Wednesday, November 4, 2009

By Cory K. Doviak
NJS.com Editorial Director

Goalkeeper Ryan Belen kept in the game through 100 minutes of play, then helped win it with a save on Ramapo's second penalty kick as Old Tappan pulled a shocking upset, 1-0 (4-2 PKs) in the opening round of the North 1, Group 3 state sectional tournament.

FRANKLIN LAKES -- In any year leading up to this one, the Ramapo and Northern Valley/Old Tappan boys soccer teams would have been in entirely different places on Tuesday afternoon. With its No. 2 seed in the North 1, Group 3 state sectional tournament, Ramapo probably would have been jogging through a light practice, enjoying its first round bye and waiting to find out its opponent for the upcoming quarterfinals. Old Tappan on the other hand, with its sub-.500 record, might have already turned in its uniforms or preparing for a last regular season match or two.

But when the NJSIAA changed its rules for playoff qualification in an attempt to fill out the 16-team brackets and reward teams for their strength of schedule, Old Tappan found itself in the playoffs, on Ramapo’s home field and scoreless through 80 minutes of regulation and 20 minutes worth of overtime. Old Tappan was on the verge of turning around its fortunes from a regular season filled early by disappointing overtime results and one-goal losses, not to mention pulling off a huge upset.

“We weren’t that far off all year. We would lose a game by a goal or as much as two goals, but were generally always in the game even to the last minutes,” said Burgandi, Old Tappan’s assistant coach who piloted the Knights over the final 75 minutes after head coach Mike Hanchar was shown two yellow cards in the first half. “We just kind of put it together as the season went on. We learned to attack as a team, to defend as a team and today we played the best soccer that we have all year, 100 minutes of high energy, solid, well-played soccer.”

Gary Higgins nearly gave Ramapo the win with shot that was saved with 7 seconds left to go in the second overtime.

But even that was not enough to get 15th-seeded Old Tappan the win; that would have to come via a penalty kick shootout. Fortunately for the Knights, junior goal keeper Ryan Belen was playing the game of his life and when he saved Ramapo’s second PK after its first had gone wide right, Old Tappan was well on its way to a 4-2 advantage in penalty kicks and the biggest win in the history of the boys soccer program.

Nick Vizoukis knows Old Tappan’s history against Ramapo and by knocking the Knights’ final free kick into the right side of the net; he had a pretty good handle on what the win meant.

“It’s so overwhelming; it’s like a dream come true. I watched my brother [Paul] play Ramapo for years and we never beat them. I just never expected to beat them and get them out of the state tournament,” said Vizoukis, a junior. “When we got the chance to do it on my penalty kick I was just thinking don’t show the keeper anything. I chose my side way before and I just stuck to it and just put it in.”

For Ramapo, the No. 2 seed, it was a game of missed opportunities. The Green Raiders held Old Tappan two just two shots and only one on goal through regulation while generating a few quality chances of their ownb, one on a pretty combination 10 seconds before halftime.

Nick Vizoukis netted the final PK to end years of Old Tappan frustration against Ramapo.

Freshman Vincent Brunetti, stepping into a lineup that has seen its fair share of injuries this season, made a dangerous run up the left side and sent in a low cross that that eluded Belen and rolled into a pile at the far post. The ball bounced back to the first post where Brunetti had followed the play and got a flick that was right on target, but Belen had scrambled back into position just in time to keep the game scoreless heading into the break.

“Ryan Belen was outstanding. We have been working with him on coming out stronger off his line and he has really put it all together,” said Burgandi. “He is truly the type of kid that can control a game back there and the type of kid that can clearly play in college.”

Belen made another tough save less than two minutes into the second half when Tommy Garrambone slid around a rolling ball in the box and swung it back on net, forcing Belen low and to his right. Ramapo also had two shots at open nets after scrambles, one in the 55th minute and one in the 71st minute, but both flew the crossbar and left the game scoreless heading into the first overtime session, which passed relatively uneventfully.

Old Tappan's Collin Russo about to strike his successful penalty kick.

There was one flurry four minutes into the second overtime on which both teams generated chances. Old Tappan’s came first when Vizoukis sent a pass on the ground that was heading toward a wide-open Joe Russo, who had over-lapped from the back and had barely stayed on-side. But before the ball could get to Russo’s foot, Ramapo Mike Taranto slid and toed the ball before it got by him to break up the timing.

It led to an Old Tappan throw-in that and then to a Ramapo counter that was engineered by Charlie O’Connor, who carried the ball 80 yards then dropped it for Mike Berardo, who got off a shot that was blocked by a defender before it could get to Belen. The ricochet found the foot of Garrambone, but his shot was knocked down by Matthias Kabete and that left Ramapo with just one more chance, probably its most dangerous and at the zero hour.

With the scoreboard clock showing the official time, Ramapo’s Gary Higgins could see that there were less than 10 seconds to go before the shootout and he broke through the defense to Belen’s left. Higgins spit two defenders and was on the doorstep with possession and rolled a shot toward the far post only to see Belen make an all-out dive to his right and make a finger-tip save just as time was about to expire.

“I watched him go toward the sideline and then cut in towards the front post. I saw him take the ball back a little and then take another touch,” said Belen, describing Higgins route toward the near game-winner. “The ball was on the ground, I didn’t think he was going to be able to get it in the air, so I made a dive for it. I guessed right.”

After holding off Ramapo for 100 minutes, Old Tappan (5-8-3) finally gained the upper hand when Ramapo’s first PK sailed wide of the mark. Ryan Walsh knocked OT’s first shot from the dot into the right hand side and Belen followed with a save on a shot in the air to his left. What Ramapo did after that was moot as Seungri Chang, Collin Russo and Vizoukis all converted their chances to close out the upset and set off a celebration in the fading sunlight.

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