Girls Soccer MCT: The Sweet 16

Girls Soccer – MCT “The Sweet 16”
Oct. 6, 2007

For Complete Brackets with Times & Dates: Click Here – A job well done by the AD in charge, Scott Rosenberg from Kinnelon.

The preliminary round is now I the books and we’re down to 16. The opening round may have deprived us of a marked upset, but definitely gave us a plenty to talk about … Mt. Olive & Hanover Park won decisively while every other game kept the fans on the edge of their seats until the deciding whistle … or kick for that matter. #14 Parsippany Hills advanced on Toni Defeo’s goal, giving the Vikings a 1-0 victory. MCHSS.net was there. Parsippany edged past a relentless Bulter team, 2-1. Nicole Grande knocked in both goals as the #12 Red Hawks moved on. Mountain Lakes won the game of the day … holding off Madison and advancing on kicks. But the game of the weekend came on Monday … ok, a long weekend. The Scarlet Knights were the only road team to advance in this round. You can see all the video highlights … because MCHSS.net was there.

Sixteen Candles:

(17) Morris Hills at (1) Morris Catholic: The MCT was a bright spot for the Scarlet Knights, but they are still struggling. Casey Sherwood stopped the 6th Whippany Penalty kick, enabling the Knights to advance. Morris Hills dropped a 3-1 decision to Parsippany on Friday with a 3-0 loss to Summit before that. Morris Catholic is sitting pretty at #17 in the state as ranked by The Star Ledger. The Crusaders improved to 10-0 and finished the week with 5-1 victory over Cedar Grove. Although the Crusaders have not been tested in conference play, the Scarlet Knights do not have enough to keep up with Denville-based school. Look for Moonie Mancho and Kathleen Schuckers to add to the goal-tally and move up the Daily Record Scoring Leaders chart. Plus, the Crusaders have the player with best name in Morris County Girls Soccer: Moonie Mancho! Prediction: Morris Catholic moves on 5-0.

Note: To be fair Mendham’s Dovlyn Curtis and Mikaila Weaver were also on the ballot, but the committee voted unanimously for Mancho.

(9) Villa Walsh at (8) Chatham: This has not been a good week for the once undefeated Vikings. Villa dropped their first game of the season to DePaul. Both teams left the game with identical 7-1-1 records. The 7th win was a very hard fought battle with, then 1-6, Montville. Michelle Sak scored in overtime to lift the Vikings. On Thursday, the Vikings fell to Caldwell 2-0. Chatham faced Par Hills and West Essex this week. Chatham recorded a break through week starting with 4-0 victory over Par Hills. The Cougars also defeated West Essex in overtime last night, 4-3. That’s eight goals against 2 solid teams. The only hope for Villa here is that Chatham will not fully recover from the late Friday night game. But, this is still a bad formula Villa. Look for Chatham to continue a pile on Villa’s bad week. Prediction: Chatham 5-1

(12) Parsippany at (5) Kinnelon: This is a very good MCT Match-up. Parsiuppany comes in at 7-5 off an impressive 3-1 victory over Morris Hills and a 6-0 win over Dover. Kinnelon had to come back from a 2-0 deficit to earn a tie with Pingry 2-2. The tie is Kinnelon’s second with the state power. Katie Burke was very strong for the Colts in the match-up. The spark of confidence is just what the Colts need going into the MCT match-up against the upset minded Red Hawks. Prediction: Kinnelon 3-1

(13) Hanover Park at (4) Morristown: Hanover was on fire and comes in off a 5-0 win over Dover. The Hornets have been finding the net and when I say Hornets, I mean Hornets. The East Hanover based school has received scoring from a multitude of players. Kelly Funk has been attacking the net and beating goalies. When she she’s stopped, sophomore Averie Sheppard has benefited. With great instincts, Sheppard has been burying rebounds. Then the Hornets ran into Mendham. Morristown resembles the minutemen in many ways and will limit the Hornets’ scoring chances. Morristown is strong in every aspect of the game. The Colonials come in off a 2-2 tie with West Morris. Brenna Lade has been strong in the pipes for the Colonials and maybe tested by the Hornets. But Morristown’s strong defense coupled with Lade’s strong play should be able to hold off the 13-seed. Prediction: Morristown by two.

(14) Par Hills at (3) Randolph: Randolph beat Columbia 2-0. The Rams lost to West Morris, 1-0 in overtime, on Thursday. Par Hills had lostto Chtham early in the week and come into the game under .500. A big win could be very helpful in making the states, but the Rams are just too strong, especially at home. Prediction: Randolph by 2
(11) Mt. Olive at (6) West Morris: West Morris took the 1st meeting, earlier in the season, 1-0. Since then West Morris has been solid and is staying in every game. Mt. Olive cannot seem to get the breaks and catch a big win, but a 1-0 loss to Knolls lets you know that this team can keep it close. Anything can happen during the MCT and this is where teams seem to play their best, but the Marauders need to find the net – a task that has come easy Prediction: West Morris by 1, in overtime.

(10) Morris Knolls at (7) Mendham: This games has the best potential for an upset. Mendham has been inconsistent. Knolls is coming off a 1-0 win over Mt. Olive and a 3-0 win over High Point. Radovcic is finding the net at a steady and consistent pace. Mendham’s solid victory over Hanover Park maybe a statement the Minutemen are ready for the second half of the season. This is the game of the day! Prediction: Knolls wins on kicks.

(15) Mtn Lakes at (2) Roxbury: The Lakers were just defeated by Whippany Park. Roxbury is still benefiting from an airtight defense and the goal scoring prowess of Michelle Marabondo and company. Roxbury has only one loss entering this game, and should advance over the CHC-underdog. Prediction: Roxbury 5-0