The South Jersey Barons logo in their inaugural season (1997). It was used until the end of the 1999 season.

History Of The Nor’easters

After being founded in 1996, the club debuted in the 1997 season, it was named the South Jersey Barons. They joined the United Soccer Leagues (USL) as a professional team, competing in the Second Division (two levels down from MLS), which at the time was called the D-3 Pro League.

In 1998, in only their second year in existence, the Barons won the Mid-Atlantic Division title. The next year, they followed that up with a second straight playoff appearance and a run to the USISL D-3 national championship game. On September 11, 1999, the Barons, playing the title game on the road, lost 2-1 to the Western Mass Pioneers.

The Barons made a third straight playoff appearance in 2000, but would struggle for the next three years, never finishing above fourth place in the division.

In 2003, the Barons moved to the PDL, and after finishing in fourth place in their first season, they made history in their second season in the league. They became only the fifth team ever to go through the regular season with an unbeaten record (14-0-4). They won the Northeast Division title that year, but their season would come to an end in the playoffs. In the conference championship game at McPherson Stadium in Greensboro, NC, they lost to the Carolina Dynamo, 3-2, on a heartbreaking goal in the 90th minute.

Year	Div.	League	Reg. Season	Playoffs	Open Cup
1997	3	USISL D3 Pro League	6th, Mid-Atlantic	Did not qualify	DNQ
1998	3	USISL D3 Pro League	1st, Mid-Atlantic	Division S-Finals	DNQ
1999	3	USL D3 Pro League	2nd, Northern	Final	DNQ
2000	3	USL D3 Pro League	2nd, Northern	Conference Q-Finals	DNQ
2001	3	USL D3 Pro League	6th, Northern	Did not qualify	DNQ
2002	3	USL D3 Pro League	4th, Atlantic	Did not qualify	2nd Round
2003	4	USL PDL	4th, Northeast	Did not qualify	DNQ
2004	4	USL PDL	1st, Northeast	Conference Finals	2nd Round
2005	4	USL PDL	2nd, Northeast	Conference Semifinals	3rd Round
2006	4	USL PDL	2nd, Northeast	Did not qualify	DNQ
2007	4	USL PDL	2nd, Mid-Atlantic	Conference Semfinals	2nd Round
2008	4	USL PDL	T-4th, Mid-Atlantic	Did not qualify	DNQ
2009	4	USL PDL	3rd, Northeast	PDL Quarterfinals	3rd Round
2010	4	USL PDL	6th, Mid-Atlantic	Did not qualify	DNQ
2011	3	USL PDL	7th, Mid-Atlantic	Did not qualify	DNQ

In 2005, the South Jersey Barons were taken over by local businessmen Russ McPaul and John Granese. Their first act as new owners was to move the Barons to Ocean City, NJ and rename the team the Ocean City Barons. The club moved into its new home at Carey Stadium on Atlantic Avenue between 5th and 6th streets. The Barons continue to benefit from the athletic facilities that run adjacent to the stadium, along with the floodlights that the city installed that allow all home games to be played in the evening.

In their first season at Carey Stadium, the club won every game in the regular season at home (8-0-0), and finished with an impressive 12-3-1 overall record. By the end of the regular season, their home unbeaten streak had reached 22 games, with their last home loss coming back on June 7, 2003 against the Vermont Voltage. The fans came out to see the Barons win that year, as the club finished with the sixth-best home attendance in the PDL. They hosted the Eastern Conference playoffs, but were upset in the conference semifinals by the Richmond Kickers Future 4-3 due to a goal in the final seconds of regulation.Ocean City Barons: ’07 in Review")

The 2008 campaign was a tale of two halves as the club suffered it’s worst season since joining the PDL. Even with it being the worst season, they still managed a winning record with 6 wins, 5 losses and 5 draws. The first half of the season, the Barons were unbeaten, with a record of 4-0-4, but the second half of the season was a different story, finishing with a 2-5-1 record. Some of the highlights included Byron Carmichael becoming the club’s all-time leader in goals and 

The Ocean City Barons logo from 2005 - 2009

points, while finishing the season with an even 100 points. Ocean City’s 8-1 win over the expansion New Jersey Rangers was a historic one as Steve Miller scored the club’s third hat trick in franchise history and it was the most goals scored in a game and the largest margin of victory that the club has ever enjoyed. (SEE: 2008 PDL season: A tale of two halves)

The South Jersey Barons logo from 2000 - 2004.

2006 marked the 10th season for the Barons organization, but on the field, despite finishing with a winning record, it was considered a down year by club standards. The Barons finished with a 6-4-6 record, which was good enough for second place in the Northeast Division, and they missed the playoffs for the first time since moving to the PDL. The Barons’ home unbeaten streak finally came to an end on July 16 when they lost 2-1 to the Ottawa Fury. The home unbeaten streak, which still stands as a PDL record, ended at 27 games.

In 2007, long-time Ocean City High School head coach Mike Pellegrino took over the coaching duties and returned the Barons to the playoffs. Their 9-3-4 record earned them a second place finish in the Mid-Atlantic Division. Their impressive home record continued with a 6-1-1 mark and the Barons were selected by the league to host the Eastern Conference playoffs for the second time in three years. Unfortunately, the club lost in the conference semifinals to the Cape Cod Crusaders 5-0 after they had two players sent off in the opening 24 minutes of the match. (SEE "

The Barons bounced back from a disappointing 2008 season with one of the club’s greatest campaigns in 2009. In addition to a pair of professional team upsets in the US Open Cup and a date with DC United of Major League Soccer, Ocean City had a great regular season and a historic postseason run. After a 9-4-3 record earned them a third place finish in the competitive Northeast Division and a spot in the postseason, they made history with two playoff wins before advancing to the PDL Quarterfinals. The Barons eliminated the Long Island Rough Riders, the second best defensive team in the PDL, 2-0 in the opening round, giving OC their first playoff win since 2004. In the next round, the Men In Red handed the undefeated Ottawa Fury their first loss of the season with a thrilling 2-1 overtime win on a 98th minute goal by Tyler Bellamy. The playoff run would come to an end in Des Moines, IA where they lost to the Chicago Fire 3-0, in a battle of the two best PDL teams over the last seven years. (2009 season recap)

The club rebranded itself after the 2009 season, becoming the Ocean City Nor’easters and adopting the color scheme (royal blue & white) of English club Reading FC. However, in their first season with their new identity in 2010, the team struggled, finishing with a 5-6-5 record, their first losing season since they joined the PDL in 2003. By and large, the team featured a very young, inexperienced roster and failed to qualify for the post-season and the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. The season could have been different with a few different bounces of the ball, as four of the six losses suffered were by one goal. (2010 season recap)

The 2011 season was one of high promise that teetered on the edge of success. The Nor’easters finished with a 2-6-8 record knowing that if they had turned the ties into victories then the season would have had a completely different look to it. The young players from the U20 Men continue to push into the first team and the Nor’easters Academy is already proving successful with the likes of Mitch Grotti, Jerry Guzzo and Gio Tacconelli all graduating to the PDL first team in 2011. (2011 season recap)

Since joining the PDL in 2003, the Nor’easters have the sixth best regular season record (74-37-37) and the sixth best home record (42-15-18). The club is 27-13-16 at home since moving to Ocean City in 2005, the eighth best mark during that time period, showing that the home fans at the shore make all the difference.

The current logo for the Ocean City Nor’easters

Nor’easters In The US Open Cup

Adding to their success in the league, the Barons have also qualified for the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup on five occasions. They made their first appearance in 2002, their final year as a professional franchise. That year, they defeated Vereinigung Erzgebirge (Eastern Pennsylvania) of the USASA 4-0 in the first round, but were eliminated in the next round 1-0 by the Hampton Roads Mariners, who played in the level above the Barons, in the A-League (the league just below MLS).

OCEAN CITY FC IN THE US OPEN CUP

2002 (as South Jersey Barons in D3 Pro League) 1r - at Vereinigung Erzgebirge (USASA), 4-0 2r - vs Hampton Roads Mariners (A-Lg), 0-1 2004 (as South Jersey Barons in PDL) 1r - vs. Allied SC (USASA), 5-0 2r - vs. Syracuse Salty Dogs (A-Lg), 2-4 2005 (as Ocean City Barons in PDL) 1r - at NY Greek American Atlas (USASA), 3-0 2r - vs. Long Island Rough Riders (USL-2), 4-0 3r - at Richmond Kickers (A-Lg), 4-8 2007 (as Ocean City Barons in PDL) 1r - vs. Crystal Palace Baltimore (USL-2), 1-0 2r - vs. Harrisburg City Islanders (USL-2), 1-2 2009 (as Ocean City Barons in PDL) 1r - vs. Crystal Palace Baltimore (USL-2), 3-0 2r - vs. Real Maryland Monarchs (USL-2), 1-0 (AET) 3r - at DC United (MLS), 0-2

In 2004, the year of their undefeated league season in the PDL, they began the tournament with a 5-0 thrashing of the USASA’s Allied SC, and once again met an A-League team in the second round. The Syracuse Salty Dogs were the club, which featured Anthony Maher, the older brother of the Barons’ Matt Maher. It was only the second time in the history of the Open Cup that two brothers played against each other in a Cup game. The original match seemed to be heading in the Barons’ direction in the 75th minute with the score tied at 1-1, and the Salty Dogs playing with nine men. Unfortunately for the underdogs, the referee abandoned the match at that point due to lightning and darkness. Six days later, the match was replayed, and despite Neil Holloway giving the Barons a 1-0 lead in the 22nd minute, Syracuse was too strong, knocking the Barons out of the tournament by the score of 4-2.

The following year, the Barons made a return to the Cup and made a huge impression. They began as they had the previous two tournament appearances with a shutout win over a USASA club, 3-0 over the New York Greek-American Atlas. The Barons would host their second round match against the Long Island Rough Riders of the USL Second Division, and they used their home field advantage at Carey Stadium to thrash the Rough Riders 4-0. Ruben Mingo, Tony Donatelli, Chris Williams and Steven Wacker all scored in one of the second round’s biggest upsets.

The Ocean City Barons celebrate after upsetting Real Maryland in the Second Round of the 2009 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup | Photo: Bill Pellegrino

In the Third Round, the Barons were on the short end of a historical Open Cup match in Richmond, VA. Again, weather played a role, postponing the original game date, and a week later, the match was delayed by two hours. When the match was finally completed, the Barons had lost to the Richmond Kickers of the USL First Division, 8-4. The Kickers answered Byron Carmichael’s opening goal, with four straight tallies in the first half. Just before halftime, Carmichael cut the lead to two, and just after the break Tony Donatelli’s goal made it 4-3 in the 54th minute. However, the home side was too strong, and with the Barons pushing for an equalizer, the Kickers opened the floodgates. 12 goals was the most total goals scored in an Open Cup match since professional teams began entering the tournament in 1995. The four goals conceded by the Richmond Kickers was the most they had allowed in their Open Cup history.

After missing out on the tournament in 2006, the Barons returned to the Cup in 2007 and began at home with a 1-0 upset over Crystal Palace Baltimore of the USL Second Division. They hosted the Second Round as well and lost 2-1 to the Harrisburg City Islanders in one of the more exciting matches of the 2007 Open Cup. The Barons had three balls cleared off the line in the second half, but they weren’t able to equalize and the City Islanders would move on to make a dramatic run to the quarterfinals.

2009 was a landmark season for the Barons in the Open Cup as they qualified for the tournament for the fourth time in the last six years. But the biggest highlight was the fact that Ocean City faced off with a club from Major League Soccer for the first time in franchise history. The Barons’ run in the tournament began with a shocking 3-0 home upset of Crystal Palace Baltimore of the USL Second Division. Byron Carmichael was named TheCup.us Player of the Round after scoring a pair of first half goals and JT Noone would put the nail in the coffin with a second half goal. The upsets at The Beach House continued in Round 2 when the Barons’ Tunde Ogunbiyi shutout Real Maryland of the Second Division and Noone converted a penalty kick in the second period of overtime to put the Barons into the Third Round. With the win, Ocean City became only the sixth amateur team in Open Cup history to register back-to-back wins over professional teams. The Barons would put a scare into DC United but they would fall 2-0 to the defending Open Cup champs on a wet night at the Maryland Soccerplex in Germantown, Md. 

As a PDL team in the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup, Ocean City have six wins with four of them being upsets of professional clubs. Only one other PDL team has more wins and upsets in the tournament.

Neil Holloway accepts the 2008 PDL Organization of the Year award at the USL AGM.

Ocean City Nor’easters Among The Best

In 2005, the Ocean City Nor’easters were recognized during the USL Annual General Meeting for the success made since the move to Ocean City and were awarded with the "Progress Award", an award given to just one of the 114 professional and amateur teams in the USL. In 2006, the club was again recognized during the USL AGM and inducted into the USL Hall of Fame as a "10+ Club", for being one of only 34 franchises in the history of the USL to have been around for 10 or more years. In 2007, the Nor’easters’ general manager Neil Holloway was named "PDL Executive of the Year" and the Nor’easters’ Communications department, led by public relations director and broadcaster Josh Hakala, was honored with the PDL Communications Award. For the fourth straight year, the club was honored at the USL’s AGM in 2008 when they were named the PDL Organization of the Year out of the 67 teams in the league.

Nor’easters In The Pros 

The Nor’easters have had success in helping players achieve their goal to play the game professionally. Former players currently earning a paycheck include: Jeremiah White (GKS Belchatow - Poland), Tony Donatelli (San Jose Earthquakes), J.T. Noone (Philadelphia Union), Matt Maher (Carolina RailHawks / Philadelphia Kixx), Chris Williams (SHB Da Nang FC in Vietnam), Ryan Heins (Rochester Rhinos / Philadelphia Kixx), and Jamie Franks (Rochester Rhinos), Tyler Bellamy (Rochester Rhinos), and Jeremy Ortiz (Philadelphia Kixx). Jeremiah White’s career highlight so far occurred when he earned his first cap with the U.S. National Team on January 19, 2008. For a full list of former Ocean City FC players playing in the pros, click here.