HOW ABOUT THAT: Princeton High girls’ soccer player Kacey Howes controls the ball in recent action. Last Thursday, junior star Howes tallied one goal and one assist to help PHS defeat Jackson Memorial 4-0. On Monday, Howes helped 16th-seeded PHS defeat top-seeded Freehold Township on penalty kicks (5-4) after the teams had played to scoreless draw through regulation and overtime in the first round of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) Central Jersey Group 4 Tournament. The Tigers, now 7-9-3, play at eighth-seeded Montgomery in the quarterfinal round on November 7.(Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

By Bill Alden

As the Princeton High girls’ soccer team hosted Jackson Memorial last Thursday, Kacey Howes took a knock on her foot midway through the first half and had to leave the contest.

But PHS junior star Howes wasn’t about to take the rest of the day off in the team’s final home game this fall.

“She just kicked my ankle, it is like a recurring injury,” said Howes, who headed to a table near the Tiger bench to get her ankle taped by Tiger trainer April Daly. “I just wanted to play on because I knew I wanted to be out there. It hurt a little bit but it was play through the pain.”

With the game knotted at 0-0 12 minutes into the second half, Howes caused Jackson some pain as she got loose in the box and slotted the ball into the back of the net.

“It was a great ball by Taylor [Hamerschlag], and I just wanted to make sure that I got around the goalie because she would jump out to grab it,” said Howes. “Once I was around her, it was calm and easy into the goal.”

The tally by Howes opened the floodgates for PHS as Manuela Dante Boarato, Virginia Marchesi, and Hamerschlag each scored goals as the Tigers pulled away to a 4-0 win.

“Once we got our spirits up, everyone was ready to just go up,” said Howes, who assisted on the goal by Dante Boarato.

Looking ahead to its New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) Central Jersey Group 4 Tournament first round game at Freehold Township, Howes believed that the win over Jackson would give the 16th-seeded Tigers momentum as they faced the top-seeded Patriots.

“It is a great tuneup,” said Howes. “We really wanted to end on win so we had the energy to go make a good states impression and come out hard.”

Last Monday, PHS brought that energy, stunning Freehold on penalty kicks (5-4) after the teams had played to scoreless draw through regulation and overtime. The Tigers, now 7-9-3, will play at eighth-seeded Montgomery in the quarterfinal round on November 7.

Having emerged as the leading goal scorer this fall for the Tigers after being in a more defensive role last fall, Howes is following in the footsteps of her older sister, Holly, who scored a team-high 14 goals last year in her senior season for PHS.

“She was our forward last year and I always look up to her because she would always score, she was very clean with it,” said Howes, who now has five goals this fall. “This year going to forward, I definitely felt a lot of pressure because I wanted to make sure that I was like her. It ended up working out, I figured it out.”

The Tigers have figured out things collectively, going 6-1-1 in their last eight games as a 1-0 win over Nottingham on October 10 gave them a boost of confidence.

“We realized we were not bad, we can be really good,” said Howes. “Once we won, it was like, ‘OK, we are pretty good, we can do it.”

PHS head coach Meghan Brennan believed her squad was determined to make a very good effort in their last home game.

“We have seven seniors, it was the last home game ever for those seniors,” said Brennan. “We tried to keep that in mind and pull it out for them.”

In the early stages of the game against Jackson, PHS struggled to finish.

“We just weren’t connecting in the final third,” said Brennan. “We were doing well but we were making mistakes in the final third, not getting that final pass or getting that shot. In the second half, we came out a lot stronger and put it together.”

Brennan was not surprised that Howes connected to get the scoring started.

“Kacey is just excellent, she is always fired up,” said Brennan. “She always has a good touch, she played well. I was excited to see her get the first one. That gave everyone energy and hope, it helped them believe in themselves. That was awesome, all of the goals were really good.”

The Tigers got good play at the defensive end against Jackson as junior Romy Johnson and senior Ava Tabeart spearheaded the back line.

“We have been doing well defensively,” said Brennan. “We just got Romy back too, she is one of our captains. She has just started playing again after having an injury so having her back is hugely helpful. Ava played a great game. She anchored the defense for sure, she did what we know she can do.”

Brennan sensed that PHS could do some good things this fall despite struggling in the early going.

“We had a tough start to our season, we got down on ourselves a little bit after losing some tough games,” said Brennan. “We knew we could do it. We hung with some really good teams. We keep telling them, now is the time to peak. It is not about how you start, it is about how you finish.”

Heading into the state clash against Freehold, Brennan was optimistic about her team’s chances.

“I would rather be the underdog,” said Brennan, who got goals from Tabeart, Clara Burton, Julia Zaladarriaga, Johnson, and Collette Colarusso in the penalty shootout with goalie Zaldarriaga making a key save. “Freehold is an excellent team, they have a great program. It is going to be a super hard game but being the underdog is fun. We are getting psyched for it, we have nothing to lose.

Howes, for her part, is excited by how the Tigers have caught fire in their excellent stretch run.

“We have been stepping up overall. This season started out a little harsh, but now we are really getting our footing,” said Howes. “It is really good to see, I am really proud of our team.”