They say that history repeats itself, and that turned out to be the case for the No. 11 seed Randolph boys’ soccer team when they crowned themselves Morris County Champs by knocking off No. 1 Seed Delbarton on Saturday, October 24.

Back in 2016, Delbarton had won three straight County titles when they faced the Rams looking for a fourth, but Randolph beat them on Penalty Kicks.  The Green Wave then went on to win the next three straight titles, and after Covid canceled the 2020 tournament they found themselves facing the Rams in the 2021 finals while again seeking a fourth straight..

And as Yogi Bera once famously said, “It was like Déjà vu all over again” as the Rams once again Knocked Delbarton off their high horse with a Penalty kick victory.

“I knew I had to step up, my team had played so well for 100 minutes to get us there, and we needed something big,” said Levy.  “Coach Nick helped me get ready for it, and after everyone fought so hard through cramps and injuries to get us there, it was a dream come true to make those saves.”

The game played out like an upset would in a classic heavyweight boxing match, with Delbarton the big bad favorite coming out swinging to try and knock out their opponent early.  But the Rams took all their best shots and hung around until they finally countered by landing a huge uppercut of their own two thirds of the way through. Suddenly, the Green Wave was the team playing back on their heels.  Realizing they were in a dogfight with a Rams team that came to win, they were now the ones holding onto the ropes for dear life down the stretch, until the final knockout blow came in the final round with the PK’s.

To get there, the Rams had to weather that early onslaught from Delbarton, who came out and relentlessly attacked in the first half, sending long balls deep into the zone and causing chaos in front of the net.  Randolph was playing a defensive zone strategy, and the Green Wave controlled the ball and carried play.  When they finally broke through and grabbed the first goal of the game at the 33rd minute, it seemed as though they were in full control.

“We had to make sure we shut down their striker, because the last few times we played them he was the biggest threat,” said captain and defenseman Hunter Rodrigues.  “We had one little slip up in the first half, but we were solid on defense the rest of the night after that.”

But Randolph was not prepared to roll over, and after taking a few more punches, the tide began to turn about ten minutes into the second half as the Rams got more aggressive and changed into an offensive strategy.

“We had a so-so first half, but in the second half we decided to go at them,” said coach George Mousis.  “We made a few tactical adjustments, worked hard, and then took them the distance.”

As the Rams started pressing, the momentum switched, and they were getting the better of play.  Finally, they landed that upper cut punch when midfielder Eli Zeris sent a through ball up to Kevin Martinez.  The junior knifed the ball out of the air, slipped it through a defender’s legs, and ripped a shot past the goalie to tie it up at 1-1 with 20 minutes left in the game. 

“I saw Eli with the ball, and I saw a pocket of space between the defenders, so I got myself there,” said Martinez.  “He got the ball to me and I back heeled it through the defenders legs. When the goalie came out on me, I shot it inside the back post, and I knew from there we had the momentum to win.”

The crowd went wild, and from that moment on, it was all Rams. The domination that Delbarton had in the first half flipped to the Randolph side, and for the remaining 20 minutes and through two ten-minute Overtimes, the Rams attacked and pressured and controlled play, almost getting the winning tally multiple times.

But Randolph still had to weather one more storm, after a Red Card made them play man down for the final four minutes to earn the Penalty Kicks. When they got there, they wasted no time in delivering the knockout punch by dominating the PK session by a 3-1 margin.

Levy made his mark by saving the first three Delbarton shots, and with the alternating attempts the Rams picked up goals from Cacciacarne and Alex Brandon for a 2-0 PK lead.  The fourth Green Wave player converted, and out came Martinez with the chance to win the game.  He calmly took his shot, and when it hit the back of the net, he ripped off his shirt and raced towards the stands where the celebration began. The rowdy, full capacity crowd who was treated to an amazing comeback win, jumped the fence and rushed the field to celebrate with the team.

“I told the guys before the game that this was our dream that we all grew up with playing soccer,” said Cacciacarne.  “To be out here on the biggest stage, playing for the championship against the biggest team in the County with all our fans here.  We knew we could win, we came out with energy and ready to play and got the job done.”  

From the three captains right down to the last man on the bench, the win was earned with blood, sweat – and ended with a lot of tears.  To a man, the Rams played their hearts out. With bodies strewn out on the field late in the game with cramps, and players limping on and off with injuries, it was as gutsy and determined of a performance as one could ever expect to see in a high school game. 

After winning his second Morris County Title, the Rams coach was thrilled with his team. 

“I am speechless, I don’t know what to say except I am honored to be part of this group, they played amazing,” said Mousis.  “I told them all to go out and have fun in this game, and to believe they could win, and they then made a believer out of me.

https://www.tapinto.net/towns/randolph/sections/sports/articles/randolph-does-it-again-boys-soccer-beats-up-on-delbarton-late-to-earn-morris-county-championshi