Colonials take charge of B North soccer play
Borough girls are undefeated
BY TIM MORRIS
Staff Writer

Above, Freehold Borough's Alexa Rozzi breaks away from the defense on Long Branch's Jasmine Spencer during the Colonials' win on Thursday in Long Branch. Below, head coach Heshy Moses gives his team a pep talk prior to the game.

With memories of last season's meltdown still lingering, Heshy Moses has only one direction he wants the Freehold Borough girls soccer team to go, forward.

"I'd like to win the conference [B North Division], but what I want most is for us not to go backwards at the end of the season," he said.

Last fall, the Colonials (9-0) won B North and went through the regular season unbeaten. But they were shut out in their final three games, leading to early exits in the Shore Conference Tournament and the Central Jersey playoffs.

With his club again undefeated in the regular season, Moses wants to make sure that that doesn't happen again this fall.

Certainly at this point of the season, the Colonials have answered every challenge as they sit in first place in B North with the second half of the schedule beginning this week.

PHOTOS BY SCOTT PILLING staff

Freehold Borough put itself in control of the division race on Sept. 22 when the Colonials beat previously undefeated Wall, 1-0, in overtime.

It was not a vintage Freehold Borough performance overall, but as is the sign of a champion, they found a way to win.

"I don't think we played better than Wall," said Moses. "Wall was faster and better in the air than us, and we got away from our game. We weren't disciplined and started playing kick-and-run with them.

"I never question their effort and their heart; it was their tactics," he added. "We weren't passing the ball and using the field."

Still, it was the Colonials who made the big plays, both early and late, that made the difference in this early-season showdown.

The first was by goalie Ashley Lewis. In the first five minutes of the match, she stopped a penalty shot that could have given the Knights a quick 1-0 lead to work with. But Lewis, a sophomore, would have nothing to do with that scenario.

"Penalty kicks are not very easy to stop and she stoned it," said Moses. "It was a big momentum change.

"She really stepped up big time," he added. "She made the saves and controlled the 18 [yard line]. She was great."

Lewis is the latest in a long line of great keepers that the Colonials have had. Danielle Vento, Jen Towers and Meg Lasky, the most recent keepers that led the Colonials to championships, and Lewis looks like she is going to continue that tradition.

So has the Colonial defense, which did not permit a single shot on goal until Ocean in the fourth game of the season.

"My defense was just incredible in our third [of the field]," he said of their performance against Wall. "They allowed no uncontested shots. They didn't break."

Like all stingy Colonials defenses before them, this unit has talent, but it's the way they approach defense as a team that makes the difference.

"Defense wins championships and that means everybody; it's a team effort," said Moses. "You should be as proud of a shutout as scoring goals."

Amy Flanagan, Alexandra Eagle, Nikki Paulucci and Caity Kane are among the keys to Freehold's defensive success. But credit goes to the midfielders and forwards, who are equal participants. They don't stand around and watch when the ball is in the Colonial third of the field. They fall back and become part of the defense.

It was a freshman, Jamie Battaglia, who scored the golden goal for Freehold Borough. She might not have been in the game had Moses not had to shuffle his lineup.

Stopper Flanagan, returning from an Achilles injury, was cramping at the end of the game and was unable to play the overtime. Moses moved forward Shannon Mayrose to her stopper position.

"It took some of our offense away," said Moses. "I didn't know where we would get goals."

He turned to Battaglia, on a hunch, and the freshman made him look like a fortune teller.

With time winding down in the second period of overtime, Battaglia converted a through ball from Alyssa Mayrose, who had made a nifty run upfield through the Knights' defense, to send the Colonials home a winner after 98 minutes and 41 seconds of soccer.

"It was a great goal," noted Moses. "I was happy with our play in overtime. I thought the play was much more equal."

The game whetted everyone's appetite for the rematch, which will be Tuesday at Wall at 7 p.m. But there is still a lot of soccer to play, including yesterday's match at home against Ocean Township, which Freehold beat 1-0 in their first game. The Spartans have lost only to Freehold and Wall (twice).

"Every game is our biggest game," noted Moses. "We're not good enough to win if we don't come to play."

Playing their first game since squeaking by Wall, the Colonials flew past the Neptune Scarlet Fliers, 5-0, as Mayrose scored the three-goal hat trick.

Much to Moses' delight, the Colonial offense has been productive.

The deadline for teams to be .500 or better to qualify for the state playoffs (Oct. 20) is nearing. Freehold Borough, of course, has nothing to worry about. Colts Neck (4-2-2) and Freehold Township (4-1-2) are positioned to get themselves in the postseason.

Manalapan struggled early, but with back-to-back wins is now 3-5 and could do what it did last year - use a late season rush to make the playoffs. Howell (2-4-1) is in the same position. Like the Braves, the Rebels have little room for error.