WEST ORANGE, NJ – The West Orange High School boys’ varsity soccer team is off to a solid start as the Mountaineers have lost just once in their first five matches.
Overall, head coach Doug Nevins said he was pleased with the 3-1-1 start for his squad.
Specifically, the coach said he was especially happy with the team’s performances since the scoreless tie with Seton Hall Prep and the loss to East Side in the first two matches.
“The team has rebounded nicely from such a tough start against Seton Hall Prep and East Side,” said Nevins. “They are ranked No. 3 (SHP) and No. 7 (East Side) in the state. We are currently ranked No. 8 by the Star-Ledger and we are starting to look like a team deserving of that ranking. We are an excellent defensive team, and if we scored a couple of goals every game, we will be very hard to beat.”
In particular, Nevins said his squad stepped it up last week.
“Last week we had two games and played very well in both,” said the coach, whose squad defeated West Essex, 3-1, on Tuesday night, Sept. 20. In the win, WOHS was led by Diego Pedrido, who had two goals and an assist while Bryce Millington had two assists and Kevin Zeligson had a goal.
On Thursday, Sept. 22, West Orange defeated Newark Academy, 3-0, at home. Pancho Pozzoli scored two goals while Neil McGarrell had the other goal. In addition, Millington again had two assists and Andrew DiPalma had the other one.
“Paulie Schuler played well in goal in both games,” said the coach. “The defense has been terrific, led by Andrei Rosu, Maurice Williams, Dillon Reitberger, and Russell Hoffer. The midfield of Bryce Millington, Malik St Felix, and Brent Llewellyn have been very good as well. Kenneth Vaquiz, Ricardo Carias, Josh Figueroa, Jonathan Banks, and Alex Edelstein have all contributed a lot off the bench. Up top, Pancho Pozzoli, Diego Pedrido, Kevin Zeligson, Neil McGarrell, Andrew DiPalma and Manny DePierola have all been terrific.”
West Orange will be at home against Millburn on Tuesday, Sept. 27, at 4 p.m. On Thursday, Sept. 29, the team will travel to play at Bloomfield at 4 p.m.
The Mountaineers are ranked in the following polls:
Topdrawersoccer.com: New Jersey: No. 10. East Region: No. 14.
NJ.com: New Jersey: No. 8.
Super Essex Conference: No. 3.
Public Group 4: No. 5.
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