END OF THE RUN: Princeton Day School girls’ soccer player Emma Burns sends the ball upfield in recent action. Last Thursday, senior defender Burns and the second-seeded Panthers fought hard as they lost 3-0 to top-seeded and eventual state champion Rutgers Prep in the final of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) South Jersey Non-Public B sectional. The loss was the only setback this fall for PDS as it ended the season with a 20-1-1 record. (Photo by Frank Jacobs III)
By Bill Alden
Playing at Rutgers Prep last Thursday in a New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) South Jersey Non-Public B sectional final featuring a clash of undefeated teams, the Princeton Day School girls’ soccer team got off to a rough start.
The powerhouse Argonauts, ranked No. 1 in the state by NJ.com and top-seeded in the sectional, tallied a goal four minutes into the contest and had 15th-ranked and second-seeded PDS on its heels in the early going.
Panther senior defender and team co-captain Emma Burns and her teammates, though, regained their composure to hold the fort and keep the game at 1-0 heading into halftime.
“I think we rebounded well,” said Burns. “We really picked up the play and started to match them. We had a few opportunities.
PDS head coach Chris Pettit liked the way his squad adjusted after the shaky start.
“The opening 10 minutes, it looked like it was going to be six or seven to nil and then we switched formations,” said Pettit. “We figured it out and as the game wore on, we grew into it. We started moving the ball up the field a little more, it kind of evened out a little bit.”
Displaying its class, Rutgers Prep tallied a goal two minutes into the second half.
“It was a great shot but we got all twisted out of position two minutes into the second half,” said Pettit. “At that point, I think we believed that we would get one. We lost a little belief once it was two-nil with 38 minutes to go. That was kind of hard. It is tough to concede those early goals and come back from that.”
While the Panthers were unable to come back as the Argonauts added another goal to prevail 3-0 and improve to 20-0, Burns was proud of the way PDS battled to the final whistle against a squad that went on to win the Non-Public B state title.
“The second half was tougher and I think them scoring early again, we kind of got down our ourselves a little,” said Burns. “We fought until the end. They are a very good team, there are a lot of talented girls over there. I think we did our best but they are very good.”
Although it was a tough ending to a stellar campaign, PDS did a lot of very good things this fall as it went 20-1-1 after going 8-9-1 in 2024, winning a Colonial Valley Conference (CVC) division title and the CVC tournament along the way.
“It was really great that we turned it around by so much,” said Burns. “We really came together as a collective and lived by our motto-play for the person next to you. It is sad that it ended, it was a really great season.”
Burns and fellow senior and co-captain Ella McLaren did a great job spearheading the back line this season for the Panthers.
“It was a good collective effort,” added Burns. “I loved working with Ella back there to lead from the back and control the back line.”
Pettit loved the effort he got from his players this fall.
“It is OK to be disappointed in the here or now but if we were offered that at the start of the season, we would have snatched the hands off,” said Pettit. “We won two of the three trophies we were in and we lost one game all season in the sectional final. You can be disappointed and proud at the same time. I think that should be our overwhelming feeling.”
In reflecting on the squad’s success this fall, Pettit pointed to its depth and balance.
“It was really the power of the collective,” asserted Pettit. “When you look at our stats, out of 25 field players, I think 20 scored or got assists. We had five or six different players who scored game-winning goals. It was one of those things where everybody chipped in and they had to and that was what it was about. Defensively as a collective it was an 11. I think we ended up with 13 or 14 clean sheets, that doesn’t happen by accident.”
The positive tone set by the PDS senior group was another key factor in the team’s reversal of fortune.
“They have been huge,” said Pettit. “They are a group that won a sectional title, a state title (the 2023 NJSIAA Non-Public A championship), two CVC Division titles, and a CVC tournament title. They won five trophies in four years. It speaks for itself. They have been huge across the whole program. There are 11 of them, there is a big boost in that in the quality and the leadership. They are a really good group, they are a tight knit group. They have led from the front this year which has been huge. That legacy will go beyond this year. It showed this year’s freshmen how it is done and next year’s seniors how it is done.”
In Pettit’s view, Burns exemplified the leadership provided by the class.
“Emma is kind of an unsung hero, she wants to stay out of the limelight but she is technically very sound and rarely gives the ball away,” said Pettit. “She starts a lot of our attacks. She has been a key reason why that group has those five trophies. When we won a couple of years ago (in the NJSIAA Non-Public A final), we didn’t give up any goals. Her and Ella were a big part of that and against this year. They are the common threads between the success that we have had over the last three years.”
Burns, for her part, will always remember her final year with the program.
“It is just the memories that we made together and the wins we had, winning two titles,” said Burns. “I feel like we all bonded really well, especially the seniors. We have grown together over the last four years.”