WEST ORANGE, NJ — The fourth-seeded Seton Hall Prep soccer team gave a valiant effort in losing to top-seeded St. Benedict’s Prep 1-0 in the semifinals of the 51st Essex County Tournament on Monday, Oct. 27, at Livingston High School.
SHP junior Liam Collins made 11 saves. The Pirates, ranked No. 10 in the state by nj.com, saw their six-game winning streak end and moved to a 12-4-1 record on the season. St. Benedict’s Prep, ranked No. 1 in the state by nj.com and No. 1 in the nation by United Soccer Coaches, moved to 14-0-1. The game was a rematch of last year’s ECT final, won by St. Benedict’s.
On Tuesday, Oct. 21, in the second round of the ECT, the Pirates defeated No. 13 seed West Essex 3-1 at Brendan P. Tevlin Memorial Field in West Orange. Senior Damian Ramirez scored just 1:25 into the match on an assist by senior Bernardo Tinajero. Just 3 minutes and 40 seconds later, senior Cian O’Connor made it 2-0 on assists by Ramirez and junior Jack Bigley. West Essex made it 2-1 in the second half, before the Pirates closed out the scoring when junior Matthew Pasternak scored with 15:13 left on assists by sophomore Finnigan Salamone and Tinajero. Collins had three saves, as the Pirates outshot the Knights 14-4.
Just three days later, the Pirates defeated No. 12 seed Columbia 6-0 at Brendan P. Tevlin Memorial Field in the quarterfinal round of the ECT. The Pirates jumped on Columbia with four first-half goals for a 4-0 lead at the half.
Senior Sebastian Cempron hit a header with 30:42 on assists by Salamone and Bigley. A little more than 10 minutes later, junior Maxime Tellier scored on a rebound off an O’Connor shot to make it 2-0. With 18:50 left, Ramirez made it 3-0 on an assist by O’Connor. With 13:51 left, Bigley made it 4-0 when he drilled a shot from 25 yards out on assists by Salamone and Ramirez. In the second half, Cempron scored on a header on assists by senior Andre Hope and Pasternak with 24:17 left. Junior Luke Driscoll closed out the scoring for the Pirates with 3:16 left on assists by sophomore Giovanni Carnemolla and senior Adrian Barrett. Collins had three saves and senior Rocco Quilici had two saves to record the shutout, as the Pirates outshot the Cougars 10-5.
About the Author
