Field hockey: WH-NH set for title clash (HWS ranks)

We have quite a week on tap with the 12th Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament championship set for Saturday, which also happens to be the cutoff date for the sectional playoffs that begin in just a few weeks. It's all moving so fast.

As expected, top seed Warren Hills will take on No. 2 seed North Hunterdon in one of the most anticipated county title games. Action begins at 11 a.m. on Saturday on the turf at Newton High School's Palmer Field.

Warren Hills (11-2), which lost to North Hunterdon in a 3-2 overtime thriller on Sept. 30, has won a tournament-record seven championships and is looking to avenge the program's first loss to the Lions since 2009. Coach Josie Potter's team will square off against North for a third time on Oct. 21 on the road at Singley Field. That one will likely decide this year's Skyland Conference Raritan Division title.

North Hunterdon (10-1) controlled its own destiny in the division race after the win over Hills, but a 4-3 loss in overtime to Pingry on Oct. 5, opened the door for the Blue Streaks, who can't overlook a classic trap game at Phillipsburg this Thursday.

As for the HWS Tournament, North earned its first county final appearance since 1990, when the event did not include Sussex County. The Lions are also seeking the program's first championship since going back-to-back in the former H-W event in 1985-86.

"Everything is sort of new for us," first-year coach Geoff Chrisman said in a recent interview. "We have our goals, but we never look ahead."

North's already formidable lineup was bolstered by the addition of senior Lily Kumar, a former star at Mount St. Mary and University of Pennsylvania commit, who became transfer-eligible last week and was not in the lineup against Warren Hills last month.

"She's a midfielder-forward type, big and athletic," Chrisman said. "She's a great team player."

After the tournament was cancelled in 2020 due to the pandemic, Warren Hills is set to play for its eighth championship and third in the last four events.

"We're really excited to play," said senior forward Maddie Summitt, a Ball State commit and one of just two senior starters for the Streaks. 

Warren Hills will renew another rivalry when it hosts Voorhees on Saturday, Oct. 23. This year's game was originally slated for this Saturday, but kudos to Streaks AD Mike Jones and his counterpart, Brian Baumann, for getting a new date. 

Voorhees (7-6), which is in the midst of its third six-loss season in five years, owns a 34-28-6 edge overall dating to 1975, but Hills has won eight of the last nine, including three-game sweeps in 2017 and '19 for the first time in series history. The teams did not meet in 2020, the first series interruption since 1999.

"It's always a great game," Summitt said.

Now, onto this week's rankings (records are through Monday):

1. Warren Hills (11-2) -- Blue Streaks capped a 3-0 week with a 1-0 win over Vernon on Saturday in the Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament semifinals at Hunterdon Central. The victory improved the Streaks to 37-4 overall in HWS games since the event's inception in 2009. Super sophomore Sarah Salameh had the game-winner, her 11th goal of the season. Senior forward Maddie Summitt scored a pair of goals in Tuesday's 3-0 win over Central -- giving her 43 career and moving her past Erin Fitts and Gail Petteruti (41) for 12th place on the program's all-time goals list. Summitt also ranks 12th in career points (109).

Up next: at Montgomery today; at Phillipsburg on Thursday; North Hunterdon in the Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament championship game at Newton on Saturday.

North eyes its first county title in 25 years.

2. North Hunterdon (10-1) -- Lions, despite their 3-2 win in overtime against Warren Hills on Sept. 30, fall out of the top spot after a 4-3 loss in OT against Pingry on Tuesday. Coach Geoff Chrisman's team had been in the driver's seat for the Skyland Conference Raritan Division title before that stunning loss. Junior forward Lauren Masters logged five goals and two assists in the team's wins over Ridge (7-1 on Thursday) and Lenape Valley (7-0 on Saturday) as North moved into its first Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament final with the latter victory. Senior Ryan Anderson had two goals against Ridge and junior Sara Roberts posted four assists in those wins.

Up next: at Voorhees today; Montgomery at home on Thursday; Warren Hills in the Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament championship game at Newton on Saturday.

3. Phillipsburg (6-7) -- Stateliners rebounded from losses to Warren Hills (2-1 in the Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament quarterfinals on Oct. 4) and Hillsborough (4-2 on Oct. 5) with a 5-1 win over Montgomery on Thursday. Senior Madison Darmstadt, a Stonehill College commit, shifted from defense to center forward and the move paid off nicely as she scored three goals in the win -- her first career hat trick. Maybe she can provide the spark that coach Toni Popinko is looking for on offense. The former Warren Hills star would love nothing more than for her team to snap the program's 28-game skid against the Streaks dating to 2008, when the schools meet for a third time on Thursday.

Up next: at Ridge today; Warren Hills at home on Thursday.

4. Lenape Valley (10-2-1) -- Patriots saw their six-game win streak snapped with a 7-0 loss to North Hunterdon in the Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament semifinals on Saturday. That followed wins over Hunterdon Central (2-1 in the quarterfinals on Oct. 4) and Kittatinny (5-0 on Thursday). Coach Isabelle Becker's team opened this week with a 1-0 win against Sparta on Monday as senior forward Angie Falleni scored the winning goal -- her seven in the last five games and team-leading 10th of the season.

Up next: Wallkill Valley at home on Wednesday; at Newton on Friday.

5. Vernon (10-4) -- Vikings opened last week with wins over High Point (4-0 in the Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament quarterfinals) and Wallkill Valley (3-1 on Thursday) before a tough 1-0 loss to Warren Hills in the HWS semifinals on Saturday. It was the Sussex County school's first appearance in the tri-county Final Four in its 12-year history and the first with two Sussex teams in the semis since 2011. Senior Julia Gregory scored three goals in Monday's 10-0 win over North Warren.

Up next: Mount Olive at home on Wednesday; at Jefferson on Saturday.

6. Hunterdon Central (4-7) -- Red Devils capped a 1-2 week with a 3-2 win over Watchung Hills on Thursday. Senior forward Sarah DeStefano logged her team-leading seventh goal, while sophomore forward Amanda Walker added a pair of assists. Junior Laurel Hanrahan scored two goals for coach Jenn Sponzo's team, which saw its Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex Tournament run end with a 2-1 loss to Lenape Valley -- just the program's second loss in nine quarterfinal appearances in the event's 12-year history.

Up next: at Bridgewater-Raritan today; Voorhees at home on Thursday.

7. Belvidere (7-3) -- County Seaters went 2-1 last week, including a big 1-0 win over South Hunterdon on Saturday -- avenging a 2-1 loss in overtime to the Eagles just two days prior in a key Skyland Conference Mountain Division tilts. Coach Beth Franceschino's team entered this week at 6-2 in divisional play -- a half-game ahead of South (6-3) for second place. Both are chasing first-place Mount St. Mary (11-1, 8-0 division). Junior forward Kayla Connors scored the winning goal against South and logged two in a 4-0 win over Somerville.

Up next: Mount St. Mary at home on Thursday; North Warren at home on Saturday.

8. Hackettstown (7-5) -- Tigers, who had won six of seven, dropped a 1-0 decision to West Morris on Monday after back-to-back wins against High Point (3-2 on Friday) and Kittatinny (6-0 on Saturday). Sophomore forward Kierra Koeller scored a pair of goals against High Point and added an assist vs. Kittatinny. Freshman forward Brynn Otto logged two goals and an assist against the Cougars, giving her five goals on the season and four in five games.

Up next: Jefferson at home on Wednesday; at North Warren on Friday.

9. Newton (9-4) -- Braves bounced back from a 6-0 loss to North Hunterdon in the Hunterdon-Warren-Sussex quarterfinals on Oct. 4, with wins over Sparta (3-0 on Thursday), High Point (2-1 on Saturday) before opening this week with a 2-1 win at Mount Olive on Monday. Seniors Julia Fitt and Julia Decker continued their fine seasons, combining for four goals and seven assists during the three-game win streak. Fitt logged three assists against Sparta, giving her a team-best 14.

Up next: Lenape Valley at home on Friday; at Wallkill Valley on Saturday.

10. South Hunterdon (7-4-1) -- Eagles climbed back in the rankings following wins over Voorhees (1-0 on Oct. 5) and Belvidere (2-1 in overtime on Thursday). Junior midfielder Willa Ludwig scored the winning goal against the Vikes and junior forward Kylie Masterson had the OT winner against the Seaters. Junior Sarah Faherty logged two goals in Monday's 3-0 win over North Plainfield.

Up next: at Delaware Valley on Thursday; Franklin at home on Saturday.

On the bubble

Voorhees (7-6) -- Vikes fell out of our rankings for the first time since we began in 2011, following a 1-0 loss to South Hunterdon on Oct. 5. Senior midfielder Sadie Eichlin scored the winning goal -- her team-leading 11th overall -- in Thursday's 1-0 win in overtime against Bernards. It was the program's 689th overall dating to 1975.

High Point (5-8) -- Wildcats lost their third straight with a 2-1 setback against Newton on Saturday. Senior forward Kenna Boutillette scored the goal and senior forward Audra Flannery had the assist. 'Cats will host Kittatinny in their annual Play for Pink cancer awareness game on Thursday.

Wallkill Valley (8-5) -- Rangers, who have won three of their last four, improved to 5-0 in the NJAC Colonial Division race with a 1-0 win over Jefferson on Monday. Senior Natalie Armstrong assisted on the winning goal.