Everything will be different in Essex County sports come this fall. With the revolutionary Super Essex realignment taking effect in September, many things people thought they knew about their hometown teams will change.
Get ready for tougher and more exciting games, tighter standings, shorter driving distances and a lot more satisfied spectators. The county’s realignment is exactly what was needed to give more schools a chance to win on a regular basis; it’s only a matter of time before the rest of the state jumps in. This decision triples the number of championship (conference or state) contenders in the county by not only expanding the playoff brackets to 16 teams, but by allowing teams to play against squads with similar talent, providing a truer win-loss record.
This fall, teams in the Super Essex Division will be divided into four divisions, based on skill level, as opposed to geography. The teams were put into each division based on its records during the previous two seasons, not including the 2008-09 season.
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The top division in the county is the American Division, the second is the Liberty Division, the third is the Colonial and The Independence Division is the lowest one. Teams will be re-evaluated every three seasons and ranked accordingly.
If there is a flaw in the system, it’s that there is no real exact science in deciding just how good a team is or isn’t. It would appear that Columbia may catch the brunt of that flaw this year, as some of its teams seem to be in the wrong division. The locals have 10 teams in the top division and seven teams in the Liberty Division.
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Football: Liberty
Columbia
West Essex
Belleville
East Side
Nutley
Barringer
Shabazz
Millburn
The Red and Black boys won their first game in a very long time last season, but don’t have very much else to hang their hats on. It’s hard to say how they will do in this league, neither school is very good but when you’ve won just two games since 2004, it’s hard to predict anything good, no matter what the competition.
Boys Soccer: American
Columbia
Millburn
Seton Hall
Montclair
West Orange
East Side
Anytime Seton Hall Prep is in the same division as you, it can be a bit scary, but Columbia’s biggest competition will be from Millburn, which is the defending Group 3 championship team. Columbia will be competitive, but will likely not win the division.
Girls Soccer: Liberty
Columbia
West Orange
Newark Academy
MKA
Glen Ridge
Verona
Bloomfield
Depending on who other teams graduated, this may be a tough one for the Red and Black girls, as Verona, Glen Ridge, West Orange and Newark Academy were all state playoff teams last season. The Cougar girls failed to qualify.
Girls Tennis: American
Columbia
Millburn
Newark Academy
MKA
Livingston
West Essex
Montclair
This is a bad draw for the Cougar girls. Millburn is the defending Group 3 champions and has lost just once in the last 99 matches, Newark Academy, Montclair Kimberley Academy, and Livingston all made it deep into the states last season. Though Columbia qualified, the girla were dispatched in the first rounds the No. 8 and would have been better suited for the Liberty Division.
Girls Volleyball: Liberty
Columbia
West Essex
University
Belleville
West Orange
Mt. St. Dominic
Millburn
Nutley
Verona
The Cougar girls fit perfectly in the Liberty Division for volleyball. Neither team, aside from West Orange and West Essex was very good last season, which means it should be a tight race for the division title in the fall.
Boys Cross Country: American
Columbia
East Orange
West Orange
Montclair
Bloomfield
Livingston
Millburn
Seton Hall
Despite losing their top runner from last season, Sam Spangler, the local distance runners should be competitive in this division next season. With Millburn as the only standout powerhouse, there’s no reason why the Cougars can’t have a strong regular season.
Girls Cross Country: American
Columbia
East Orange
West Orange
Montclair
Bloomfield
Livingston
Millburn
There are a lot of good schools in the division, and with Columbia losing Melissa David and others to graduation, I just can’t see the local girls doing so well against the other teams in the American.
Field Hockey: American
Columbia
Livingston
West Essex
MKA
Montclair
Newark Academy
Millburn
Glen Ridge
Despite this being the top division in the county, there is no one team that was that good last season, with the exception of West Essex and MKA. This division is wide-open for the taking, as there doesn’t appear to be any team that is head and shoulders above the rest.
