Mount Girls Have A Strong Side
With Eyes On ECT & State Titles

Back in 2023 when Mount St. Dominic entered the statewide Top 20 and reached just its third Essex County Tournament semifinal in 40 years before capturing the program’s first-ever Non-Public, North A state sectional title with a stunning 2-1 win over Immaculate Heart, the current version of the Lions very solid soccer side was receiving a strong foundation.

Now, two years later, and after being ninth ranked in the pre-season state rankings according to nj.com, the Mount appears ready to assume favorite’s status for the 42nd ECT and also be a major factor as well in the NJSIAA Non-Public A state tournament.

Coach Angelo DelVecchio’s Lions impressed with their season-opening 4-1 win at Montclair on Sept. 3, as senior forward and Vanderbilt commit Lena Tusche registered a hat trick and junior midfielder Sophia Giordano also scored vs. a Mounties team that was ranked 17th in nj.com's pre-season Top 20, and also expects to make noise this season both in the ECT and then in the North 1, Group 4 state tourney. Montclair won the state sectional crown last fall defeating Livingston, 2-1, in a closely-contested N1G4 final.

The Mount has a loaded lineup with explosive scorers led by Tusche and Princeton-bound senior Gianna Camporeale. The sturdy midfield is led by Arizona State commit Reina Casas along with senior Jacqueline Karcic, Giordano and sophomore Natalia Ross.

Defensively, the Lions are also quite sturdy in the back with junior defenders Aanya Davitt and Emma Labrunda along with sophomores Alexa Cunha and Ella O’Donnell.

Against Montclair, veteran net minder Isabella Raju and Kayla Wilson shared goalie duties as each came up with three saves.  

The Mount also cruised past Millburn, 6-0, in Sept. 5 early-season action.

Speaking of the progression from 2023 to now for the Lions, Giordano, Casas and Labrunda were among the five freshmen who started as first-year players two years ago and are now among the seasoned veterans behind a solid senior class.

Montclair has welcomed back Rob McOmish as head coach after the popular North Jersey coach had a strong run in his previous tenure with the Essex County soccer program that was highlighted by the program's first and still-only overall Group 4 state championship in 2014.

Veteran midfielder Pia Olklowski helps settle the proceedings while Bates College-bound center back Carla Osborne leads a strong defense for the Mounties that also includes Iona College-bound Ella Overton and sophomore Kaitlyn Moshovas, while veteran goalie Sophia Porter helps anchor things in the back.

Livingston, which tied Montclair, 1-1 in a hard-fought battle on Sept. 5, entered the new season ranked No. 12 in the state. Coach Brian Carr’s team should be strong once again with a dynamic scorer in Rutgers-bound Dina Bojkovic and a strong defense led by Zoe Nightingale.

The Lancers did lose a strong, veteran presence when it was learned that Wagner commit Izzy Kilelee would be sidelined for the 2025 season.

Franklin & Marshall commit Hunter Lantzman and juniors Olivia Hans and Daisy Chens are others to watch for coach Brian Carr’s Lancers.     

Among the upcoming, high-profile independent matches to look ahead to for the Mount, Montclair and Livingston, the Lions host Bridgewater-Raritan on Oct. 9 and are at Chatham on Oct. 11 at 11 a.m.

The Mounties visit state titan Westfield, 1 p.m., Sept. 27, host Bridgewater-Raritan, 11 a.m., Oct. 4, and visit Ridge, 6 p.m., Oct. 16.   

The Lancers are at Watchung Hills on Oct. 16.

In another SEC-American Division contest to mark on the calendar, the Mount and Livingston meet Oct. 7 at the Lions’ home field in Caldwell.

NOTES- Delvecchio, a 1978 graduate of Essex Catholic, was a football and baseball player for the Eagles and when he was excelling on the diamond at the former Newark-based parochial school, he played for both Dennis Sasso, Sr., and Dennis Jr. from that terrific Essex County baseball family….The ever-present Delvecchio is a busy coach at the Mount serving as a basketball assistant for the past 13 years, and also as a softball assistant for the past 21 seasons, including being a key member of the staff that guided the Lions to the Non-Public A state championship and a No. 1 ranking in the state this past spring season…Tusche, who is destined to be a future college star in the Southeastern Conference at Vanderbilt, spent a portion of last fall’s season away from the Lions as a member of the U-17 Colombian National Team which was competing in World Cup in the Dominican Republic.