Cougar Soccer Camp to Run July 25 - 29

The Cranford High School boys and girls soccer programs, in conjunction with Central Jersey Celtic F.A., present their 2011 Cougar Soccer Camp at Orange Avenue School fields during the week of July 25 through July 29. The camp will run from 9:00am-1:00pm and is open for all boys and girls in grades 1-8, from beginners to advanced.

Camp directors are Cranford boys Head Varsity coach Mike Curci, girls Head Varsity coach Jen Michewitz, and P.J. Keim, President of the Central Jersey F.A.

Curci, honored as 2007 Star-Ledger Coach of the Year in Union County, led the CHS boys' varsity team to the Union County Tournament Championship in 2009, the first in the 54-year history of the program. The Cougars also nailed down their third consecutive Mountain Valley Conference Championship, while posting a record-setting 22-1-2 mark, finishing with a # 7 ranking in the Star-Ledger final Top-20. The 2009 team closed the season at 15-6 despite the loss of seven starters to graduation. The 2008 squad finished 9-1 in conference play, and own a conference record of 28-2 over the last three seasons. The 2007 team also finished with 15 wins while posting the first championship of any kind in the fifty-year history of the program. Over the last two seasons, the Cougars are 52-11-3. Curci, entering his 6^th season at CHS, began his coaching career by spending several years as an assistant to the legendary Gene Chyzowych of Columbia High School, the all-time winningest coach in state history. Curci led the Columbia J.V. to a 17-0 mark in his 2^nd season there before taking over the varsity program at Livingston H.S. where the Lancers made the state tournament all five years while facing perennial powers Columbia, Seton Hall Prep and St. Benedict's. Curci's playing career includes a conference championship at Carteret High School, before becoming a four-year starter at midfield for Seton Hall University where he led the team in goals his junior season and was named captain his senior season. In Coach C.'s five years at the helm, Cranford has gone from 35 players to 90 student/athletes wearing the white, blue and gold at the varsity, J.V. and freshmen levels. The Cougars look forward to building on their county and conference championship seasons as they continue a tradition of excellence. Mike has called Cranford home for the past 20 years with his wife Sally and their four children.

Michewitz is entering her 3rd season as girls Head Varsity Soccer Coach at Cranford. She guided the Lady Cougars to the Union County Championship in 2009, posting victories over rivals Scotch Plains and Westfield in the final two county games en route to a 16-3 record. Michewitz is a graduate of Seton Hall University where she started on the women's soccer team as a defender all 74 games of her career and was a captain her junior and senior years. In 2002, she received honorable mention for the Freshmen All-American Team, and in 2007 she earned the "Woman of the Year" Award from Seton Hall University for her accomplishments in athletics, academics and community service. Jen grew up in Pottstown, PA where she was highly involved with the Eastern Pennsylvania Soccer Association, training youth teams and coaching soccer camps. She currently lives in Westfield and teaches math at Cranford High School.

PJ Keim is President of  Central Jersey Football Academy, which currently supplies trainers to many of the local soccer clubs. He has been coaching youth soccer for over 15 years. Keim was the head coach of the two-time state cup finalist CWS Red Devils and is the current head coach of several CSC teams.. PJ has lived in Cranford for 21 years and is the father of three wonderful children.

For more information or for a camp brochure, please call Mike Curci at 908-294-2101 or PJ Keim at 908-721-2793, or email Mike at mscurci@aol.com or PJ at pjkeim@comcast.net. You can also go to www.cjceltic.com to register.