WW-P North the early favorite in wide-open division

The most wide-open division of Colonial Valley Conference varsity boys soccer looks to be the Valley.

A year ago, it was West Windsor-Plainsboro North which won 13 games overall and swept to the Valley crown. Only eight players graduated from that squad, making 18th-year head coach Trevor Warner’s club the early favorites. But to do so, the Northern Knights will have to make up for the 21 goals lost when Vincenzo Pugliese moved on to St. John’s University.

Junior midfielder Alex Quezada, senior midfielder Vedav Varadarajan and sophomore forward/midfielder Mark Chiriac figure to spearhead the attack after combining to score 14 goals last season. Quezada had the most of the group with six goals.

Defensively, the Knights will look for leadership from senior Tommy Bartell and junior Evan Robinson.

After a 1-4-1 start in 2016, Allentown made a run to the NJSIAA Central Jersey Group III final and will challenge for the Valley Division title this year.

Back is 10-goal scorer Zach Kokot, a senior forward, plus seven other players who scored. Senior goalkeeper Chris Reeder and senior fullback A.J. Ariano return to lead the Redbirds’ defense after helping A’town win a state title in baseball in the spring.

Hamilton and Nottingham are hoping to find the magic they need to make the race even tighter.

The Hornets, who won five games for coach Chris Morales last fall, return nine-goal scorer Richet Barchue, a senior forward/midfielder, and the bulk of their defense in hopes of continuing to grow.

The Northstars, who won four games in 2016 for head coach Mike Braender, bring back team scoring leaders Enrique Jaquez, a junior forward who knocked in four goals, and Matt Midura, a senior midfielder who scored three. Besides that, Nottingham has a solid senior class to help in front of sophomore goalkeeper Pat Luckie in hopes of moving upward.