There were so many good games on Thursday. Some we expected and others just happened out of nowhere. I was at the Park Ridge-Emerson game, which went to overtime and was a good one. Park Ridge, which won, 2-1, has some talent. The Owls have a strong upperclass and coach Dave Schneider wasn’t kidding when he told me in the preseason that he had some very talented freshman coming in. Mikaela Heyboer is a player.
Emerson put up a game fight, but the Cavos have a serious numbers issue at the moment. Any athletes at Emerson, Coach Lachman needs you. Your school needs you. Emerson had 12 players in uniform Thursday. That’s not enough. Even if you’ve never played soccer before, just go on the field, run around for five minutes, commit a few fouls and give a teammate a breather. Be that energy player. The fans will love you. They will chant your name. Glory can be yours. Best of all, a lot of girls soccer teams have an affinity for baked goods, so cookies (It’s Mallomars season!) and cupcakes are usually there to be had after games. If this doesn’t get at least one person from Emerson to ask about playing for the soccer team, I will be disappointed. For the record, Coach Lachman did not ask me to write this, nor does he know I’m writing it. Hopefully, he appreciates my effort here. Then again, he might have to spring for a few boxes of Mallomars.
Anyway, on to the games. Like I said, there were plenty of good ones. Here are the highlights. Well, in a minute. First, some background.
Ramsey lost most of its team that won the Group 2 state championshiup last season, but is anyone surprised the Rams are now 4-1? George Wright = genius. There, I said it. George will deny it because he’s such a modest person, but the Rams coach lost more than 70 goals to graduation and they keep winning. I want at least one Ramsey player to tell coach Wright at practice today that he’s a genius and also tell him where you got it from. The player who does this will get a prize. Something good, too. I probably have at least one US National team media guide floating around. I’ll bring it with me next time I cover Ramsey. Now, we’ll see who’s reading.
RAMSEY 2, MAHWAH 1 (at Mahwah): Nicole Moor and Victoria Pesco each scored to lift Ramsey, the No. 8 team in The Record girls soccer Top 25, past No. 11 Mahwah in a game between Big North Patriot Division rivals.
Jeanne Pirro and Sam Bartley each had an assist for the Rams, who raised their record to 4-1 with their fourth straight win. Jessica Cuttone scored for Mahwah.
DEMAREST 0, OLD TAPPAN 0 (at Demarest): Kelly LaMorte made 12 saves as No. 20 Demarest held No. 11 Old Tappan to a scoreless draw. Kelly Crevani made four saves for Old Tappan.
PARAMUS 3, RIDGEWOOD 0 (atRidgewood): Senior forward Sarah Cortes scored all three goals as No. 7 Paramus defeated No. 17 Ridgewood. Cortes, who will play at Seton Hall next season, scored all of her goals in the second half.
ELMWOOD PARK 5, MARY HELP 4 (at Haledon): Nicole Gomez scored four goals, including one in the first overtime period to lead Elmwood Park to the victory.
Gomez also assisted on the other Elmwood Park goal, by Melany Arevalo.
PEQUANNOCK 4, BUTLER 0 (at Pequannock): Kendal Machak scored a hat trick for the second straight game and assisted on the other as Pequannock defeated Butler. Megan Kennedy added a goal and an assist for Pequannock (3-1).
BERGEN TECH 6, SOMERSET TECH 0 (at Hackensack): Jenny Landells scored twice to lead five different scorers as Bergen Tech shut out Somerset Tech.
Jess Landzberg and Sydney Scherer each had a goal and an assist for Bergen Tech (3-1). Rachel Diaz and Julia Serrao each had two assists.
GLEN ROCK 4, POMPTON LAKES 0 (at Pompton Lakes): Sophie Lederer scored two goals and Hannah Petrone had two assists to lead the No. 4 Panthers over the Cardinals. Sarah Gross made four saves for the shutout.
NEW MILFORD 5, DWIGHT-ENGLEWOOD 0 (at Englewood): Cydney Borner scored three goals to lead the unbeaten Lady Knights to the victory.
New Milford (4-0) scored three goals in the first half and added two more in the second. Erin Bigger had two assists for New Milford.
NORTHERN HIGHLANDS 7, HACKENSACK 0 (at Hackensack): Casey Richards and Clare Shea each scored two goals to lead No. 1. Northern Highlands to its fifth victory this season and 29th in a row overall.
RIDGEFIELD PARK 1, DUMONT 1 (at Ridgefield Park):Ridgefield Park goalkeeper Kellie Lanewas was credited with 20 saves as the Scarlets held Dumont to a tie.
Kassie Reagan scored for Dumont, which remains unbeaten after winning its first four straight games. Julie Rovito scored for the Scarlets.
RIVER DELL 8, FORT LEE 0 (at Fort Lee): Senior midfielder Frankie Maier scored three goals and assisted on two others as No. 6 River Dell defeated Fort Lee. Sophomore Brigid Tracy scored two goals and Jamie Woods added a goal and an assist for the Golden Hawks.
RUTHERFORD 4, MANCHESTER 3 (at Rutherford): Katie O’Sullivan scored two goals and Katherine Calabrese and Maria Stange each added one as Rutherford held off Manchester.
Rutherford took a 2-0 lead in the first half and Manchester scored all of its three goals in the second half.
SADDLE BROOK 3, IMMACULATE CONCEPTION 0 (at Saddle Brook): Stephanie Gerard scored twice to lead the Falcons. Ashley Russo got the other goal for Saddle Brook (4-1), which pulled away in the second half.
WAYNE HILLS 8, WEST MILFORD 0 (at Wayne): Senior midfielder Nickolette Driesse had a hat trick and Meagan Griffin added two as No. 16 Wayne Hills handled West Milford.
PASCACK HILLS 7, WESTWOOD 2 (at Montvale): Brianna Musco and Amanda Tosi each scored two goals to lead five different scorers as No. 10 Pascack Hills downed Westwood. Musco and Kayla Strick each had two assists to lead the Cowgirls (3-2).
RAMAPO 3, INDIAN HILLS 0 (at Franklin Lakes): Senior forward Jen Andresen scored two goals and junior Caroline Chagares had a goal and an assist as the No. 2 Green Raiders shut out Indian Hills.
WAYNE VALLEY 3, LAKELAND 2 (OT) (at Wanaque): Rachel Hofbauer had a goal and an assist and the No. 15 Indians scored in the first overtime period to defeat Lakeland and remain undefeated.
Jessica Cusik and Victoria Pugliano also scoreed for Wayne Valley (5-0).