Junior striker Andrei Nitulescu has been on a tear this season for the Randolph Boys Soccer team. His stellar play has helped Randolph earn its No. 8 state ranking, with the team now sitting on a 16-4-3 record.

As his seasonal stats show, Nitulescu has come up huge for the Rams on many occasions this year. With his current record at 23 goals and four assists, he has scored in 15 out of the 21 games he has played in this season, an average of more than one goal per game.

In several games, Nitelescu even exceeded that average by a wide margin. Playing in early September against Sparta, he scored an impressive four goals. In the second round of counties, Niculescu put away three against Pequannock in a big 7-0 win.

His great impact on the team has not gone unnoticed by his teammates. “He is always in the position we need him to be in to score goals,” senior co-captain RJ Dougherty said. “He also has the capability to create scoring opportunities for his teammates.”

Now in his third year on varsity, Nitulescu’s level of play has progressed exponentially. As a freshman and sophomore, he made 10 goals combined. This year, he has more than doubled that number, and he still has a few games left to play. These stats are evidence of the hard work Nitulescu has put in to reach this point.

“We can always count on him to be in the right place at the right time,” senior co-captain Jake Rubin said. “He has always been great, but something really clicked this season.”

Despite his prior accomplishments, Nitulescu has lofty goals for the remainder of the season. “I want to hopefully win states,” he said. “Another milestone I want to hit is getting to 30 goals on the season.”

Most recently, the team made it all the way to the Morris County Tournament (MCT) finals, but fell just short of winning to Chatham 1-0.

Then it was on to states, with Randolph winning in the first round (6-0 vs. Sparta) and quarterfinals (2-0 vs. Dover) on Nov. 4 and 7 respectively.

And this coming Tuesday, Nov. 11, it’s a sure bet that eyes will be on Nitulescu and the rest of this talented team at they face Tenafly at home in the state semifinals.