With Midfielder Halliday Serving as Catalyst, PHS Boys’ Soccer Rolls Into Sectional Semis
RISING TO THE OCCASION: Princeton High boys’ soccer player Nick Halliday, left, heads the ball in recent action. Last Friday, senior midfielder Halliday helped set up two goals as third-seeded PHS topped sixth-seeded East Brunswick 3-1 in the Central Jersey Group 4 section quarterfinals. The win earned the Little Tigers a spot in the sectional semifinals where they were slated to host seventh-seeded Freehold Township on November 10 with the winner advancing to the title game on November 13. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)
Although Nick Halliday isn’t one of the headliners on the Princeton High boys’ soccer team, he has a vital role on the squad.
“I feel like even though I am not a captain, I am a leader on this team,” said senior midfielder Halliday.
“People look up to me and I have to make sure I play big in big moments and make sure the team can rely on me. I might not get so many stats but I try to play to benefit the team the best that I can.”
Last Friday as third-seeded PHS hosted sixth-seeded East Brunswick in the Central Jersey Group 4 section quarterfinals, Halliday came up big, assisting on the first two goals of the game as the Little Tigers jumped out to a 3-0 halftime lead on the way to a 3-1 victory.
Just over 10 minutes into the contest, Halliday slotted a ball that Cole Snyder banged into the back of the net. About 13 minutes later, he lofted a free kick which Drew Beamer headed home.
“The first one to Cole, I know he always makes runs into the box so I saw him right there,” recalled Halliday.
“He started making the run and if I play it to him I know he will finish it. On the free kick, we are always good in the air so I just put it up for Drew Beamer and Chris Harla and one of them will get there.”
After pulling out a 1-0 nail-biter against 14th-seeded Marlboro in the opening round of the tournament, Halliday and his teammates were determined to get off to a better start against East Brunswick.
“We weren’t upset with ourselves but we knew we should have been playing better that game so our whole goal this game was to come out flying and we did,” said Halliday.
With PHS going up 3-0 at half as senior Luis Lazo tallied 31.2 second before intermission, Halliday and his teammates were determined to close the deal.
“On the sideline Chris Harla was saying we are up 3-0 but this is the type of team that can score three in a half so we can’t let up,” said Halliday. “We listened to him and said take care of business.”
Moving up from Group 3 to Group 4, PHS has shown that it is a team to be reckoned with at any level. The win over East Brunswick earned the Little Tigers a spot in the sectional semifinals where they were slated to host seventh-seeded Freehold Township on November 10 with the victor advancing to the title game on November 13.
“Now that we are in with these Group 4 teams, we wonder what they are going to be like,” noted Halliday. “I think we have proved our place in this group.”
With his older brothers, Zach and Kevin, having played for state championship teams at PHS, Halliday is looking to follow in their footsteps.”
“I definitely don’t want any of these to be my last game,” said Halliday. “I am trying to catch up with my brothers.”
PHS head coach Wayne Sutcliffe liked the way his squad took a step forward against East Brunswick.
“I think the first game in any tournament is the hardest,” said Sutcliffe.
“Our intent today was to have urgency and quality early. We knew their result in the previous game was one with a lot of emotion behind it (a win on a penalty-kick shootout) so if we could score first it would be a decided advantage, which it was was. We were sharp in the beginning of the game. It was great, I was so happy, that is what you have to do at this point. You are months into this, you have to start getting better.”
In Sutcliffe’s view, the gritty, skilled play of Halliday helps make the Little Tigers one of the better teams around.
“Nick was great, he is so industrious,” said Sutcliffe. “His percentages were good, he won some duels. He inserts the ball and complements our personality players in that regard. You need guys like that, without them we wouldn’t be nearly as successful.”
Another key guy for PHS is the speedy Lazo, who has demonstrated a knack for scoring big goals.
“I am so happy for him, getting him in behind is the goal,” said Sutcliffe. “He is so fast and Chris (Harla), to his credit, hit a beautiful diagonal ball and credit to Luis, that is not an easy finish. It is a breakaway but that is what he is capable of so hopefully he can keep doing that for us.”
Sutcliffe was very happy with how his team performed at the defensive end as it only yielded a late penalty kick.
“Dwight Donis, Edgar Morales, and Pete Luther played well up the spine of the field,” asserted Sutcliffe.
“Their 9 shirt made it hard and the 13 was good but they didn’t get through. Owen (Lindenfeldar), to his credit, had to make some saves in goal; they tested them a little bit.”
With second-seeded South Brunswick failing to get through as it lost to No. 7 Freehold, PHS earned another home playoff game for the sectional semis.
“We are as good as anybody in Group 4 in New Jersey, we know that,” said Sutcliffe.
“In the team talk before the game, we knew that South Brunswick was losing and we talked about that you need breaks in tournaments. We just got a break so let’s make our own good luck and win today and host because that was our goal.”
In Halliday’s view, the Little Tigers have what it takes to keep winning.
“I think that was one of our best games of the season,” asserted Halliday.
“If we keep playing like we did in this game, I think we can make a big run. We just have to play our game. We have to play like we did today, keep putting pressure on teams, using our speed up top, and getting crosses in and free kicks.”