Lady Dragons Ready to Defend Soccer Title

After back-to-back runs to the Central Jersey Group III semifinals, the Brick Township High School varsity girls' soccer team will no longer be able to sneak up on anybody.

Luckily, they might not have to this year.

With 11 returners from his varsity squad that went 13-5-1 last year, head coach Mike Berardinelli still lists team chemistry as one of the top keys in defending the title.

“It’s all about having a mesh between those returners and new players added into the mix,” said Berardinelli. “They still needed to come together and have motivation, especially now with everyone coming after you.”

While there are plenty of positives going into the season, the biggest question mark appears to be who will pick up the slack of graduated forward Rachel Marino, who scored 11 goals last season.

“Obviously replacing her production is going to be key. I don’t think there is one person who is going to make the difference, but we have a number of younger players who can certainly chip in,” said Berardinelli.

Sophomore Shelly Carpino and junior Kahlie Mayer have the potential to score as the young, but experienced, duo has three years of varsity experience between them.

The Dragons also have goals to advance on the progress they made, as well.

“Absolutely,” said Berardinelli, when asked if the goal was going the distance this time around. “After losing in our first game of the Shore Conference Tournament last year, moving ahead in the Tournament is definitely one of our goals. Same thing goes for the state playoffs; we want to win the Central Jersey Group III sectional title this season too.”

As for no longer being a surprise, the coach claimed it is going to be a challenge.

“We knew it was going to be tough, “ said Berardinelli. “After playing in the B-South a couple of years now, teams know how we play and are going to be gearing up for us. We need to live up to the reputation.”

Defensively, the Dragons welcome back their core from last season.

Senior Nikki Fasano will be the starting goalkeeper for the second straight year, hoping to replicate a season where she had seven shutouts. Playing directly in front of her will be Corey Scandone who is entering her senior season as captain and anchor of the team's defense.

“She is strong and quick,” said Berardinelli. “We have her playing stopper but we are looking to give her opportunities to get involved more in the offense.”

Taylor Palmer will be back as a sophomore after marking some of the Shore’s most potent strikers last year as a freshman.

“It’s amazing how much she progressed from this point last year, even after starting as a freshman,” added Berardinelli. “She is very strong defensively.”

Topping the list of big games this year for Brick will be a match against Central Regional, the team that took down Brick in the SCT last fall after Brick won twice in the regular season. Pinelands will play a threat, as will the cross-town matchup with Brick Memorial later in the year.

“Consistency is the biggest thing we need to focus on,” said Berardinelli. “We can’t afford to take minutes off, and we need to string quality halves together.”