Ramapo, Ramsey pull off late heroics in county semis
FRANKLIN LAKES – Antonio Spina beat the buzzer. Now Ramapo will need to beat a familiar opponent.
Spina and the Raiders continued their chase for a third straight Bergen County boys soccer title by knocking off Don Bosco, 1-0, in a heart-pounding semifinal on Sunday in Franklin Lakes. The senior goalie climbed the fence and into the student section after making a diving save as time expired.
Ramsey advanced in the second game by defeating top seed Bergen Catholic by the same score.
Saturday’s final at Indian Hills will be a rematch from 2021, when the Raiders denied the Rams their first title.
“It’s incredible,” Ramsey senior Patrick Weir said. “I think we’ve been wanting this since we lost in the county final sophomore year. We lost to Bergen (Catholic) last year so we were looking forward to this game and really excited to get a chance to play Ramapo again in the final.”
The momentum started to swing toward Ramapo (10-2) in the second half Sunday with the wind at its back and a push from leading scorer Damian DiLisio.
Don Bosco goalie Griffin Bobnick robbed him twice in the last 10 minutes, tipping one shot over the bar and sliding in for a point-blank save on a long scramble.
DiLisio won out in the end by nailing a free kick from just outside the box with 1:55 to play.
“I’m really proud of both teams,” Ramapo coach Evan Baumgarten said. “(Don Bosco coach Roy Nygren) does an outstanding job with those kids and he needs to be commended for what he’s done over the years. As far as our guys, I’m constantly learning and they are too.”
Don Bosco did not go quietly into
the night after conceding a goal. Senior Ryan Ypelaar almost tied it up in the last few seconds after taking a touch and drilling a shot from 25 yards out. Spina lunged to his right and did just enough to deflect the ball out of play.
“He came up real big for us,” Baumgarten said. “It’s like a walkoff for the Yankees.”
Spina, who finished with four saves, said he had never been part of a gameending sequence like that before.
“No, I don’t think so,” Spina said. “That was definitely something I’ll think about a lot.”
Ernst kicks Ramsey into high gear
A similar scene unfolded for the Rams (14-0-1), who split two county matches with Bergen Catholic over the last two tournaments.
The Crusaders used the wind and a polished possession game to keep the ball on the offensive side in a battle between the last two unbeaten teams in North Jersey. That didn’t seem to bother the Rams, who absorbed pressure without letting much get to goalie Steven DePinto. They stonewalled the top offense in the Big North with Weir centering Dan Capuano and Max Nierenberg.
“We dig deep and defend,” Weir said, after extending his team’s shutout streak to six games. “They’re a very good team technically and they move the ball really well, but the way we move as a back line and defend with our midfield in front of us makes for a hell of a defense.”
Ramsey came to life midway through the second half, scoring in the 65th minute right after two close calls. Joseph Ariyan made a run to the right corner and threaded a pass to Luke Ernst for a goal by the far post.
“I figured, I’m just going to go in and run to the box and make that extra effort,” Ernst said. “That’s what happened and that’s what paid off.”
“Honestly it was a blur after that. I just started running.”