Wednesday, November 11, 2009

By Rich Barton
NJS.com Staff Writer

Matiss Batarags (21) scored with 11:36 to go to give Northern Highlands a 2-1 win over Old Tappan in the North 1, Group 3 state sectional semifinals on Tuesday in Allendale.

ALLENDALE – Holding a one-goal lead against Northern Valley/Old Tappan on Tuesday, the players from Northern Highlands had every reason to feel confident. In their two regular season meetings, Northern Highlands pitched two shutouts and allowed just seven shots on net in those two victories. But when NV/OT’s Joey Rizzo scored to tie the game in the second half, Northern Highlands knew beating the Golden Knights for a third time was not going to be as easy.

Old Tappan, the No. 15 seed, made some huge defensive plays along the goal line to maintain the tie, but the Golden Knights could only hold off the Highlanders for so long. Matiss Batarags’ shot trickled just over the goal line with 11:36 to play to end Old Tappan’s upset-laden run and boost Northern Highlands into the North 1, Group 3 final with a 2-1 win at Northern Highlands High School.

“We had to keep believing in each other and keeping our heads up when they tied it up,” said Northern Highlands head coach Pat Naughter. “Old Tappan has been playing great lately and you know you’re going to get 100-percent effort out of them. It’s a soccer game and you’re going to face adversity from everyone at this point in the season. It could have been a backbreaking goal, but we turned into a positive and found a way to win.”

Old Tappan's Joey Rizzo flipping out after scoring the equalizer.

Northern Highlands took control from the outset and had numerous scoring chances throughout the first half before finally breaking through in the 35th minute. Sweeper Alex Sonageri moved into the attack on a set piece, which was initially cleared out of danger. But the ball rolled right to the Highlanders’ Steven DiBella, who played it back in over the Old Tappan back line. Sonageri made another run and volleyed the ball out of the air and into the net with 4:45 left in the half to give Northern Highlands a 1-0 lead.

Although it struggled to get going offensively in the first half, Old Tappan continued to battle and tied the game early in the second half. Just over six minutes into the second half, sophomore Joey Rizzo flicked a long throw-in from Sean Reilly inside the far post to knot the score at 1 and give the Golden Knights plenty of life.

“I thought for really only the second time all year, we were a little disjointed in the back for a stretch and Old Tappan took advantage,” added Naughter. “(Rizzo) was first to the ball and scored a great goal. We didn’t want to give up the lead, but it also heightened our awareness level. This was it and if we didn’t score, we were either looking at overtime or the end of our season.”

Highlands' sweeper Alex Sonageri moved up to knock in the game's first goal.

After giving up the tying goal, the Highlanders went right back on the attack and nearly scored minutes later. Old Tappan sweeper Chris Caserta made a goal-line save off of a corner kick to fuel the Golden Knights’ upset win over Passaic Valley. He did the exact same thing yesterday on a Nick Picache header off of a Highlander corner kick.

With 16 minutes left, Ryan Belen made a point-blank save and Reilly saved the rebound at the goal line before clearing it away. A minute later, Picache had a clear shot from 20 yards out that went just wide of the left post.

“It was a little frustrating because we had so many chances, but we had to keep working hard,” said Northern Highlands’ Alex Sonageri. “Their defense was making some great plays and we just had to keep working. We worked too hard to let this game get away from us.”

The Highlanders were running out of time in regulation against a stingy Old Tappan defense, but not out of opportunities to win the game. Picache broke in alone, only to be turned away from another point-blank save from Belen. But this time, the ball bounced right to Batarags. The senior striker got enough of a foot on the ball to sneak it past Belen, who was trying recover after being on the ground to save the initial shot. The ball was bouncing along the goal line before trickling over for the game-winner with 11:36 to play.

“I saw it go in, but I didn’t know if the refs were going to call it or not,” said Batarags. “It was a relief when they called it a goal. Nick (Picache) shot the ball hard at the keeper and I was right there. The ball bounced right to me and I had to put the ball in the net.”

Chris Caserta and the Old Tappan defense were stingy all game long.

Old Tappan had fantastic upset wins over Ramapo and Passaic Valley in the first two rounds, but finally ran out of miracles. They only got off one shot over the final 11:36 and their run ended in the section semis. Although the loss was a bitter one, the journey from seven straight losses to start the season to the section semifinals was certainly a positive experience.

“We had a really nice run and these kids deserve it,” said Old Tappan head coach Mike Hanchar. “I thought we played as well as we could play today. We gave it everything we had and we left it all out there on the field. We were under fire most of the game and I think we ran out of steam a little bit. Today, Northern Highlands was just a little better than we were. We played beyond a level that we thought we were capable of at the beginning of the season. I think this is a great for our seniors and a great building block for next year.”

Belen led another outstanding performance by the Old Tappan (6-11-2) defense with 12 saves. His counterpart, Jake Miller, finished with six saves for Northern Highlands (13-4-1).

Northern Highlands advances to the North 1, Group 3 final on Friday, where it will face high-scoring Montville. The Mustangs have scored a whopping 19 goals in their three state tournament wins, including Tuesday’s 6-2 win over Paramus.

It will be the toughest test the Highlanders’ defense will face all year, but a test they are looking forward to taking.

“We have been always been big on defense and we know Montville is going to be a good test for us,” added Sonageri. “To get to a section final, we know they are a very good team. We consider ourselves a pretty strong team too with a nitty-gritty defense. It’s going to be a battle and we’ve been waiting all year for this, so we’re excited to get back out there.”

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