The Sayreville War Memorial High School boys’ soccer team is returning a strong core from a productive squad of a season ago.
In 2017, Sayreville went 12-6 and competed in the Greater Middlesex Conference and and the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association state sectional tournaments.
Coach Nick Cifelli will bring back his most important field players in 2018. The five returning starters are leading scorer Frankie Astarita (14 goals, 12 assists last year), center midfielder and captain Alex Szpindor (four goals, six assists), midfielder Dylan Clerigo, stopper Dan Espejo and sweeper Sebastian Cardoso.
All five play, and excel at, positions in the middle of the field. And those are the most important spots to fill on any soccer team.
“They can really play,” Cifelli said. “If we can fill in other guys and find a goalie, we should be ok.”
Goalkeeper is Sayreville’s primary concern going into the preseason. Cifelli lost both 2017 varsity keepers to graduation in June. Then he lost their projected replacement, rising sophomore Nick Czajkowski, who started on junior varsity last year, to a season-ending knee injury.
That left senior Marwan Elwardany and junior Lev Milan as the competitors for the varsity keeper spot. Milan backed up Czajkowski on JV last fall, while Elwardany played striker. But Milan has been overseas with family in Ukraine this summer, so he has not yet participated in team activities.
“Marwan has a head start but we’ll see how things go when they get back,” Cifelli said. “I’ve never used split goalies but this might be a perfect situation for that.”
As for the outside field spots, Sayreville has started to figure them out in summer tournaments. The Bombers have 10 players who “have known each other since we were eight or nine years old,” Szpindor said.
Five are the core players Cifelli mentioned. But others have been stepping up in summer tournaments too, and positioning themselves for key roles this fall.
Sayreville is 5-0-2 in its last seven summer tournament games, including a championship in its most recent tournament. “We got a trophy and everything,” Szpindor said, laughing.
Rising senior forward Michael Lubeski, who played on JV last year, scored two goals in those games. “I think Michael will be a great forward and a great addition,” Szpindor said.
Rising junior Brandon Amador has looked like a capable varsity midfielder. “He’s been moving the ball really well,” Szpindor said.
So Sayreville has core talent with a lot of experience, plus chemistry across the roster, even among guys who haven’t played varsity before. Szpindor believes the combination will lead to a successful 2018.
“I think we have a good chance to win the division and the GMC (Greater Middlesex Conference) title, and perhaps even states if we peak at the right time,” he said.
Sayreville lost in the first round of the GMC and then the Bombers were eliminated by Freehold Township High School in the opening round of the Central Jersey, Group 4 state tournament.
In response, Cifelli set up a gauntlet of a schedule to prepare the 2018 Bombers for the postseason.
“I picked up five monsters for us to play,” Cifelli said, referring to games against Trenton Central High School, Elizabeth High School and others.
“If we can get through it ok, it will prepare us better for County and State. That’s what we were lacking last year, so we’ll see how things go, pick up intensity and learn how to play in different situations,” Cifelli added. “Record-wise, we may not be as good. But team-wise, we should be better.”
