Shore Conference Final
Monday, May 19, at Monmouth University
2-Manasquan (14-2) at 1-Rumson-Fair Haven (12-8), 3 p.m.
Path To Final
Manasquan, No. 15 in the NJ.com Top 20, handled business against seventh-seeded Red Bank Regional, 14-6, and then set up a rematch with Christian Brothers. That semifinal game over the weekend came down to the wire just like the regular season matchup. In the end, Manasquan won again, advancing with a 9-7 victory over CBA. Manasquan now will get a second crack at Rumson-Fair Haven in the final.
Rumson-Fair Haven, No. 20 in the NJ.com Top 20, shocked Manasquan in the regular season and stole the top seed with that win. In the tournament, the Bulldogs have lived up to the billing. Rumson-Fair Haven beat eighth-seeded Holmdel, 15-6, in the quarterfinals. In the semifinals, it matched up against a Shore team that beat Rumson-Fair Haven in a stunner in the regular season. That was the first time the Bulldogs ever lost to Shore. With a spot in the Shore Conference final on the line, Rumson-Fair Haven pulled away in the second half for a 16-7 win.
Players To Watch
Manasquan: Brandon Kunz, Sr., A (35 G, 16 A); Ryan Aldi, Sr., A (38 G, 19 A); Kieran Schneider, Fr., A (13 G, 23 A); Matt Schneider, Sr., M (31 G, 12 A); Lucas Longo, Jr., M (20 G, 13 A); Jack O’Reilly, Jr., M (12 G, 5 A); Kai Donahue, Sr., M (13 G, 8 A); Pat Frost, Sr., M ; Parker Harms, Sr., D (5 G, 6 A); Chris Carhart, Sr., D; James Caddott, Sr., LSM; John Lake, Jr., D; Pat Loxley, Sr., G (164 SV, 79 A); Will Conway, Jr., FOGO.
Rumson-Fair Haven: Grayson Goldin, Sr., A (25 G, 19 A); Luke Lydon, Jr., A (39 G, 12 A); Blake Ahmann, Jr., A (19 G, 11 A); Teddy Whitehouse, Fr., A (12 G, 13 A); Joseph Whitehouse, Jr., M (30 G, 19 A); Liam Haggerty, Fr., M (15 G, 8 A); Britt Lumsden, Sr., M (26 G, 13 A); Beau Devine, Jr., M; Kellen Winters, So., M Frank Argilagos, Sr., D; Toby Najenson, Jr., D; Danny Sullivan, So., D; John Paik, So., D/FOFO; Chase Devlin, Jr., D; Peter Kessler Sr., G (113 G, 121 GA); Daniel Jaroschak, Fr., G (26 SV, 15 GA); Rory Keane, Sr., FOGO; Jaden Cavise, Fr., FOGO.
Title Game Breakdown
Manasquan ripped off 11 straight wins to start the season. After an 8-7 overtime win over defending champion Christian Brothers, it looked like the Warriors were in firm control of the Shore Conference. That seemed to be true for two and a half quarters against Rumson-Fair Haven too. Then, the Warriors collapsed, getting outscored, 6-0, in the second half of a 10-8 loss. It was hard to grasp how that game went so sideways for Manasquan. The Warriors have rebounded and looked more like the team that was on fire to start the year. Lehigh commit Brandon Kunz, Bentley commit Ryan Aldi and Monmouth commit Matt Schneider lead a strong offense that can push the pace. Cornell commit Jack O’Reilly provides some pop as well out of the midfield along with Lucas Longo, who has the game-winner against CBA. Montclair State commit Kai Donahue is a two-way player who sets the tone for this team. He’s having a career year on offense, but he is at his best on defense along with Pat Frost at short-stick defensive middie. Villanova commit is a dynamic pole Parker Harms who leads a defense that also counts on Rollins commit Chris Carhart, Delaware Valley commit James Caddott and junior John Lake. Muhlenberg Pat Loxley has been awesome in his first year at Manasquan’s starting goalie. That group needs to close better against Rumson-Fair Haven in this rematch. Manasquan also needs to be better at the faceoff X if it is going to play a complete game in the final on Monday.
Rumson-Fair Haven is having an up-and-down year and it’s because it lacks consistency. No one can doubt the talent that the Bulldogs can put on the field. But is Rumson-Fair Haven going to be everyone’s best effort at the same time in the same game for a full 48 minutes? It’s been hit or miss this season. The win over Manasquan proves that more than any other game. In the first half, Rumson-Fair Haven came out flat. After halftime, this team found an edge and stole the No. 1 seed in the Shore Conference Tournament away from Manasquan. This team needs that type of fire and grit when it gets to Monmouth on Monday. Dartmouth commit Frank Argilagos is a tone-setter who can lock you down and lay a big hit on defense. Brown commit Toby Najenson is another foundational piece that Rumson-Fair Haven needs to step up on a defense that is playing two goalies right now. Colorado College commit Grayson Goldin and Boston commit Luke Lydon have been effective on offense throughout their careers. This is their offense to run now. Lydon has been reliable since he first touched the field as a freshman and leads the team in scoring. Senior Britt Lumsden has emerged as a guy who can take the ball and go make a play. Junior Joseph Whitehouse is a guy Rumson-Fair Haven leans on for scoring too when he’s healthy. The pieces are there and Rumson-Fair Haven has proven it can beat Manasquan. Whatever sparked this team in the second half in the regular season needs to be tapped into again from the jump in this championship game.
The prediction: Manasquan 10, Rumson-Fair Haven 9.
Brandon Gould can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @BrandonGouldHS
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