Meet our First Team CVC Best XI
The 2021 high school fall sports season brought normalcy after a compact and often-disrupted 2020 campaign.
That was good news for local teams as Princeton and Hopewell Valley were crowned division champions in the CVC. The Tigers won a program-record 21 games on their way to a runner-up finish in Group III, while the Bulldogs continued their excellence with an unbeaten CVC season in which they went 18-3-3 overall.
Those two teams landed the most players on our CVC Best XI. Princeton led the way with four, Hopewell had three, Steinert came in with two and there was one each for Notre Dame and Robbinsville.
Princeton’s Sophia Lis is the Player of the Year and Dave Kosa is the Coach of the Year.
Meet the team here:
SOPHIA LIS, SR., PRINCETON » The CVC and Area Player of the Year had an incredible season with 38 goals, 21 assists and 97 points. The Lehigh University-bound senior’s 38 goals were the highest singleseason total by a CVC player since Lisa Gmitter tallied 65 for Steinert in 1982. The 6-foot-1 Lis had the ability to take over a game and scored nine goals in six playoff matches. Lis finished her career with 64 career goals.
ADRIANA RYDER, JR., STEINERT »
Ryder has the ability to play up top as a No. 9 or drop into the hole as a second striker/attacking midfielder. She led the Spartans in scoring with 14 goals, while adding four assists. She combined with her twin sister Juliana — an honorable mention pick — to score 23 goals. That sister act should form a formidable pair for next season. KATE TILLMAN, SR., HOPEWELL VALLEY » The senior winger had a breakout season with 16 goals and 11 assists. She was often the Bulldogs’ most dangerous player and had a knack for scoring big goals. She was on target in both wins over Princeton, netted an equalizer against Pennington, had a playoff
winner against Freehold Borough and the leveler vs. Brick Memorial in the sectional semifinals.
CASEY SERXNER, SO., PRINCETON » Serxner backed up solid rookie campaign with a First Team season as a sophomore. She showcased her playmaking ability with a league-best 23 assists, while adding 15 goals.
NICOLA MOSIONEK, SR., HOPEWELL VALLEY » The senior completed an outstanding four-year career with a 17-goal, 12-assist season. She ended up with 54 career goals and 38 assists. Mosionek is lethal in the box as a late runner and has the ability to strike from distance with either foot. She even played in what she calls her favorite position as a deep-lying midfielder at times this season. MEGAN ROUGAS, SR., PRINCETON » The senior’s 17 goals and 13 assists certainly pop on the stat sheet, but
Rougas did her best work against higher-level competition when she dropped back into a defensive midfield role. Given her engine and ability to go side-to-side and break up attacks, it was exactly what the Tigers needed to reach their first state final in program history. ALYSSA HENDRICKSON, SO., STEINERT » Hendrickson elevated herself to one of the league’s best defenders in her sophomore season. She was often tasked with marking the other team’s best player, no easy task considering the offensive talent in the CVC. Hendrickson also added a pair of goals.
ANNIE KOSA, SR., PRINCETON »
If there was a Comeback Player of the Year it might as well be Kosa, who didn’t play last season, but returned as the sweeper on a team that kept a league-best 16 cleansheets. There wasn’t anything fancy about her game, she
simply put out fires and did it effectively all year long.
MEA ALLEX, SR., HOPEWELL VALLEY » There isn’t a better defender in the CVC than the Bulldogs’ senior. Not only is Allex a terrific caption, she unflappable under pressure. Strong in the air and quick enough to run with speedy forwards, Allex anchored a side that had 13 shutouts. Additionally, she was no stranger to a goal or two, knocking in a career-best seven. EMMA HORAN, SR., ROBBINSVILLE » Not only was Horan steady in the back for the Ravens as a senior, she’s been that way her entire career. The Franklin & Marshall commit excelled as a right back playing coach Caitlyn Curran’s offside trap and even added a goal this season.
OLIVIA BODMER, SR., NOTRE DAME » Few goalkeepers can be a gamechanger in the way Bodmer
was for the Irish. The Rutgers University commit reads the game very well and is quick off her line to recognize danger. When she is tested, she’s an outstanding shot stopper. Bodmer had eight cleansheets.
DAVE KOSA, PRINCETON » What a first season for Kosa. He guided the Tigers to a 21-3 record and trip to the Group III state final, the first appearance in a state final in program history. Princeton also won the CVC Colonial Division and the Central Group III sectional title. Honorable mentions go to the dean of CVC coaches Hopewell Valley’s John McGinley and Lawrence’s Emily Palombo. McGinley won yet another CVC Valley Division crown as the Bulldogs went an unbeaten 11-0-2 in league games. Palombo coaxed double-digit victories out of the Cards for the first time in five years.