By DAVE O’SULLIVAN
Publisher
LINWOOD — Dom Bongiovanni is a junior at Mainland Regional High School and has been playing varsity soccer since his freshman year. Yet, he didn’t know what it felt like to score a goal in a varsity game. Until Friday.
Bongiovanni found the back of the net twice to pace the host Mustangs as they cruised past Cedar Creek, 5-1, in Mainland’s season opener. The Pirates were coming off their season opener the day before against Oakcrest, and back-to-back games in 90-plus-degree heat took its toll. Bongiovanni put the Mustangs up 2-0 early by scoring in the 12th minute and again in the 17th, and from there Mainland put things on cruise control.
“I was happy for him,” said Mainland coach John Napoli. “I’m happy for the boys. We have a lot of expectations for this season and we wanted to start off with a strong win.”
“It was awesome. It’s a great feeling. We’ve been working hard all summer and the team is looking good. I can’t wait to see what this team can do,” Bongiovanni said. “We’re like a family here. We do everything for each other and we’re just going to keep sharing the ball and moving it around. I think we’re going to have a great season.”
A good portion of Mainland’s roster this season played for Mainland United last summer. That travel team advanced all the way to a national tournament, and many of the players from United got their first taste of varsity soccer last year, when the Mustangs made it to the South Jersey Group 3 playoffs but lost, 5-1, to Hammonton in the opening round.
“Our junior and senior classes, and even our sophomore class, we have a strong group and that’s from that feeder program of Mainland United. They have really helped build this program, and we’re hoping to reap the benefits of the work that a lot of people have put in (when these guys were younger),” Napoli said. “It’s nice, because now we have depth. I have 14 or 15 guys we rotate in, and when (substitutions) get in there is no drop in play.”
Both teams subbed liberally throughout the game, as game time temperature reached 96 degrees. The officials also mandated water breaks every 20 minutes. Once getting the early lead, the Mustangs able to settle in and play possession, being patient with their attacks and conserving energy until they needed it on through balls.
“We keep that in mind,” Bongiovanni said of being smart with possession. “If we have the ball, the other team doesn’t have as many chances to score, so that’s definitely part of our game plan, to keep possession.”
Keegan Ford pushed the lead to 3-0 with a goal in the 33rd minute, then scored again early in the second half. Cedar Creek got on the board in the 54th minute on a penalty kick by Mario Grdik, but Mainland salted things away when top scoring threat Victor Figueroa neatly headed in a corner kick a few minutes later to make it 5-1. Sam Watt finished with a pair of assists for Mainland, and Nick Nutile, Ryan Pellegrino and Jack Sarkos also added assists. Bongiovanni said it was only a matter of time before Figueroa etched his name in the score sheet.
“He’s definitely going to do great this season, score a lot of goals and put a lot of pressure up top,” Bongiovanni said. “I was confident he would put one in. It was just a matter of time.”
“It was nice to come out with a win. We got a lot of guys in. Our boys were excited to get the season started with a home opener. They came out ready to play right away, and we began putting pressure on them and creating opportunities,” Napoli said. “We made a couple of substitutions, and I think the play intensified even more. Sam Watt came in and had a beautiful assist to Dom Bongiovanni, who scored a very nice first goal. It was a very unselfish play.”
Contact Dave O’Sullivan: sully@acglorydays.com; on Twitter @GDsullysays