Raiders roll through first half of season
North Brunswick boys make smooth transition to Red Division
BY GEORGE ALBANO
Staff Writer

Stan Williston has been coaching boys soccer at North Brunswick High School long enough to know you can’t get too excited over a successful first half of the season.

But even a veteran coach like Williston had to be pleased with the Raiders’ impressive 8-1 start this season heading into Wednesday’s game at rival South Brunswick.

Pleased, but cautious.

“There are two sides of the table, and we’ve been through the first side,” Williston, now in his 30th season, said after Monday’s 4-0 win over Piscataway.

“But we know we have some challenges coming up on the second side against teams we beat the first time around and will be looking for revenge against us.

“We’re in the Red Division this year, and each game in the Red Division is a challenge,” he added. “Most teams don’t look too far ahead. You just do the things you need to do to get ready for your next game. Basically you have to show up ready or you’re not going to get the result you’re looking for.”

Williston knows all about getting results. He’s closing in on 400 career victories and has led North Brunswick to six county championships, four sectional titles, and a Central Jersey Group III state championship in 1993.

And except for a 2-1 overtime loss to New Brunswick in their third game, the Raiders have been otherwise perfect this season, riding a six-game winning streak after Monday’s victory over Piscataway.

But the rest of the schedule, as Williston noted, doesn’t get any easier.

This week, for example, North Brunswick has to play not one, but two local rivals. After Wednesday’s game at South Brunswick — a team the Raiders beat 2-0 earlier this season — NBHS hosts East Brunswick on Saturday at 2 p.m. in a rematch of their thrilling 2-1 overtime win last month.

“It’s always a pretty big game whenever we play South Brunswick or East Brunswick,” Williston said.

North Brunswick returned to the GMC Red Division this season after playing in the White Division for the past decade.

“But there’s always five or six really good teams in both divisions,” Williston said.

The Raiders were one of those good teams in the White Division last season, coming in third place while finishing 14-5 overall and advancing to the quarterfinals of the Central Jersey Group IV Sectional.

Monday’s win, their eighth of the season, officially clinched a berth in this year’s state tournament.

Seven starters from last year’s team returned this season, including senior forward Kevin Blanco, who, going into Wednesday’s game, led the Raiders in scoring with eight goals and seven assists for 23 points.

Rafael Soto, another senior forward, also started last year, while freshman Ibrahim Kamara has impressed Williston enough to get a lot of playing time.

“I rotate him back and forth,” the coach noted. “Sometimes we run three guys up front, but most of the time we run two.”

Two more starters back are midfielders Joe Peragallo and Scott Cameron, who between them man the center of the field.

“At outside wide, we rotate a whole bunch of guys,” Williston said of his remaining midfield alignment.

One is junior Scott Decker, who came off the bench last year, while senior Jason Hadzimichialis, another reserve a year ago, and junior Diego Guzman have also been in the mix.

Meanwhile, Williston uses six players in the four back positions. Seniors Pete Witlen, a starter last year, and Lester Ombawayo, who came off the bench, start at center back. Senior Ryan Wydrinski, another returning starter, and junior Chris Blanco, Kevin’s younger brother who got a lot of time last year, are the two wide backs.

Senior Steve Koye and junior Chris Winchock “are the other two guys I use a lot back there,” Williston said.

The Raiders’ coach also rotates his goaltenders, senior Mike Hernandes and junior Danny Peragallo.

“Depending who’s playing a little better in practice starts and plays the first half, while the other plays the second half,” Williston explained. “They’re both doing pretty good so far, too, and have posted five shutouts.”

In fact, the Raiders had given up only six goals in their first nine games, including only four in Red Division games.

“And only two teams (New Brunswick and Edison) have scored two goals against us,” Williston pointed out.

The offense has also come up big. With the four goals against Piscataway on Monday, the Raiders had 23 total goals though nine games, an average of more than two and a half goals a game.

“It’s been a combination of both good defense and offense,” Williston said.

“We’re pretty happy with our progress so far. We’re playing real well, the team is starting to gel, and the chemistry is right.

“But the season is still young, and we’re just taking one game at a time. We’re looking forward to our next couple of games, testing our mettle, and seeing how things come out.”