NJSIAA Group 2 Final Preview: Riding High, Manasquan Looks to Finish Job

NJSIAA Group II Championship

Sunday, March 16, 2025

At Jersey Mike’s Arena, Rutgers University

Manasquan vs. Madison, 2 p.m.

 

Teams at a Glance

Manasquan (24-4; No. 1 seed in Central Jersey)

Head Coach: Andrew Bilodeau
Group Championships: 1 (2023)
Group Final Appearances: 2 (2004, 2023)
Road to the Final: Defeated No. 16 Ocean, 46-16; No. 9 Robbinsville, 72-43; No. 5 Wall, 53-36; No. 2 Rumson-Fair Haven, 48-36; Camden, 44-43.

Projected Starters

Griffin Linstra, Sr., 6-4 (14.7 points, 9.7 rebounds, 5.1 assists, 1.4 steals)

Rey Weinseimer, So., 6-1 (17.5 points, 5.4 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1.9 steals)

Jack O’Reilly, Jr., 6-4 (4.5 points, 6.8 rebounds)

Logan Cleveland, So., 6-5 (7.0 points, 4.7 rebounds)

Brandon Kunz, Sr., 6-1 (3.4 points, 1.8 rebounds, 1.7 assists)

Off the Bench

Matteo Chiarella, Sr., 6-1 (3.0 points)

Caden Eastmond, Sr., 6-1

Dan McManus, Sr., 6-0

Keegan Hertel, Sr., 6-1

Manasquan slayed the dragon on Wednesday when it beat perennial Group II favorite Camden, but the Warriors still have one more step to complete before they can truly celebrate. Winning a second Group II championship in three years is now the focus for Manasquan, which was in a similar scenario two years ago, when it won its first ever group championship after ending a four-game losing streak in the group semifinals by beating Middle Township.

While Manasquan had already gotten over the group semifinal hurdle that had confounded the Warriors for more than a decade, it had not solved Camden – a team that routed Manasquan in the 2015 Group II semifinal and escaped with a win over the Warriors in the notorious 2024 Group II semifinal. Now, Manasquan will have to follow up what might have been the biggest win in the history of its program with one more winning performance against a team that wants to play the role that Manasquan has played vs. Camden over the past two seasons.

What has made Manasquan so unique this season is the Warriors really have not had a letdown game. Thirteen of Manasquan’s 28 games this season have come against teams ranked in either the Shore Sports Insider Top 10 or the NJ.com State Top 20 and the Warriors are 9-4 in those games, with three of the losses coming vs. St. Rose. In the other 15 games, Only one team has played Manasquan closer than 14 points, which was Donovan Catholic in a 53-47 loss to Manasquan in the WOBM Christmas Classic in December.

Ever since last year’s stunning finish vs. Camden ended its season, Manasquan has been undeterred thanks to the leadership of its senior group, led by four-year starter Griffin Linstra. With each season, Linstra has taken on a different role on the court, but has remained a leader throughout. As a freshman and sophomore, he was a fourth or fifth option on offense when often being assigned the toughest defensive assignment. Last year, with the transfer of Darius Adams and season-ending injury to Ryan Frauenheim, Linstra had to step up his scoring and did so by finishing top 10 in the Shore Conference in scoring at over 17 points per game.

This season, Linstra’s scoring has dipped by a couple points per game, but he is averaging nearly two full assists per game more than he did a year ago while passing the torch to sophomore Rey Weinseimer as Manasquan’s No. 1 scoring option.

Fellow senior Brandon Kunz has also been a key piece in Manasquan’s return to the Group II final. Kunz is a three-sport workhorse for the Warriors and a Lehigh Lacrosse commit and he has put that athleticism and competitiveness to use in taking on some of the toughest defensive assignments Manasquan faces. He has also become a reliable spot-up shooter, which he proved by hitting two three-pointers each in the Central Jersey Group II final vs. Rumson-Fair Haven and vs. Camden on Wednesday.

After getting past two teams in Rumson and Camden that had players standing 6-foot-8 or taller in Luke Cruz (Rumson) and David Munro (Camden), Manasquan will go back to having a size advantage over its opponent on Sunday, which will likely mean a dominant day on the glass for Linstra, junior Jack O’Reilly and sophomore Logan Cleveland. While Linstra and O’Reilly returned with big-game chops this year, Cleveland showed he is poised to become the next great Manasquan forward with his 14-point performance vs. Camden on Wednesday.

Manasquan has so much momentum and an immeasurable amount of big-game experience to lean on heading into Sunday’s Group II final; the Warriors just have to lock in after celebrating their biggest win ever on Wednesday and if this season is any indication, that won’t be a problem.

Madison (24-7; No. 3 seed in North Jersey, Section 2)

Head Coach: Joe Reel
Group Championships: None
Group Final Appearances: None
Road to the Final: Defeated No. 14 Weequahic, 85-57; No. 11 Bernards, 82-51; No. 10 Newark Collegiate, 56-50; No. 5 Hoboken, 53-52; Glen Rock, 53-38

Projected Starters

Gavin Randall, Jr., 6-2 (19.9 points, 7.9 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 1.3 steals)

Mike Liddy, Sr., 6-1 (11.4 points, 3.2 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 1.6 steals)

Cal Regan, Jr., 6-3 (8.8 points, 3.4 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 2.0 steals)

Ryan Nallin, So., 5-10 (7.1 points, 2.1 rebounds)

Scott Sullivan, Sr., 6-2 (2.7 points, 2.4 rebounds)

Off the Bench

Luke McGuire, Jr., 5-10 (3.7 points, 1.3 rebounds)

Conner Rodin, Sr. (2.3 points, 2.6 rebounds)

Brady Sodano, Jr. (3.4 points, 1.3 rebounds)

 

Manasquan completed its feel-good story by avenging last year’s crushing loss to Camden in Wednesday’s Group II semifinal round. Now, Madison wants its turn to play the role of the underdog that shocks the state.

The Dodgers, while underdogs, are no easy matchup. Three of their five state tournament wins are by double-digit margins and when they did have to save their season, Mike Liddy delivered the game-winner with four seconds left to give Madison a 53-52 win over Hoboken in the North 2 Group II final.

Madison has also nailed down a number of wins that suggest the Dodgers are ready to challenge Manasquan: Christian Brothers Academy, Delbarton and Westfield, plus a two-point loss to Group I finalist and 24-win Newark Tech. The win over CBA did come in the December game in which Colts starters Justin Fuerbacher and Charlie Marcoullier both suffered ankle sprains, but it was nevertheless an early statement that Madison had championship potential.

The Dodgers blend a trio of seniors with a talented core of four juniors and a sophomore who regularly contribute and are set to come back in 2025-26. The standout of the group is junior guard Gavin Randall, who is averaging just under 20 points and eight rebounds per game and is the centerpiece of Madison’s offense. Liddy has been a dependable No. 1 scorer and ball-handler alongside Randall and sophomore Ryan Nallin has stepped up throughout the season as another guard that defenses need to account for.

Junior Cal Regan is Madison’s biggest starter at 6-3 and second-leading rebounder behind Randall, although only at 3.4 per game. Fellow juniors Luke McGuire and Brady Sodano bring energy off the bench along with senior Conner Rodin. The other senior in the rotation is Scott Sullivan, who returned to the starting five in the sectional final vs. Hoboken.

The Match-Up

As it always has this season, Manasquan will lean on its defense in an attempt to control the game Sunday vs. Madison. Kunz has been the defensive stopper for the Warriors, so expect the multi-sport senior to check Randall from the start and stick to him for the vast majority of the 32 minutes.

On the other end, Madison will have to deal with Linstra’s versatility and Weinseimer’s ability to catch fire shooting the ball. More than that, though, Madison will have to prevent Manasquan from dominating the glass, which the Warriors frequently do and is an area of weakness for Madison. Randall has done his part as a rebounder for Madison, but Manasquan has four players averaging more rebounds than Regan – Madison’s tallest starter and second-leading rebounder.

With an advantage on the glass and a defense that almost never allows 50 points in a game, the Warriors will pose a unique challenge to Madison. The only games in which Manasquan has allowed 50 points were its four losses – to Gill St. Bernard’s and three to St. Rose – and December overtime wins over Rutgers Prep and Rumson-Fair Haven. The Warriors have held seven 20-win teams (Central Regional, Freehold Boro, CBA, Lenape, Red Bank, Wall and Rumson-Fair Haven) to under 40 points and the list could grow to nine if Colts Neck beats Ramapo Saturday for its 20th win and if the Warriors defense limits Madison to under 40.

With that track record of defense against quality opponents – particularly ones that Manasquan matches up with athletically – it is hard to see Madison scoring their way to a victory on Sunday. It will have to be a slow, grinding effort that still produces an efficient enough shooting performance. It is the kind of game that Manasquan usually welcomes, but might prefer to avoid in this particular matchup given the size advantage. Whatever pace the game ends up following, Manasquan would like for the story of the game to be its defense. If that comes to pass, the Warriors will be jumping in the Ocean on Sunday night, just as they did two years ago after finishing off their first state title.

The Pick: Manasquan, 47-40