Last season: 16-5-2
Key players lost: Jon Skiba
Top returning players: Jack Dugan, Sam DeCencio, Max Green, Finn Miller
2017 Outlook: After coming up one-goal short in last year’s South Jersey, Group 2 final against Delran, Haddonfield has all the motivation it needs to make sure this season will be different.
The only loss the team has to deal with is the graduation of Jon Skiba, the squad’s lone senior.
When you get beyond that, just about everybody else is returning. That starts up front with standout player Jack Dugan. The senior captain has recorded 48 goals to this point in his career and is 16 shy of tying the school scoring record.
Fellow senior Sam DeCencio will again be right beside Dugan forming one of the best one-two punches in school history. DeCencio was terrific in setting up goals last fall, racking up a team-high 19 assists.
Steve DiTomaso was another player who managed to net double-digit goals, ending the season with 13. This offensive unit looks more than capable of producing at the pace it did last year of 3.39 goals per game and could even exceed that, especially if sophomore Tommy Mollis can build off an impressive seven-goal freshman season.
The team will also get a boost at the full-time return of junior Luke Baxter, who missed most of the 2016 season with a back injury but played a large role in the team’s run to a sectional final.
Two key pieces are also back on the defensive side in Gabe DaSilva and Will Sabia. DaSilva had a great sophomore year on both sides of the ball while Sabia had his best year to date as a junior and will be counted on once again to help lead a stingy defense.
The backbone of that defense is goalkeeper Finn Miller, who had a sensational 2016 campaign after returning from a potential career-threatening injury. He racked up just under 100 saves and posted nine shutouts. In over 1,700 minutes of action, he only allowed 21 goals.
This team has all the tools to take home a Colonial Conference-Liberty Division title for the third consecutive season and will have a lot to say once the state playoffs roll around.
You can reach Brian at bbobal@njschoolsports.com. Follow Brian on Twitter @BrianBobalHS.