Bears’ postseason comes to an end
E.B. girls fall in state tourney after winning GMCT
BY RICHARD JEROME
Staff Writer

PHOTOS BY VERONICA YANKOWSKI staff Above, East Brunswick’s Lauren Esposito tries to take the ball from Brick Memorial’s Jenn Olszewski during Monday’s semifinal game in East Brunswick. At left, Memorial’s Caitlin Czeczuga clears the ball in front of the Bears’ Casey Caruso.

It was another fine campaign for the East Brunswick High School girls soccer team, which compiled a 16-4-2 record and captured the Greater Middlesex Conference championship.

The Bears lost to Brick Memorial, 3-2, in the sectional semifinals on Monday, but that didn’t mar the season for Coach Lou Kosa.

"The girls played very well and I’m very happy with their performance," said the coach, who was assisted by Brian Merrigan. "They really came together toward the end of the season."

In the GMC Championship game, played Sunday at Geick Park, the Bears knocked off top-seed Old Bridge, 2-1, in a thrilling game between a pair of teams that have battled all season.

The win served as a bit of redemption for East Brunswick, who failed to win the GMC Red Division title for the first time, and hadn’t won the county title since 2000.

The Bears jumped on top early when Jessica Campbell converted a Lauren Esposito cross into a goal with just 3:31 left in the first half. But the Knights evened the score early in the second half when Kim Cannon hit the back of the net from 15 yards out.

The final minutes of the game saw the Bears dominate action, and the result was an Esposito goal off a pass from Casey Caruso with just 1:48 remaining, and the Bears’ 23rd GMC title since 1979.

East Brunswick had to come back on Monday and play Brick Memorial, a team that has emerged as one of the Shore Conference’s top teams once again this year, and was far more rested coming into the game.

The host Bears played well vs. the Mustangs, and tied the score at 1-1 with 39 minutes left in regulation when Esposito found the net again off assists from Caruso and Allie Riccio. But the Bears just couldn’t convert on numerous scoring chances in regulation and overtime, before falling, 3-2, in the penalty-kick shoot-out. The shoot-out actually went to a second round, where the Mustangs prevailed, 4-3.

While the loss was disappointing, it did nothing to diminish what was another solid season for Kosa’s crew.

The Bears’ defense was particularly fine this year, enabling junior goalkeeper Amanda Nagy to record 11 shutouts. Other key defenders included senior sweeper Lisa Chinn, who moved back to defense from up front, and steady junior Carolyn Noppenberger. Senior Kerry Smith played well on the outside, and the Bears benefited from a trio of junior stoppers, Lauren Volosin, Stephanie Blanar and Allie Lubcher.In the midfield, senior Katrina Michlik played the center, while on the outside Kosa fielded sophomore Riccio and the talented freshman Caruso.

As for the strikers, junior Lauren Esposito led the scoring with 15 goals, and Kristi Lang, who was injured for the final three games, added 14 tallies. Other strikers included sophomores Kaitlin Westcott, Jessica Campbell and Anna Walus.

Rams, Chargers, Falcons fall in state tournament play

The South River Rams also saw their season come to an end on Monday, when they dropped a 3-1 game to Burlington in the Central Jersey Group II semifinals.

The Rams, who were looking to return to the sectional final for the third straight time, trailed 2-0 at halftime before senior Christine Mongelli put them on the board. However, the brilliant forward’s tally was all the Rams could muster, as they ended their season with a 12-6-1 mark.

The Spotswood Chargers saw their season come to an end on Saturday, when they dropped a 4-1 contest to Rumson-Fair Haven in the CJ Group II quarterfinals.

The second-seeded Chargers simply did not have it on Saturday, as the 10th-seeded Bulldogs jumped out to a 3-0 lead and never looked back, despite missing a couple of starters who were away on college visits.

The Monroe Falcons were eliminated from the CJ Group III tournament when they fell to a resurgent Freehold Borough team, 3-0.

The Falcons played the Colonials even through the first half, but fell victim to three second-half goals, and could not respond against a stellar Borough defense to end the season.