We've got quite a week in store with the 10th annual Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament in full swing and key conference showdowns on tap this week.
The big one is set for Tuesday as Voorhees travels to Warren Hills in a renewal of their rivalry (65th meeting) and a critical Skyland Conference Raritan Division matchup at 3:45 p.m.
Voorhees (6-4) will be looking to avenge a 3-1 loss at home in the season opener against Warren Hills, which has won four straight (its longest streak in the series) and eight of the last 11 meetings dating to 2013. Both have two losses in conference play, while the Blue Streaks also have a tie. The Vikings still hold a 33-25-6 edge in the all-time series dating to 1975.
Warren Hills (6-3-1), which had been reeling a bit after two straight losses, rallied for a 2-1 win over Hackettstown in sudden-victory overtime on Saturday. The Streaks had not lost three of their first nine games to start a season since going 5-3-1 in 2013. It worked out pretty well for that team, which didn't get its fourth loss until the season finale -- a 1-0 defeat against Ocean City in the Group 3 final.
Saturday's win was huge in terms of confidence for a young Warren Hills team that has just one senior on the roster and started four sophomores and two freshmen against Hackettstown.
"We did [need this win]," said second-year Streaks coach Josie Potter. "Hackettstown is a very solid program with a lot of talented players. I was a little nervous coming in. [My team] stepped up and was ready to play."
Perhaps the most surprising aspect of Warren Hills' slow start this season has been the lack of offense. Coming into Saturday, the Streaks had scored just four goals in their previous five games and had no player in the Top 20 among Open Mike's area scoring leaders. This prompted a lineup change for Hackettstown.
"We've struggled a little bit on finishing in the offensive circle," Potter said. "We had [junior Samantha Dugan who scored the tying goal] playing in the midfield, but we moved her back to the forward line [where she started all of last year] because of her experience there. We switched our lineup [for Hackettstown] to a 4-2-3-1 to give us four forwards, and it opened things up."
Warren Hills has been rock-solid on defense. Junior Kate Fenner moved from sweeper to center back and has thrived there, while sophomore Kylie Compton has excelled in Fenner's old position. Both had stellar games on Saturday, along with sophomore Liz Schlaffer and freshman Emily Dvorsky in the backfield for a unit that suffered a crushing blow with the loss of sophomore Ashley Moskal, who is out for the season with an ACL injury and was at the game on Saturday on crutches.
"Kate is the key to our defense back there and does a nice job leading with her experience," Potter said. "[Compton] started the season as our right midfielder, and when he lost Liz with a concussion, we shifted her to right back, and when Ashley got hurt, we put her at sweeper and she's killing it there. She has a calm demeanor and sees the ball so well."
Warren Hills knows that Voorhees will come there on Tuesday with revenge on its mind.
"[The win over Hackettstown] was good motivation for us going into Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex and Voorhees," Fenner said. "We're excited to play [on Tuesday]."
Now, onto this week's rankings:
1. Hunterdon Central (8-1) -- We have a new No. 1 team as the Red Devils jumped into the top spot following a 1-0 win at Warren Hills on Wednesday -- the program's first since regular-season victory in the series since 2007. Junior forward Sammy Freeman scored the decisive goal and goalie Gabby Puskas made three saves for her third shutout of the season. Coach Jenn Sponzo's team, which drew the top seed for the HWS Tournament, closed the week with a 3-1 win over Randolph behind Freeman's eighth goal of the season.
Up next: Watchung Hills at home on Tuesday; Voorhees at home on Thursday.
2. Warren Hills (6-3-1) -- Blue Streaks drop out of the top spot for the first time in awhile after a tough 1-0 loss at home to Hunterdon Central before bouncing back with a much-needed 2-1 win in overtime against Hackettstown on Saturday. Sophomore forward Jenna Wyckoff scored an amazing reverse-stick goal while on the ground to win it. Junior goalie Julia Webber made nine saves as the defense held a potent Tigers offense (which came in averaging 4.6 goals per game) in check down the stretch.
Up next: Hillsborough at home on Monday; Voorhees at home on Tuesday; Wallkill Valley at home on Saturday in Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament.
3. Voorhees (6-4) -- Vikings, who went 2-0 last week with wins over North Hunterdon (4-1 on Tuesday) and Pingry (6-0 on Thursday), have to be champing at the bit for Tuesday's showdown at No. 2 Warren Hills. Coach Shannon Hughes' team opened the season with a 3-1 loss to the Blue Streaks and a win would put the Vikes in position to win the Skyland Conference Raritan Division title outright. The 1-2 punch of junior forwards Cassie Boyce and Brooke Hyland combined for six goals and four assists in the two wins last week, Hyland had a hat trick against Pingry.
Up next: at Warren Hills on Tuesday; at Hunterdon Central on Thursday; South Hunterdon at home on Friday in Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament.
4. Hackettstown (6-2-1) -- Tigers hold here after a 2-1 loss in overtime at Warren Hills on Saturday. Coach Stephen Speirs' team, which dominated much of the first half and earlyin the second, grabbed a 1-0 lead in the second half on sophomore forward Megan Doyle's fifth goal of the season off a rebound. The road toward another NJAC Freedom Division title picks up again this week with a showdown at home against Newton.
Up next: Mendham at home on Tuesday; Newton at home on Wednesday; Phillipsburg at home on Saturday in Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament.
5. Belvidere (5-3) -- County Seaters rolled to a 9-0 win over Franklin in a Skyland Conference crossover contest on Thursday. Senior forward Maddie Call finished with four assists, while senior midfielder Mallory Keenan, sophomore forward Olivia Zmyewski and junior Kyleigh Sturm all scored a pair of goals., while senior goalie Anya Logan and the defense notched their fourth shutout. Interesting matchup later this week against High Point in HWS action. Big game on tap against South Hunterdon, which could decide the Skyland Conference Mountain Division title.
Up next: South Hunterdon at home on Tuesday; Mount St. Mary at home on Thursday; High Point at home on Saturday in Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament.
6. Delaware Valley (6-3) -- Terriers went 1-1 last week with a 7-0 win at North Plainfield on Thursday and a 5-1 loss at Blair Academy on Saturday in an independent contest. Junior midfielder Madeline Bill scored a pair of goals against North Plainfield and added her team-leading ninth in the loss to Blair. Coach Stephanie Rifflard's team is the No. 2 seed for the HWS Tournament and will play the winner of the South Hunterdon-Voorhees matchup in the quarterfinals.
Up next: Franklin at home on Tuesday; at Somerville on Thursday.
7. South Hunterdon (5-1) -- Eagles cruised to a 9-1 win over Somerville on Thursday in their only action last week as midfielders Rebecca Phillips and Alana Catanzareti combined for seven goals, with Catanzareti scoring five to give her a team-best 10 on the the season. Phillips is next on the list with eight goals. Coach Stephanie Davis' team is the No. 10 seed for the HWS Tournament and will face a stiff test against Voorhees in the second round.
Up next: at Belvidere on Tuesday; North Plainfield at home on Thursday; at Voorhees on Friday in the Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament.
8. Phillipsburg (3-7) -- Stateliners jump back into the rankings after snapping their seven-game losing streak with wins over Hillsborough (4-2 on Thursday) and North Hunterdon (2-0 on Saturday) -- the latter in the opening round of the HWS Tournament. Junior back Morgan Barna scored a pair of goals against Hillsborough, while senior midfielder Gabby Dudek and sophomore midfielder Morgan Cherry had goals against North. It's been an odd season for coach Toni Popinko's team, which hung tough in a 1-0 loss to Hunterdon Central on Sept. 22, and will play four games this week.
Up next: Ridge at home on Monday; North Hunterdon at home on Tuesday; at Watchung Hills on Thursday; at Hackettstown on Saturday in Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament.
9. Newton (6-2-1) -- Braves are coming off a 1-1 week -- a 3-1 win at Montville on Thursday and a 2-1 loss to Bernards at Palmer Field. Senior forward Victoria Docherty scored two goals and senior back Jade Luciani had a pair of assists against Montville, while Luciani had the goal against a strong Bernards team. Coach Lisa Bechtel's team will get a chance to move up the rankings this week with a big showdown against Hackettstown in a key NJAC Freedom Division clash.
Up next: at Kittatinny on Monday; at Hackettstown on Wednesday; Sparta at home on Saturday in Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament.
10. High Point (4-4) -- 'Cats were idle last week due to rainy weather and don't resume play until Wednesday -- the first of two home-and-home meetings against Sparta on consecutive days. Coach Kelly Reynolds' team will get a big test at the end of the week against Belvidere in HWS action. Senior forward Tyra Wingle is among the area scoring leaders with seven goals and six assists.
Up next: Sparta at home on Wednesday; at Sparta on Thursday; at Belvidere on Saturday in Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament.
On the bubble: Lenape Valley (6-2-1)
Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex second-round matchups
9-High Point at Belvidere
12-Sparta at 5-Newton
13-Phillipsburg at 4-Hackettstown
11-Vernon at 6-Lenape Valley
14-Wallkill Valley at 3-Warren Hills
10-South Hunterdon at 7-Voorhees
Note: 1-Hunterdon Central and 2-Delaware Valley have byes into the quarterfinals
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