Knights shut out and sweep rival Monroe

Senior Arya Patel, who had a penalty kick and an assist in today’s game, receives a pass across midfield.

BY KNIGHT LIFE STAFF

The girls soccer team defeated longtime rival Monroe in an impressive 6-0 victory on Thursday afternoon. The win improved the team’s record to 3-0, continuing their undefeated streak.

The team previously defeated Monroe 4-0 to open their season on September 1. “It feels amazing,” said senior Nicole Nolan, who contributed a goal and an assist in the win. “Every single year it’s a battle, so to really step on their necks feels great.”

In addition to shutting out Monroe twice, the team also held Est Brunswick scoreless on September 3. “I feel like when we really lock in and focus, we can really just bring it all together,” said senior Alexa Magrino, who scored a goal and drew a penalty that led to another goal.

The inexperienced defensive has had to replace a lineup that mostly consisted of seniors last year. “I give a lot of credit to my defense because they’re a very young class,” said goalkeeper Jessica Lane in her third year protecting the net. “I just want to give them credit for that because they really stepped up to the plate this season.”

not sure if this is accurate terminology — Junior Jessica Lane, who has lead the defense to three shut-outs to start the season, prepares to clear the ball.

Alexa Magrino, Vanessa Taborda, Arya Patel, Olivia Bonilla, and Gia Mamaras all scored their first goals of the season. “It felt very good to celebrate with my teammates,” said sophomore Taborda who scored the first goal of her varsity career. “I’m excited to get more.”

The team also credits their positive teamwork and chemistry as a driving force to their success. “We are very good about staying positive because what breaks a lot of teams is the negativity on the field when things don’t go their way,” said senior Arya Patel, who contributed a goal and an assist. “I think we’re really good about staying positive and picking each other up.”

Sophomore Sofia Riedinger, who scored three goals in the first game against Monroe, takes the ball into the 18-yard box.

Magrino scored the first goal of the game and set the bar for the rest of the players to make a play. “I think it really picked us up as a team,” said Magrino. “It brought a lot of energy, and I’m glad that I was the one to bring it.”

Patel also made a game-changing play, scoring a penalty kick in the second half. “I don’t usually take the penalty kicks, but I just try to stay confident and fake it until you make it, so that’s kind of what went through my head,” said Patel.

The Knights have had several close matchups with the highly competitive Monroe team in recent years, most notably defeating Monroe in the 2025 GMC Tournament on the way to winning the whole tournament. “We’re good enough to beat those teams,” said Lane. “Those rivalry games were kind of a mental block for us sometimes in the past, so this season we just kind of let that go and just played our game, and that’s why I think we’ve been successful.”

Freshman Madelyn Brennan moves to cut off and attacking opponent.

The 3-0 record in the GMC to start the season provides high hopes that the girls can repeat the success they had last year when they won both the GMC Red Division and the GMC Tournament. “We’re going to have very great momentum going into the rest of the season as well as the GMC Tournament,” said Nolan. “We’re all doing well, so it’s good to start off strong.”

Come out to support the Knights at Geick Park for their next home game against Metuchen on September 17 at 4pm.

Sophomore Olivia Bonilla, who scored her first goal of the season today, passes the ball past a defender.
Sophomore Sofia Riedinger, who scored three goals in the first game against Monroe, takes the ball into the 18-yard box.
Junior Vanessa Taborda, who scored her first goal of the season today, steps into a big kick.
The Knights gather at center field for a pre-game talk.
Senior Mackenzy Brennan dribbles the ball up field.