Boys Lacrosse Earns 40th Consecutive Win

SUMMIT–The Summit boys lacrosse team improved their season record to 18-0 and team winning streak to 40 games on Tuesday afternoon with a 14-1 victory over Manasquan in the second round of the state tournament. As the No. 1 seed in the Public, Group 1 sectional, the Hilltoppers received a first round bye.

Although heavy rain and winds on Tuesday afternoon surely deterred some Hilltopper fans from attending the game, the fans that endured the weather witnessed another solid performance by the No. 1 ranked team in the state.

"The weather didn't really affect us," Summit senior Nolan Prinzen said. "We knew coming into this game that we would have to play hard because Manasquan was a good squad."

Summit's Danny Feeney did an excellent job throughout the game, winning 10 of 11 face offs for his team. Feeney won the opening face off, and Marcel Godino capitalized on the possession when he fired a shot on goal just 1:09 into the game. Although Manasquan won the next face off (their only face off win of the first half), Summit defender Ryan Troy quickly forced a Manasquan turnover.

With 8:22 remaining in the first quarter, Summit's Nick Kilkowski fought hard to win a ground ball in front of Manasquan's goal. In the blink of an eye, the sophomore had not only won the ground ball but had also sent a quick shot into the back of the net to give Summit a 2-0 lead.

Summit scored two more goals in the first quarter courtesy of senior Nolan Prinzen and junior Sonny Round. Just 29 seconds before the quarter ended, however, Manasquan's Mike Frasco scored a rifle left-handed shot from long range to make the score 4-1.

The first five minutes of the second quarter was a battle between the goalies. Summit's Brian Feeney made two early saves, and Manasquan goalie Calvin Spinelli responded with three saves of his own. Summit defenders Troy, Jules Godino, Joe Jaskolski, and Bobby Lawrence did a nice job of communicating and pressuring the ball. Although Manasquan was able to get off a couple of shots in the quarter, they were all from long range.

"Our defense played very well today and did a good job pushing Manasquan's players out," Summit head coach Jim Davidson said.

It took Summit almost five minutes to score their first goal of the second quarter, but once they broke the ice, the goals came freely. At the 7:21 mark, Tim Yager made a long pass to Kilkowski, who faked high and shot low for the score. Two minutes later, Prinzen scored a left-handed shot to give his team a 6-1 lead.

"During the past week in practice, we've worked on making the most of man-up opportunities," Prinzen said.

The Hilltoppers were able to capitalize on such an opportunity just 30 seconds after Prinzen's goal when Johnny Scioscia slipped a nice pass to Godino for the man-up score. With 2:53 remaining until halftime, Round intercepted a Manasquan clear at midfield and sent a long pass to Kilkowski for the transition goal.

"We did well in the middle of the field today and grabbed a few loose balls to create some transition opportunities," Davidson said.

At the half, Summit led 8-1.

Summit's Danny Feeney once again won the face off to begin the third quarter. Feeney was rewarded for his hustle when, just 45 seconds later, he faked one way to evade a Manasquan defender and laced a nice shot into the back of the net. Two minutes later, Prinzen scored his third goal of the game to give Summit a 10-1 lead with 9:15 remaining in the quarter.

Summit continued to win face offs and score quickly. At the 8:25 mark, Michael Ford assisted a cutting Kilkowski for his fourth goal of the game. Three minutes later, David Kalin scored a nice left-handed goal to give the Hilltoppers a 12-1 lead heading into the final quarter of play.

The Hilltoppers put two more points on the board in the fourth quarter off of goals by Sonny Round and Paul Coviello. Summit goalie Pete Badgley came in during the fourth quarter and made a nice save to hold Manasquan to just one goal on the afternoon. Summit won by a final score of 14-1.

"We really want to keep the tempo high as we continue in the playoffs," Prinzen said. "The way we play in-between the lines often determines the outcome of the game, so it's important for us to hustle and win ground balls."

Summit hosts the winner of No. 8 Glen Ridge/No. 9 Rumson-Fair Haven on Thursday at 4:30 p.m in the third round.