Pendergist was told 'stick on the crease,' perfect spot for Manasquan's game-winning goal

MANASQUAN – Sensing this could be the last high school lacrosse game he could be a part of, Manasquan senior midfielder Robert Pendergist lobbied his case to get on the field.

Pendergist, who is still recovering from a shoulder injury suffered May 14 in the Shore Conference Tournament semifinals against Wall, wanted to get on the field by any means necessary with the teams deadlocked 3-3 at halftime.

It turned out to be good decision to let Pendergist into the game.

Coming off the bench for a heroic moment

Pendergist scored the game-winning goal with 1:10 left as Manasquan foiled an upset bid by Wall and won, 7-6, in an NJSIAA South Group 2 Semifinal Game on Wednesday.

“I thought I was going to be out for the rest of the year. Mr. (Kevin) Hyland, our athletic trainer, he got me back and I feel phenomenal. I wasn’t going to play today. I really wasn’t. And I begged them (the coaching staff). Come on. Please. This could possibly be it for me.”

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His plea got him on the field and with the game on the line there probably was no better player for Manasquan to turn to in that situation.

Pendergist followed his coach's instructions

“I was told by coach (Sean) Cunningham to stick on the crease, stay on the crease. Don’t get hit. The shoulder isn’t 100 percent. We all know it,” Pendergist said. “So, I stuck on the crease and Wall’s Aiden Kessler is a great goalie but he didn’t cover the ball (up) as fast as he wanted. I just got my stick under it and picked it (the ball) up and made a play.”

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About four minutes earlier, Wall senior Matt Dollive had what looked like the pivotal moment in the game when he scored with 5:25 left for a 6-5 Wall lead.

But Manasquan (16-4) scored two unanswered goals to close the game. First, Matt Porazzo scored with 4:14 remaining, which tied the game at 6-6. Finally, Pendergist came off the bench and recorded one of the best moments of his career.

Niland DiLuchio was an unsung hero in 2022 for Manasquan

“Matt Porazzo back and Robert Pendergist back was massive (news) for us in every facet offensively. We knew coming into today, it was going to require not just guys like James Farinacci to produce points for us. But Matt Porazzo being out there was obviously a big step up for us and then Robert Pendergist going in and you see what he provides,” Manasquan coach Sean Cunningham said. “But Niland DiLuchio has been playing tremendous all season and you may not read it on the stat line. But he’s been so good for us in every game this year. In every big game, he’s played quality minutes for us on both sides of the ball. He’s one of those guys that slips through the cracks with recognition, and you understand that it happens when there are guys that tend to get a lot of the headlines. He’s a guy that if we don’t have this year, I don’t even know if we are in this game. And I mean that sincerely.”

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Farinacci led Manasquan in scoring with three goals and one assist while DiLuchio added two goals and Porazzo and Pendergist each tallied one goal. Dan Hyland and Brody Muly each had one assist and Carter Groezinger made 10 saves.

“There was definitely a lot going on at the end,” Groezinger said. “You have to figure out if you want to keep playing. I think we all decided that we weren’t done playing yet.”

Coming up next for Manasquan

Now, Manasquan will play at No. 1 seed Rumson-Fair Haven in the NJSIAA South Group 2 Final at 4 p.m. Friday, May 27.

Conversely, Wall (17-4) ends its season with its ninth loss in the last 10 games against its rival Manasquan. The Crimson Knights only had the lead once, via Dollive’s aforementioned goal in the fourth quarter, but that lead lasted about one minute and 11 seconds.

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Nevertheless, Dollive and John McCurry led the Wall offense with two goals each while Shea Brennan and Jack Meyer each produced one goal and Aiden Kessler finished with 13 saves.

In other boys lacrosse NJSIAA Tournament games

Southern 12, Howell 4: The top-seeded Rams (15-3) posted a 4-0 lead after the first quarter and didn't relinquish it on the way to a South Group 4 Semifinal. Southern's Kurt Falk won 12-of-20 faceoffs, Ryan Sininsky added a hat trick and two assists, Jake Washco also had a hat trick and one assist and Hayden Lucas had two goals and two assists. Additionally, Joey DeYoung had two goals and one assist, Zach Washco had two goals and Tyler Sininsky made 14 saves.

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Rumson-Fair Haven 14, Hopewell Valley 2: Will Setteducate made five saves, Luke Marascio and Braiden Spagnuola each went 5-for-6 on faceoffs and Quinn Stankovits, Cole Cashion and Philip Passalaqua each recorded a hat trick as the top-seeded Bulldogs (19-4) crushed Hopewell Valley in a South Group 2 Semifinal.

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Haddonfield 11, Shore 6: Sam Madalone led his team in scoring with two goals and one assist while Carson Cooke added one goal and one assist as the No. 3 seed Blue Devils (12-4) fell to the No. 2 seed Bulldogs. Shore's Jamie Mazzacco, Andrew Decker and Ben Levy each supplied one goal, Carson Spallone added two assists, Tucker Malfa went 5-for-10 on faceoffs and Walker Hunter made 19 saves in the South Group 1 Semifinal game.

Sherlon Christie is a sports reporter at the Asbury Park Press and has covered sports at the Jersey Shore since 2004. Don't miss any of his coverage by subscribing at https://subscribe.app.com. You can contact him at https://linktr.ee/schristie2

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Manasquan's Robert Pendergist nets game-winning goal against Wall