MONDAY, FEBRUARY 28
Public C: 1-Morris Knolls-Hills 5, 9-Woodbridge-Colonia-JFK 3
Kyle Thornton scored the game-tying goal in the final minute of the second period and Matt Kuglin scored the go-ahead tally in the third period to help top-seed Morris Knolls-Hills earn a 5-3 comeback win over ninth-seeded Woodbridge-Colonia-JFK in the Public C quarterfinals at Mennen Arena.
Morris Knolls-Hills is heading to the semifinals on Thursday, where it will take on fourth-seeded Verona-Glen Ridge at 4:30 p.m. at Codey Arena.
Morris Knolls-Hills (15-8-1) built a 2-0 lead in the first period on goals from Jack Martinez and Ryan Walter. Woodbridge, however, tilted the ice in the third period, as Ryan Lukko scored twice and Dylan Godsil also scored to take a 3-2 lead. It appeared it would take that lead into the third, before Kyle Thornton scored with 29 seconds left in the period to tie it up.
Kuglin scored with 6:05 left in the third to give Knolls-Hills the lead. Luke Dickerson finished it off with an empty-net goal from behind the opposing goal line with 1:38 left.
Aidan Marvin stopped 33 of 36 shots for Knolls-Hills in the win.
Non-Public: 2-Delbarton 5, 10-St. John Vianney 0
Trip Pendy netted two goals to lift second-seeded Delbarton to a 5-0 win over St. John Vianney in the NJSIAA Non-Public quarterfinals at SportsCare Arena in Randolph.
James Royse, Dan D’Alessandro, and Ray Berezniak each had a goal for Delbarton (18-5-2), which earned a return trip to the semifinals after missing the semifinals during the 2019-20 season. It is one win away from making its first state final since 2018-19. Delbarton will take on third-seeded Don Bosco on Wednesday night at Codey Arena at 7 p.m.
Jason Cai stopped all 16 shots he faced to earn his ninth shutout of the season.
Non-Public: 3-Don Bosco Prep 5, 11-Morristown-Beard 0
The 11th seed, Morristown-Beard, was shut out for the first time this season in a 5-0 loss to third-seeded Don Bosco Prep in the Non-Public quarterfinals at the Ice Vault in Wayne.
Morristown-Beard, which won the Mennen Cup title, finished the year with a 14-12-1 record. Massimo Monteleone had a hat trick and an assist, while Cooper Snee and Edward Asante each had a goal for Don Bosco.
Public B: 1-Northern Highlands 5, 8-Randolph 1
Zach Gallo scored for Randolph, but it was not enough as the eighth-seeded Rams fell, 5-1 to top-seeded Northern Highlands in the Public B quarterfinals at Sport-O-Rama in Monsey, N.Y.
The loss ended Randolph’s remarkable 16-year streak of making the state semifinals, which dates all the way back to 2003-04. It also ended its hopes of defending its Public B title from the 2019-20 season, and it finished the year with a 10-7-3 record.
Will Fuller and Will Brown each scored for Northern Highlands (20-3-3) to build a 2-0 lead, before Zach Gallo gave Randolph a glimmer of hope with 1:02 to go in the second. But Jake Barratta scored with 23 seconds left in the period to steal the momentum right back for Northern Highlands, before going on to score two more in the third to put it away.
Public B: 2-Rumson-Fair Haven 7, 10-Mendham 0
The 10th seed in Mendham suffered a shutout loss for the first time this year, as it was held off the board by second-seeded Rumson-Fair Haven, 7-0 in the Public B quarterfinals at Red Bank Armory.
Mendham finished the year with an 11-7-1 record and a Halvorsen Cup title.
Public A: 1-Livingston 3, 8-Morristown 1
Eighth-seeded Morristown saw its season come to an end with a 3-1 loss to top-seeded Livingston in the Public A quarterfinals at Codey Arena in West Orange.
Harry Santen gave Morristown the 1-0 lead with 6:11 left in the second period, but Livingston’s Jace Dockx tied it up just under three minutes later. Danny Grossbard capitalized on the first power play of the game for Livingston early in the third to give his team the lead for good. Dillon Schultz added an insurance tally with just over two minutes remaining.
Dylan Peck stopped 30 of 33 shots for Morristown in the final game of his career. Morristown finished the season with a 15-6-3 record.
Girls: 1-Morristown-Beard 7, 8-Randolph 0
Leah Stecker had two goals and three assists to lead top-seeded Morristown-Beard to a 7-0 win over eighth-seeded Randolph in the state tournament quarterfinals at Twin Oaks Ice Rink in Morristown.
Kailin Kane and Lilli Warnock each had two goals and an assist for Morristown-Beard (15-3-1), which advanced to the semifinals on Wednesday, where it will host fifth-seeded Pingry at 4 p.m. at Twin Oaks Ice Rink, with a trip to the state final at Prudential Center on the line.
Logan Sutera also scored for Morristown-Beard, while Gracie Meyers stopped all 11 shots to earn the shutout.
Randolph finished the year with a 7-11 record.
The Morris-Sussex Hockey Report 