2026 Boys Soccer NJSIAA Tournament Preview: The Shore in Group 4

The No. 1 ranking in New Jersey High School Boys Soccer is almost always decided in the last two rounds of the NJSIAA Non-Public A Tournament, but from start to finish, the Group IV tournament is the most competitive of the six group tournaments in N.J. Almost every team that makes the field is a threat, starting with the first round of the tournament, as Toms River North showed by winning the South Jersey section as a No. 16 seed in 2019 and North Brunswick demonstrated as a No. 9 seed in Central Jersey on its way to reaching the Group IV final.

Only seven Shore Conference teams are in this year’s Group IV field, which is more than the Shore has in Group I, but less than in both Group II and III. What makes that collection of seven teams unique is that all seven are seeded No. 7 or better in their respective sections, meaning all seven will host a first-round game. Considering the 2025 champion in Central Jersey (North Brunswick) was a No. 9 seed and the South Jersey champion (Southern) a No. 5, those seeds are right in the wheelhouse for this year’s Shore Conference Group IV hopefuls.

 

Central Jersey Group IV

Shore Teams in the Field: No. 1 Freehold Township, No. 4 Manalapan, No. 6 Howell, No. 7 Marlboro
No. 1 Seed: Freehold Twp.
Defending Champion: No. 16 North Brunswick

Favorite: Freehold Twp. In a section full of teams capable of winning a championship, a No. 1 seed with a unique home field holds at least a slight edge. With all the talent Freehold Township has throughout its formation, playing on turf might actually be better for the Patriots than playing on its unpredictable grass surface, but they will know it better than their opponents. Beyond the field, there is further reason to favor Freehold Township. A 5-1 win over Freehold Boro on Saturday ended a run of seven straight shutouts by Freehold Township, with the only loss in that stretch a penalty-kick defeat at the hands of Manasquan in the Shore Conference Tournament quarterfinals.

Dark Horse: No. 11 Steinert. Last year, North Brunswick won Central Jersey Group IV as a No. 9 seed and the Raiders are the No. 16 seed this year. That is a nice encapsulation of what Central Jersey Group IV can offer in its depth and potential for unpredictability. Double-digit seeds are in play for a run to the championship game and Steinert jumps out as a team that has been battle-tested in Mercer County and – with a win over Marlboro to open the season – beyond.

 

Bracket Breakdown: The list of title contenders in Central Group IV is lengthy and all four Shore teams in the field are on it. Freehold Township has an inside track as the No. 1 seed, but based on the full body of work, no Shore team has been more consistent than Manalapan — a recent loss to 9-9 Spotswood notwithstanding. The Braves didn’t load up their non-division schedule quite as much as Freehold Township did, but Manalapan has beaten CBA, Howell and Toms River North. On the other hand, Marlboro played the Braves to a draw and No. 8 East Brunswick hammered Manalapan, 6-0. Getting through No. 13 Montgomery and No. 5 Hunterdon Central is not a given, nor is Freehold Township’s road to the semifinals, but a collision between Manalapan and Freehold Township could be on tap for the second week of the tournament.

In most years, a 16-3 Howell team would be a favorite in a Group IV section, but with the Rebels – traditionally a Class A North team – playing in Class B North this season, this year’s 16 wins featured some more smaller schools than usual. Still, Howell has proven worthy of being considered among the top teams in the section. They beat No. 1 Freehold Township, 4-1, on Oct. 2 and played Manalapan tough in a 1-0 loss in the Shore Conference Tournament round of 16.

Marlboro hit a rut last week, losing to Toms River East, 2-1, in the SCT quarterfinals, then dropping a 4-0 rout to Freehold Township. The final week of the regular season has been a mixed bag with a 1-0 win over Toms River North and a 3-1 loss to Middletown South, but with a win over No. 2 Princeton and a tie vs. Manalapan, the evidence to support Marlboro as a championship threat is there.

 

Prediction: No. 3 Monroe over Manalapan. As the No. 1 seed, Monroe fell victim to an upset loss to North Brunswick in last year’s sectional quarterfinal and return a quality roster that will be motivated in a way that few teams in the state tournament will be motivated. The Falcons have a strong state tournament track record and Middlesex County is in the midst of a solid run of soccer for the county and conference. On the other side of the bracket, Manalapan has been a dependable team from the start of the season and senior goalkeeper Chase Lee is a big part of that. A trip to Freehold Township would be a showdown of two of the Shore’s most talented teams and Lee could be the difference-maker on the road, especially if playing on grass disrupts the possession of both teams.

 

Round-by-Round Picks

Opening Round
(1) Freehold Twp. over (16) North Brunswick
(8) East Brunswick over (9) South Brunswick
(5) Hunterdon Central over (12) New Brunswick
(4) Manalapan over (13) Montgomery
(3) Monroe over (14) Edison
(11) Steinert over (6) Howell
(7) Marlboro over (10) Old Bridge
(2) Princeton over (7) Marlboro

Quarterfinals
(1) Freehold Twp. over (8) East Brunswick
(4) Manalapan over (5) Hunterdon Central
(3) Monroe over (11) Steinert
(2) Princeton over (7) Marlboro

Semifinals
(4) Manalapan over (1) Freehold Twp.
(3) Monroe over (2) Princeton

Championship
(3) Monroe over (4) Manalapan

 

South Jersey Group IV

Shore Teams in the Field: No. 4 Southern, No. 5 Jackson, No. 7 Toms River North
No. 1 Seed: Eastern
Defending Champion: Southern

Favorite: No. 2 Kingsway. In recent seasons, the South Jersey bracket has become one of the state’s more unpredictable sectional tournaments and in each of the last two years, Southern was the team to take advantage by winning the championship. This year’s version of SJ IV might be the most unpredictable yet. No. 1 Eastern got bounced from the South Jersey Coaches Cup by Cumberland after a 13-0-2 start to the season and while the Vikings’ defense has been sound throughout the year, the attack has been more opportunistic than intimidating. Kingsway, meanwhile, started the season 1-5-1 and has gone 9-1-2 since. Eastern has been the better team from start-to-finish, but Kingsway is the hot team in the section.

Dark Horse: No. 15 Washington Township. In each of the last two years, the Minutemen have been eliminated on their home field as the No. 1 seed in the section – by Central Regional in the 2024 quarterfinals and by Southern in last year’s semifinal round. This year, Washington is going to have to go on the road and perhaps the underdog mindset will benefit a battle-tested team. No. 12 Williamstown and No. 14 Lenape are two other high seeds that will have a chance to make a run after up-and-down regular seasons and No. 9 Egg Harbor has a favorable draw as a sub-.500 team that could hoist the trophy.

Bracket Breakdown: In each of the past two seasons, Southern flew under the radar during the season before hitting its stride in the NJSIAA Tournament. This year’s team has a chance to write the same ending to this year’s season with a third consecutive sectional championship. The Rams went 4-0 last week after falling to 4-7-2 and appear to be hitting their stride heading into a first-round matchup against a capable No. 13 seed in Millville.

Jackson is a potential quarterfinal opponent of Southern and the Jaguars would be thrilled to dethrone the two-time defending champions. Southern and Jackson played to a scoreless tie in Jackson during Shore Conference Tournament group play and the rematch would be in Stafford. If both teams can dodge a first-round upset, the Shore Conference would be guaranteed a team in the semifinals and either would be capable of taking out Eastern – assuming the Vikings get through the first two rounds.

Before Southern became a November darling in the fall of 2024, Toms River North was the Shore team that struck fear in the hearts of prospective opponents in South Jersey. The Mariners won three straight sectional titles from 2019 to 2021, reached the sectional finals in 2023 and made it to the sectional semifinals in 2022 and 2024. Last year was a rare first-round exit and that was a Mariners team that struggled to score. This year’s team has had no such issues and will set out to overwhelm the rest of South Jersey with its high-scoring attack.

Prediction: Toms River North over Eastern. While the magic of the early 2020’s has worn off of Toms River North, the Mariners have a formation and talent pool that is similar to the team that won the 2019 South Jersey Group IV title as a No. 16 seed. Chris Ruggiero and Abraham Torres are one of the best duos at the Shore and a showdown with a very good defensive team in Eastern would be a fascinating championship clash.

Round-by-Round Picks

Opening Round
(1) Eastern over (16) Atlantic Tech
(9) Egg Harbor over (8) Gloucester Tech
(5) Jackson over (12) Williamstown
(4) Southern over (13) Millville
(3) Cherokee over (14) Lenape
(6) Cherry Hill East over (11) Rancocas Valley
(7) Toms River North over (10) Pennsauken
(15) Washington Twp. over (2) Kingsway

Quarterfinals
(1) Eastern over (9) Egg Harbor
(4) Southern over (5) Jackson
(3) Cherokee over (6) Cherry Hill East
(7) Toms River North over (15) Washington Twp.

Semifinals
(1) Eastern over (4) Southern
(7) Toms River North over (3) Cherokee

Championship
(7) Toms River North over (1) Eastern