BRIGHT STAR: Princeton High boys’ soccer player Azariah Breitman, right, chases after the ball in recent action. Last Thursday, senior forward and co-captain Breitman tallied two goals and an assist to help PHS defeat WW/P-North 7-1. The Tigers, who tied Westfield 2-2 last Saturday to move to 6-1-2, host Gill St. Bernard’s on October 5 and Steinert on October 8. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

By Bill Alden

Azariah Breitman scored just one goal in the first five games this fall for the Princeton High boys’ soccer team.

In game six, though, senior forward and co-captain Breitman exploded for three goals in a 4-1 win over Hopewell Valley and that opened the floodgates for him.

“After the Hopewell game, I have been feeling so confident,” said Breitman, who scored a goal in a 6-0 win over Princeton Day School on September 24 and then added two goals and an assist in a 7-1 victor over WW/P-North last Thursday. “It has just been so much easier, goals have just been coming. I am sure they will just keep coming. It is like a snowball effect.”

Breitman’s connection with fellow senior and co-captain Archie Smith has helped spark his scoring surge.

“Me and Archie together are pretty lethal up there,” said Breitman. “We are definitely finding our stride this season — it feels good to score.”

In the win over the Northern Knights, Smith scored the first goal and then Breitman converted a penalty kick for his first goal and got his second tally on an assist by Smith.

“Before the game, where I am going to go?” said Breitman, explaining his PK approach. “Then when I step up to the spot, there is no question in my mind. I look the keeper in the eye and slot it away.”

On his second goal, Breitman got a good look from Smith. “We felt pretty good at the end of the half,” said Breitman, who now has seven goals and two assists on the season with Smith having totaled seven goals and four assists. “Right after my penalty, I took a free kick and then Archie squared it to me and I scored the third.”

In the second half, the Tigers got two goals from Chris Penston with Kian Asiaie and Ivan Marinov chipping in one apiece as they turned the game into a rout.

“It is great to see everyone on the team scoring, even off the bench,” said Breitman. “Chris had two goals and we had a beautiful goal off a corner by Ivan. Everyone on the team is scoring.”

Getting selected as a team co-captain along with Smith and senior goalie Nicolas Holmelund, Breitman has taken on a greater leadership role this fall.

“Last year we had Nick [Matese] and Felipe [Matar Grandi] who were great leaders,” said Breitman. “After they left, me, Archie and Nick had to step in and fill the role. l feel like we are doing a pretty good job so far.”

PHS head coach Ryan Walsh believes his squad is doing a very good job as it has caught fire over the last few weeks.

“We were playing so well early on but we are kind of feeling each other out,” said Walsh. “We had new guys playing forward, new goal scorers.”

The one-two punch of Smith and Breitman has triggered the squad’s recent scoring prowess.

“You can see between Archie and Azariah, they are starting to get it going a little bit,” said Walsh. “Azariah has been playing great, just being super dangerous with the ball at his feet. He is crafty, he is being a little selfish because I told him to.”

While Breitman has stepped up, PHS possesses a number of offensive weapons.

“We have a really deep team this year, we have so much talent so it is great when we can get everybody on,” said Walsh, whose team tied Westfield 2-2 last Saturday to move to 6-1-2 and hosts Gill St. Bernard’s on October 5 and Steinert on October 8. “The hardest part of being a coach is not being able to play everybody. Today everyone played and everyone played really well. I was really happy from start to finish.”

The Tigers have been playing well at the defensive end from the start of the season, having yielded just six goals in nine contests.

“Starting with Nick, our goalie, he has been phenomenal,” said Walsh. “Our back four have really grown into their spots. Chase [Hamerschlag] and Thomsen [Lord] in the center backs have been better than I ever thought they were going to be this year. I am really happy with those guys.”

Going forward, Walsh believes his team is in a good place.

“They have really responded well after the Robbinsville game (a 2-1 loss on September 19), we talked a lot about just being resilient and how we are going to respond,” said Walsh, who guided the Tigers to the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) Group 4 state title last fall. “You can feel that the vibes on the team are really good right now. It is just keep everyone happy. We play a lot of games here, it is like three games a week. It is keep everyone focused on the present day.”

Breitman is confident that the Tigers will keep their focus.

“We just bring the momentum from the previous game,” said Breitman. “After a great win like this, 7-1, the confidence keeps building. The start of the season was a bit shaky, we won 1-0, we tied 0-0. The goals start coming in, we gain confidence. I feel like we have a great chance to win again.”