Underdog Mountain Lakes boys soccer claimed its first sectional title since 1995

WALDWICK — It's OK to call the Mountain Lakes boys soccer team an underdog.

As the No. 9 seed in North 1, Group 2, the Lakers expected that. But they never felt that way.

And when Mountain Lakes upended three-time defending champion Waldwick, 1-0, on Saturday afternoon, the players proved the critics wrong while rewriting school history. It is the Lakers' first boys soccer sectional title since 1995, the year before assistant coach Justin White – a former Dover soccer player – was even born.

"It's absolutely phenomenal," said Mountain Lakes striker Marius Donnelly, who headed home the lone goal 12 minutes into the match. "It's something I've wanted to do since middle school, and I actually achieved it."

Long road home

The Lakers will host North 2, Group 1 winner Brearley in a state semifinal on Wednesday. It's particularly sweet since the players believed they'd have to go on the road all the way to the Group 1 final.

But fate, or maybe a little luck, was on Mountain Lakes' side.

No. 5 Kinnelon went down in double overtime the first round to No. 12 Park Ridge. The Owls also knocked out fourth-seeded Emerson. That set up a home game between two of the poorest-seeded teams remaining across any boys soccer section.

The Lakers are the worst seed to claim a boys soccer sectional title this fall. Brearley, which defeated top seed North Arlington, 2-1, on Saturday night, was the sixth seed in North 2, Group 1.

Mountain Lakes (13-7) has won five straight matches, and eight of its last nine since being eliminated from the Morris County Tournament by Delbarton on Oct. 11. Senior goalkeeper Ian Falconer credited the Lakers' challenging schedule – almost all matches against larger programs – with getting them to the sectional title.

"It's just amazing," Falconer said. "We still have, hopefully, two more games, to win the whole thing. It's an amazing, amazing feeling, and I'm really glad to have done it with this group."

Defense wins championships

After Mountain Lakes upset top-seeded Wallington, 2-1, last week, athletic director Charles Vellis handed over the cardboard box containing the sectional trophy. With Lakers AD Kevin Wallace back at school, head coach Mark Walters took it, put it on the bus, and told the players, "We're not giving it back. We're bringing this home."

Walters' history at Mountain Lakes goes back decades, but this is his first soccer trophy. His father, John Walters, who founded the town youth lacrosse program that turned into a high school juggernaut, drove five hours from New Hampshire, to watch the sectional final.

Mark Walters scored the first goal in Mountain Lakes lacrosse history as a sophomore in 1980. He has been Tim Flynn's assistant with the lacrosse team for more than 30 years and spent 20 at the helm of boys soccer, earning his 200th career victory last fall.

"That second half was the longest 40 minutes of sweating," Walters said of his first soccer trophy. "We did what we needed to do."

The Lakers were able to close down third-seeded Waldwick's high-powered offense by keeping 6-foot-2 center backs Kyle Maute and Harry Allen in place. They moved up the field together, trying to catch Warriors striker J.J. Ruehlemann offside.

Ruehlemann came into the match as Bergen County's leading scorer with 31 goals. But when he or another Waldwick player broke through, Falconer was there. He made nine saves for his fifth shutout, handing the Warriors (16-4) their first loss since Oct. 14.

Donnelly leads the Lakers with 16 goals, with the latest coming on a well-practiced play. He saw senior Andrew Lynch sending the cross over, angled his head to direct it past Waldwick goalkeeper Axel da Silva.

"It's honestly unreal," Allen said, highlighting the importance of defensive communication. "The past two years, I thought for sure, 'This was the year. This was the year.' This year, we didn't start off too hot. We were .500, below .500 for most of the season. We turned it up in the playoffs. Something clicked. I'm really proud of us."

This article originally appeared on Morristown Daily Record: NJ boys soccer: Waldwick Mountain Lakes NJSIAA North 1 Group 1 final