Lions fall in state semifinals to end run
Midd. North girls finish championship season at 15-2-2
BY DOUG McKENZIE
Staff Writer

CHRIS KELLY staff Lindsey Carlson’s strong play in net over the last four years has helped the Lions continue to be one of the Shore Conference’s top programs, and helped earn the squad a sectional championship in her senior season.

After knocking off the state’s top-ranked team to earn a sectional title, the Middletown North girls soccer team was brimming with confidence.

Unfortunately, that confidence was not enough to propel the Lions past a stubborn Eastern team in a state semifinal contest on Nov. 15.

The Lions, who beat the nation’s fifth-ranked team from Brick Memorial to claim the Central Jersey Group IV title just five days earlier, lost a heart-breaking 1-0 affair to Eastern at the Rancocas Valley Sports Complex in Mount Holly to finish the year at 15-2-2.

Following the loss, head coach Christine Nagy couldn’t hide her disappointed.

“We were disappointed because we wanted it, and worked extremely hard to get there,” she said. “But we just couldn’t find a spot where their keeper wasn’t.

“We had our opportunities, but we were just unlucky, I guess,” she added.

After Eastern got a goal from Kelliann Doherty at the 18:01 mark of the first half, the Vikings’ philosophy completely changed. No longer were they on the offensive, concentrating instead on limiting Middletown North’s possessions in their half of the field.

Nagy said the game quickly became an exercise in frustration for the Lions, as the Vikings’ aggressive defensive play was enough to slow her squad’s efforts.

“They played great defensively,” the coach said. “They were able to thwart [Jen] Anzivino’s opportunities by putting a small player on her and double-teaming her the entire game.

“They had the opportunity to get a real good shot off and then they played defense the rest of the way,” Nagy added. “We didn’t see any kind of offensive attack from them the rest of the game. And that was very frustrating.”

As a result of the defensive tactics used by the Vikings, the Lions finished with a 14-6 advantage in shots. But that was not the tally that mattered in the end.

“I think at the end of the game we were all very sad,” Nagy said. “We had such high hopes after beating Brick Memorial. We were riding high and were looking forward to getting through to the finals.

“The bus ride home was very quiet for the first hour, but as we started to get closer to home, the girls started to recap the season and we started to hear some laughs.”

In the end, the Lions had plenty to be proud of.

“We were A North champs, made it back to the Shore Conference Tournament finals after winning it last year, and we won a state title,” Nagy said. “Expectations were high this year, and we met them.”

The highlight of the season was the win over the same Brick Memorial team that beat North in the SCT final, and was gunning for its fourth straight Group IV title.

“That was the pinnacle of the season,” Nagy said. “After we lost in the SCT final, their coach [Bill Caruso] said in the paper that the SCT was just a warm-up for them for the state tournament. I think that inspired our girls even more.”

With the season now over, the book has closed on the career of Anzivino, one of the most talented players ever to come out of Middletown, according to her coach.

“She’s so versatile,” Nagy said. “She plays defense on her club team and is the Shore’s leading scorer on her high school team. She’s an all-State forward who played midfield as a freshman and sophomore. She can play any position because she brings such a technical excellence to the game.”

Anzivino, who set new school marks in both goals (105) and assists, will take her considerable talents to Rutgers University next fall, where Nagy expects her to make an immediate impact.

“She really is one of the top talents the Shore has seen,” the coach said. “She’s an all-around great kid to coach, and all the other girls look up to her. But she’s so modest, almost to a fault. Sometimes she’d rather set up a teammate than score herself.”

But Anzivino is just one of several seniors who will be missed. Co-captain Lindsey Carlson has been a rock in net for the Lions, starting the last four years.

“Lindsey has been so solid,” Nagy said. “She had 11 shutouts this year after posting 10 last year. She’s going to be so tough to replace.”

Carlson is also looking to play collegiately, but has not decided on a school just yet, according to Nagy.

Another senior captain, Jeannette Furlong, also started for four years for the Lions, and was a leader on defense.

“She’s just a solid player,” Nagy said. “She’s extremely consistent, but doesn’t get much of the glory. She was an integral part of our success.”

Sarah Alves, who netted the first goal in the Lions’ 2-1 win over Brick Memorial, started the last two years for Nagy, and developed into an excellent player.

“She really turned it on this year playing midfield,” the coach said. “She’s very quick, and ran the outside midfield for us all year and did a great job.”

Seniors Maggie Ruane, Shannon Pecherski and Dana Luker are also graduating, and will be missed, according to Nagy.

But the Lions have plenty of talent returning next year, led by a trio of underclassmen who have already established themselves as team leaders.

Junior Kelly Martin is a strong technical defender who has shown an uncanny knack for taking the ball away from opposing players. The three-year starter is joined in the backfield by sophomore sweeper Julie Lancos, another youngster who is one of the top defensive players in the Shore.

“She was so solid her first year, and she keeps getting better,” Nagy said. “The sky’s the limit for her.”

Junior Ashley Novak, another three-year starter, will be the veteran among the forwards.

“We’ll look to her to score more goals next year to help replace Jen,” Nagy said.

A trio of freshmen — Teghan Pecherski, Danielle Devinsky and Claudia Vasquez — also made a solid debut this year, and will look to step up even more next fall.

“We’re gonna miss Jen’s goal-scoring, but we’ve got good players coming back,” Nagy said. “And hopefully we’ll get some more fresh faces coming in who can step up as well.”

Whoever makes up next year’s Lions team will certainly have a tough act to follow.