West Milford boys soccer looks to build on championship season

Win, lose or draw, a strong work ethic, teamwork and sportsmanship will be hallmarks of the 2026 West Milford High School boys soccer team.

The Highlanders are scheduled to host Passaic Valley on Tuesday, Sept. 15.

“We would like to be competitive in the Big North Conference Independence Division again this year and make runs in the Passaic County and (NJSIAA) North 1 Group 2 State Tournaments,” West Milford coach Ray Ferriola said.

Among the key returning players are senior midfielders Iron Pinedo and junior A.J. Lockwood, senior defender and midfielder Jacob Freire, senior forward Chris Orsino and senior defender Danny Golas.

Promising newcomers include juniors Vinnie LeNoir, Matteo Petrosillo and Marco Petrosillo; seniors Gavin Murphy, Dean Lombardo, George Martin and Ryan Czuczago; junior goalkeeper Julian Chaim; sophomore Logan Rembrandt; juniors Nate Janeski and Abraham Hidalgo; and sophomore Cristian Alokoski.

West Milford will also rely on strong leadership from its captains: Pinedo, Orsino, Freire and Golas.

“They were all part of the ctate cectional championship team last year and helped lead the team to back-to-back Big North Independence championships the last two seasons,” Ferriola said. “They look to pick up where those teams left off and continue the program on its ascension.”

The Highlanders had an outstanding 2025 season, finishing 17-4-2 overall and 9-0-1 in the Independence Division. West Milford captured the NJSIAA North 1 Group 2 sectional championship with a 1-0 victory over perennial powerhouse Ramsey in the final.

The Highlanders fell to eventual state champion Madison in a one-goal match in the State Group 2 semifinals.

West Milford will compete in the Independence Division with Indian Hills, Lakeland, Passaic Valley, Wayne Hills and Wayne Valley.

“We lost 15 seniors (nine starters) to graduation, but we are bringing up a solid JV squad, who were coached by Roberto Zuban and who were undefeated last season,” Ferriola said. “We expect that group, in addition to a few of last year’s freshmen who were coached by Carlos Vizcarra, to contribute. We expect this group to continue the success the program has had over the past several years and be contenders in the division.”

Ferriola expects the division race to be closely contested.

“All the teams bring back talent,” he said. “Wayne Hills and Wayne Valley are always tough. Lakeland has a lot of talent and are very well coached. Passaic Valley had a down year last year, but they were very young. Indian Hills is new to our division this year and always fields a good team. Our division should be very closely contested this year.”