HOPEWELL TWP. — It’s official. Following a couple of rare down seasons, the Hopewell Valley girls have reemerged as one of the major players in Colonial Valley Conference soccer. In the battle for first place in the Colonial Division on Tuesday night, Hopewell Valley defeated Princeton Day by the score 1-0. The victory raised the Valley Girls record to 9-2-1 and  extended their impressive winning streak to eight games in a row. “We knew (before the season) we had some good players, but yes I would have been,” replied Hopewell Valley coach John McGinley when asked if it would have come as a surprise this group would rip off eight wins in a row. “Give the girls credit. They have improved a lot in a month and have really come together.” One of those players is freshman Meg Kurian, who scored the game’s lone goal with 8:04 remaining in the first half and nearly added an insurance tally in the second. The goal came off a cross from Elizabeth Buchert and Kurian was able to direct it past PDS keeper Shelby Ruf from close in. “It was a perfect pass from Elizabeth and it went off my hip,” said Kurian. “I wasn’t sure how I would fit in (this year as a freshman), but everyone has been really nice. It feels great to be able to contribute.” The fact Kurian is making an impact is no surprise to McGinley. “Meg has tremendous speed and she’s just a really tough kid,” he said. “We interchange her and she does a great job whether she’s on the right or left wing. They were marking her the whole game.” Truth be told, Princeton Day (5-3-1) often had Hopewell Valley back on its heels in the second half, but a team that has yielded just two goals in its last eight games held firm. For her part, Valley Girl keeper Chloe LiVecchi made a couple of acrobatic saves and did a good job quickly coming off her line to grab passes into the box. Hopewell’s back line is also another obvious strength. This group consists of seniors Clara Mayer, Charlotte Barnes and Gianna Azara as well as junior Katherine Reinhart. “We’ve got good veteran leadership back there,” said McGinley. “They work well together as a group.” You can say that about the entire Hopewell Valley squad. The Valley Girls have had more talented teams with plenty of star power, but this group is doing an excellent job of maximizing what it has. Princeton Day (5-3-1) 0 0 – 0 Hopewell Valley (9-2-1) 1 0 – 1 Goals: Kurian. Assists Buchert. Shots: PDS-7, HV-7. Saves: PDS-Ruf 4. HV-LiVecchi 4.