Welcome to the first Surf Taco Boys Soccer Player of the Week of the 2018 season, the first chance to pick the best of the best from the week that was in Shore Conference soccer. Each week, eight players will be nominated for the award - one divisional player of the week from each of the six Shore Conference divisions and two more wild cards.

Scroll through the candidates and vote for the top performer at the bottom of the post. Vote early and often until the the poll closes on Wednesday at 10 p.m.

Soccer Boys POTW
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Class A North Player of the Week

Stiviny Silva, Long Branch

One of two players at the Shore with five goals in the first week, Silva has come up big eearly for a Long Branch team that had to replace two of the Shore’s top scorers from last year in Venancio Fernandes and Renan Azevedo. Silva recorded an opening-day hat trick in a 4-2 win over Red Bank and also scored a goal each in a loss to Middletown North and a win over Rumson-Fair Haven.

Honorable Mention: Jack Gill, CBA; Brandon Grine, Marlboro; Adam Havens, Freehold Twp.; Zach Orrico, Freehold Twp.

 

Class A Central Player of the Week

Brady Barry, Manasquan

Manasquan battled for an opening-day victory at Brick Memorial and won it on a golden goal by Barry in overtime. The junior slammed home a cross from classmate Frank Manno, which gave fellow junior a Jackson Memorial transfer Joe Weinstein a shutout in his first game as a Warrior – an all-around strong day for the Manasquan junior class.

Honorable Mention: Ryan Ferguson, Holmdel; Brian Waltsak, Monmouth; Andrew Colannino, Red Bank Catholic

 

Class A South Player of the Week

Dane Bodziak, Toms River East

The first “upset” of the season, at least according to the Shore Sports Network Preseason Top 10, was Toms River East’s wild 4-3, overtime win over Pinelands. Bodziak led the way with a hat trick, including the golden goal in overtime that sealed the win and put Toms River East on the early Top 10 radar.

Honorable Mention: Dan Russo, Jackson Memorial; Ali Baush, Toms River North; John Paul Prosperi, Southern; Jose Bonilla, Southern; Peter Kozlej, Toms River East; John Crist, Brick

 

Class B North Player of the Week

Santieno Harding, Ocean

After capping the scoring in a 3-0 win over Freehold Boro in Ocean’s opener, Harding rallied the Spartans for a 3-1 win over Middletown South. The senior striker posted a second-half hat trick after Middletown South jumped out to a 1-0 lead that the Eagles took to halftime.

Honorable Mention: Marcelo Colonna, Matawan; Aidan Newbury, Wall; Wilby Alfred, Neptune; Alex Perez, Middletown North; Jon Paul Valencia, Red Bank; Erik Christie, Red Bank; Peter Angelucci, Middletown North

 

Class B Central Player of the Week

Barrett Bremekamp, Henry Hudson

The Admirals are off to a 2-0 start with one narrow win and another blowout victory. Bremekamp scored the deciding goal in a 1-0 Henry Hudson win in the opener over East Brunswick Tech and contributed a goal and an assist in an 11-0 rout of Calvary Christian of Old Bridge.

Honorable Mention: Joey Blaes, St. Rose; Wind Levybensetton, Henry Hudson; Jonathan Caputo, St. Rose

 

Class B South Player of the Week

Ronan Bova, Donovan Catholic

Bova is the third of three divisional players of the week this week to score a golden goal, with the Donovan Catholic junior giving his team a win over Central with his 83rd-minute game-winner off a pass from Vin Mendes.

Honorable Mention: Josh Lemus, Lakewood; Jonathan Toichihuitl, Lakewood; Ricky Norman, Barnegat; Gio Hernandez, Lakewood; Maurice Vargas, Barnegat

 

Wild Cards

Jack Gill, CBA

The Shore’s No. 2 team picked up two impressive wins to open the season and Gill scored in both of them. The senior forward scored the season’s first goal in a 2-0 win over Delran and again opened the scoring with an 18-yard rip to kickstart a 5-0 Colts rout of Peddie. Gill also assisted a goal by classmate Charlie Daly in the win over Peddie and initiated a sequence that led to CBA’s second goal against Delran, which Luke Pascarella finished off a cross from Joe Lozowski.

Dan Russo, Jackson Memorial

One of the Shore’s most lethal forward as a sophomore last year, Russo has picked up where he left off now that he is a junior. Russo assisted a goal in Jackson Memorial’s big 2-0 win over Pinelands to open the year and scored five goals to go with two assists in two lopsided wins by the Jaguars over Jackson Liberty and Manalapan.

 

 

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