Health & Wellness Directory

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30 yards out. Rojas then unfurled a laser blast that Freehold Township goalkeeper Richard Lockard never had a chance to stop. It was Rojas’ 21st goal of the season, but it might have been his prettiest.

The Kards had two chances to put the fourth goal up, but two shots from close range sailed over the crossbar.

Sure enough, the Patriots pulled to within to one goal again, when Josh Hocheiser knocked one in at the 73rd minute. They were not going to go away easily. Teams usually don’t in state title games.

But the Kardinals put the game away in the final 10 minutes, scoring three times. Alejandro Alvarado was pulled down in the box, awarding Kearny a penalty kick that Rojas drilled for his 22nd and final goal of the season. You could almost feel the collective exhale from the Kearny sideline and the fans in the stands on both sides of the field. It was impressive to see the turnout of Kardinal loyalists who made it to Union and loaded up both bleachers.

Alvarado returned Rojas’ favor with five minutes left, scoring his 16th goal of the year to push it to 5-2 and Johan Baez capped the scoring and the season with his 13th goal of the season with just one minute remaining, setting off the celebration on the Kardinal bench.

Astoundingly, the Kardinals had seven players to reach double figures in goal scoring this season – scoring balance that is just unheard of. The Kardinals tallied 114 goals this season in 24 games, a total of 4.75 goals per game. No wonder why they lost only once this season.

“Forty years from now, we’re going to look back and realize how great this really was,” Rojas said. “This team is like my second family. We had so much fun all season. I’m so thankful to God just how awesome this was. This was one of the best days I’ve ever had.”

“It’s overwhelming,” net minder Rodriguez said. “I can’t show my excitement more.”

The Kardinals all rallied Saturday in honor of junior Christian Escandon, who suffered a serious knee injury in the first five minutes of the Elizabeth game Tuesday night. Escandon was on crutches on the sidelines, but he was on the field with several teammates wearing T-shirts under their jerseys honoring Escandon. Galka thought that Escandon was just coming into his own.

“Over the last three weeks, he was one of our best players,” Galka said. “He’s been fantastic. He’s been great on the ball. It was a terrible time for him to get hurt and miss the big game.”

Escandon’s knee requires surgery in the near future. With two torn meniscus ligaments, Escandon will require nine months of rehabilitation, but should be fine for the start of next season.

Galka had a sense that the Kards were ready for an explosion.

“I told my wife (Patricia) that we were going to score six goals,” Galka said. “Before I left the house, I said that we would win 6-0. The kids believed in themselves and in each other. I think once we got through Elizabeth, we were ready for the big one. This team was very similar to 2017. There was great cohesion and camaraderie. I’m going to miss the (11) seniors, but it’s time for the younger ones to step up.”

And as for the 33 state championships coming from “Soccertown, USA?”

“It’s been well documented in books and movies,” Galka said. “It’s safe to say that the moniker is alive and healthy.”

Photo by Jim Hague Kearny midfielder Nico Gomez (6) takes control of the ball from Freehold Township’s Noah Jones (14) during the Kardinals’ 6-2 win in the NJSIAA Group IV state championship Saturday at Kean University.

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the coaches in the state certainly helped with procuring players.

“I was encouraged by the players that were buying into the culture and the philosophy of sprint football,” said Kelly, who was also able to get New Jersey coaching legend Ken Trimmer to come aboard as an assistant. Trimmer was the highly successful head coach at Caldwell High School for more than 30 years and has been an integral part of the New Jersey Football Coaches Association that organizes the annual NorthSouth All-Star Classic that is held every summer.

“The word is out that we have a program here,” Kelly said. “I think the New Jersey coaches are excited to have a program that they can encourage their players to consider coming to. I was fortunate enough to rekindle the relationships I made over the years. I think we all came to realize what the sport of sprint football is all about.”

The Cougars just completed their third season and survived the COVID-19 pandemic in doing so. The Cougars defeated Mansfield University last week to finish the 2021 season with a 5-2 record, which isn’t too shabby considering the infancy of the program combined with the pandemic that shut down everything.

Five of the players on the 2021 Caldwell University roster are from The Observer’s circulation area. Three of them are from Kelly’s hometown of Nutley and the proud Raider Nation program.

Frank DeMaio is a former Nutley athlete who first went to Delaware Valley University in Doylestown, Pennsylvania to continue his fine wrestling career.

“I found out that school just wasn’t right for me,” DeMaio said. “I came home and worked with my Dad (who is the Nutley director of recreation) for a year. Coach Kelly found out that I was home and asked me if I would play and I said, ‘Why not?’ I had no idea what sprint football was all about.”

DeMaio’s long time friend, Anthony Haines, was already headed to Caldwell to play.

“I just wanted some place to continue playing football,” said Haines, who played football and wrestled for Nutley. “Coach Kelly coached me at the recreation level. I thought it was perfect for me to live at home, play football and still enjoy my Mom’s (Marie) cooking.”

Ironically, the two longtime buddies are the only two quarterbacks on the Caldwell roster. DeMaio never played quarterback before arriving at Caldwell. He was a fine running back and linebacker during his days with the Maroon Raiders. One might think that there might be some fierce competition between the two quarterbacks, but that’s not the case at all. DeMaio is the starter, with Haines as the backup.

DeMaio, a junior at Caldwell, had 322 yards rushing this season with three touchdowns and completed 62 of 129 passes for 1,036 yards and eight touchdowns. Haines completed eight of 15 passes for 96 yards and a touchdown in limited action as a freshman.

“Frank was a senior when I was a freshman at Nutley,” Haines said. “I’m still learning from him. It has been tons of fun playing together. We might be competitive in practice, but come game time, we’re on the same team.”

“Being a quarterback this year has been a blast,” DeMaio said. “I think I wanted to prove that I could still play football.”

DeMaio is majoring in education with the hope of becoming a teacher and coach somewhere in the future. Haines is majoring in sports management and communications.

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Photo by Jim Hague The Caldwell University sprint football team recently completed a successful season with the help of some local players. From left are Anthony Haines of Nutley, Joe Witt of North Arlington, head coach Jim Kelly of Nutley, Frank DeMaio of Nutley, George Escobar of Belleville and Gennaro Longobardi of Nutley.

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Kearny’s Castillo goes out as mature leader

By Jim Hague ogsmar@aol.com

The seminal moment of Alan Castillo’s life as a high school soccer player occurred two years ago, when Castillo was a sophomore at Kearny High School.

Turn back the clock to October of 2019 as Kearny was preparing to face Clifton in the NJSIAA North Jersey Section 1, Group IV state playoffs. Castillo was already a solid center back, anchoring the Kardinals’ back line.

It was an event off the field that cost Castillo dearly. He got into trouble with a substitute teacher in school and that incident forced Kearny head coach Bill Galka to suspend Castillo on the sidelines for the crucial game against perennial state playoff rival Clifton.

“That was one of the biggest regrets of my whole high school career,” Castillo said. “I should have never had that happen.”

What made things even worse is that Clifton knocked the Kardinals out of the state playoffs with a 1-0 loss. If Castillo played, who knows what might have happened?

“I was furious with Alan,” Galka said. “It really hurt us that he couldn’t play and we lost. When the team turned in their uniforms, I sat him down and told him how much he hurt the team. It was nothing about soccer. He was a very good player. You can’t play varsity for us as a sophomore unless you’re a good player. But he did something stupid and it hurt us.”

“For about two or three weeks, it really bothered me,” Castillo said. “It bothered me a lot. I felt I let my teammates down. I didn’t want that to define my season.”

As it turned out, the inschool incident changed Castillo for the better. It forced him to become more mature and smarter.

“It was a learning experience for me,” Castillo said. “It’s the best way to describe it. It matured me a lot.”

From that point on, Castillo became nothing short of a model citizen. He was certainly remorseful for his actions, but he also became a better soccer player.

And in the season that just ended Saturday with a 6-2 victory over Freehold Township in the NJSIAA Group IV state championship game at Kean University, Castillo was about as good of a center back that the Kardinals have ever put on the field, in the same class with players like First Team AllState selections Will Walsh and Hugh MacDonald, who was the first-ever recipient of The Observer Male Athlete of the Year back in 2002-2003.

“It’s a big honor for me to be considered with them,” Castillo said. “I never thought I could be close to them. It’s a big thing for me to be a good center back like them.”

“He’s been almost flawless for us this year,” Galka said of Castillo. “I can’t remember him making a mistake. He doesn’t get beat often. He also has the ability to cover for others. He reads the game so well. He also has the ability to carry the ball forward and keep going.”

Castillo’s control of the game and picture-perfect play has enabled the senior to be selected as The Observer Athlete of the Week for the past week and the final such honoree for the fall scholastic sports season.

Castillo not only controls the play from the Kardinals’ back line, but he has the uncanny ability to place pinpoint long passes that travel 40, 50 yards at times, eventually ending up perfectly at the feet or heads of his teammates. His brilliant pass to Nico Gomez in the first minute of overtime enabled the Kardinals to secure a 2-1 victory over rival Harrison in the Hudson County Tournament championship game at Red Bull Arena last month.

“He’s very accurate with the long ball,” Galka said. “There are very few who can hit the ball that accurately that far. His passes always had a purpose. He really was damn near perfect.”

“I always loved hitting the long ball,” Castillo said. “I just need

Castillo said that he was practically born to be a center back. He played striker for one of the first youth soccer teams he played for in the Kearny Thistle program, but quickly became a defender for life.

“I just had a good way of reading the play and making the play,” Castillo said. “I also have a good way of reading the moment. I know when to step in and make the play. Every time I get the ball, I’m not looking to just keep it and baby the ball up. I’m looking to push the ball forward. It’s the first thing on my mind.”

Castillo said that he worked hard to prepare for his senior season, spending countless hours in the gym and playing for the respected travel soccer program Ironbound FC and its youth

But unlike others who remain with their club soccer program during the fall months, Castillo always had his allegiance to Kearny High in his heart.

“Once the summer came, I only wanted to play high school,” Castillo said. “The time in the gym helped me gain confidence in making tackles. I wanted to build my body.”

Castillo is pleased with the way his senior season ended Saturday with a state championship, cementing his place in Kearny history. If he’s not a First Team All-State selection within the next few weeks, then there should not be such a thing. Castillo is about as good of an all-around defender anyone can find on the high school level. His complete command of the game is astounding and something to marvel.

“He’s well respected by his teammates.” Galka said. “He’s generally very quiet, but he certainly has that intensity you need. I think he commands respect because he’s such a good player. He’s always had a purpose, but this year, he’s been near perfect.”

Castillo likes to hear his place in Kearny soccer history.

“For sure, that makes me feel happier,” Castillo said. “It makes me feel proud of myself. I used to go to all the Kearny games when I was a kid and there was one thing I remembered that they always won. It was always on my mind that I wanted to win a state title with my teammates.”

Mission accomplished. Now Castillo wants to get a chance to play college soccer, but has to improve his grades, so he will have to perhaps pursue the junior college route. Or he might go to Ecuador and play professionally there.

“I wanted to play (NCAA) Division I soccer, but I know my grades aren’t good enough right now,” Castillo said. “That’s my goal. I would like that.”

No question, the talent is there. If he could get his grades in line, Castillo will be right there.

“It’s crazy to say that out loud,” Castillo said. “I never thought I’d be in this position. I just have to stay humble. But this is proof that anything is possible if I keep working and stay humble.”

And realize when a mistake is made. Getting that shot at redemption might be Castillo’s biggest win of all.

ence for me,” Castillo said. “It’s

Photo by Jim Hague Kearny senior center back Alan Castillo, shown here during the Kardinals’ 6-2 win over Freehold Township in the NJSIAA Group IV state championship game Saturday, has cemented his position as one of the best Kardinal center backs of all time. he played for in the Kearny Thistle program, but quickly became a defender for life. reading the play and making

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“I’m grateful to Coach Kelly for bringing me in,” DeMaio said. “It’s been fun to have this Nutley connection here.”

There’s another Nutley player on the Caldwell roster. Fellow freshman Gennaro Longobardi is a slot receiver for the Cougars. Longobardi scored one touchdown this season.

“I spoke to Coach Kelly about playing here,” Longobardi said. “I always dreamed about playing college football, but I’m not the biggest guy in the world. I think this fit perfectly for me. I’ve known Coach Kelly for a long time. He was my coach in eighth grade, so it was good to have a coach who knows me. I’ve also been friends with Anthony (Haines) since third grade and it’s great to be his teammate again. I’m happy he’s with me.”

Longobardi is undecided about his major, but might consider business. He also commutes to and from school.

“I think it’s great we were winners here,” said Longobardi, who along with Haines played on the undefeated Nutley team of 2020 that proved to be the last season of the late Steve DiGregorio’s illustrious career. “I’m proud of my guys here. I couldn’t ask for anything more. We have a young team with a lot of football left in us.”

Joe Witt had a great athletic career at North Arlington, but wanted to have a place to play his primary sport, which is baseball.

But Witt, who is also not the biggest athlete on the planet, learned of sprint football, he was interested.

“Honestly, I had no idea that there was such a thing,” Witt said. “I knew Coach Kelly and knew of the school. I wanted to have a chance to play both sports. I wasn’t going to college to play football, but this is a place where I can play both.”

Witt, a freshman, played quarterback his last two years at North Arlington, but has managed to go back to his natural position of wide receiver at Caldwell.

“Football is still a sport