NJSIAA Preview: CBA, Pingry Clash for South Non-Public A Soccer Title
NJSIAA South Jersey Non-Public A Championship
Thursday, Nov. 13, 2025
At The Pingry School
No. 2 Christian Brothers Academy at No. 1 Pingry, 2 p.m.
CBA at a Glance
Head Coach: Tom Mulligan
Record: 16-2-4
Last Sectional Championship: 2023
Last Sectional Final Appearance: 2023
Road to the Final
Quarterfinals: Junior Shane Landau scored on a breakaway in the 73rd minute off a long pass from senior Trey Higgins and the Colts survived a challenge from seventh-seeded St. Thomas Aquinas by a 1-0 score. Junior goalkeeper Brady Lepore made a key save in the second half to uphold the clean sheet.
Semifinals: Senior James Brady scored the golden goal 12 seconds into overtime and CBA beat fellow perennial South Jersey contender and No. 3 seed St. Augustine, 2-1. The Colts jumped out to a 1-0 lead on a penalty kick by senior Will Drechsler near the midway point of the first half before St. Augustine equalized in the 62nd on a goal by John Lamanteer. At the overtime whistle, senior Finn McCarthy blasted the ball deep and Brady flagged it down, the banked a left-footed shot off the left post and in for the game-winner.
CBA senior James Brady. (Photo: Tom Smith | tspsportsimages.com)
Players to Watch
James Brady, Sr., Midfield/Forward (16 goals, 6 assists)
Will Drechsler, Sr., Midfield (9 goals, 5 assists)
Charlie Messano, Sr., Defense (3 goals, 1 assist)
Joe Guastella, So., Midfield (5 goals, 8 assists)
Ryan Asadi, Sr., Forward (7 goals, 2 assists)
Finn McCarthy, Sr., Defense (2 goals, 1 assist)
Justin Arias, Jr., Forward (1 goal, 8 assists)
John Little, Jr., Forward (4 goals, 3 assists)
Devon Cale, Sr., Defense
Trey Higgins, Sr., Defense (2 assists)
Brady Lepore, Jr., Goalkeeper
CBA junior goalkeeper Brady LePore stretches for a save. (Photo: Tom Smith | tspsportsimages.com)
Pingry at a Glance
Head Coach: Miller Bugliari
Record: 17-2
Last Sectional Championship: 2024
Last Sectional Final Appearance: 2024
Road to the Final
Quarterfinals: Sophomore Julian Lopez posted a hat trick and assisted another goal to lead a Pingry onslaught in an 8-0 Big Blue win over eighth-seeded Paul VI. Junior Arjun Hoshing added a goal and two assists and freshman Johan Guarin contributed a goal and an assist.
Semifinals: Lopez followed up his quarterfinal hat trick with a four-goal performance for the ages. The sophomore striker racked up a hat trick to establish a 3-1 lead over fourth-seeded and undefeated St. Joseph of Metuchen and after the Falcons rallied to tie the game in the 66th minute, Lopez scored his fourth goal of the match to break the tie in the 77th minute and send Pingry to the sectional final.
Players to Watch
Julian Lopez, So., Forward (22 goals, 5 assists)
Arjun Hoshing, Jr., Forward (12 goals, 12 assists)
Vinnie Ferraro, Sr., Forward (13 goals, 9 assists)
Harrison Hackett, Sr., Midfield (3 goals, 11 assists)
Andrew Marturano, So., Midfield (1 goal, 8 assists)
Henry Foster, Sr., Defense (2 goals, 5 assists)
Ryan Stern, Jr., Defense (6 goals, 2 assists)
Brian Anders, Jr., Midfield (3 goals, 2 assists)
Colton Gedoric, So., Defense (2 assists)
Aiden Jereth, So., Midfield (3 assists)
Anthony Huannou, So., Forward/Midfield (7 goals, 3 assists)
Ryan Miller, Fr., Goalkeeper
CBA senior Will Dreschler dribbles through traffic during a regular-season match vs. Holmdel. (Photo: Tom Smith | tspsportsimages.com)
Pingry ended the 2024 season by nearly pulling off a colossal upset in the NJSIAA Non-Public A championship game vs. St. Benedict’s, which won on an overtime goal that was aided by a keeper slipping on a wet field. That march to the brink of a state championship began with an early-season statement against the defending South Jersey Non-Public A champion, CBA. The Colts made a September trip to Pingry and swallowed a 5-0 loss to the Big Blue.
A little more than 14 months later, CBA will return to Miller Bugliari Field a more seasoned, battle-hardened team than the one that was overmatched on the scoreboard two Septembers ago.
“Our goal is to win,” senior center midfielder Will Drechsler said. “We know Pingry is a nationally-ranked team, or at least has been this season. They are a top two or three team in the state. The fact that we made it here with a chance to go play on an iconic field in New Jersey soccer, obviously we’re going to want to win, but to make it there is incredible.”
This tournament, alone, has tested CBA and the Colts have passed both tests. They scored with just under seven minutes to go to beat St. Thomas Aquinas, 1-0, in the quarterfinals, then pulled out a 2-1, overtime win over St. Augustine after controlling most of the 80 minutes of regulation time.
Pingry also had to dig deep for its semifinal win – a 4-3 classic against St. Joseph Metuchen in which Julian Lopez scored his fourth goal of the game with three minutes remaining to deliver the win.
CBA senior Finn McCarthy. (Photo: Tom Smith | tspsportsimages.com)
The biggest different between the two teams this season is age. Pingry is strikingly young for a 17-2 team ranked No. 4 in the state. Only three of the Big Blue starters are seniors and their top contributors off the bench are underclassmen as well. Four starters and a top bench scorer are sophomores, including Lopez as the team’s leading scorer. The Big Blue also start freshman Ryan Miller in goal on a team that has showcased more than one capable goalkeeper during the season.
On the other side, CBA is a senior-led team, with seven of them in the starting lineup, including all four defenders: Finn McCarthy, Devin Cale, Charlie Messano and Trey Higgins. Will Drechsler leads the midfield, while James Brady and Ryan Asadi are experienced starters on the attack.
“Late in the season, the seniors begin to recognize: ‘This is do-or-die. This is our last chance,’” CBA coach Tom Mulligan said. “They have maintained a great work ethic every single day. It’s been one of the nicest, friendliest teams, filled with great teammates. These kids have been a pleasure to be around and that’s the truth. I’m really happy they have this opportunity.”
The current CBA senior group is hoping to claim a tournament championship in its final days as Colts soccer players after losing hard-fought games in the late rounds of the Shore Conference Tournament in each of the past two seasons. Factor in last year’s loss to Notre Dame in the South Non-Public A quarterfinals, and this has been a motivated group from the time last season ended.
“All spring, all summer, we probably practiced about 20 more times than we did the previous summer,” Drechsler said. “We definitely had a chip on our shoulder, especially in states, because that’s the end goal: to get the state recognition. We worked out butts to get better. We had a great group last year, but I feel like this group is special.”
Both teams enter Thursday with just two losses – Pingry to St. Benedict’s and Hunterdon Central; CBA to Monroe and Middletown South. All four of those losses between the two teams were decided by a single goal, so Thursday’s showdown figures to come down to one goal either way. Playing on its pristine home grass pitch, Pingry has the built-in edge. CBA’s seniors will keep them in it, but getting past Pingry in that setting will be the Colts’ toughest challenge of the season.
The Pick: Pingry, 2-1 in overtime
