By CRAIG D. SCHENCK/Sentinel staff
MOORESTOWN — The Mainland Regional High School boys soccer team had a great season and terrific playoff run, ending in a disappointing loss Saturday, Nov. 21, to perennial power Moorestown.
“We hung on, we battled. I thought we were dangerous as well when we played our brand of soccer,” head coach Alex Weidman said. “We said when we went on our win streak that if we are going to die on a hill, this is the hill we are going to die on and we did.”
The Mustangs finished the season 12-4, winning six games in a row by shutout, including 2-0 wins over Highland Regional, Timber Creek and Hammonton in the NJSIAA South West D Group III playoffs before falling to Moorestown (11-1-3) in the championship game.
“We were battle-tested,” Weidman said, noting matches the Mustangs lost to Ocean City, Egg Harbor Township and Bridgeton. “They are all good teams we played, so we knew we had to make some adjustments and we took our three losses and made improvements and I think it helped. The guys bought in and you started seeing the change, and the only two goals we gave up in the past seven games were tonight.”
Mainland, the fourth seed, controlled the ball in the early going, passing it around in the backfield and looking for an avenue toward the net. The Mustangs’ effort nearly paid off at 37:37 of the first half when they got a free kick from about 27 yards out that forced a save from Quakers goalkeeper Wyatt Atkinson.
But Moorestown, the second seed, gained the momentum and possession, putting pressure on the Mustang defense and eventually drawing a foul just outside the box. Senior Christian Trzeciak took the free kick from about 22 yards out on Mainland goalie Jeff Thomas’ right. Trzeciak bent the ball around the wall and the sophomore appeared to have saved it but he couldn’t hold onto the ball and it found its way into the net for a 1-0 lead at 15:31.
“It was coming at me and I had it in my hands and I guess it just slipped through,” Thomas said after the game.
The Mustangs hung tough for the rest of the half and came out hungry for a goal in the second. Junior Cooper McKinney had a great chance to equalize at 29:30 but put his shot over the net.
“The first half was rough but we did pick it up in the second half and I was proud and happy about that,” Thomas said.
As the half wore on and Mainland remained scoreless, the Mustangs started playing a higher line, using its defenders to try to get the ball away from Moorestown and ahead to the midfielders and forwards.
But that left them vulnerable to the counterattack, which finally was their undoing when with 1:17 left in the game junior Cade McGrath scored the second goal, putting the game out of reach.
“Cade is a great player. We knew it and we had him taken care of all game but we put our defender up top and he scores,” Weidman said.
Weidman said his players should all be proud of their efforts.
“We knew what to expect and they fought their butts off and I am so proud,” Weidman said, noting that the four returning seniors — Bret Batohie, Austin Padula, Luca Bongiovanni and Daniel Wise — along with Jacob Weeks who just joined the team this year “set the example for the new guys.”
“I told every single one of them that they gave us everything they had all year up until the last second, and when you are building behind those four guys, the younger guys are just going to fall in line and they know what it means to play for the Mainland on their chest,” Weidman said.
The coach said it was an unusual season due to its delayed start and geographically limited schedule due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“It was crazy with the COVID stuff, starting late in the year and trying to organize it all and get it all together and come together,” Weidman said. “By the time we figured it out, I was very happy with the way it came together and the seniors led us by example, they fought hard and they gave us everything they had and when the seniors are doing that, everyone else has to do that as well.”
Batohie led the team with 7 goals and 3 assists, Bongiovanni had 5 goals and 2 assists and juniors Tom Napoli, Christian Rodgers and Joey Cino had 4 goals apiece. Junior Cooper McKinney led the team with 7 assist to go with his 2 goals and junior Jackson Waters had 5 assist with 2 goals. Thomas and sophomore Bryan Perez combined for 9 shutouts.