(Photo by Stephen Goldsmith) caption: STRIKING PRESENCE: Princeton High boys’ soccer senior striker Sam Kotowski chases down the ball in action this fall. Kotowski set a PHS mark for most goals in a season, scoring 31 to lead the Little Tigers to a 17-4 record and their second straight Mercer County Tournament title.

PHS Soccer Star Kotowski, Stuart’s Gaudioso-Radvany Get Nods as Town Topics’ Outstanding Fall Performers

Bill Alden

It started in the first game of the season for the Princeton High boys’ soccer team and it continued all fall.

In early September, senior forward Sam Kotowski notched the game-winning goal for PHS in a 2-1 win over Lawrence in the season opener for both teams.

Having started from the day he walked in the door in his freshman year at PHS, Kotowski was primed to be the go-to guy for PHS in his final campaign.

“With all the playing I do and the experience I have, shooting is something I take very seriously,” said Kotowski.

“If there is anything, I do extra it is definitely going to be shooting. There are going to be some games where I only get two or three chances, maybe not even that and I have to put it away. I feel a lot more confident in the box. I know if I have the ball and I am open anywhere in the 18, it’s going in.”

The shots kept going in for Kotowski all fall as he amassed a school-record 31 goals with 14 of them game-winners.

With Kotowski as its cold-blooded sniper up front, PHS produced another memorable campaign. After losing consecutive games to WW/P-N and Steinert in early October, the Little Tigers went on a tear.

In the semifinals of the Mercer County Tournament, fifth-seeded PHS topped No. 1 WW/P-N 2-1 in overtime on a Kotowski header. The Little Tigers went on to take their second straight MCT title, blanking No. 2 Pennington 2-0 in the championship game with Kotowski tallying an insurance goal in the second half.

In the Group III Central Jersey sectional quarterfinals, Kotowski scored the first two goals as fourth-seeded PHS beat No. 5 Point Pleasant Boro 3-0.

Four days later in a rematch with No. 1 WW/P-N in the sectional semis, Kotowski scored an early goal and it looked like PHS was on the way to the elite eight. But the Northern Knights came through with a goal in the second half to force overtime and then won the contest on a tally in the first extra session to end PHS’ season and Kotowski’s marvelous career.

PHS head coach Wayne Sutcliffe was floored by Kotowski’s senior campaign.

“Sam’s performance this season is just unbelievable,” asserted Sutcliffe, noting that he believed Kotowski also set a mark for most career goals at PHS as he led the Little Tigers to a 17-4 mark this fall.

“I haven’t seen a player impact as many games with goals and game winners. I have to say that and we have had a lot of good ones.”

For having an impact like few, if any, players in PHS history, Kotowski gets the nod as the Town Topics’ top male performer of the fall season.

Top Female Performer

Jackie Gaudioso-Radvany had a bull’s eye on her back this fall coming into her final season with the Stuart Country Day field hockey program.

The high-scoring forward received plenty of publicity when she committed early to play with defending national champion North Carolina after her Stuart career.

Stuart came into the fall having won three straight Mercer County Tournament crowns and having tied for the state Prep title in 2007.

Gaudioso-Radvany started the season within reach of hitting the 100-goal milestone in her career, a feat never accomplished before in county field hockey circles.

As she prepared for the final high school campaign, Gaudioso-Radvany was determined to diversify her game.

“I have been focusing on one-versus-one defense,” explained Gaudioso-Radvany, who was one of 50 players selected to play in the junior national camp held in early July in Virginia Beach.

“As far as inside the circle, I am solid with my scoring. I need to be better outside the circle; I need to be a more all-around player.”

The easy-going Gaudioso-Radvany showed early on that the pressure wasn’t going to get her. She tallied three goals in Stuart’s season-opening 7-0 win over Academy of New Church.

That performance was a harbinger of things to come as Gaudioso-Radvany continually frustrated defenses designed to shut her down.

After the Tartans experienced a mini-slump in late September which saw them lose two of three games, Gaudioso-Radvany caught fire down the stretch.

She scored seven goals in four games in early October to help Stuart get rolling headed into the preseason.

Gaudioso-Radvany scored a goal and an assist as Stuart topped Blair 5-0 in the Prep quarterfinals. Gaudioso-Radvany and the Tartans, however, couldn’t find the range in the semis as they fell 1-0 to eventual champion Peddie.

In the MCT, Gaudioso-Radvany tallied two goals and an assist as the Tartans routed Ewing 5-0 in a first-round contest. She added an assist as Stuart edged Stenert 1-0 in overtime in the MCT quarters.

Two days later, Gaudioso-Radvany hit her 100 goal milestone in style, scoring the lone goal in Stuart’s 1-0 win over Notre Dame in the MCT semis,

While Stuart ended up falling to Hopewell Valley 2-0 in the MCT championship game, that couldn’t dim what Gaudioso-Radvany accomplished in her stellar career.

Stuart head coach Katie Grant put her star forward’s accomplishments in perspective after the loss which left Stuart at 18-6 this season.

“I am sure it is tough for her to go out on a lower note with a loss,” said Grant of Gaudioso-Radvany, who led the area in scoring her senior season piling up 30 goals and 17 assists.

“At the same time, I think she has so much to celebrate and so much to be proud of. She’s going on to play, good for her, that’s exciting.”

For punctuating her superb career with an exciting final season, Gaudioso-Radvany is the choice as the Town Topics’ top female performer.

Top Newcomers

With a little arm-twisting from some friends, Skye Ettin came out for the Princeton High football team this fall.

Known for his exploits as a slashing forward on the PHS boys’ basketball team, the tall, wiry junior seemed out of his element as the Little Tigers absorbed a 29-3 season-opening loss to Nottingham.

Playing at defensive back, Ettin wasn’t a factor as the Northstar offense rumbled through PHS.

But as the season went on, Ettin’s athleticism and nose for the ball proved to be an asset for the Little Tigers.

The 6’3 Ettin made several key interceptions as PHS went on a five-game winning streak in the middle of the season.

While PHS fell short of a state playoff berth, Ettin stood tall in the secondary, ending the season with a team-high eight interceptions.

For taking a stab at a new sport and becoming a key performer, Ettin gets the nod as the top male newcomer.

Jenna Cody dominated the middle school scene last fall as an 8th grader at the Cranbury School.

The slender Cody finished first among the Cranbury boys and girls in every race in 2007.

This fall, Cody made a sudden impact for the PHS girls’ cross country team, beating the field in a season-opening quad meet with Steinert, Trenton, and Nottingham and then winning a tri-meet involving Notre Dame and Lawrence.

But in late October, Cody’s strong fall turned into a nightmare as her older sister, Helene, a sophomore runner for PHS, fell ill and died from a brain aneurysm.

Helene’s death came days before the Mercer County Championship meet and PHS head coach Jim Smirk wasn’t sure if his freshman star could go on.

“We had a really long discussion about that; there wasn’t any pressure from us for her to run,” recalled Smirk.

“We talked about it the other day and, as expected, she was very reserved about it. When we finally came to the decision about it, I said you are going to warm up and we are going to put you on the roster to race. She had a huge smile; that was the answer I really needed. It wasn’t what she said, it was that look of let’s do this for all the right reasons.”

Cody went out on the course at Washington’s Crossing Park for the county meet and came through with aplomb, placing 13th to help lead the Little Tigers to a fifth-place finish in the team standings.

Smirk marveled at Cody’s effort in the county meet. “Her performance was amazing on so many levels,” said Smirk. “The Codys are amazing people. Jenna just falls in line with her family. We wanted to make sure we were there for her and she wanted to make sure that she was there for us.”

Cody was there for the Little Tigers as they finished their season in style. A week after the county meet, she placed 8th as PHS took third in the Central Jersey Group II sectional meet. Cody ended her season by taking 24th to help PHS finish sixth in the Group III state meet.

For emerging as PHS’ top runner and providing a profile in courage, Cody is the choice as the Town Topics’ top female newcomer.

Top Coaches

Wayne Sutcliffe knew there were plenty of doubters as his Princeton High boys’ soccer team hit the pitch this fall.

With PHS losing a core of seniors from a 2007 team that went 17-1 and won the Mercer County Tournament crown, many thought the Little Tigers were going to take a step backward this fall.

“There were a lot of people at the beginning of the soccer season around Mercer County who thought maybe we are going to take a little bit of a drop,” said Sutcliffe. “We lost four outstanding players from last year.”

Instead, PHS picked up where it left off last year, starting the season at 8-0. In early October, the Little Tigers stumbled a bit losing 2-0 to undefeated WW/P-N and falling 1-0 to Steinert in consecutive games.

Showing a firmer resolve and bolstered by the addition of transfer Paul Ehrenworth, PHS got back on the winning track.

In the MCT, fifth-seeded PHS edged top-seeded WW/P-N 2-1 in overtime in a scintillating semifinal clash. The Little Tigers then blanked No. Pennington 2-0 in the title game to win its second straight MCT crown.

In the state playoffs, fourth-seeded PHS topped No. 5 Point Pleasant Boror 3-0 in the Central Jersey Group III sectional quarterfinals.

The Little Tigers’ season came to an end days later when they fell 2-1 in overtime to top-seeded WW/P-N in the sectional semifinals.

While Sutcliffe was disappointed by that result, he was proud of what his team accomplished this fall.

“To win the MCT this year was harder than last year because of our seed,” said Sutcliffe, whose team ended the season with a record of 17-4. “To run through the CVC schedule and only drop a couple of games was a great season.”

For keeping PHS on the winning track and guiding it to another MCT title, Sutcliffe is the choice as the top coach of a male team.

With a roster dominated by sophomores and freshmen, Princeton Day School girls’ soccer head coach Pat Trombetta thought his team was probably a year away from being a championship contender.

In the early stages of the season, the Panthers looked ordinary as they got off to a pedestrian 4-3 start.

Troubled by his team’s uneven start, Trombetta dispensed of practice one afternoon.

“We were 4-3 and a lot of teams weren’t really looking at us,” recalled Trombetta. “We didn’t practice one day, we just sat down and had a meeting and talked about the direction that we wanted to see things going. Everybody got on board.”

From that point, the Panthers went on a special ride, winning 10 of their next 12 games to advance to the state Prep B championship game in early November.

In that game, top-seeded PDS got two goals from senior star Erin Cook as it edged No. 3 Montclair Kimberley Academy 2-1 in overtime to win the title.

In the raucous post-game celebration, Trombetta acknowledged that he was taken aback by his team’s title.

“It is unbelievable because we have only two seniors,” said Trombetta, whose team finished the season with a 15-5 record.

“It says a lot; we have nine sophomores on the team and each one of them stepped up today. This was a game they could have easily rolled over, losing that momentum in OT. They came back and did a fantastic job.”

For doing a fantastic job in leading his young side to a state title, Trombetta gets the nod at the Town Topics top coach among female teams.

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