On the Banks of the Old Raritan - Recap

Today, five teams assembled, literally, on the banks of the Old Raritan. With the river and the Rutgers campus in the background, two fields were set up on the softest fields Johnson Park had to offer, the plush grass just begging for horizontal grabs and Ds. Originally scheduled for a five-team round robin (four games and a break in between), team leaders considered the near frigid temperatures and opted for a shorter schedule with three games apiece.

Round One

• Princeton HS v. Ridgewood - this first round match-up brought together the ever-reliable Princeton HS and a team in Ridgewood returning from a three-year absence. Using only a savage seven squad, P-HUC ran away with the game, on the persistent handling of James Page (throw to in-cuts and follow your throw!), to a 13-0 score. The three-time State finalists couldn't have come out to a faster start.

• Delbarton (Morristown) v. East Brunswick - second year team Delbarton asserted itself quickly against a young East Brunswick squad. Wave was victorious over the Bears, 13-2, on the strength of Delbarton leader John Russell.

Round Two

• West Windsor Plainsboro-North v. Princeton HS - this match-up promised excitement, featuring two of last year's States attendees. Although North was without stars Derek Yan and Victor Wu, 6'5 Abishek Thatigutla and fellow senior Akshat Rajan led an underclassmen heavy team to an aggressive start. P-HUC stayed close, relying on the downfield cuts of junior Brent Page and sophomore Dan Sturm. Their seven-team roster, however, began to take some hits. A throbbing calf muscle sent one player to the sidelines. The teams agreed to a Princeton forfeit and to keep playing six-on-six. A couple points later, on an ill-fated bid, two P-HUC players collided - the results: one bruised lip and a gash on the forehead. Ouch! Down to four players, Princeton went home for the day. P-HUC should return to full strength coming back from their spring break.

• East Brunswick v. Ridgewood - the only match-up on the day to feature two coaches, Larry Anouna (EBHS) and Jenna Leigh Wilson (RHS). With the on-field guidance of junior Zach Flicker, Ridgewood maintained a steady lead and took half on the Bears 7-6. Just out of half-time, the soft cap was on. Ridgewood scored 8-6 to ensure a game to 10. With the tight schedule, hard cap was set to go off only ten minutes later. East Brunswick scored a quick one to bring it to 8-7, putting pressure on both teams to score the subsequent point, either a potential universe point for the Bears or a secured win for Ridgewood. A couple turnovers here and there and the win was Ridgewood's (their first in a long while; welcome back!).

Round Three

• Delbarton v. Ridgewood - the Morristown crew, fresh off their bye, faced a tired Ridgewood. The Wave continued, 13-2.

• West Windsor Plainsboro-North v. East Brunswick - the Knights and the Bears. WWP-N didn't take long too create havoc, using their trap zone to generate quick turnovers and even quicker scores. East Brunswick quickly fell behind and was unable to recover.

Round Four

• West Windsor Plainsboro-North v. Delbarton - the final round featured the only undefeated teams of the day, giving the game a championship aura. North continued to utilize its zone, forcing Delbarton into risky over-the-cup throws that were often gobbled up by big men sophomore Kevin Lin and Thatitgutla. When facing a large field, the Knights took the aggressive hucking approach, scoring fast on either deep shots from Rajan to Thatigutla or Lin, or vice versa. Delbarton made some adjustments, forcing a straight-up mark to discourage the deep shots and encourage the shorter passes in the lane. North refused to have to play the short game and continued to drop one bomb after another. The day ended on a Shek hammer into a crowded endzone, only Kevin Lin able to come up with the disc with a difficult one-handed grab.