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Annie Elberg (30) who is one of the ace defenders for Newark Academy, takes control of ball vs. Livingston and freshman sensation Mahlia Drummond (15) displayed her immeense skills at the most opportune time in scoring the only goal of the match with 23:44 left as the sixth-seeded Minutemen won their first Essex County Tournament championship with 1-0 victory over the previously-undefeated, 7th ranked and top-seeded Lancers in 43rd ECT final Wednesday Oct. 28th at James Caldwell High's Bonnel Field. (Photos by Jeff Stiefbold)
WEST CALDWELL- It has certainly been a historic Essex County Tournament run for Newark Academy, what with upsets over both third-seed Verona and second-seeded Montclair Kimberley Academy leading up to Wednesday night’s (Oct. 28) first-ever appearance in an ECT final for the Minutemen, who had to match their superb talents against a history-laden program in top-seeded and undefeated No. 7 ranked Livingston Lancers with their 17 tourney finals and 8 championships under their collective belts. And, for the first 56 minutes of the 43rd ECT final it appeared that the match was perhaps leaning toward the nearly-always-effective approach of Livingston (14-1-1), which regularly plays almost impenetrable defense having allowed just four goals all season entering Wednesday evening’s showdown with a bit of an upstart in sixth-seeded Newark Academy (14-2-2), which comes from the Super Essex Conference’s second-best division, the Liberty, and had not even appeared in a ECT semifinal in 16 years.. Enter freshman sensation Mahlia Drummond who hadn’t even been on the pitch at the start of the match after having to make the trip from Somerset where she had been attending a U.S. Youth National Team ID Camp. She arrived at Bonnel Field and quickly took the field with just under 10:00 left in the first half which had to raise the spirits of her mostly young teammates on a roster with just four seniors and nine freshmen and six sophomores As it turned out Drummond had entered the match with plenty of time on her team’s side. She found the ultimate opportunity of the evening when she broke free on left flank and moved in on a breakaway opportunity while firing a perfectly-placed shot into the back of the net with 23:44 remaining for what would prove to be the only goal of the evening as the Minutemen were able to withstand a late flurry of shots by the persistent Lancers to earn pulsating 1-0 victory and the program’s first-ever ECT title.. “With us winning the first county championship in school history it does feel like this is a banner year for us,” said Newark Academy’s eighth-year head coach Scott Rowling. “It seems like we’ve been proving people wrong all season and especially during this great tournament run. “I’m super proud of the girls! They’re just amazing and I’m excited to see us keep it going in the state tournament.” Newark Academy is the No. 2 seed in Non-Public A of the NJSIAA tourney and open up action on Thursday, Nov. 5, hosting the survivor of 10-St. Elizabeth vs. 7-Oak Knoll. The states can still wait for just a bit, though, as the young Minutemen can take time to relish a special ECT championship run which included knocking off the top three seeds in the event. “We had to beat Verona and then MKA twice in three days (1-0, Oct. 22, in the prep B tourney, and then 1-0, in a penalty kick shootout Oct. 24 in the ECT semifinals),” said Rowling. ““We may have been a 6-seed, but I knew that we were one of the two top teams in the county this season and that we could get revenge against Livingston (which had defeatd Newark Academy, 2-0, in an SEC crossover back on Oct. 2). “I’m just so happy for our girls. They’ve worked so hard all season long, and they deserve this county championship!” Drummond and junior Grace Olayinka (7 goals on the season) are a pair of very talented forwards to be reckoned with, and Olayinka created much of the movement attempting to penetrate Livingston’s superb back 4 during the first half. Having Drummond’s presence added to the possibilities for the entire second half just enhanced the possibilities of making an ultimate thrust in the Lancers’ end. That ultimate moment finally came with her ability to find space and take full advantage of an opportunity that doesn’t come very often against one of the best defenses in the state. “Mahlia is so dangerous on the run, and when she gets that first step on somebody and recognizes that the goalie is coming out watch out,” continued Rowling. “We talk about breakaways and just slotting I,t and it is hard to beat her in space plus she’s able to place the ball so well. “Nobody is beating her in space and no one’s really catching her. Then it’s just a matter of her executing and finishing that ball and she did exactly what she had to do to score in that pivotal moment of the game.” In burying her 22nd goal of the season, the precious freshman was just happy afterwards for just having been in that position to achieve such open space at the most opportune time. “That’s my thing,” she said after celebrating with her teammates and a large contingent of Minutemen fans. “I look to take those opportunities in open space, then shoot and hopefully score! “I knew that time was becoming a factor and that I needed to make something happen right there in that moment and I was fortunately able to score a goal that would bring us a championship!” Newark Academy then had to withstand a late flurry by Livington, which included solid opportunities on shots by both the veteran, high-scoring forward Emily Fernandes and the outstanding sophomore midfielder Arielle Stein that just missed their mark, and with Newark Academy sophomore goalkeeper Leila Chatterjee also coming up with a couple of her 12 saves in a superlative effort in the final. “Obviously they are pushing really up high at that point, but our defense locked in they kicked it out, and they all put their life on their line,” said Chatterjee. “It was a great effort by my teammates around me and we have withstood that type of pressure in situations like that throughout our tournament run.” Junior Annie Elberg, sophomore Mia Bjorkedal and freshman Quinn Ulrich were among the stellar defenders for the Minutemen. “Our team is so good,” continued Chatterjee. “All the newspapers were saying it’s been an upset run, but we don’t feel that it’s been upsets. “Our defense, our offense, our entire team are so strong and we have great team bonding which has helped us reach this point, and with a game-changing player like Mahlia always there to make a big play we’re tough to stop.” Follow Steve Tober on 'X' @Chattermeister Essex County Girls Soccer Tournament Finals: Most Titles Won: Most Consecutive Titles: Most Appearances In Final: Most Consecutive Finals:
Newark Academy has some of the top young talent in Essex County with the very exciting freshman forward Mahlia Drummond (15), sophomore goalkeeper Leila Chatterjee (99) and junior defender Annie Elberg (30). copyright 2005 Sideline Chatter - to comment contact the webmaster
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