It’s no surprise to see local soccer teams perform well in the Hudson County Tournament that started last week. But while quarterfinal victories are nothing new for the Harrison boys or the boys and girls at Kearny, there is one unfamiliar entrant in this upcoming Saturday’s semifinals.
For the first time since 2016, Harrison’s girls team is in the semifinals as the Blue Tide, seeded third, blanked sixth-seeded Secaucus in the quarterfinals on Saturday morning.
Thalia Sosa had a hat trick for Harrison, continuing a torrid nine-day stretch in which the junior striker scored 10 goals in four games.
With 13 wins on the season, its most in more than 15 years, including victories in each of their last seven games, there isn’t a girls team in the county hotter than the Blue Tide.
A few hours later, Kearny punched their ticket to the semifinals for the 16th time in a row after defeating McNair, 3-0. Standout freshman Gianna Covello had a goal and an assist while veteran defenders Keala Cicchino and Nimah Devlin scored a goal apiece.
On the boys side, Kearny is back in the semifinals after a 2-0 victory over Dickinson. Senior Braidan Logue scored both goals in the second half for his first career multi-goal game and Caleb Baptista made five saves for his fifth shutout of the season.
Harrison’s boys team locked up their spot in the semifinals on Friday night with a 5-0 dismantling of Hoboken. Four different players had a goal and an assist, led by junior captain Pedro Barreto Reis, who scored seven times in three games last week. Samuel DeSouza, Christian Barrios, Ezequiel Soto and Kiandry Aban all found the back of the net for a red-hot Harrison offense.
Seeing West Hudson’s soccer standouts in striking distance on the verge of the county final is nothing new. But for all four, the road to Sports Illustrated Stadium is a longer one than usual as they will all have to win on the road in Saturday’s semifinals.
On the boys side, fourth-seeded Kearny travels to top-seeded and two-time defending champion St. Peter’s Prep at 9 a.m. The Marauders may be ranked second in the state after tying national No. 1 St. Benedict’s Prep recently, but the Kardinals have shown it can compete with their rival, coming just inches from a tying goal at the end of regulation in its 3-2 loss to St. Peter’s Prep on Sept. 17
At noon, Harrison will travel to second-seeded Union City, who is 11-3 with 10 wins in its last 11 games.
On the girls side, fourth-seeded Kearny will face perennial finals foe Bayonne in the semifinals.Top-seeded Bayonne struck for two late goals for a 2-0 victory over Kearny on Sept. 27. The battle-tested Kardinals have allowed just five goals in five games since, a stretch that included matchups with state-ranked Morris Knolls and Chatham.
Harrison’s girls will look to advance to the final for the first time in program history at 12:30 p.m. when it goes to second-seeded Hoboken. With an 11-1-1 record and 82 goals scored, Hoboken represents arguably the greatest test the young Blue Tide have faced this season.
In the Bergen County Tournament, 15th-seeded North Arlington won its first BCT game since 2022 with a 1-0 victory over 18th-seeded Saddle Brook on Sunday. Devyn Sullivan scored the lone goal of the game for the Vikings, who have won eight of their last nine games. Next up on Wednesday, is the greatest challenge yet for a young North Arlington team as it plays a second-seeded Immaculate Heart team ranked sixth in the state.
On Saturday, 16th-seeded Lyndhurst lost a 2-0 game to 17th-seeded Tenafly. Lyndhurst moves on to the Bergen County Invitational where it will host Becton on Wednesday.
Seeding for the Essex County boys and girls soccer tournaments are set to be announced on Monday evening, after The Observer’s deadlines.
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Jason Bernstein | Observer Sports Writer
Jason Bernstein joined The Observer as its sports writer in March 2022, following the retirement of Jim Hague. He has a wealth of sports-writing experience, including for NJ Advance Media (nj.com, The Jersey Journal, The Star-Ledger.)