Middletown High School North is two victories away from the NJSIAA North Jersey Section 2, Group 3 tournament championship.
The top-seeded Lions beat 16th-seeded Woodbridge High School, 8-0, in the state sectional first round on Oct. 30. Then they beat ninth-seeded Middletown High School South, 2-0, in the quarterfinals on Nov. 2.
They will try to keep dominating like they have been all tournament, and all season in general. Middletown North is 20-1 and has outscored opponents, 71-12.
Middletown North does not have a weakness. But the Lions are more than just a balanced club. They have the standouts who make the big plays that swing close games, because even a team this strong has to win close games sometimes.
The Lions faced their toughest postseason test on Nov. 2 against Middletown South. The Eagles controlled the ball early, stayed within a goal for most of the game and nearly tied the contest late in the second half.
But Middletown North rose to every challenge. Early in the first half, on the Lions’ first chance of the game, Hayley Stratton charged into the box and kicked the ball into the bottom corner of the net. It was a huge play that shifted control to Middletown North.
“We all worked hard to get a corner, and my teammate Allie (O’Keefe) took the kick. I saw the run open and I made it,” Stratton said. “She got it right to me and I just put it away. I ran to the ball and just kicked it right into the corner. I just closed my eyes and hoped for the best.”
Middletown North dominated the game from there, out shooting Middletown South, 18-8. But the Eagles came an inch from forcing overtime with only minutes to go in regulation. A Middletown South player dribbled into the box and blasted the ball above the head of Lions’ goalkeeper Haley Martin.
The shot was going in. It was too high for Martin tip. But then, she leaped up and batted the ball over the crossbar.
Martin slapped hands with her defenders. They had preserved their shutout. Martin’s defenders were just as responsible for the goose egg.
Defender Carly Binn repeatedly poked the ball away from Eagles forwards and played it back upfield.
“We were strong in the midfield and we were connecting really well from our back line to the midfield,” Martin said.
“The whole defensive unit was good. We were playing hard,” Binn said. “We were keeping it tight.”
“And staying composed,” Martin added.
After Martin’s big save, Middletown North made one final, clinching big play. Kaleigh Harmon carried the ball around two defenders and into the box. Then, she rocketed the ball into the top left corner of the net, over the keeper’s outstretched fingertips.
It was a highlight reel play. The kind that separates the Lions from other really good teams.
“My defense passes it and makes it very easy to get it up the field and work as a team together,” Harmon said. “I just went, saw the opportunity, stayed calm and just took a shot.”
Now, Middletown North can see its next opportunity–winning a first state sectional title since 2007.
“The goal is to win this and then keep going (into the state group tournament),” Stratton said. “We never thought we would get this far. But we’re just going to keep going.”
