Nicholas H. Ross ’97

Abstract

Soccer Star Contributed To Numerous Championships.

Nicholas Ross won 10 varsity letters—three in soccer, four in ice hockey, and three in baseball. The undefeated 1996 Boys’ Soccer Team, of which he served as captain, won the conference, county, and state titles and was inducted into Pingry’s Athletics Hall of Fame in 2007. He was a member of three county championship teams (1994, 1995, and 1996) and two state championship teams (1995 and 1996). In 1996, he earned 1st Team All State (The Star-Ledger) and 1st Team All County. The Courier News selected him as “Boys Soccer Player of the Year” to recognize that he led Pingry’s team, ranked No. 1 in New Jersey (The Star-Ledger) and No. 7 in the country, to its third consecutive county and second consecutive state championships, including an unbeaten streak of 40 games. In fact, Nick scored the game-winning goal in the second overtime of the county finals against Bridgewater. Nick also served as captain of the baseball team and co-captain of the hockey team, earning 1st Team All League in the Mennen League. He concluded his Pingry career by receiving the Centennial Cup, Timothy Cornwall ‘64 Boys Soccer Sportsmanship Award, and Pingry School Varsity Ice Hockey Award. He continued to play soccer for one year at Lafayette College and three years at Rutgers University. In 1999, he earned Honorable Mention on The Star-Ledger’s All-Decade Team, a compilation of the Top 10 soccer players of the 1990s. Among his other honors, Nick received Rutgers’ 2000 Alfred B. Sasser Award, presented to a senior who demonstrates leadership, initiative, team spirit, and loyalty.