MHS boys’ lacrosse takes second title in week
By: Justin Feil
BASKING RIDGE When you are the all-time leading scorer in school history, the goals tend to blend together.
Mike Yetter won’t forget the 146th goal of his career any time soon, however, after it gave the Montgomery High School boys’ lacrosse team an 8-7 win over Ridge in the Somerset County Tournament on Sunday.
"It’s pretty huge," said Yetter, who tallied the game-winner with 7:02 left in the fourth quarter to snap a 7-7 tie. "Whenever you get a game-winner, it’s pretty special. It’s the same in hockey. Winning a tight game is huge, especially because our team hasn’t been doing that well in tight games this year. We have three one-goal losses. It feels good to win."
MHS was able to avenge one of its one-goal losses, an overtime loss to Ridge in the regular-season that earned the Red Devils the top seed for the county tournament. The Cougars were seeded second, but jumped built a 5-2 lead on a goal by Steve Watson with two seconds to go before halftime. When Yetter scored his first of two goals in the game, barely four minutes into the second half, the Cougars looked to be in control with a 6-2 edge.
"At that point, I just think they were hungrier," Yetter said. "They won some faceoffs and had a lot of ground balls. They were beating our butts on ground balls and they were disrupting our clear. We had a lot of blown clears, mostly due to them. I have to give them credit. They really stepped it up and played hard and forced us to make some mistakes. And we took some unwanted penalties on our part, some penalties we shouldn’t have due to their hustling.
"We were smart with the ball up until that point and we were getting a lot of ground balls in the midfield and making plays. We were finishing a pretty good amount of shots, but their goalie is nasty. He’s probably the best we’ve played all year. He did a good job. "
Ridge tied it, 6-6, one minute into the fourth quarter, then took the lead with 9:23 left. Barely a minute later, however, the Cougars answered on a great individual effort from Kevin Hover, who willed his way to a goal, his second of the game to go with a pair of assists to match Yetter. The Cougars got big saves from James Caruso in the first half and Rudy Butler stopped three shots in the final seven minutes of the game to preserve the lead, while the MHS defense was stringiest when it needed it most.
"They never give up," said MHS head coach Tim Sullivan, whose team improved to 14-3. "In two years, nobody has ever beaten us by more than two goals. They’re all competitors. They’re all multi-sport kids. They’re very competitive and they don’t like to lose. That’s something I’m proud of. I’m proud of the heart they have and what they give to the team."
It was the second county crown in three years for the Cougars. MHS also wrapped up the outright Bianchi Division crown with a 15-8 win over The Hun School on Friday. Yetter was one of three players, along with Greg Ives, Kevin Watson and Nick Angrisani, to score three goals on the day. With his three goals and three assists, Yetter surpassed his brother, Jimmy who just completed his freshman season at Colgate, as Montgomery’s all-time leading scorer.
"I can just bust his chops a little about the point thing," said Mike Yetter, who now has 96 assists to go with 146 goals in his career. "In the big scheme of things, it’s not that big of a deal. It’s more important how our team does. In the past three days, we made two steps toward having a really good season by winning the Bianchi outright on Friday and then winning tonight."
The biggest threat to his mark could be his younger brother, Mark. The Cougar freshman scored a goal for MHS’ 4-2 lead.
"Mark will have a good shot," Mike Yetter said. "I think he has 37 points as a freshman. I had 48, I think. He’ll need to have a couple big seasons, but I think he has a shot to do it. I’d be happy if he did do it. I wouldn’t expect anything less."
The team goals are first and foremost on their minds. There is no letting up for the Cougars, who are the top seed in the Group III state tournament that begins this week. MHS will play the winner of Toms River South and Toms River East on Wednesday.
"We were ranked pretty high so we have to thank the computers in laxpower for loving us," Yetter said. "There are so many good teams in Group III. Ridge is a five seed. Then there’s Ridgewood, Westfield is a great team, Randolph who we scrimmaged is a great team, so it’s all up in the air. Anything could happen. I’m sure who we play in the first round is pretty good too. We can’t sit back. We have to get pumped up again. From here on out, it’s one and done if you lose.
"You want to win it and you’re disappointed if you don’t. But I think if we play our game as long as possible, I think we can hang with a lot of good teams. I’m really optimistic and looking forward to it."
The Cougars also were very much looking forward to the SCT final and a chance to avenge their loss to Ridge. MHS defeated Pingry in 2005 for its first county crown.
"It’s very nice," Sullivan said. "I won the last one with athletes. I had some really good athletes. Now the lacrosse skills have really picked up. I’m proud of them. They wanted this big-time after the overtime loss early in the season. It’s scary because we might see these guys again. The third game could decide it."
The Cougars could meet Ridge again in the Group III semifinals. They certainly gained some confidence from Sunday’s win, which came even as they battled back from losing Angrisani to injury early in the second half.
"I think we were better in the midfield with ground balls," Yetter said. "They had dominated faceoffs for the most part, but I think we got enough of those ground balls and worked hard enough in the middle of the field to put us over the top as opposed to the previous game.
"It’s huge. It’s your last chance and you want to go out with a bang," he added. "I feel bad for the guys last year; we got eliminated in the quarterfinals. Once you get to the championship game, there’s no looking back. You have to go home with a win. It feels great, especially since I’m never going to be on this field again for this game. It feels good to go out on top."
And it should come as no surprise that it was Yetter who delivered the ultimate game-winner. He is a veteran player, a senior who has had success on the ice in the winter, where he is also Montgomery’s all-time leading scorer, and in lacrosse.
"He’s a very consistent player," Sullivan said. "That’s what’s important, being consistent. When it’s time for him to be the go-to guy, he can do it. When he has to be a complementary player, he can also do that. I have a couple guys that can do that.
"Kevin Hover could have had five or six goals today. There’s a lot of kids that could carry the team. It’s nice."
The Cougars didn’t mind who scored it. They were just happy to get the result they wanted in a county crown and the momentum to carry into the state tournament.
"We’re meeting our expectations," Yetter said. "We’re winning the games we’re supposed to, the championships we’re supposed to. We had a couple tight losses in one-goal games up until this point, so hopefully this turns it around for us."