On Oct. 1, Pingry became another victim of St. Benedict’s prolific, lethal offense in a 7-2 loss.
The seven goals were the most the Big Blue had allowed since a 5-3 loss to Seton Hall Prep in the North, Non-Public A final in 2019.
The Big Blue, ranked No. 6, went on a 10-game win streak after that loss that included a 5-2 victory over Gill St. Bernard’s in the Somerset County Tournament final and its first South, Non-Public A title in 10 years.
Which set up a rematch with the No. 1 team in the state – and the country – St. Benedict’s.
“I just think we had a lot of resolve, a lot of motivation,” Pingry’s Joaquin Stevenson said of the rematch. “We got embarrassed at home and I think our goal, obviously we fell short in winning, but the goal at the bare minimum was to battle and to at least give us a chance to win, and I think that’s what we did. I couldn’t be prouder of the guys.”
St. Benedict’s had only one 1-0 victory this season, against then-No. 6 St. Peter’s Prep back on Sept. 25, but the Grey Bees hadn’t seen overtime in its previous 19 games. Until Thursday night.
Pingry pushed St. Benedict’s to the brink, but the Grey Bees were able to break through as Raymond Diouf scored four minutes into overtime for the Non-Public A title.
It should be noted that of the four senior captains that Pingry had this season, only two were on the field. Leading scorer Neil Riener (21 goals, 10 assists) was sidelined with a pulled hamstring, while Jonathan Mitchell was out with a broken collarbone.
“We knew playing them the first time, we lost to them 7-2 but we knew that in the first half we were up a goal, we kept it close,” Stevenson said. “I think we just had a ton of belief and a ton of confidence, especially when you only have two seniors on the field. You lose a senior to a broken collarbone, lose a senior to a basically torn hamstring, you need those younger guys to step up and I think everyone battled today. I couldn’t be prouder of the guys.”
The Big Blue learned a lot from its previous loss to the Grey Bees and both sides battled the entire game. The Pingry defense, which consists of freshman Colton Gedroic, sophomore Ryan Stern and junior Nate Verling, had help in the back against a St. Benedict’s team that was averaging five goals a game heading into Thursday’s final.
Freshman midfielder Andrew Marturano and sophomore midfielder Brian Anders were quick to fall back when the Grey Bees were on the move and the team as a whole played strong defense which kept St. Benedict’s scoreless for 84 minutes.
“We just really had a team focus. This team evolved since our first loss to St. Benedict’s and grew in such a big way in those following 10 games in a row that we won, that we felt prepared tactically,” Pingry assistant coach Scott Aimetti said. “We followed the game plan perfectly and we went toe-to-toe with them, I think the game could have gone any way. It was just one moment, sometimes the game is cruel, but I’m just so proud of these guys, toe-to-toe with what a lot of people thought was an invincible team and this game easily could have been theirs. My heart breaks for them because I think they deserved more but we congratulate St. Benedict’s at the same time.”
Senior goalie Sebastian Martinez kept Pingry in the game, making six saves when the defense faltered. Unfortunately, he slipped while trying to make a stop on Diouf’s shot, which found its way into the back of the net.
“He played a hell of a game, he’s a big-time keeper, he made big-time saves, he just tripped back-pedaling and it was just an unfortunate situation,” Aimetti said. “But he’s been so strong for us, I think he’s one of the top goal keepers in the state of New Jersey, he’s a fantastic shot-stopper, he’s really evolved into a great leader, which I’m the most proud of. I know he’s going to take this one tough but I also know that we’re very young and we’ll be back better and stronger next year.”
Pingry will lost 12 seniors to graduation in the spring, but with 10 juniors and eight underclassmen, the Big Blue will undoubtedly be on a mission to make it back to the final game of the Non-Public A season.
“It means a lot, we feel this should be the benchmark for the program,” Aimetti said of Pingry playing in its first state final in 10 years. “This is now my eighth season back and I feel like we’re constantly in the conversation of one-two-three in the state, and we expect to win a few trophies every year, and we hope to be back here. We want to appreciate while we’re here but we also deep down as a program expect to be here, or at least in the conversation.”
Lauren Knego may be reached at [email protected]. Follow her at @laurenknego
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