Week 9 Shore Sports Insider Boys Soccer Top 10
The NJSIAA Tournament begins Tuesday, which means the boys soccer teams of the Shore Conference have authored the majority of their prospective Shore Sports Insider Top 10 résumés, but a significant portion of those résumés are not yet complete. The Shore Conference Tournament portion is, in fact, complete and the four teams that made it to Neptune for the SCT semifinals were all rewarded, to varying degrees — either with remaining in the top-five or by climbing up the list.
More than one coach — including the coach of this year’s Shore Conference Tournament champion, Colts Neck coach Art Collier — has opined that winning the Shore Conference Tournament is harder than winning an NJSIAA Group championship. That may or may not be the case for some, most or all of the Shore’s teams, but a state title is the one that every team wants. Every player — particularly the seniors — wants to end their season raising a trophy on the final day of the season or at least with a win in a sectional championship game.
As the NJSIAA Tournament begins, the teams currently in the Top 10 want to end their season in the best way possible, while the teams waiting at the gate can march into the rankings with a memorable run over the next two weeks.
1. Colts Neck (17-0-2, 5-0-1) Last Week: 1
With a Shore Conference Tournament championship and an undefeated record heading into the NJSIAA Tournament, Colts Neck has essentially nailed down the No. 1 ranking at the Shore. A team like Middletown South or Toms River East, among others, could knock off Colts Neck to end the season, but the body of work is going to be hard to top considering no other team in the conference has fewer than three losses. That No. 1 ranking and a first ever SCT championship are great accomplishments for the Cougars, but now, the goal is history. By winning a Group III title, Colts Neck would become the first public school in Shore Conference history to finish undefeated while also winning both an SCT championship and a state title.
2. Manalapan (15-3-1, 5-0-1) Last Week: 2
An unfortunate draw in the SCT knocked the Braves out of the tournament in the round of 16 against Colts Neck when Manalapan might very well have been the second-best team in the conference. The Braves tied Colts Neck the first time the teams played on another and although CBA went deeper into the tournament and played Colts Neck tougher in tournament play, Manalapan has wins over the two teams that beat CBA: Rumson-Fair Haven and St. John Vianney. The Braves will have a chance to put the SCT disappointment behind them as the No. 2 seed playing for their first Central Jersey Group IV championship in 10 years.
3. Christian Brothers Academy (16-5, 5-1) Last Week: 3
The losses to opponents common with Manalapan keep CBA slotted in the No. 3 spot, but the Colts are not relegated to the No. 3 spot for the remainder of the season. CBA plays in the loaded Non-Public A Playoffs and another deep run could be the catalyst for a climb to No. 2 if it coincides with an early Manalapan loss in Group IV. CBA has been to the South Jersey Non-Public A final in each of the last nine tournaments and is the defending sectional champion three years running. If the Colts make it 10 straight sectional final appearances, a move up in the final rankings is at least a possibility.
4. Ocean (13-4-1, 4-1-1) Last Week: 7
The Spartans climb back to No. 4 on the heels of their march to the SCT semifinals, which included wins over Red Bank and Rumson-Fair Haven to set up the semifinal showdown with Colts Neck. It was Ocean’s second match vs. the No. 1 team in the rankings and the second time the Spartans held a lead over a No. 1 team before ultimately losing by one goal. The first instance was a 4-3 loss to Howell in September and those two results, while losses, revealed Ocean to be a dangerous November team. The Spartans will need their best effort to get through a loaded Central Jersey Group II bracket as a No. 5 seed and if they do, a move toward No. 2 is not out of the question.
5. Toms River North (13-6-1, 5-0-0) Last Week: 9
After clinching the Class A South championship with back-to-back 1-0 wins over Southern and Central on September 30 and Oct. 2, Toms River North fell into a funk that included a 5-1 loss to Rumson-Fair Haven in the SCT round of 16. The Mariners also lost, 4-0, to Manalapan before the start of the SCT, but got their revenge in the form of a 2-1 win over the Braves in a rematch during the SCT consolation round. Toms River North has reached the sectional final round in all but one season since 2019 and the one time the Mariners did not reach the final was in 2022, when they lost in the sectional semifinals. In 2019, Toms River North won the South Group IV title as a No. 16 seed, so doing so as a No. 7 seed is not such a dire proposition.
6. Manasquan (11-6-1, 3-3-0) Last Week: 4
Manasquan will join Ocean this week in the Central Jersey Group II bracket that has no fewer than nine teams with the wherewithal to win it all. The Warriors have made their mark several times this season, most notably with wins over Howell and Toms River East. Now, the focus is to get back to the Central Group II final for the second straight year and win it this time after losing the 2023 championship at Holmdel. Manasquan has never won a sectional title in boys soccer and this year’s senior-laden team is as capable of ending the drought as any team the Warriors have ever had.
7. Toms River East (14-3-1, 3-2-0) Last Week: 10
Since starting the season 2-2 with losses to Central and Toms River North, Toms River East is 12-1-1 with a loss to Manasquan and a draw against Westfield. Along the way, the Raiders have beaten Manalapan, Southern, Toms River South, St. John Vianney and Marlboro – the kind of season that has prepared Toms River East to take on a South Jersey Group III field led by two-loss Shawnee. If Toms River East can upset Shawnee, the Raiders will be another team that is still in the mix for the No. 2 ranking at the end of the season.
8. Howell (10-5-1, 4-2-0) Last Week: 6
The season started with Howell in the No. 1 spot in the rankings and while finishing No. 1 is no longer on the table, the Rebels could potentially get to the No. 2 spot by finally completing their pursuit of a championship that has eluded them each of the past three seasons. Howell lost to both CBA and Manalapan, but also beat Ocean, so a top-four ranking is still in play if the Rebels can beat a crop of contenders in South Jersey Group IV.
9. Rumson-Fair Haven (11-7-1, 3-2-1) Last Week: 8
The Bulldogs have more losses than any team in the top 10 and part of that is because of how many top 10 teams they have played. Rumson is 2-5 against teams in the top 10, with wins over two in the top five: CBA and Toms River North. Both games were meaningful too, with a win at CBA in Class A North divisional play and a win at Toms River North in the SCT round of 16. That strength of schedule will serve Rumson well in a challenging Central Jersey Group II bracket, which starts with a home game against a Wall team that beat Rumson, 4-0, during the regular season.
10. Lacey (15-5, 3-2) Last Week: Not ranked
Lacey surges into the top 10 thanks to its run to the SCT semifinals, which culminated with an impressive, 5-0, win over a Central team that was ranked in the last published Top 10. That win over Central capped a 10-game winning streak, which ended in the next round against CBA, 2-0. The return of Aiden Schmitt from injury to pair with fellow junior Tanner Grozinski has been a key to the Lacey resurgence, which the Lions will try to parlay into a deep run in South Jersey Group III, which would likely include a trip to Toms River East in the sectional quarterfinals on Friday.
Dropped Out
Central (10-7, 3-2) Last Week: 5 – The 5-0 loss to Lacey was enough to ground the Golden Eagles as a ranked team, which Central an undo with a strong showing this week against some very tough South Jersey Group IV competition.
Top 10 Watch List
Southern (13-5-1, 2-2-1) – The Rams have a strong case to be ranked ahead of a few of the last few teams in the Top 10, which Southern can strengthen with a couple of wins this week in the South Group IV Playoffs.
St. John Vianney (11-5, 5-1) – Wins over CBA and Ocean has the Lancers on the cusp of a ranking to end the season and the Lancers will try to break through by beating GMC Tournament champion St. Joseph Metuchen to make their closing statement.
Holmdel (10-6-1, 2-4-0) – The Hornets are focused on winning a third straight Central Group II title and if they pull it off, an end-of-season ranking would likely be in the cards.
Marlboro (12-5-1, 3-2-1) – Playing in Group IV gives Marlboro a chance to play some of the best programs in the NJSIAA, much like playing in Class A North does. The Mustangs came up just short of a few big A North wins and if they can finish the job through the early part of next week, they will play for a championship.
Wall (10-9-1, 2-3-1) – Wall has wins over Rumson and Central, plus competitive losses to CBA, Toms River North and Manasquan as the Crimson Knights get ready a road tilt with Rumson to start what the Central Group II gauntlet.
Middletown South (8-7-3, 2-3-1) – With a 1-0 loss to Colts Neck, the Eagles might have the best chance to upset the No. 1 seed in the Central Jersey Group III when the tournament gets underway.
Toms River South (13-5-2, 5-0-0) – If Toms River South can get by Clearview Tuesday in the first round, Toms River South could get rolling in South Jersey Group III, where the Indians share the same side of the bracket as division rival Lacey and crosstown rival Toms River East – two ranked teams that would give Toms River South a chance to win their way into the rankings.
Red Bank (12-7-1, 6-0-0) – Red Bank’s last NJSIAA Tournament win came back in 2014 and the Bucs would love a repeat of that postseason, when they reached the Central Jersey Group III final. With Colts Neck on the other side of the CJ III bracket and an impressive showing in the SCT fueling the team’s confidence, Red Bank has what it takes to make a run at it.
