Sports
Ridgewood Boys Soccer In Danger of Missing Counties
The Maroons not only dropped a game in the Big North-III, but might have also dropped out of contention for the County tournament.
The Ridgewood boys soccer team entered its match up against Hackensack with a chance to solidify their position in the county tournament with a win while also seizing full control of their league, the Big North Conference Division III.
However, the Maroons accomplished neither, instead the team fell to the Comets 4-3 in heart-breaking fashion, losing on a sudden death overtime goal.
"These guys have a lot to learn," said a disappointed Craig Mahler, the team's coach.
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"This was a big game in so many ways for us, but we came out flat while Hackensack looked like they were the ones with something to play for."
The Comets (3-5) took advantage of the lackadaisical play from the Maroons by building an early lead before capping it off with Miguel Murillo's golden goal which came just 7:00 minutes in to the first overtime period.
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"We've lost a lot of close games, but I feel like this is the type of performance that can really get us going to finish the season strong," noted Murillo, who gathered a loose ball six yards out of the box before knocking in the game winner.
The Maroons on the other hand seem to be headed in the opposite direction, coming out noticeably lethargic to begin the game and fell behind to the underdog Comets 3-1.
At that point, Coach Mahler had enough. Mahler told his entire bench to start warming up because the regulars "didn't look like they wanted to play."
The motivational tactic paid off briefly as the Maroons stormed back with just under 20:00 left in regulation.
Team Captain Griffin Abbott led the charge by netting two goals in a span of just 1:45, tying the score back at 3-3.
However, it just wasn't enough with Murillo's goal and because of it Ridgewood's hopes of playing in the county tournament are now in serious jeopardy. This was the last game before the cutoff to qualify for the county tournament and the Maroons now find themselves on the outside looking in, which was an unimaginable position just a few games ago.
Just last week Ridgewood was ranked 18th in Northern New Jersey and sitting pretty at 4-1, but following consecutive losses to Northern Highlands (4-0) and Hackensack, the Maroons destiny is no longer in their hands.
"Alls we can do now is hope and pray," said Mahler.
