In their first regular-season meeting since the early 1990s, #1 ranked Delbarton edged out 2023 Non Public B champs #18 Gill St. Bernard's with a 1-0 victory on September 4, 2024. Sophomore Dylan Mazzarella provided the winning goal in the 54th minute with a stunning 20-yard strike. Goalkeeper Sebastian Rubio, taking over for graduated senior James Anroman, made five crucial saves to secure his first shutout of the season and second of his career.

"I saw a little bit of an opening and I took a touch kind of inside with my left foot and I hit it," Mazzarella said. "I saw that space and I was like, 'Why not?' It felt really good."  Mazzarella scored his first high school goal in last year's season opener at Red Bull Stadium against Seton Hall Prep and became a mainstay in the rotation for head coach David Donovan.

Delbarton had to retool in many key areas this offseason, but seemed to operate with the same intensity as always.  "We've haven't played Gill in the last few years so we weren't entirely sure what we were up against," Delbarton senior captain defender Brady Hyland said. "But we know they have a strong team and have done really well in the past, and so we were really ready for anything."

Mazzarella expressed optimism for the season, stating, "We did lose a lot of spectacular players, but we also have a lot of upcoming spectacular players." With Rubio's strong performance and a solid defensive effort, Delbarton starts the season on a high note, showing great promise for the matches ahead.