Highlanders hope to repeat as division champs

Facing a tough schedule, the West Milford High School boys soccer team hopes to improve on its record of 17-3-3 last year, when it won the division.

The Highlanders are scheduled to open the regular season Sept. 4 with a road match at Fair Lawn.

“This is a strong, senior-led team that gained valuable experience in tough, close games last year,’’ head coach Ray Ferriola said. “We are hoping to improve on our play this year.

“We have a very tough schedule. Our league schedule is always tough and our independent games and crossover Big North Conference games are against very strong schools,” such as Passaic County Technical Institute, Passaic, Paramus and DePaul.

“This team has been very successful since freshman year and through the JV level when they were coached by Roberto Zuban and last year at the varsity level. We hope they will finish their high school careers with a rewarding and successful final season.’’

Key returning players include seniors Nick Bognar (midfielder, All Passaic County First Team, All Big North Independence First Team in 2024), Noah Christian (midfielder, eight goals, six assists, All Passaic County First Team, All Big North Independence First Team in 2024), Julian Pierre (defender, six goals, three assists, All Passaic County First Team, All Big North Independence First Team in 2024), Danny Bauer (midfielder/forward, nine goals, two assists, All Big North Independence Second Team in 2024), Donovan Ford (goal keeper, 12 wins in 2024), Domonic LeNoir (goal keeper, five wins in 2024), Will Dent (forward, four goals, three assists in 2024), Kevin Docwra (defender), Jaxon Neubig (forward), Kyle Herwig (defender) and Aramis Nieshalla (midfielder) and juniors Iron Pinedo (defender), Chris Orsino (midfielder) and Jacob Friere (midfielder).

Promising newcomers include seniors Will Weiss (defender), Ethan Amundson (forward) and Andy Sanchez (forward) and sophomore AJ Lockwood (midfielder).

“We have strong leadership this year with second-year captain Noah Christian being joined by captains Nick Bognar, Julian Pierre and Danny Bauer,’’ Ferriola said. “We have a very experienced team with 15 seniors.’’

Last year, West Milford advanced to the semifinal round of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) North Jersey, Section 1, Group 2 tournament, where it lost to top-seeded and 14th-ranked Ramsey, 4-0.

This fall, the team again competes in the Big North Conference Independence Division along with Wayne Hills, Wayne Valley, Fair Lawn, Lakeland and Passaic Valley.

“We are looking to repeat as Big North Independence champions from last year and looking to make an impact in the Passaic County and state tournaments,’’ Ferriola said.

“I believe that we will be a strong contender in the Big North Independence. There are a lot of strong teams in the league, with Wayne Valley, Fair Lawn, Wayne Hills, Lakeland and Passaic Valley always fielding strong teams.’’