Perfect 10: Rumson-Fair Haven stages epic rally to beat Manasquan in OT in Shore Conference Tournament final

WEST LONG BRANCH — Joseph Whitehouse had the ball in his crosse with a chance to deliver the Shore Conference Tournament title to Rumson-Fair Haven in the final seconds of regulation, but was unable to get a shot off as Manasquan forced a turnover to send the game to overtime.

A few minutes later, Whitehouse had another opportunity to clinch a championship. And this time, he did not miss.

With 2:05 left in overtime, Whitehouse dodged toward the left ally from the restraining line before cutting back to the middle and whipping a right-handed bounce shot that found the back of the net, giving top-seeded Rumson an unbelievable 15-14 victory over Manasquan and the Shore Conference title in an all-time classic on Monday afternoon at Monmouth University’s Kessler Stadium.

“I had the ball at the end of the game and couldn’t get anything done, and I came off the field a little disappointed,” Whitehouse said. “My boys instilled confidence in me and I’m thankful I was in that situation again. It’s something you dream of when you come to Rumson-Fair Haven. It was really awesome. The boys have been through a lot this season and it’s incredible to pull this one out.”

“It’s surreal,” said junior attackman Luke Lydon, who scored a team-high four goals. “This is the stuff we work for all year. I’m really at a loss for words. I love my brothers. I’m so happy to be here with the kids I played with growing up.”

Monday’s victory secured Rumson’s conference-record 10th SCT championship and is the Bulldogs’ fourth title in the last five years. They have played in 15 of the 20 SCT finals since the tournament’s inception in 2005 and have won half of them.

This one took plenty of heavy lifting. Rumson led for just 17 seconds during regulation and trailed by three goals multiple times. But down 14-11 with five minutes to play, Rumson capitalized on some Manasquan miscues to score three straight goals and force overtime.

The comeback began when Joseph Whitehouse took a pass from senior midfielder Britt Lumsden and ripped a shot from 13 yards out to make it 14-12 with 4:41 left. Just over a minute later, freshman midfielder Liam Haggerty dodged around a defender up top and barreled through another to get to inside where he scored with a high shot, cutting Rumson’s deficit to 14-13 with 3:21 remaining. Senior midfielder Grayson Goldin delivered the game-tying goal with 2:28 on the clock when he moved from X above goal line extended and rifled a fade-away shot inside the near post.

“This team just understands the game very well,” said senior defenseman Frank Argilagos, who came through with a key caused turnover when Manasquan had possession off a timeout with just over two minutes left in regulation. “We’ve had plenty of losses this season, and one thing we learned from those is that you’re never out of a lacrosse game. It can change in an instant. For a young team, that’s really important to never lose faith in yourself.”

“We’re gritty, man,” Lydon said. “We don’t go away.”

In many ways, Whitehouse being the player to score the SCT-winning goal epitomizes Rumson’s resiliency. Last year, in the midst of a solid sophomore season, Whitehouse suffered a broken elbow that sidelined him for the remainder of the high school season and throughout the summer club ball season. He didn’t return to playing until the end of fall ball in November. This season, he has 32 goals and 51 points as one of Rumson’s most important players.

“Joe is a great kid and he’s earned it,” Argilagos said. “He’s had plenty of injuries and his comeback story is truly inspirational. To see a guy like that get the game-winner almost brought a tear to my eye. All his hard work paid off.”

“I’m so happy for him,” Rumson head coach Marc Moreau said. “He’s a Swiss Army Knife for us. We can put him on the wing, we can put him down on defense, he plays offense, he’ll play man-up and we’ll play him on man-down. And he’s one of the hardest workers in the program and has a great attitude. He comes to practice with a smile every day. If it’s 90 degrees with 100 percent humidity, he’s smiling. If it’s 30 degrees out and windy, he’s got a huge smile. I wish I were him. There’s a lot of guys who stepped up and I’m so happy he had that moment.”

“A year and 10 days ago I went down with an elbow injury and didn’t get to play in any of these games as a sophomore and I missed my recruiting summer,” Whitehouse said. “I’m so thankful to be back out on the field. It’s an amazing feeling. I got a little emotional at the end.”

Whitehouse was the ultimate hero and one of many standouts for the Bulldogs (13-8). Lydon’s four goals, three of which came during an 18-goal first half, led the team. Freshman attackman Teddy Whitehouse, senior midfielder Britt Lumsden, and junior attackman Blake Ahmann each scored twice. Goldin, Haggerty, and sophomore LSM John Paik scored one goal apiece. Freshman FOGO Jaden Cavise had another clutch game at the X by going 14-for-23. The comeback doesn’t happen with the face-off unit earning critical possessions down the stretch. Freshman goalie Daniel Jaroschak made five saves, every one of which loomed large.

“I’m really proud of everyone,” Argilagos said. “Total team effort.”

That includes the defense, which, despite allowing 14 goals, delivered big stops and turnovers when it mattered most. Manasquan took a 14-11 lead when senior attackman Brandon Kunz scored his seventh of the game with 8:03 left in regulation, but it was the final goal the Warriors would produce. Manasquan had leads of 3-0, 6-3, 11-8, 12-9, and 14-11, but was not able to pull away.

“Shoutout to the defense,” Lydon said. “It’s not just about when you’re tied or down one. They stayed resilient down two, down three, and they never let it get out of hand. We owned them a few and we finally got it done.”

“All credit goes to the offense,” Argilagos said. “They played a hell of a game. As a defense, that wasn’t our best game but we’re going to step up in big moments.”

Kunz was incredible for Manasquan with a career-high seven goals and one assist, and he got the scoring started at 10:53 of the first quarter. Junior middie Lucas Longo scored 24 seconds later and then Kunz sank his second off a feed from junior midfielder Jack O’Reilly for an extra-man goal that gave Squan (14-3) an early 3-0 lead.

The tone was permanently stamped over the next few minutes, as both an electric offensive shootout and one where Rumson would not yield under constant pressure from Manasquan. The Bulldogs scored the next three with Lydon, Lumsden and Lydon again in a span of five minutes. Manasquan, however, came right back with a three-goal flurry in the final two minutes of the quarter. Kunz completed the hat trick at 1:53, sophomore attackman Kieran Schneider scored with 26.2 seconds left, and senior defenseman Parker Harms scored on a long-distance blast with eight seconds remaining to give Manasquan a 6-3 lead after a high-octane first quarter.

It was more of the same in the second quarter. Rumson cut Manasquan’s lead to 6-5 on goals by Lydon and Ahmann and, after a goal by Manasquan senior Ryan Aldi, used goals by Paik and Teddy Whitehouse to tie the game 7-7. Lumsden gave Rumson an 8-7 lead when he scored at the midway point of the second quarter, but the advantage was short-lived. Aldi scored off a setup from senior midfielder Kai Donahue just 17 seconds later to tie the score 8-8. Matt Schneider then scored off an assist from Longo and Kunz netted his fourth on a man-up to give the Warriors a 10-8 halftime lead.

The pace slowed a bit in the second half as the teams traded goals in the third quarter. Matt Schneider gave Manasquan an 11-8 lead 68 seconds into the third before Teddy Whitehouse answered for Rumson at 4:01. Kunz’s fifth made it 11-9 with 2:53 left and Ahmann answered for RFH at 1:25 to make it a 12-10 game heading to the fourth quarter.

Lydon scored off a pass from Goldin for an extra-man goal 46 seconds into the fourth quarter to make it a one-goal game. Kunz continued to put Manasquan’s offense on his back with consecutive goals in a span of 1:47 for a 14-11 lead. The Warriors were in control, but a turnover after a stall warning followed by an untimely offsides penalty opened the door for Rumson. The Bulldogs took full advantage to close out an unforgettable victory.

Resilience was the theme for Rumson on Monday, and is really the story of the Bulldogs’ entire season. Their 13-8 record doesn’t jump off the page and there were some low moments during a tough stretch in April, including a pair of three-game losing streaks. They stayed firm in their belief that they would turn it around when the playoffs arrived.

“If we don’t play the kind of schedule we play, I don’t know if we build up the resiliency you need to come out on top in a game like this,” Moreau said. “They’re a resilient group. What I really liked to see was how we responded. We didn’t relax when we tied it up and when they went back up we didn’t bury our heads. Those are the things I take pride in, that they have that attitude and that resilience. That’s why you lose games: to learn. We had our share of losses but we had our share of learning moments. That’s how you turn those into wins.”

Rumson has now won five games in a row and is playing its best lacrosse of the season. They are prime contenders, and likely the favorite, in the upcoming NJSIAA Group 1 playoffs.

“We’ve seen plenty of losses and we understand you just have to get hot at the right time,” Argilagos said. “That’s been the plan the whole year. We’re trying to keep this energy into states and stay hot until the end.”