DePaul wins Sectional Non-Public B title

A crushing, one-sided defeat in the state championship match two years ago never left the minds of the DePaul Catholic seniors.

That’s why the Spartans mustered their resolve after giving up two momentum-building goals and the lead in the final five minutes of the first half.

That’s also why the Spartans, ranked No. 15 in the NJ.com Top 20, overwhelmed No. 11 Rutgers Prep with a wealth of offensive opportunities in the second half and ultimately came away with the prize which they vowed to claim.

Goals from senior Arianna Silva and junior Tami Adedeji in a 36-second span early in the second half knocked Rutgers Prep on its heels and allowed DePaul to play with the momentum for the rest of the match. And that was the key to DePaul’s 4-2 victory and the program’s first state championship in the NJSIAA/Wawa Non-Public B girls soccer title game on Sunday at Kean University’s Alumni Stadium in Union.

It was quite a different outcome than the 2019 finale when DePaul (14-2-1) lost to Pingry 6-0 in the Non-Public A final. It was the Wayne school’s first appearance in a state final.

“I cried as a sophomore,” Silva said. “I was probably the only sophomore who did cry. But I hate to lose, and that was only more fuel to come back and get it done.

“This was really redemption for us. A couple years ago it didn’t go like we planned and I don’t think we were as prepared as we should have been. We’ve been preparing the entire season for this game. We knew we’d be in the state final and we knew we would get this win. The chemistry and the bond we’ve built over the past few months is indescribable, and I think that’s what we have above all teams at this point.”

When Rutgers Prep’s pair of outstanding scorers, Addison Halpern and Melina Rebimbas both scored in the final five minutes of the first half -- giving them 85 goals between them this season -- the Argonauts (21-2) owned a 2-1 lead going into the halftime break. Both were sensational goals, and it seemed the Somerset program was prepared to do more than just poke a few more holes in the dam.

In the 36th minute Halpern ran onto a long pass and managed to get off a shot while fighting off a defender as she fell, with the shot squeezing inside the right post and past keeper Kayla Bower (five saves).

With 30 seconds left in the half, Rebimbas uncorked one of the most amazing shots of the season. With two defenders at her back, she received a pass from midfield with her back to the goal, turned and whipped a 25-yard, left-footed blast into the upper right corner for a 2-1 Rutgers Prep lead.

In spite of that exceptional offensive burst, DePaul coach Steve Beneventine had no doubts as to his team’s resolve.

“We’ve been here before,” Beneventine said. “We were up one and then down 2-1 against IHA and the girls fought back, fought back, fought back (ultimately winning 3-2 in overtime Sept. 18). So I knew the girls had it in them. They didn’t panic. They remained calm and they persevered. Unbelievable.”

The second half was quite a different story. The DePaul defense clamped down on the two Rutgers Prep stars and the Spartans began making waves in their own offensive third. DePaul ultimately recorded nine shots on goal in the second half alone to Rutgers Prep’s three.

At the 49:11 mark, DePaul’s Maggie Blum parked a corner kick into the box which was immediately headed out by a defender. But Silva was there to redirect the rebound high inside the right post to tie the match at 2-2.

Just 36 seconds later, Adedeji ran onto a long pass into the box and saw only an empty net -- beating keeper Syrai Parker (five saves) who came off her line -- as she tapped in for a sudden 3-2 DePaul lead.

“It was so surprising that we came back so fast,” Adedeji said. “When Arianna scored I thought we gotta get it back. Let’s keep going. I’ve been having trouble with 1v1s so I just kicked the ball and I thought it was going over, so if you see the video my face was pure shock.”

Playing with the lead and more confidence, DePaul controlled the pace of play for the remainder of the match.

Rutgers Prep’s final dangerous chance came with 20 minutes remaining. Rebimbas dribbled through traffic upfield before crossing right to Alexa DeBarros. Just as DeBarros was about to uncork her shot inside the 8, Bower was there with a sliding tackle to spoil the chance.

With just under two minutes remaining, DePaul freshman Jasmine Ouatu capped the scoring with a punch from 25 yards.

Source Link: https://highschoolsports.nj.com/game/702771

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