MORRIS KNOLLS-HILLS
Head coach: Tim Kepler, ninth season (108-63-19 career record)
Division: MCSSIHL-Mennen Division
Last year: There was one team in the Morris-Sussex area to capture a sectional and overall state championship, and it was none other than this Morris Knolls-Hills squad. After finishing the regular season with a sub-.500 record, Knolls-Hills went on a remarkable state tournament run, taking down the top three seeds in the North, Public Co-op bracket, in order, to win the sectional title. Then, it took down the top team from the South, Gov. Livingston-New Providence, on a last minute goal by Eli Singley in the Public Co-op championship game at Prudential Center to give Knolls-Hills its third state title since becoming a co-op in 2018-19, and the fifth for Morris Knolls in program history. It finished with a 13-11-1 record.
Key losses: Morris Knolls-Hills graduated a nine-player senior class, which was highlighted by forward Luke Dickerson (38 g., 20 a.), who had a remarkable state tournament run in which he scored 13 goals in five state tournament games. A multi-sport athlete, Dickerson was drafted in baseball, as he was picked in the second round of the MLB Draft by the Washington Nationals, and signed with them over the summer. It also graduated forward Michael Simone (9 g., 17 a.), forward Jack Martinez (8 g., 1 a.), defenseman Tommy Ryerson (6 a.), and forward Eli Singley (1 g., 2 a.).
Forwards: It returns one of the top forwards in the area in senior Jake McCloud, who led the team in scoring with 33 goals and 34 assists last year, earning Second Team All-Mennen in the process. Senior Dylan Williams will also provide leadership and scoring ability after posting eight goals and 13 assists last year. Juniors Ryan Nevins (5 g., 6 a.) and Wes Vnenchak (1 g., 2 a.) will also have bigger roles this year. Newcomers up front will include senior Chris Walter, juniors Ryan McGavin, Eric Bourdon, and Cooper James, as well as sophomores James Austro and Aidan Marvel.
Defense: Junior Brandon Strunck was one of the team’s top two-way threats a year ago with six goals and nine assists. Seniors Ben Battista (1 a.) and Marek Kazik (1 g., 3 a.), along with juniors Zach Florio (6 a.), and Daniel Onufer (3 a.) are all returners on the blue line who will bring experience. Also look for newcomer Ethan Shumaker-Gromek, a junior, to step in as well.
Goaltending: Nick Trento took over as the starter midway through the season during his freshman campaign, and stood tall in backstopping his team to a state championship. He posted an .840 save percentage and should be even better this season in his sophomore year.
Outlook: It’s going to be very difficult to replace the skill and leadership that players like Dickerson and Simone brought to the table, along with the championship pedigree of both winning state championships in both baseball and hockey. That said, there is a nice core of returning players on this team who all got invaluable experience of a state championship run, and should fuel this group to continue to improve to go after yet another state championship. McCloud enters the year as one of the top scoring threats in the area, if not the state, and it is really going to come down to which other players are going to step up offensively alongside him. This program has a terrific winning culture, and expect that culture to continue this season even after heavy graduation losses. This team should once again be one of the better teams in the Mennen, as well as a contender for a second-straight Co-op state title.
E-mail Mike Gurnis at michaelgurnis@gmail.com
Morris-Sussex Hockey Report 