It was not a good day for Montclair Kimberley soccer.
The Cougar boys and girls soccer teams were on the road in Prep B title games.
And both squads came home empty-handed on Wednesday, Oct. 26.
The girls team had a very bad day, as they lost 10-2 at Rutgers Prep. It was the second successive year that MKA lost to the Argonauts in the final. The Cougars (5-9-2) dropped a 1-0 verdict to Rutgers Prep in the final in 2021.
The boys could not make it back-to-back Prep B titles as they lost to Gill St. Bernard’s, 3-0. The Cougars defeated the Knights, 3-2, in the Prep B championship in 2021.
After the match Montclair Kimberley boys head coach Robert Leather listed some of his players who were out with illnesses and injuries for the contest.
“We had some guys that were coughing on the field that were not 100 percent,” Leather also said.
But the coach did not use that as an excuse for the loss. “They were the better side today, and I think even if we were 100 percent that we would have lost,” he said.
MKA (10-6-1) was facing a Gill St. Bernard’s team that was looking for revenge after losing to the Cougars on the same field in the 2021 Prep B Tournament championship game.
Combining the two, Montclair Kimberley was looking at an uphill climb that was further toughened in the first half, when Gill St. Bernard’s made sure that the Cougars would not pull off the upset this season.
MKA was without three of its top players, senior forward Omar Martinez, sophomore midfielder Mike Rallatos and freshman midfielder Nitiano Jimenez-Stanley.
“We told Omar just to stay home,” Leather said. “He has the flu, and he is not 100 percent with an ankle injury.”
The Montclair Kimberley backfield could not withstand the Gill St Bernard’s pressure pretty much from the start of the match.
“We were very poor in the first half defensively,” Leather said.
The dam broke almost 10 minutes in when the Cougars allowed three goals within a six-minute period, putting a big onus on the MKA offense, which could not respond.
MKA got the first sign that the day was not going to go their way when Gill St. Bernard’s Nick Collins headed the ball past Cougars junior goalkeeper Alex Provost off a corner nine minutes into the match for a 1-0 lead. The Knights would put two shots almost in succession past Provost to push MKA further behind, 3-0.
Between halves Leather urged his charges to not let the game get out of hand. “I just told them don’t embarrass yourself and compete, or it will be 6-0,” he said.
The Cougars’ defense settled down in the second half and registered a clean sheet.
But while the offense did have a couple of good chances to score, it could not break through.
The sixth-seeded Cougar girls were no match for top-seeded Rutgers Prep, as they were peppered all afternoon.
MKA was facing a Rutgers Prep team with a player who is on the United States U-17 squad, senior Melina Rebimbas, and who is committed to the University of North Carolina. Rebimbas had three goals and two assists.
The Cougars had a goal each from Alia Rasheed and Caia Carlesimo.
With the Prep B tournament behind both squads, the state tournament continues this week.
The boys could very well face Gill St. Bernard’s again. If they do, it will be on Nov. 9 in the Non Public B North final. The Cougars are the second seed in the section, and Gill St. Bernard’s is the top seed.
The boys take on the winner of 10th-seeded St. Mary versus seventh-seeded Eastern Christian at home on Nov. 2, with results after Montclair Local’s print deadline.
On the girls side, MKA is the ninth seed and takes on top-seeded Immaculate Heart Academy on Tuesday, Nov. 1, in the Non Public North A state section quarterfinals, with results after press deadline.
The Cougar girls team defeated eighth-seeded Paramus Catholic, 1-0, on Oct. 29 in the opening round. Montclair Kimberley senior Sofia Vinasco scored the lone goal.