Boys Lacrosse: NJSIAA Group 2 state final preview: Manasquan vs. Hopewell Valley

NJSIAA BOYS LACROSSE GROUP 2 STATE CHAMPIONSHIP

 

WHO: Manasquan (18-3) vs. Hopewell Valley (21-2)

 

WHEN: Friday, June 13 at 4:30 p.m.

 

WHERE: Seneca High School – 110 Carranza Road, Tabernacle

 

MANASQUAN’S ROAD TO THE STATE FINAL – Defeated Absegami 18-7 in the first round; defeated Seneca 15-3 in the quarterfinals; defeated Ocean City 14-7 in the semifinals; defeated Wall 9-7 in the South Group 2 sectional final.

 

HOPEWELL VALLEY’S ROAD TO THE STATE FINAL – Defeated Nottingham 20-1 in the first round; defeated Cinnaminson 18-4 in the quarterfinals; defeated Allentown 17-3 in the semifinals; defeated Sparta 8-5 in the North Group 2 sectional final.

 

MANASQUAN’S BEST WINS: 9-5 over North Group 3 semifinalist Ridge; 12-7 over Shore; 10-8 over South Group 4 semifinalist Eastern; 12-4 over South Group 4 finalist Southern; 17-8 and 9-7 over South Group 2 finalist Wall; 9-3 over Haddonfield; 8-7 and 9-7 over Christian Brothers Academy; 13-6 over Ocean City.

 

HOPEWELL VALLEY’S BEST WINS: 14-1 over GMC finalist East Brunswick; 13-2 over South Group 4 semifinalist Washington Township; 9-7 over Notre Dame; 10-9 over North Group 2 semifinalist West Morris.

 

STATE FINALS APPEARANCES

Manasquan (6): 2016, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2024, 2025.

Hopewell Valley (1): 2025.

 

STATE TITLES

None

 

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Manasquan: Brandon Kunz, Sr., A (56g, 25a); Ryan Aldi, Sr., A (52g, 23a); Kieren Schneider, So., A (15g, 26a); Matt Schneider, Sr., M (37g, 17a); Lucas Longo, Jr., M (25g, 15a);  Jack O’Reilly, Jr., M (14g, 6a); Kai Donahue, Sr., SSDM (19g, 11a); Pat Frost, Sr., SSDM; Dax Klein, So., M; Parker Harms, Sr., D (12g, 9a); Chris Carhart, Sr., D; James Cadott, Sr., LSM; John Lake, Jr.,, D; Pat Loxley, Sr., G (204 saves, 104 goals against); Will Conway, Jr., FOGO.

 

Hopewell Valley: Luke Caldwell, Sr., A (117g, 49a); Ryan Foret, Sr., A (50g, 81a); Johnny Ellis, Sr., M (45g, 11a); Ty Becker, Jr. (32g, 10a); Kyle Yadamiec, Jr. (18g, 25a), Gavin Seibold (11g, 4a); Milan Desai, Sr., D (1g, 45gb); Ben DeCore, Sr., LSM (7g, 64gb); Michael Vagott, Sr., D (21gb); Carter Horvath, Jr.,. D (29gb); Joseph Demareski, Sr., SSDM (2g, 7a, 25gb); Preston Horvath, Fr., M; Dylan Yasher, Sr., FOGO (60%, 117gb, 6g, 6a); Owen Shehab, Sr., G (156 saves, 102 goals against).

 

CHAMPIONSHIP BREAKDOWN

For the past 30 years, Manasquan, the Shore Conference’s first boys lacrosse program, has been building toward winning an overall state championship. The Warriors have reached the state finals five times but have yet to hoist the elusive state championship trophy. On Friday afternoon, they’ll travel across the state to Seneca High School where they will try to end the drought and finish the season as Group 2 state champs.

Manasquan enters Friday’s game against Hopewell Valley with an 18-3 record and as the No. 15 team in the state as ranked by NJ.com. The Warriors have a high-octane offense that is averaging 12.7 goals against a superb schedule. Manasquan won a loaded Shore Conference American Division over the likes of Rumson-Fair Haven, Christian Brothers Academy, Shore Regional, Wall, and Southern Regional.

The Warriors love to run-and-gun, and they have the personnel to do it at a breakneck pace. If their opponent isn’t ready, it can be a long day. Head coach John Naslonski, a Rutgers alum, likens it to the Scarlet Knights’ NASCAR offense of 2022. A major part of that is Manasquan’s athletic and active group of long poles led by senior Villanova commit Parker Harms. He, along with senior LSM James Cadott, senior defenseman Chris Carhart, and junior defenseman John Lake are aggressive on ball and can quickly flip a caused turnover into a fast break. Short-stick defensive midfielders Kai Donahue and Pat Frost are also major components of the transition offense while doing exemplary work on clears and off the wing on face-offs.

Manasquan is lethal in transition, but the Warriors can also punish you in the settled 6-on-6 sets with multiple scoring options. Senior attackman Brandon Kunz, a Lehigh signee, is a crafty dodger and shooter who has a knack for playing his best in the biggest games. He scored a record seven goals in the Shore Conference Tournament final and has 14 goals and seven assists in four state tournament games. Senior Ryan Aldi, a Bentley commit, is right behind Kunz in the scoring department with 52 goals and 24 assists. Sophomore attackman Kieran Schneieder has blossomed in a starting role with 15 goals and 27 assists.

In the midfield, the Warriors present several matchup problems with 6-foot-3 senior Monmouth University signee Matthew Schneider, 6-foot-5 junior Cornell commit Jack O’Reilly, and 6-foot-1 junior Lucas Longo. When they start dodging downhill they’re tough to stop, and an overzealous slide will leave one of the aforementioned options open for a quality scoring chance. Sophomore Dax Klein is also an important two-way midfielder option.

At the face-off X, senior Will Conway always battles and, even if he is on the wrong side of the winning percentage, does a great job preventing fast breaks from opposing FOGOs.

Manasquan’s defense allows a shade under six goals per game. The defensive pieces are strong in front of senior goalie Pat Loxley. The Muhlenberg commit had big shoes to fill following the graduation of All-Shore goalie Nick Bounasi but Manasquan hasn’t missed a beat. Loxley has 204 saves and a 66% save percentage. He made two huge saves in the fourth quarter to help Manaquan hold off Wall for the sectional title.

Hopewell Valley, ranked No. 16 in New Jersey, will be playing in its first state championship game after defeating Sparta in the North Group 2 sectional final. The Bulldogs are in the midst of the best season in program history and are led by record-breaking senior attackman Luke Caldwell. With 117 goals this season, he is one of just a handful of players in state history with a 100-goal season. He also has 49 assists for a whopping 166 points. Fellow attackman Ryan Foret is the setup man with 81 assists, but can also score in bunches as evident by his 50 goals. They are Hopewell’s leading scores by a large margin, so expect Harms to be matched up on Caldwell and Foret to draw Carhart. Manasquan is going to try to take those two away and make another player beat them. If that happens, Hopewell will need Johnny Ellis (45g) and Ty Becker (32g) to force Manasquan to adjust.

Hopewell Valley’s defense has allowed just 4.95 goals per game and is led by senior defensemen Milan Desai and Michael Vagott, senior LSM Ben DeCore, and junior Carter Horvath. Manasquan will present a challenge that unit has yet to face this season, so it will be interesting to see how they respond if it’s a lower-scoring game than they are used to from their own offense.

Another factor is strength of schedule. Hopewell Valley did not have to navigate the daily grind that Manasquan did. Plus, this Warriors squad played in a state final last season and has more big-game experience.

Hopewell Valley is a worthy opponent having a great season, but this feels like Manasquan’s year more than it ever has. If the Warriors can play their game and keep Caldwell from taking over, they’ll finally be hosting a state championship on Friday night.

The pick: Manasquan 15, Hopewell Valley 9.