Path of the Warrior: Manasquan holds off Wall to win South Group 2 sectional title

MANASQUAN — Three weeks ago, Manasquan had a conference championship slip through its grasp when it was unable to protect a fourth-quarter lead. With the stakes even higher on Tuesday afternoon, the Warriors were not about to let it happen again.

Senior attackman Brandon Kunz delivered three goals and two assists and senior goalie Pat Loxley made eight saves, including a critical stop with 90 seconds left in a one-goal game, as the top-seeded Warriors held off arch rival Wall to claim a 9-7 victory in the NJSIAA South Group 2 state sectional final on Tuesday at Pat Barnaba Field.

Manasquan led 4-2 at halftime and 7-4 heading to the fourth quarter before Wall used consecutive goals by junior midfielder Patrick Freud in a span of 43 seconds to pull within a goal with 3:50 left. Loxley’s save on junior attackman Wyatt Capro with 1:32 to play kept Manasquan in front and Kunz beat Wall’s 10-man ride for a goal with 57 seconds left for an 8-6 lead. Kunz added another empty-net goal with 35 seconds left before Wall senior Mikey Hoarle scored off the ensuing face-off with 27 seconds left. Manasquan won the next face-off and ran out the clock to win its second straight sectional title and sixth overall, booking a return trip to the Group 2 state final.

“We were working all year for moments like this,” Kunz said. “We have so much depth on this team and everybody contributes in different ways. I’m super proud of the guys. It was a full team effort from the bench to Patches in goal to Will on face-offs.”

Senior midfielder Matt Schneider, senior defenseman Parker Harms, senior LSM James Cadott, senior attackman Ryan Aldi, and sophomore attackman Kieran Schneider each scored once for Manasquan. Conway went 1o-for-18 at the face-off X.

Freud scored a game-high four goals for Wall and senior goalie Braeden Buckley was excellent with 14 saves. Capro scored twice and Hoarle had one goal. Hoarle, who is signed to Bryant University, took face-offs for the first time since his sophomore year due to an injury that kept him out for most of his junior season. He unofficially went 10-for-14 at the X and rotated with junior Dylan Cohen.

Manasquan will play Hopewell Valley in the Group 2 state championship at 4:30 p.m. on Friday at Seneca High School. Hopewell defeated Sparta, 8-5, to win the North Group 2 title for their first sectional title in program history.

The second meeting between Wall and Manasquan played out much differently than their regular-season matchup as American Division rivals. Manasquan won the April 12 game 17-8, leaving the Crimson Knights with a sizeable gap to try to close in the sectional final. Their answer to slowing down Manasquan’s high-octane attack was to come out in a zone, and it worked.

“All week we’ve been practicing against a zone because we figured they would come out in it because we beat them pretty good in man last game,” Kunz said. “They ran it very well. We only scored nine goals and we have a very good offense. We just had to find the net in different ways, find transition, things like that.”

“So much credit to those guys and their coaching staff. They did a great job preparing and coming out in a zone to slow our fast-paced offense down,” Manasquan head coach John Naslonski said. “Their goalie played well and made some really good saves at key times. Our guys grinded away. It’s a rivalry game and just what we expected.”

Wall struck first on a goal by Capro at 9:55 of the first quarter before Manasquan scored twice on goals by Schneider and Longo to take a 2-1 lead after the first quarter. The Warriors’ advantage grew to 3-1 at 8:44 of the second quarter when Buckley tried to run out of his crease on a clear, but was met with a body check by 6-foot-5 Manasquan junior midfielder Jack O’Reilly. The ball popped loose and O’Reilly began a quick transition play that ended with Harms scoring into the open net. Freud got one back for Wall at 4:29 before Kieran Schneider scored on a lefty jump-shot with 1:01 left in the half to give Manasquan a 4-2 lead at the break.

Wall continued to stay within striking distance and pulled within a goal when Capro scored off a dodge in the opening minute of the third quarter. Manasquan responded with two straight goals to open a three-goal cushion. Kunz, the team’s leading scorer, finally found room against Wall’s zone and scored from the right side for a 5-3 lead. Just under a minute later, Kunz set up Aldi for a goal to put the Warriors up 6-3.

Freud scored his second goal of the game at 7:29 to cut Manasquan’s lead to 6-4. Then, the Warriors finally got loose in transition with a phenomenal passing play that finished with Cadott scoring with 5:11 left. Harms corralled a ground ball after an errant pass and dished to a streaking Matt Schneider as he crossed midfield. Matt Schneider fed Kieran Schneider, who used a behind-the-back pass to get the ball to Kunz. Kunz found a cutting Cadott on the other side of the box and the long pole scored on a high left-handed shot.

“I love how our coaches give all the poles the green light to go,” Harms said. “That was definitely a big goal and a big momentum shift.”

Manasquan led 7-4 heading to the fourth quarter, but Wall made it a one-goal game again when Freud scored his third and fourth goals at 4:33 and 3:50, respectively. It was beginning to play out eerily similar to when Manasquan lost to Rumson-Fair Haven, 15-14 in the Shore Conference Tournament final, after leading by three with five minutes left.

“We’ve been in these situations a bunch of times this year,” Harms said. “Some worked out, some didn’t. We really brought it together in that last time out and locked it. At this point of the season there’s no off games. Anybody can beat anybody and we know that.”

Loxley’s save on Capro with 1:32 to play kept Manasquan in front, and 30 seconds later Kunz absorbed plenty of contact to knife through the Wall defense and score against the 10-man ride to give Manasquan an 8-6 lead. He scored again with the empty net 22 seconds later, which allowed the Warriors to absorb a late goal by Hoarle and win 9-7.

“You just have to eat a couple checks and then you’re good,” Kunz said.

Manasquan is now one step from history. The Warriors have never won a group title in boys lacrosse, falling in their previous five trips to the state final. Rumson is the only boys team in the Shore to have won an overall state title. Kunz, Harms and the rest of a battle-tested core are ready to change that.

“It would be awesome,” Kunz said. “I’ve been playing with these guys since the Shark River days as 6-year-olds. We have such a connection.”

“It would mean everything to us,” Harms said. “This core group of seniors has been through a lot and we’ve probably been playing rec ball together since third grade. To go out with a state championship would be amazing.”