PSAL Class B boys soccer finals preview

NYPost.com PSAL boys soccer beat writer Zach Braziller breaks down Sunday’s PSAL Class B boys soccer final at Belson Stadium on the campus of St. John’s University in Queens.

SCHEDULE

11:30 a.m. – No. 7 Hunter College HS vs. No. 9 James Monroe

No. 7 Hunter College HS Hawks

Head coach: Asumana Randolph

Record: 15-1-2

Player to watch: Jan Zielonka

How they got there: Defeated No. 26 Springfield Gardens, 3-2, No. 10 George Westinghouse, 2-1, No. 2 Queens Vocational Tech, 2-1, and No. 6 Prospect Heights, 2-0.

No. 9 James Monroe Eagles

Head coach: Carl Campbell

Record: 15-2-1

Player to watch: Erick Hungra

How they got there: Defeated No. 24 Lafayette, 2-0, No. 25 Bushwick, 5-1, No. 1 Taft, 1-0, and No. 4 Millennium, 3-2.

Outlook: One of these unlikely finals entrants will celebrate its first city championship Sunday afternoon. Neither was expected to get here, particularly not Monroe, which eliminated the top seed, Taft, followed by fourth-seeded Millennium.

The Eagles did so in thrilling fashion, blowing a late second half lead, before winning on Chris Mboungou’s golden goal, his second tally of the match, in the fourth minute of double overtime. The production was needed as Hungria, the Eagles’ star who scored 20 goals during the regular season, was man-marked and double-teamed.

“He’s coming on at the right time,” Campbell, in his fourth year, said of Mboungou. “Erick has been carrying the team the whole season. When I spoke to the team, I said somebody has to step up and he did today.”

Hunter hasn’t enjoyed nearly the same amount of success in recent years as Monroe, which made the quarterfinals last year and has been in the playoffs in each of Campbell’s first three seasons. Despite three straight playoff appearances, the Hawks’ opening-round playoff victory over Springfield Gardens was its first in several seasons.

Under Randolph, a longtime teacher at Hunter who just took over the varsity this year, the Hawks cruised to the Manhattan B-II crown and has pulled surprises in each of the previous two rounds. It shocked Campus Magnet in the quarterfinals and blanked favored Prospect Heights on Thursday.

Unlike Monroe, which depends greatly on Hungria, Hunter has a variety of players it depends upon. Zielonka led the Hawks with 11 assists during the regular season and the playmaking senior has added four more during the playoffs. Seniors Shun Zenda, Emmett Kim and Matt Suozzo are all capable of finishing off Zielonka’s nifty feeds.

“The thing is the kids started listening to each other and playing as a team,” said Randolph, who has worked at Hunter College for 18 years and previously coached the middle school team. “The seniors started with the younger kids, helping them get better. … The whole school is excited and I’m excited for the kids.”

zbraziller@nypost.com