bond; seeks to have successful season

NUTLEY, NJ – Head coach Marcellino Marra has reason to feel optimistic for his Nutley High School boys’ varsity soccer team this season.

“This year I feel we have a special team,” Marra said. “It is a tight-knit group who make up a combination of experienced seniors and talented underclassmen.”

The Raiders open the season Sept. 8 against Cranford at Father Glotzbach Field.

Leading the way are senior tri-captains CJ Haddock, Gerardo Flores and Anthony Cassie.

Haddock is the “motor” of the team’s midfield, Marra said.

Flores is a defender who has a high soccer IQ and reads the game very well, while Cassie is a defender who transitions well into offense and has the ability to pick out an offensive player with accurate service, added Marra.

Along with Haddock, the midfield is run by seniors Sean Bernardo, John Kruse, and Christian Goncalves, as well as junior Ilya Udalov, a gifted midfielder who has started since his freshman year, Marra said.

Sophomore Abhineet Jain has proved he can contribute in the midfield as well, the coach noted.

The forward positions will be made up of several underclassmen who may lack varsity experience “but make up for that with talent, skill, and speed,” Marra said. They include junior Dan Caraballo and sophomores Austin Sweeney and Garrett Groeling.

Senior Tesheen Khokar will also contribute as a forward this year.

The defense will be helped by such newcomers as senior Sean Bartley, and juniors Matthew Scorsone, Ken Neri, and James Lemma.

The goalkeepers are senior David Sanchez and sophomore Brandon  Syto.

The Raiders have improved over the past few seasons, and want to keep up that trend.

“If we click early, I think we will be very good,” said Marra, whose team finished 7-11-4 last season after going 4-13-1 in 2014. “We are focused at practice and are still getting to know each other on the field. We are deep, meaning substitutions should not affect our pace. Our guys can play.

“If we finish our opportunities and keep our mistakes to a minimum, I feel we will be very competitive. I’m looking forward to spending time and teaching these student-athletes.”

NOTES – The Raiders last season reached the quarterfinals of both the Essex County Tournament and state North Jersey Section 2, Group 3 tournament. In the ECT, the ninth-seeded Raiders defeated No. 8 seed Millburn, 4-3, in double overtime in the first round and lost to top-seeded West Orange, 1-0, in the quarterfinals. In the state sectional tournament, seventh-seeded NHS defeated 10th-seeded West Morris, 4-0, in the first round and lost to No. 2 seed Hopewell Valley in the quarterfinals in a penalty-kick shootout after the teams played to a scoreless tie in regulation and two overtimes. Hopewell Valley won the shootout, 7-6…

This season, the Super Essex Conference for boys’ soccer has been changed from three divisions to four. Nutley, which competed in the highest division (American) for the past two seasons, is now in the second highest division (Liberty), along with Millburn, Columbia, Newark Tech, Verona, Montclair Kimberley Academy, Caldwell and Central.

2016 Nutley schedule

(home games held at Father Glotzbach Field, unless otherwise noted)

Sept. 8, Cranford, 4 p.m.

Sept. 10, at Central, 4 p.m.

Sept. 13, Montclair Kimberley Academy, 4 p.m.

Sept. 15, Livingston, 4 p.m.

Sept. 20, at Newark Tech, 4 p.m.

Sept. 22, Millburn, 4 p.m.

Sept. 24, at Belleville, 10:30 a.m.

Sept. 27, Seton Hall Prep, 4 p.m.

Sept. 29, at Caldwell, 4 p.m.

Oct. 1, Bloomfield, 11 a.m., at Park Oval

Oct. 4, West Orange, 4 p.m.

Oct. 6, Columbia, 4 p.m.

Oct. 8, Glen Ridge, 10 a.m., at Park Oval

Oct. 11, Verona, 4 p.m.

Oct. 13, at Montclair, 4 p.m.

Oct. 15, West Essex, 11 a.m., at Park Oval

Oct. 26, Pequannock, 4 p.m.

Oct. 28, Union, 4 p.m.

(Schedule is subject to change)