South Jersey Boys to Watch in High School State Finals

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Three South Jersey boys teams head north to Franklin High School in Somerset this Sunday in search of state titles. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Haddon Township will play Waldwick at 10 a.m. in the Group 1 final looking for the school's third state title (2011, 2016). Delran will be after state title No. 10 in a rematch of the 2021 final they won 2-1 against Ramsey in Group 2 and Cherokee will be after their fourth title - and first since winning back-to-back in 2010-11 - against West Orange in the Group 4 final at 3 p.m.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Here's a look at some of the South Jersey players who could make a difference in bringing home a trophy on Sunday.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='157018' first='Drew' last='Roskos'], Junior, Midfielder, Delran</strong><br>Down 1-0 to Holmdel in the state semifinal on Wednesday, Roskos took over and brought the Bears back with an equalizer before halftime and the eventual game-winner after halftime. Roskos was one of the leaders of the state title team as a sophomore and will be a key to getting the attack clicking on Sunday. He scored both goals off headers in the semifinal, which as one of the shorter players on the field just shows his athleticism and his ability to beat you in multiple ways. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"align":"right","id":63407,"width":402,"height":268,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image alignright size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepsoccer.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2022/11/FD184501-24FF-40F8-81EF-AA86FF6E0E446N4A0039-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-63407" width="402" height="268" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption"><em>Luke Chatten</em></figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Luke Chatten, Senior, Midfielder, Haddon Township</strong><br>The offense runs through Chatten, who is a big target in the middle of the park who is able to create not only for himself but for his teammates. He's a big reason they were able to run the table and win the South Jersey Coaches Cup champs and after scoring a hat trick in a 6-3 semifinal win over Shore will need to be at his best to bring home the biggest prize of all. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Finn McGovern, Senior, Defender, Haddon Township</strong><br>McGovern is important to both the defense and offense as a right back. He had a trio of assists in the semifinal and is second only to Luke Chatten on the team in assists for the season. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Andrew Grello, Senior, Midfielder, Delran</strong><br>Grello is an important player in the middle for Delran because he does so much with and without the ball. He connected with Roskos on a corner kick to open the scoring in last year's final and will want to push for an early set piece opportunity again on Sunday. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Chris Meder, Senior, Forward, Cherokee</strong><br>Meder has been clutch in the run through the playoffs, having scored the lone goal in a 1-0 win over Rancocas Valley to win the South Jersey title and kicked the free kick that led to the lone goal in a 1-0 win over Freehold in the state semifinal. Meder is tricky on the ball and dangerous on set pieces but he'll also have a lot of pressure on him to step up again on Sunday and lead Cherokee to their first title since 2011. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Michael Papi, Senior, Defender, Delran</strong><br>Papi anchors a stingy back line and is also a major threat on long throws as he showed in the semifinal, setting up both goals from throw-ins. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"align":"left","id":63408,"width":426,"height":284,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image alignleft size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepsoccer.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2022/11/3880F77E-FB22-4A4B-BF0F-EB9FAF5F21406N4A9836-2022-11-09T22_36_06.873-1024x683.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-63408" width="426" height="284" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption"><em>Nik Grello</em></figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Landon Maroney, Senior, Midfielder, Haddon Township</strong><br>Maroney is a weapon for Haddon Township in transition with his ability to break lines but also covers a lot of ground defensively in the middle of the park and has contributed on the score sheet as well. Like Chatten, his size also creates some mismatches for defenses too. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Miguel Graterol, Senior, Forward, Cherokee</strong><br>Graterol led the team in goals this season and will want to hang onto that lead with a goal or two in the final. Whether he scores or not his work off the ball will be important to opening things up for his playmaking teammates like Chris Meder and Brandon Michael. West Orange has only conceded more than once three times this season and all three times were in their only losses. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Logan Gebhart and Cole Kurzawa, Senior, Goalkeepers, Cherokee</strong><br>Gebhart and Kurzawa split time this season and were particular strong down the stretch, conceding only twice in their last nine games in all competitions. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='63441' first='Colin' last='McCarthy'], Junior, Defender, Haddon Township</strong><br>While experience has been a key recipe to Haddon Township's success this year, the junior center back McCarthy has helped solidify a back line that is gritty, organized and tough to unlock. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Nik Grello, Junior, Forward, Delran</strong><br>While Roskos demands a lot of attention out wide, Grello has had a breakout year as a sophomore and is second in goals on the team. He provides the Bears a more traditional forward with size who has benefited and capitalized on the space Roskos opens up for him in the attack. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->