Streaks eye 700; Tourney on tap (HWS FH rankings)

It's hard to believe we're cruising toward the end of September, but the 11th annual Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament is set to commence on Saturday with four preliminary round games.

The HWS Tournament title trophy.

Official pairings and seeds will be announced on Thursday, so check back here for all matchups, info and tournament history that you can only find on Open Mike. It should be an exciting tournament with several storylines to follow, including Warren Hills seeking a record seventh title after being denied a year ago in an overtime loss to Hackettstown.

Coach Josie Potter's team, which should undoubtedly draw the No. 1 seed for the HWS Tournament, got some redemption with Saturday's 5-0 victory over the Tigers at Morrison Field in an independent matchup. That raised the program's all-time wins total to 696 with upcoming games scheduled against Montgomery (away on Tuesday), Hunterdon Central (away on Thursday), Voorhees (away on Oct. 1) and Madison (at home on Oct. 4).

"We played an awesome game [against Hackettstown]," said Potter, who reached 50 career wins in her third season with the Streaks' 3-1 victory over Ridge.

In addition, Voorhees, which won titles in 2010 and '12 and is looking like the No. 2 seed, would like another crack at knocking off Warren Hills after a 2-0 loss to the Blue Streaks to open this season on Sept. 3. But first, the longtime rivals will meet on the brand new turf at Voorhees on Tuesday, Oct. 1 in a critical Skyland Conference Raritan Division showdown.

Keep an eye on upstart North Hunterdon, which has already surpassed last season's win total and scored a 3-1 win over Hunterdon Central on Monday -- the program's first over the Red Devils since 2010. The Lions' next big test will come Tuesday against Voorhees, which hasn't lost to North since 1990.

Now, onto this week's rankings:

1. Warren Hills (9-0) -- You can bet Saturday's 5-0 win over Hackettstown was extra rewarding considering the Blue Streaks' 2-1 loss in overtime to the Tigers in last year's HWS title game. Junior forward Simryn Desai recorded a pair of goals in the win, which raised Hills' lead in the all-time series to 43-5-3 dating to 1969. Senior forward/midfielder Samantha Dugan, who had two goals in Friday's 5-1 victory over Pingry, enters the week ranked 10th on the Streaks' career goals list with 45 and points list with 109 as she is just the 15th player in program history to reach 100 career points. The Streaks are off to their first 9-0 start since going a program-best 10-0 in 2011. Only 11 Warren Hills teams have started 5-0 or better in its 55-season history.

Congrats WH on your victory vs. Ridge 3-1 to make their record 7-0 for the season.

Congrats Coach Potter on your 50th victory.... pic.twitter.com/xTstKoC70u

— WHRSD Athletics (@WHRSDAthletics) September 17, 2019

Up next: at Montgomery on Tuesday; at Hunterdon Central on Thursday.

2. Voorhees (7-2) -- Vikes enter the week riding a seven-game win streak following Saturday's 3-0 victory at previously unbeaten Delaware Valley. Senior midfielder Lauren Kokoskie was among three goal scorers -- her fourth of the season -- after getting her third on a penalty stroke in a crucial 3-1 win over Bridgewater-Raritan on Thursday that kept Voorhees on Warren Hills' heels in the Skyland Conference Raritan Division title chase. Senior midfielder Madison Ogorzalek tapped in the go-ahead goal. Junior Kathrine McLean scored goals in all three wins.

Up next: at North Hunterdon on Tuesday; at Pingry on Thursday.

3. North Hunterdon (7-2) -- Sophomore forward Ryan Anderson recorded five assists in a 7-0 victory over Montgomery on Tuesday and leading scorer Lauren Masters, a freshman forward, scored four goals in a 7-0 win over Franklin on Saturday as the Lions seek their first winning campaign since 2009. Sophomore midfielder Ava Laible scored three goals in the win over Montgomery. Huge win over Hunterdon Central on Monday for coach Maria Bachert's team.

Up next: Voorhees at home on Tuesday.

4. Hunterdon Central (4-5-1) -- Junior midfielder Sarah Woods was among three players to score goals in a 3-2 win over Hillsborough on Tuesday in a Skyland Conference Delaware Division clash. Red Devils went on the road this past weekend to play in the prestigious National Invitational at the Proving Grounds in Conshohocken, Pa. -- losing to 2-0 to McDonogh (Md.) and 5-1 to DuPont Manual (Ky.). Another big game on tap this week against Warren Hills.

Up next: Pingry at home on Tuesday; Warren Hills at home on Thursday; at Bernards on Saturday.

5. Delaware Valley (7-1) -- Terriers saw their seven-game win streak to open the season snapped in the first big test of the season with a 3-0 loss to Voorhees on Saturday. Samantha Snowden had a three-goal game in a 5-2 win over South Hunterdon on Tuesday -- raising her team-leading total to 10 goals -- and senior midfielder Madeline Bill, who had a goal and two assists in that one, logged two goals and two assists in Thursday's 6-2 victory at Somerville.

Up next: Belvidere at home on Tuesday; Bernards at home on Thursday; Pingry at home on Saturday.

6. South Hunterdon (7-1) -- Eagles rebounded from their first loss -- 5-2 to Delaware Valley on Tuesday -- as junior midfielder Rebecca Phillips scored a pair of goals with two assists in a 9-1 victory over North Plainfield on Thursday. South capped the week with a 3-1 win over Notre Dame behind goals from senior forward Alana Catanzareti, sophomore midfielder Zoe Horan.

Up next: Franklin at home on Tuesday; at Mount St. Mary on Thursday.

7. Belvidere (3-3-1) -- Junior forward Olivia Zmyewski scored three goals to help power the County Seaters to a 9-0 win over Mount St. Mary in a Skyland Conference Mountain Division matchup on Friday. Zmyewski leads the team with eight goals entering the week. Sophomore midfielder Emma Dalrymple and senior midfielder Isabella Sera scored goals in a 2-2 tie with Phillipsburg on Saturday.

Up next: at Delaware Valley on Tuesday; North Plainfield at home on Wednesday; at Blair Academy on Saturday.

8. Vernon (7-0) -- Vikings capped a 3-0 week with its second victory in four days against Wallkill Valley -- both 5-0 -- as senior forward and leading scorer Carlie Van Tassel scored three goals in Saturday's matchup, which kept Vernon unbeaten at 5-0 in NJAC Freedom Division play. Sophomore forward Julia Gregory had a big week as well, totaling four goals and two assists in the three wins, including two goals in Tuesday's win over Wallkill Valley.

Up next: High Point at home on Tuesday; Pequannock at home on Saturday.

9. Newton (7-1) -- Braves bounced back from their first loss with three straight wins, including a 1-0 victory over Hackettstown on Thursday with the winning goal scored by Julia Decker in a key NJAC Freedom Division matchup. Sophomore forward Julia Fitt, who notched an assist in a 2-1 win over High Point on Tuesday, scored a pair of goals in a 2-0 win over Lenape Valley on Saturday. Fitt and sophomore forward Sydney Pavlishin enter the week with a team-leading six goals.

Up next: at Blair Academy on Tuesday; at Wallkill Valley on Thursday.

10. Hackettstown (3-4) -- Tigers are coming off a tough week, going 0-3 with losses to Vernon (2-1 on Tuesday) and Newton (1-0 on Thursday) in NJAC Freedom Division matchups before a 5-0 loss to Warren Hills on Saturday in a rematch of last year's Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament title game. Senior forward Madison Billows scored the goal against Vernon. Senior goalie Sophia Mallozzi made 27 saves in the loss to Warren Hills.

Up next: at Wallkill Valley on Tuesday; High Point at home on Thursday.

Others to watch: Phillipsburg (0-7-1) -- Although the Stateliners entered the week winless, coach Toni Popinko's team has played some opponents extremely tough, including a 2-2 tie against ranked Belvidere on Saturday. Junior midfielder Morgan Cherry leads the 'Liners in scoring with two goals and three assists.