Hun School boys soccer passes Blair Academy to reach Prep A Tournament Final

PRINCETON — As senior members of the six-player leadership council of the Hun School varsity boys soccer team, Luciano Verduci and Toba Olaleye know full well that it’s not just about how you start a game, but also how you close it.

Under their leadership, Verduci and Olaleye guided the second-seeded Raiders to a 4-0 victory over third-seeded Blair Academy on Wednesday in the semifinals of the New Jersey Independent Schools Athletic Association Prep A Tournament.

With the win, head coach Patrick Quirk’s 12-3-2 Hun squad advances to face top-seeded Pennington (13-1) in the Prep A Final on Wednesday, November 6. The Red Hawks rolled past fourth-seeded Lawrenceville, 7 -0, last night.

Verduci got the scoring started when he took a pass from junior Sasha Mykhalchuk and converted 4:22 into the game. But when the home side came away with just a 1-0 lead at the break despite controlled chances, the Raiders tried to make their drives more productive in the second 40 minutes.

That’s where Olaleye came into the picture, scoring twice in the final 4:30 of the match, putting the finishing touches on Hun’s 12th win, matching their win total from two years ago.

“After I scored, I think we expected more (before halftime). As a team we had more chances. I know I had a few chances that I didn’t take away,” Luciano said after his fourth goal of the season.

While the Bucs were still dangerously close, the Raiders came out a little more focused in the second half and even started to pull away when junior midfielder Donovan Hayes squeezed a shot between the near post and the dive of Blair junior goalkeeper Layton Glover with 25:37. left.

“After the first half we got more energy from the bench,” said Olaleye. “I was more focused today.”

As a result, the senior midfielder put the ball in the back of the net for the first time this season when he whipped a shot off a defender’s foot into the goal with 16:23 to play. Thirteen minutes later, Olaleye continued to push forward and scored his second goal.

“I agree with Toba,” Verduci said. “The energy from the bench in the second half really helped us.”

With that, Hun took a big step and reached a championship game, which had been a tough task since winning the Mercer County Tournament in 2006.

“I expect the final to be a great game,” said Verduci, whose team defeated L’ville 3-0 and lost 3-1 to Pennington in the Mid-Atlantic Prep League this season.

One thing is certain. Leaders like Verduci and Olaleye will look to keep the Raiders on even terms throughout that game and their regular season finale with Peddie Saturday.

BlairAcad(4-9-2) 0 0 — 0

Their (12-3-2) 1 3 — 4

Goals: Verduci, Hayes, Olaleye 2 (H); Assists: Mykhalchuk, Gronczewski, Barrett (H).

Shots: 3 (BA), 15 (H); Saves: Glover 11 (BA), Pena 3, McCarty 0 (H).