500 reasons to smile

Woodstown adds two more milestones to its storied soccer history

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

CARNEYS POINT – There is one thing Darren Huck enjoys as much as he does coaching the Woodstown boys soccer team. It’s digging into the history of the Woodstown boys soccer team.

Those two passions converged on one field here Thursday as the Wolverines won the 500th game in the history of their soccer program, 4-2 over Penns Grove.

The Wolverines have been playing soccer since 1978. Huck has been at the helm since 1999, adding 318 wins to that total.

“For me, as an alumnus of Woodstown High School, for me, as someone who’s played at Woodstown, for someone who was an assistant coach at Woodstown and someone now as the head coach and I’ve been doing it for such a long time, I’m just proud to be a part of this program,” Huck said. “This is a program that is very dear to me and I put everything I can into it, whether it’s the players, the uniforms they wear, the equipment we get, the facility that we have, you name it, and for people to say wow that Woodstown soccer program that’s all right that means a lot.

“The 500th win in school history is pretty cool. We don’t play the game to try to get that 300th player to get a goal or get the school to get to 500 wins … but it’s nice to always look back and reflect on certain milestones like that.”

Another piece of Wolverines soccer history hit closer to Huck’s home last Friday, That’s when Cole Huck, the coach’s son, became the 300th individual player to score a goal for the boys program when he scored in the first half against Salem.

It wasn’t set up to fall that way, it just happened. Ethan Cottman, who scored two goals in Thursday’s win, became Goalscorer No. 299 when he got the first goal against Salem. Another player hit the post just minutes before Cole’s goal or he would have had the distinction of being Mr. 300.

Cole’s goal was sixth of the half in an eventual 9-0 victory. Thomas DiPrimio came into the middle of the field with the ball, tapped Huck a diagonal pass and the junior tucked it into the bottom left corner. He also had two assists in the game.

“People brought it up to me about it, but I didn’t know, it didn’t click to me that I was the 300th,” Cole said. “It was really me? I was shocked about it, but I thought it was pretty cool.”

HIGH PRAISE: Penns Grove coach Mano Massari tipped his hat to the way Woodstown played as a team throughout Thursday’s match and he reserved special praise for Wolverines’ midfielder Jake Lewis.

The senior went down hard in a collision with Penns Grove striker Juan Ortiz near midfield in the second half. Ortiz collected the ball and went the other way and scored. Lewis was hunched over in pain for several moments before leaving the field. He returned later in the half and finished the game.

His play spoke to the Red Devils’ coach.

“That kid is unbelievable to watch,” Massari said. “I don’t think he scored any goals today, I don’t think he’s their top goal-scorer, but that kid, just from one game, he looks like their engine, he really does.

“He dominated that entire midfield. He wins every ball in the air. He goes into tackles. He distributes. I would kill to have a kid like that on my team, I would. He is unbelievable to watch. He’s the most impressive kid I’ve seen this year, from a heart standpoint and effort and just drive to win. It’s Jake Lewis. It’s a pleasure to watch him.”