(Central Jersey) - The Real Central NJ Soccer (RCNJ) women’s team showed a great deal of promise in their inaugural season in the Women’s Premier Soccer League (WPSL). The team finished the season with a final record of four wins, three draws, and the team’s only two losses both came from a strong NJ/NY Gotham FC Reserve side.
The women opened the season at home against NJ Alliance FC on Sunday, May 23rd. Overall the team played well, finishing the game with a 1-0 win thanks to a great goal from Julia Obst. RCNJ was able to put on the pressure and shut down the attacks coming from NJ Alliance FC.
The women kept up the good form on Friday, June 4th defeating Inter AC at home. Tatum Gee was able to display a wonderful bit of skill, earning herself a brace. Julia Obst was able to finish off the game in the dying minutes by slotting the ball into the back of the net off a great shot from Raenah Campbell. The match finished 3-1 for RCNJ, moving the women’s record to 2-0.
The women went on the road for the first time heading to North Jersey to face off against Match Fit on Sunday, June 6th. The team was able to keep up the excellent form and earned another three points with goals coming from Raenah Campbell, Amelia Curtis, and Kayla Bertolino, winning the game with a 3-1 final result.
The women were on the road again to face STA on Wednesday, June 9th with a goal coming from Haley Skove. STA equalized before the match was forced to end early due to incoming thunderstorms. While the women dropped points, they remained undefeated with strong defensive efforts in every match.
The women returned home on Sunday, June 13th to face off against the NJ/NY Gotham FC Reserves. The women played well against a very strong Gotham side. After conceding the first half, Emma Davis showed some incredible skill to score a beautiful looping shot to tie the game late in the first half. Gotham were mostly limited to low quality chances, but RCNJ succumbed to the pressured and were unlucky to come away without a point after a tight 2-1 loss.
In the final home game of the season, the women faced NJ Wizards FC on Sunday, June 20th. The game ended in a 2-2 draw with Kayla Bertolino earning herself a brace.
The final regular season game for the women was on the road against PSA Monmouth on Saturday, June 26th. The women were able to get one point on the road with both teams scoring once. RCNJ’s lone goal came from Julia Obst.
The women ended as the third seed and in their inaugural season made it to the divisional playoffs as the national tournament was postponed for the season. RCNJ once again went north to face second seed Match Fit. Match FIt fought hard against the RCNJ women but was not able to do enough to avoid conceding for a second time. The 2-0 win advanced RCNJ to the WPSL Metropolitan South Championship match.
After taking the lead early, RCNJ conceded five goals against the NJ/NY Gotham FC Reserves. While sad to see the women lose in the championship game, they displayed great performances throughout the season, with NJ/NY Gotham being the only struggle the team had the entire season.
When looking back, you can see that the team really came together over the course of the season. Julia Obst was able to earn herself the award of Top Scorer with 3 total goals on the season. Tatum Gee took the Top Assister award with 2 total assists. With an incredible inaugural season, the team looks forward for what the women have in store for us next season.
Comments