Notre Dame boys soccer team works overtime to win CVC Tournament title
November 7, 2025 at 7:00 a.m.
During the afternoon of Oct. 31, Bryan Fisher figured it was the perfect time to gain inspiration from some bygone eras of Notre Dame High soccer.
“I told the guys I walked the old Zimmer Field yesterday trying to get the old ghosts of Irish past to help get us a title,” the ND, Lawrenceville, coach said.
Zimmer Field is where countless Irish teams once played and won big games under coaches John Wagner and Mike Perone. Fisher’s stroll through history apparently worked wonders as the next day, Nov. 1, the top-seeded Irish took a 2-1 overtime victory over 3rd-seed Princeton in the Colonial Valley Conference Tournament championship game at Hopewell Valley Central High School.
“It’s amazing,” said junior Luke Colter, who scored one goal and assisted on Nick Angiolino’s game-winner. “They were missing a key player (Chase Hamerschlag, and also defender Marko Mueller) but they’re a great team no matter who they have. It’s good to get one on them.”
Especially since Princeton defeated Notre Dame in last year’s CVCT, and the two teams tied for this season’s Colonial Division title.
Fisher echoed Colter’s sentiments, that Princeton is still a top-flight team even without Hamerschlag and Mueller.
“They were tremendous today,” the coach said. “They played with a purpose and obviously they missed him, but they put together a complete effort. I tip my hat to Ryan (Walsh, head coach) and his staff. They are champions in everything they do. They made us go extra today.”
A happy band of Notre Dame soccer players swarm all over each other as they hold the CVC Tournament championship trophy high in the air after beating Princeton in the finals. Rich Fisher photo
And that extra session proved beneficial for the Irish after they held most of the play during regulation. The Irish were thwarted numerous times by Princeton’s 6-foot-5 sophomore goalie Ari Rosenblum, while Princeton put little pressure on Irish junior keeper Anthony Merluse.
The game was scoreless for 59 minutes before Tyler Javick crossed a ball to Colter, who converted with 21:33 remaining.
“I was just trying to get contact on the ball,” Colter said. “I knew if I got in front of one of the defenders and got a little contact I would catch the 6-5 goalie off guard.”
Princeton, however, rallied back to score just seven minutes later to take the momentum. But the Irish hung tough.
“You face adversity when you go through the season,” Fisher said. “We’ve seen it, and you gotta keep playing and keep running. That’s what they did, and we found a way to get the next one.”
Not before Princeton’s Isaiah de la Espriella gave Irish fans a scare on a breakaway with under 10 seconds remaining. But Merluse came up huge as he tipped Espriella’s shot over the goal to force overtime.
“Best goalie in New Jersey,” Colter said. “I thought it was over, to be honest. I thought they’d score but Ant was there.”
Fisher concurred, saying, “Big players make big plays, and he did. It was that kind of game. Sometimes it happens. A team misses a chance, we get the next chance, and we win the game.”
That chance came 2:56 into the first OT on a textbook corner kick. Colter lofted a high ball inside the box that an unmarked Angiolino headed into the back of the net for the championship goal.
“I was just trying to find someone’s head,” Colter said. “I knew someone was gonna get on it. I saw Nick’s contact on it, and I thought ‘Yup, we just won the CVC.’”
As for the goal scorer, Fisher said “Nick is the heart and soul of this team and I couldn’t be prouder of him, and all of them.”
The Irish’s defensive effort was outstanding, as they limited Princeton to just five shots on goal.
“We just had to watch the long balls,” Colter said. “All they were gonna do was win the ball and just clear it and try to get one of the strikers on it. We had to be aware of their strikers.”
The game was a gripping battle between the CVC’s top two teams, and the championship is ND’s first under Fisher.
When it was over, the veteran coach once again looked to the past.
“I feel like we did it for a lot of other guys who aren’t here today, who played here before this,” the coach said. “We did it for the first time since 2013, and it feels as good as I thought it would.”
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During the afternoon of Oct. 31, Bryan Fisher figured it was the perfect time to gain inspiration from some bygone eras of Notre Dame High soccer.
“I told the guys I walked the old Zimmer Field yesterday trying to get the old ghosts of Irish past to help get us a title,” the ND, Lawrenceville, coach said.
Zimmer Field is where countless Irish teams once played and won big games under coaches John Wagner and Mike Perone. Fisher’s stroll through history apparently worked wonders as the next day, Nov. 1, the top-seeded Irish took a 2-1 overtime victory over 3rd-seed Princeton in the Colonial Valley Conference Tournament championship game at Hopewell Valley Central High School.
“It’s amazing,” said junior Luke Colter, who scored one goal and assisted on Nick Angiolino’s game-winner. “They were missing a key player (Chase Hamerschlag, and also defender Marko Mueller) but they’re a great team no matter who they have. It’s good to get one on them.”
Especially since Princeton defeated Notre Dame in last year’s CVCT, and the two teams tied for this season’s Colonial Division title.
Fisher echoed Colter’s sentiments, that Princeton is still a top-flight team even without Hamerschlag and Mueller.
“They were tremendous today,” the coach said. “They played with a purpose and obviously they missed him, but they put together a complete effort. I tip my hat to Ryan (Walsh, head coach) and his staff. They are champions in everything they do. They made us go extra today.”
A happy band of Notre Dame soccer players swarm all over each other as they hold the CVC Tournament championship trophy high in the air after beating Princeton in the finals. Rich Fisher photo
And that extra session proved beneficial for the Irish after they held most of the play during regulation. The Irish were thwarted numerous times by Princeton’s 6-foot-5 sophomore goalie Ari Rosenblum, while Princeton put little pressure on Irish junior keeper Anthony Merluse.
The game was scoreless for 59 minutes before Tyler Javick crossed a ball to Colter, who converted with 21:33 remaining.
“I was just trying to get contact on the ball,” Colter said. “I knew if I got in front of one of the defenders and got a little contact I would catch the 6-5 goalie off guard.”
Princeton, however, rallied back to score just seven minutes later to take the momentum. But the Irish hung tough.
“You face adversity when you go through the season,” Fisher said. “We’ve seen it, and you gotta keep playing and keep running. That’s what they did, and we found a way to get the next one.”
Not before Princeton’s Isaiah de la Espriella gave Irish fans a scare on a breakaway with under 10 seconds remaining. But Merluse came up huge as he tipped Espriella’s shot over the goal to force overtime.
“Best goalie in New Jersey,” Colter said. “I thought it was over, to be honest. I thought they’d score but Ant was there.”
Fisher concurred, saying, “Big players make big plays, and he did. It was that kind of game. Sometimes it happens. A team misses a chance, we get the next chance, and we win the game.”
That chance came 2:56 into the first OT on a textbook corner kick. Colter lofted a high ball inside the box that an unmarked Angiolino headed into the back of the net for the championship goal.
“I was just trying to find someone’s head,” Colter said. “I knew someone was gonna get on it. I saw Nick’s contact on it, and I thought ‘Yup, we just won the CVC.’”
As for the goal scorer, Fisher said “Nick is the heart and soul of this team and I couldn’t be prouder of him, and all of them.”
The Irish’s defensive effort was outstanding, as they limited Princeton to just five shots on goal.
“We just had to watch the long balls,” Colter said. “All they were gonna do was win the ball and just clear it and try to get one of the strikers on it. We had to be aware of their strikers.”
The game was a gripping battle between the CVC’s top two teams, and the championship is ND’s first under Fisher.
When it was over, the veteran coach once again looked to the past.
“I feel like we did it for a lot of other guys who aren’t here today, who played here before this,” the coach said. “We did it for the first time since 2013, and it feels as good as I thought it would.”