Comeback bid falls short
in 9-8 loss to Hanover Park
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DENVILLE - Morris Knolls' comeback fell a goal short as the Eagles lost a 9-8 'Senior Day' decision to Hanover Park in a boys lacrosse game held at Knolls on Tuesday, May 11.
The Eagles trailed 9-6 in the fourth period and scored the next two goals and were pressing for the tying goal when time ran out on their comeback attempt.
Frank Cardio and Matt Rotella each scored a three-goal hat trick for the Eagles while Derek Ackerly and Dimitri Paleocostas each added single goals.
Schuyler Nyegaard had two assists and Brian Garie, Cardio, Rotella and Paleocostas each added one.
John Cahillane played the entire game in goal for Knolls and finished with 10 saves.
Morris Knolls won all the statistical battles as the Eagles had the edge in shots, 29-24; ground balls,m 48-31; and faceoffs, 13-5. Garie had a game-high seven groundballs for the Eagles while Connor Rush, Paleocostas and Cardio each had five.
The loss marked the end of the regular season for Knolls, which finished at 5-11. Hanover Park is 7-5.
Before the game, the Eagles honored the five senior players - Connor Rush, Matt Rotella, Brendan Rizzolo, John Cahillane and Derek Ackerly - and senior team statistician Tara Meisinger, who will be graduating from the program this season.
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Mount Olive fourth-period rally sinks Knolls, 7-2
DENVILLE - The first three quarters of Saturday's (May 9) Morris Knolls-Mount Olive high school boys lacrosse game were a defensive struggle, which was fine with Knolls coach Mark Grilo.
But Mount Olive solved the Eagles' pressure defensive tactics with a fourth-quarter outburst of four goals unanswered goals earn a 7-2 victory in the game played at Mount Olive.
Knolls took a 2-0 first-period lead on goals by Frank Cardio and Mike Rotella, but it was all Mount Olive after that. The home team scored the only two goals of the second period to send the game into the halftime break tied at 2-2. Mount Olive scored the only goal of the third period for a 3-2 lead and then finally broke through for its four-goal rally in the final period to earn the victory.
The loss knocked the Eagles record down to 5-10; Mount Olive improved to 8-7 with the win.
"Our defense and goalie John Cahillane did a great job in holding off their offense for the first three quarters," Grilo said after the game. "But their defense was doing a great job on our offense as well.
"They finally broke through in the fourth quarter and we couldn't overcome the deficit once they started scoring."
Grilo credits Cahillane's 14 saves and the play of Connor Rush as sparking the Eagles' defense. Rush finished the game with three takeaways and seven ground balls.
"We put Connor on Jake Padolnick, their best player," Grilo said. "And he held him to one goal and one assist - both coming in transition."
The games stats also showed the closeness of the game as Mount Olive held slight edges in shots, 41-34 and ground balls, 38-36, and Knolls had a slight advantage in faceoffs won, 6-5.
"We look to bounce back against Hanover Park on Tuesday (May 11)," Grilo said. "It's our regular-season finale and it's our Senior Day and we look for another good game."
Notes: Knolls takes a 5-10 record into the game against Hanover Park ... Mount Olive improved to 8-7 with the win ... Derek Ackerly had the Eagles' lone assist for the game ... Rotella finished with five ground balls while Brian Garie and Jared Huston each had four and Mike DaSilva had three.
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Cardio, Rotella spark 17-2 win over West Orange
DENVILLE - Morris Knolls exploded for nine first-quarter goals and kept West Orange off the board for three periods on its way to a 17-2 victory in a high school boys lacrosse game played at Knolls on Wednesday, May 5.
Frank Cardio and Matt Rotella led the way for the Eagles (5-9) as Cardio scored four goals and had three assists and Rotella also had four goals with two assists.
Brian Garie, Konner Kohl and Schuyler Nyegaard each chipped with two goals and Derek Ackerly, Mike Campman and Dimitri Paleocostas each scored once.
Nyegaard finished with three assists while Ackerly had two and Connor Rush and Garie each had one.
West Orange (4-11) didn't score it two goals until the fourth quarter after Knolls had built a 16-0 lead.
John Cahillan, the Eagles' goaltender, was called up to make but four saves during the game.
Morris Knolls had a 34-7 advantage in shots; had a 51-21 edge in groundballs; and also won the faceoff battle, 15-8. Rush had a team-high seven groundballs while Chris Noll had six and Conner Grant five.
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Knolls ousted from MCT by Pequannock
DENVILLE - Morris Knolls stayed with Pequannock for the first quarter, but the unbeaten (10-0) Panthers pulled away with four unanswered second-period goals and went on to beat the Eagles, 11-3, in a Morris County Boys Lacrosse Tournament preliminary-round game played at Pequannock on Saturday, May 1.
Pequannock, the 16th seed in the 20-team tournament, and Morris Knolls, the 17th seed, were all square at 2-2 after on period of play but Pequannock led 6-2 at the half and then outscored Knolls 5-1 in the second half to secure the win that puts the Panthers into the first round against No. 1 Delbarton.
Schuyler Nyegaard, Dimitri Paleocostas and Matt Rotella scored goals and Frank Cardio had an assist for Morris Knolls (4-9).
Knolls goalkeeper John Cahillan finished with 12 saves as Pequannock outshot the Eagles, 23-13.
Pequannock also won the faceoff battle, 11-5, and had a 44-23 edge in groundballs with Brian Garie finishing with a team-high six for the Eagles.
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Knolls falls to Livingston's 2nd-half burst, 15-3
DENVILLE - Morris Knolls, trailing by one goal at the halftime break, was shut out in the second half while Livingston scored 11 times en route to a 15-3 victory over the Eagles in a high school boys lacrosse game held at Livingston on Wednesday, April 28.
Mike Campman, Frank Cardio and Matt Rotella each scored single goals for Morris Knolls (4-8) while Brian Garie, Dimitri Paleocostas and Rotella each had assists.
Eagle goalie John Cahillane finished with 17 saves and Tom Struble, who entered the game in the second half, finished with two.
Livingston (10-4) finished with a 43-13 advantage in shots taken; had a 15-5 edge in faceoffs won; and won the groundball battle, 40-28.
Connor Rush had a team-high five groundballs for Morris Knolls while Rotella had four and Cardio and Schuyler Nyegaard each had three.
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Cahillane shutout, Rotella four goals beat High Point, 15-0
DENVILLE - Matt Rotella scored four goals, Derek Ackerly had a three-goal hat trick, and John Cahillane registered his first career shutout as Morris Knolls stopped High Point, 15-0, in a high school boys lacrosse game played at Knolls on Monday, April 25.
Cahillane had to stop four shots on goal for his shutout and got plenty of help from a defensive corps led by Connor Rush and Mike Dasilva, who each had three takeaways for the game.
Frank Cardio and Schuyler Nyegaard each scored twice and Conner Grant, Dimitri Paleocostas, Zach Simmons and Tyler Wirth each finished with one goal.
Cardio finished with three assists while Brian Barie and Ackerly each had two. Ryan Hanright, Nyegaard, Paleocostas and Rush each had one.
Morris Knolls (4-7) won the groundball battle, 47-22, with Jared Huston and Cardio each getting six and Rob McCormick, Rush and Grant each finishing with five.
Knolls also outshot High Point (0-5) by a 38-9 count and had an 8-7 edge in faceoffs.
Cardio has a team-high 21 goals while Rotella has 18 for the season.
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Knolls falls to Roxbury, 13-7; Rotella has four goals for MK
DENVILLE - Roxbury scored the first five goals of the game and Morris Knolls couldn't catch up as the Eagles lost a 13-7 decision in a high school boys lacrosse game held at Knolls on Saturday, April 24.
Matt Rotella got four of the goals for the Eagles (3-7) with Schuyler Nyegaard finishing with two goals and two assists and Frank Cardio adding a single goal.
Brian Garie and Dimitri Paleocostas each had assist for Morris Knolls.
John Cahillane and Tom Struble split the Knolls goaltending duties and faced a combined 41 shots from Roxbury (5-2), which was led by the five-goal performance of Tom Leahy.
Roxbury held a 41-29 edge in shots and won the groundball battle, 48-35, with Knolls holding the advantage in faceoffs, 13-11.
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Knolls bows to Wayne Hills, 15-4
DENVILLE - Frank Cardio scored a three-goal hat trick but it was far from enough as Morris Knolls ran into a solid Wayne Hills team and came out on the short end of a 15-4 count in a high school boys lacrosse game played at Wayne Hills on Thursday, Aug. 22.
Doug Schweibel and K.C. Kardux each scored four times as Wayne Hills improved its spring record to 6-2.
Cardio's goals boosted his team-leading total to 19. Matt Rotella, who has 14 goals, scored the other goal and also had an assist.
Ryan Hanright and Dimitri Paleocostas also had assists for Morris Knolls (3-6).
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Knolls snaps skid with 8-3 victory over Hills
DENVILLE - Morris Knolls High School's boys lacrosse team entered its game against sister-school Morris Hills on Tuesday, April 20, in the clutches of a four-game losing streak.
And, just 40 seconds into the game, the Eagles found themselves on the short end of a 1-0 score.
"We didn't panic," said Knolls head coach Mark Grilo after his Eagles came back for an 8-3 win. "We stuck to our game plan and eventually took charge of the game."
It took all of 55 seconds for the Eagles Frank Cardio to score the first of his four goals to tie the score at 1-1. Before the first period had ended, Cardio scored two more goals and Matt Rotella added a single goal to give the Eagles a 4-1 lead that they never lost.
Hills leading goal-scorer Chris Marin connected for his 18th and 19th goals of the season and Conner Grant countered with one as the Eagles took a 5-3 lead into the halftime break.
"We dug ourselves a little hole with some penalties and turnovers in the second period," Grilo said. "But we survived and still held a two-goal lead.
"We made some halftime defensive adjustments and, sparked by Connor Rush's two takeaways and the goaltending of John Cahillane, were able to shut down Morris Hills in the second half."
Tyler Wirth scored the only goal of the third period and Cardio added his fourth goal of the game and Dimitri Pasleocostas score once in the final period as the Eagles put up three unanswered second-half goals.
Derek Ackerly, Brian Garie, Rob McCormick, Brandan Rizzolo and Cardio each had one assist for the Eagles, which improved to 3-5. Morris Hills is 4-5 following the loss.
Cahillane finished with 15 saves as Knolls outshot Hills, 26-22.
Notes: Cardio has a team-leading 16 goals, three ahead of Rotella ... Rotella lead the team in assists with nine and in total points with 22 ... Rush leads the team in takeaways with 12 while Chris Noll has nine ...
