OCEAN CITY – In the first meeting between the rival schools this season, the Ocean City Red Raiders shut out the Mainland Mustangs 5-0 Friday, Sept. 20. It was the Raiders’ fourth straight win against the Mustangs dating back to 2022.
Ocean City controlled the tempo for most of the first period and scored three goals before halftime. Senior Brooke Liebrand scored the first two goals for the Raiders seven minutes apart.
The Raiders improved to 7-2 on the season and sit half a game back of first place in the Cape-Atlantic League standings.
Both teams feature a lot of new faces this season including Raider sophomore Emma Vince. The first-year starter scored two goals against Mainland and brought her season total to six.
Nine games into her sophomore year Vince has scored the second most goals on the team behind senior veteran Naomi Nnewihe.
Nnewihe has played all three seasons so far for the Raiders and has been a constant force for the program. She led Ocean City in goals the last two seasons. Last year as a junior she had 66 points for the team, including 28 goals.
Asked after the game about Liebrand and Vince’s performances, first-year Raiders head coach Sean Matteo described them as “amazing.”
“I told them that teams are going to try and take Naomi out of the game,” Matteo said. “We have talked about being able to score anywhere with anyone at anytime and I think we showed that today. Emma and Brooke really stepped up to the plate today to help us win.”
On the other side of the bay, Mainland is developing a young core of players led by another first-year head coach, Bill Horner. Horner served as an assistant coach for two years under previous coach Chris Meade.
The young Mainland squad has been put to the test early in the season. The Mustangs opened the season against currently undefeated Egg Harbor Township and came within one goal of a victory. Mainland then rattled off four straight wins before they traveled to the defending CAL champions in Ocean City.
Against the Raiders, Mainland never got to show off its offensive firepower thanks to relentless pressure by Ocean City.
“We got off to a slow start today with a couple of goals being let in,” Horner said. “We got pinned early in our own zone downwind and allowed too many corners.”
Horner’s Mustangs sit at 4-2 so far this season with young talent spread across the field. Emma Tenaglia has been the most dangerous Mustang this year with seven goals in six games played. The sophomore became a starter almost instantly last year as a freshman and consistently produced.
“We have really jelled together so far as a team and got the four wins,” Horner said. “We still have a lot to work on, no doubt about that. We are going through the motions of being a young team.”
A big loss on defense for the Mustangs was goalie Genevieve Morrison, who graduated in the spring. Morrison was the starting goalie each of the last three seasons and left some big shoes to fill.
Morrison’s successor at goalie this year is freshman Emilia Perez. In her first five games as a high school goalie, she only surrendered five goals and pitched two shutouts.
Two more offensive weapons this season for the Mustangs are juniors Emma Presisman and Savannah Jones, who each have scored three times.
Tyler Connell is one of the few seniors remaining on the team and will be in charge of showing the younger members the tips and tricks of Mainland soccer.
Mainland’s schedule does not get any easier as the Mustangs will host 7-0 Paul VI High School on Sept. 28. Game time is 11 a.m. After that the Mustangs will travel to Egg Harbor Township to play the Eagles again on Oct. 1.
Ocean City’s next game is on the road at Holy Spirit High School Thursday. Then the Raiders get nearly a whole week until their next game on Oct. 1 at home versus Vineland. Both games are scheduled to start at 4 p.m.
After the rivalry game against Mainland, the Raiders played Egg Harbor Township Monday for the first time this year.
“Coming into this game against Mainland we had two games circled on our calendar, today and Monday against Egg Harbor,” Matteo said. “We know those two have been at the top of the CAL with us. We knew they would come in with a lot of energy and I think Mainland did.”
– STORY by WILLIAM TRUITT/For the Sentinel
– PHOTOS by DAVID NAHAN/Sentinel staff
