Ridgewood boys lacrosse wins overall state title after downing Summit in Kirst final
BRIDGEWATER – A moment three decades in the making ended with a shower of debris on John Basilone Field.
Helmets. Pads. Poles.
All of it was left behind by the state's new lacrosse king after a spirited dash to the south endzone.
Ridgewood earned that title and a place in history by beating Summit, 9-6, on Saturday in the inaugural Kirst Cup championship in Bridgewater. This is the third time the Maroons have won the overall state title and puts this team on the same pedestal as the legends from 1990 and 1991.
Senior Will Brandt scored three goals to send Ridgewood past Summit for the second time this season.
"It's all about chemistry," senior defender Owen Staunton said. "I said this before and I'm going to say it again. We're one town, one team. Once we started rolling at the end of the season, we got a lot of feedback from the alumni that said that this is the squad that's going to do it. Last night I got about 30 texts from alumni that said make history tomorrow. Be the No. 1 team in the state of New Jersey. We did it."
In the end, the Maroons reached the top by doing it the Ridgewood way. There was the unflappable defense led by Staunton, who forged through a shoulder injury in the second half. There was the trademark late push by Ridgewood, which scored five in a row to erase a 4-3 halftime deficit. And yes, there was even a broken cup.
It didn't matter that one player warned his teammates to be careful with the trophy and avoid a mishap like the one after their group title. Within 15 minutes, faceoff man Carson Kopff came over to his head coach with a silver figurine in hand. It was the one job Ridgewood couldn't execute this postseason.
"I'm going to go back to what Dewey [Phillips] said last game," Staunton said. "Stay public, baby."
What it means
A Gibbs Division team has now won the overall state title for the last three years with Don Bosco (2021) and Mountain Lakes (2022) preceding the Maroons.
The chance to play down to one champion was made possible by coaches around the state, who formed the Kirst Cup in response to the NJSIAA decision to cut the Tournament of Champions.
One of the knocks on the best-on-best format was the dominance by the same few schools, often on the non-public side. Yet, boys lacrosse remains a clear antithesis.
A public school has been the last team standing for 11 of the last 16 seasons. This is the second straight year that two of them took the stage for the main event.
"That's why the coaches pushed for it," Ridgewood coach Mike Pounds said. "People love it. Groups are great. Don't get me wrong. But ultimately you want to play the best to be the best. This is an awesome tournament."
Inside the win
Ridgewood came to life in the second half with a patient offense led by Brandt and Maryland commit Jack Schultz (two goals). But the moment that brought fans to their feet came early in the fourth quarter when the Maroons showed off a quick-strike ability. Sophomore Jack Frers made it 7-4 and Kopff followed seven seconds later with a goal off his own faceoff win.
The Ridgewood defense made sure the lead held up in front of goalie Matthew Roughgarden (eight saves).
"They stay tight and stay together," Pounds said after reaching the top in his 21st season. "They communicate. They trust each other. And they have a good goalie behind them."
Summit got within two on back-to-back goals from Sean McCeney, but Brandt landed the dagger by completing the hat trick with 1:16 remaining.
Before long, the W-O-O-D chants were booming and Jake Roth was taking a victory lap with a large Ridgewood flag.
"We knew it was going to be a different game [after beating Summit by five in the regular season]" Brandt said. "They were going to come out flying with a lot of motivation coming off a big win against Delbarton. It's a fantastic Summit team that's really well-coached. But the better team prevailed today."
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Ridgewood boys lacrosse wins overall state title after downing Summit
