Boys Soccer: Bridgewater-Raritan falls in PKs in Group IV semifinal

FRANKLIN (Somerset) - The second time the Bridgewater-Raritan High School boys soccer team had to finish a game in penalty kicks, it didn't go quite as well as the first. 

The Panthers advanced to the North 2 Group IV final on penalty kicks on Nov. 7 and encountered the same scenario against Kearny on Tuesday in the Group IV semifinals. But this time, Bridgewater-Raritan saw its season come to an end with a 5-4 loss in penalty kicks at Franklin High School.

With the penalty kicks tied 4-4, senior Cristian Villegas scored the fifth and final kick to send Kearny (20-0-3) to the Group IV final. 

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Jose Escandon, Juan Rendon, Marcus Hidalgo and Nickolas Fiallos also scored for the Kardinals. For Bridgewater-Raritan (18-1-2), Nathan Han, Oliver Trujillo, Sean Masur and Brandon Jimenez scored. 

"We knew that they were very good and very skilled," Bridgewater-Raritan coach Rick Szeles said. "We had a great season and a great run, you can't beat speed though. Their skill was good, speed was good, we held our own, we had a couple of opportunities, not as many as I would have liked."

Bridgewater-Raritan, which  allowed only 10 goals all season, kept Kearny off the scoreboard for 100 minutes, with goalie Calum Erlenborn making five saves.

While both sides had a couple of opportunities to score, the Kardinals' best chance to win the game in regulation came when Rendon ripped a shot that hit off the crossbar and bounced back onto the field. Rendon corralled his own rebound and sent a shot wide right with four minutes remaining in the game. 

In the end it came down to a game of defenses, and Bridgewater-Raritan just couldn't crack a Kearny backline that has allowed 14 goals with 11 shutouts this season.

The Panthers, which were looking for their first Group IV title since 2005, end their season as Skyland Conference Delaware Division champions, Somerset County Tournament co-champions and North 2 Group IV sectional champions. 

"It was fun watching, I'd like to see what the final looks like because this game was a good game, I have a lot of respect for their kids on the field," Szeles said. "Our kids held it together, I'm proud of the way they played, we're getting there."

Staff Writer Lauren Knego: lknego@gannettnj.com; on Twitter: @laurenknego