The Mercer County College women’s soccer team had a great regular season and is now ready for the next challenge.

The Vikings, who are top-seeded in Region 19, will play an open game against No. 4 Sussex at Mercer on Thursday at 4 p.m.

In the other semifinal, No. 2 seed Essex will face No. 3 seed Lackawanna in Essex.

The two winners will face off in the Regional championship at 11 a.m. Saturday at Mercer.

Even though the Vikings game is set for Halloween, there will be no Vikings wearing masks. They’re the real deal.

They lost their opening game of the season and then went unbeaten in the next 14 games. They have a 12-1-2 record heading into the playoffs and are 6-0-2 at home.

“The team plays with a lot of confidence, chemistry and they are consistent,” second-year coach Ron Stinson said. “Unfortunately, in our last two games, I think all but two players were ill. We gave them a few extra days off last week to allow the muscles to recover and get healthy. I think they will be back playing their best football on Thursday in the regional semi-final. We need to focus, play our game, not play at a competitive level, We need to execute the game plan and pay attention to details.”

Sussex enters the game at 2-6-1 and the Vikings beat them 12-0 in early October.

But this is tournament time and things change throughout the season. Stinson was impressed with the way this team focused on the task at hand.

“I was impressed with the way they supported each other on and off the field,” Stinson said. “The chemistry they created along the way. “They have all embraced this team from day one and have created a family-like atmosphere on the field that shows how hard they play for each other.”

Eva Strum led the Vikings with 19 goals and 8 assists, Annika Maringer with 6 goals and 5 assists, Anna Pacheco with 6 goals and Fiona Madigan with 5 goals and 2 assists.

“Eva has been amazing for us this season,” Stinson said. “He has a high football IQ, great physical ability and makes good decisions. Eva made the other players on the team better, just as they did for her. We have a lot of unsung heroes in the team who never got the Player of the Week award this season or didn’t feature much in the stats sheet. “Our midfielders and wingers probably don’t get as much attention as they should, and our midfielders are probably the most underrated players on the pitch.”

Here’s a look at the Vikings from the coaches’ box.

• Francesca Wright and Sarah Kircher don’t get much credit for being part of the attack or defense, when in reality they facilitate the offense and act as additional defenders.

• Anna Pacheco, Mia Belton, Louise Stritch and Julia Fillat run the entire game, contributing a lot to the offense and a lot to the defence.

• Linnea Rameil and Maddie Harrison are both fast and physical players and create matchup problems for our opponents. Sometimes some of our opponents seem hesitant when going against them because they don’t back down and our opponents know they will get into a fight every time there is a 50/50 ball.

• Annika Maringer plays as a forward, attacking midfielder and wing; He is very durable, plays fast and physical every game and always plays with a chip on his shoulder. He had been punched in the face in the match against Essex, his eye was swollen like Rocky Balboa, and he wanted to get back into the game.

• Last but not least is Celina Oliveira, who has been very solid in net this season. He played sick and injured this year and did not miss a game.

The Vikings scored six goals against Suffolk in their opening game of the season and have allowed just eight possessions on target in their last 14 games.

“Other than the Suffolk game, they haven’t conceded more than two goals in a game in two seasons,” Stinson said. “We have four sophomores who basically play the entire game every game. Laura Kucharz and Sierra Mitchell are great out there and making runs all game long, which strengthens the offense and makes it difficult for our opponents. Luana Nasciamento and Fiona Madigan leave no one hanging and they complement each other really well.”

It looks like the Vikings are primed and ready for another title run.

First Publication Date: October 30, 2024 13:15 EDT