CLARK, NJ- After struggling to fight for the go-ahead goal for most of the second half, Arthur L. Johnson High School sophomore Gianna Nigro got a handle on the ball from a throw-in from junior Colleen Sullivan. The throw-in was done in a way for a chance at the net. Nigro put it on goal and it reached the back of the net and was mobbed instantly by her teammates.
Nigro’s game-winning goal, which came with 2:33 left, was her third of the season with all her goals coming in the state tournament as the second-seeded Crusaders held off the tenth-seeded Ewing High School Blue Devils by a final score of 2-1 in the NJSIAA Central, Group 2 Quarterfinals Thursday afternoon in Clark.
As the clock was ticking down, Sullivan, who has been the go-to player for the throw-ins, gave it a good throw that allowed the chance to even become possible, but she put it on net perfectly for the setup the Crusaders did in the Blue Devils’ zone. Junior Cecilia Puentes picked up the assist on Nigro’s game-winning goal.
“If I didn’t finish that shot for my team, our season would have been over,” Nigro said. “We have worked so hard this season and getting this opportunity to advance another round in the states is amazing.”
Her goal came late in the game, following a majority of the second half being controlled by Ewing, who pounded the ball into the Crusaders zone for a few cycles before some key stops and clears were made by the Crusaders defense. Sullivan made the throw and the Crusaders went to work and cashed in for the goal to advance in the state tournament.
“They just went to the ball,” Johnson head coach Ken Leeder said. “It was less than three minutes left, so [the players] did a good job of crashing the net and finding a way to put it in the net.”
Ewing tied the game at 1-1 early in the second half on a goal from senior Jamie Ervin and the Crusaders suddenly found themselves in a little bit of trouble as the second half progressed.
“Ewing was outplaying us,” Leeder said. “They deserved to get that tying goal because they outplayed us at the end of the first half and for a lot of the second half. Luckily, we fought back and got the game-winning goal. There were stretches when Ewing was taking it to us.”
The Johnson players realized as quickly as they saw their lead disappear, it could have gone bad, but they stuck to the plan and kept going forward.
“We came out a little flat the second half and after they scored, we knew it was time to step it up,” junior Natalya Torres said. “We knew going into the game this could be our last game and we weren’t ready to end the season like this.”
Ewing, who stunned Governor Livingston in the first round on the road by a final score of 4-2 on Monday in the first round, controlled ball possession on the rushes, but the shots weren’t reaching the back of the net, allowing Johnson to reset and be able to keep the game tied as the second half went along.
Johnson junior Kylee Zawacki got her team on the board with an early goal, assisted by Torres at the 17:28-mark of the first half. The Crusaders knew they had work to do, despite Ewing only entering into the afternoon with six wins, to put themselves in a potential position to keep their chances alive.
“We knew this wasn’t going to be an easy game, so all we could do was work hard and play as a team,” Torres added.
The Blue Devils would pick up pressure as the first half went along, but the Crusaders held them off to get the game to halftime with the 1-0 lead. The Crusaders remained in the driver’s seat for the rest of the first half, although Ewing had a few rushes as the half went along.
In the process, the Crusaders captured their 20th win of the season, something that hasn’t been seen in the program for a long time, which Leeder, in his first year at the helm of the Crusaders, praised his players for all the hard work put in throughout the entire season.
“It’s been a good year. The girls have really earned it through how hard they work,” Leeder said. “Getting to 20 wins is great [and] hopefully we get to 21 wins so we can feel good about ourselves at the end of the year. It’s an accomplishment to the girls right now.”
The Johnson Crusaders (20-1) advance to the NJSIAA Central, Group 2 Semifinals for the third straight season. They will face off against third-seeded Bernards HS in a home game Monday with the time TBD.
“This time of year, you’re not going to improve really, but we just need to get rested and come in on Monday ready to go because Bernards will be a definite challenge,” Leeder said.
The Crusaders know important days of practice ahead will be hugely important in a test to keep the season going, especially those who were on the team’s run to the sectional semifinals last year.
“Monday’s game is not going to be an easy game,” Cassano said. “Going into it, we as a team, need to stay together, not only physically, but mentally. We’re trained our entire season for this day and what it truly comes down to is what team want it more. We need to come out from the beginning with strength and energy.”
“By working as a team and giving it every last ounce of pride is what might allow us to succeed,” she added.
The Ewing Blue Devils finish their 2017 season with a 6-12 record.
