HAMMER TIME: Princeton High boys’ soccer player Chase Hamerschlag rises up for a header in recent action. Last Monday, junior center back Hamerschlag scored a goal and played strong defense to help second-seeded PHS defeat 10th-seeded Trenton Central 2-1 in the quarterfinal round of the Colonial Valley Conference (CVC) Tournament. The Tigers, now 12-2-3, will face third-seeded Steinert in the CVC tourney semis on October 24 at Hopewell Valley with the victor advancing to the final on October 26. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

By Bill Alden

Chase Hamerschlag provided a spark off the bench as a reserve forward for the Princeton High boys’ soccer team last fall as it won the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) Group 4 state title.

Backing up high-scoring striker Pasquale Carusone, Hamerschlag contributed five goals and two assists. But with PHS losing star center backs Nick Matese and Jamie Reynolds to graduation, Hamerschlag volunteered to move back to the back line this season to help fill that void.

“It was great last year being behind Pasquale, I knew that here were going to be huge roles, especially with Nick and Jamie leaving,” said junior Hamerschlag, a versatile athlete who has competed in wrestling and baseball for the Tigers. “I worked on it over the summer. We have captain’s practices where we just come in and kick the ball. I really just put myself back there and practiced. I like the transition.”

Last Monday, as second-seeded PHS hosted 10th-seeded Trenton Central in the quarterfinal round of the Colonial Valley Conference (CVC) Tournament, Hamerschlag’s work paid off as he blasted a free kick past the Trenton goalie to give PHS a 1-0 lead with 16:33 left in the first half.

“When I see that they are all lined up, I am looking at the right side of the net,” said Hamerschlag. “I know that I can kick the ball pretty hard. I am looking for that top right corner, especially since the guy was a little bit off to the left side, more center goal. I just knew with my power. I could put it up in the top right.”

With his size and athleticism, Hamerschlag has helped the PHS back four develop into strong crew.

“We have been working for a while now and we have really established a back line,” said Hamerschlag. “We are a unit.”

That unit was put to the test when the Tornadoes scored a goal with 2:17 left in regulation cut the PHS lead to 2-1. The Tiger defense stiffened from there as the squad pulled out the win by that margin.

“There is that little concern, I know our defense and I know what we can do,” said Hamerschlag. “That goal was just a weird goal.”

The Tigers, now 12-2-3, will face third-seeded Steinert in the CVC tourney semis on October 24 at Hopewell Valley with the victor advancing to the final on October 26.

PHS head coach Ryan Walsh knew his was going to be pushed by a feisty Trenton squad which upset seventh-seeded Hightstown 3-0 in the first round of the CVC tourney on October 19.

“The Trenton teams always battle, they won three in a row coming into it,” said Walsh. “They had a nice result against Hightstown on Saturday. We knew that they were going to come in and it was going to be a fight to the end.”

Hamerschlag’s free kick helped turn the tide in favor of PHS.

“Chase hits the ball really hard in those situations, he is an asset to us,” said Walsh of Hamerschlag, who has now tallied four goals and two assists this season. “He is an elite athlete in a lot of ways. The transition wasn’t smooth in the beginning but he has really grown into it now and has played a big role for us this year.”

Walsh likes how the squad’s back four has raised the level of their game as the season has unfolded.

“These guys have now played a lot of minutes together,” said Walsh, whose defensive unit also includes seniors Connor Hewitt, Thomsen Lord, and Matt Chao in addition to Hamerschlag. “When you don’t win every match, that is when guys get a lot closer, it is just learning from one another. Building off wins and losses gets the guys together.”

Senior star midfielder Archie Smith helped PHS build a 2-0 lead as he found the back of the net with 12:57 left in the second half.

“Both him and Azariah [Breitman] played well, they work well together,” said Walsh. “Credit to Trenton, they did a really good job of trying to neutralize those two guys.”

PHS did a good job of neutralizing Trenton down the stretch as it held off the late flurry from the Tornadoes. “We work on that a lot, trying to kill the game off up one goal late in the game,” said Walsh. “We did a really good job of getting the ball into the attacking half away from their keeper in the last two minutes and just keep it.”

With PHS getting a rematch in the CVC semis against Steinert, who defeated the Tigers 2-0 on October 8, Walsh believes his squad has what it takes to win the tournament.

“I have a lot of confidence in these guys, these guys want to win so bad,” said Walsh. “No matter who we play, we will be ready for sure. There are some good teams in the CVC, we respect them but we don’t fear them.”

Hamerschlag, for his part, is fired up to get a second shot at Steinert.

“They scored two early goals on us and we are not going to let that happen again,” said Hamerschlag. “We want Steinert and Robbinsville (the top-seeded team in the CVC tourney who edged PHS 2-1 in mid-September).”