No. 3 Knights Fall to No. 1 Lazers in National Title Game

The headlines will show that CCBC Essex lost to Onondaga C.C. 16-8 on Sunday in the NJCAA Men's Lacrosse Championship title game.

The box scores will indicate that the Lazers took 24 more shots, captured 19 more ground balls and had nine fewer turnovers.

But what one will not find among the statistics of the championship game is how both teams advanced to that point.

The Knights (15-3) spent Saturday afternoon slaying the previously unbeaten Lions of Nassau C.C. 17-16 in a physically draining, run filled game that came down to the final seconds of regulation.

Freshman attacker Will Manganiello (Penncrest) scored a game-high six goals and had one assist, while freshman midfielder Cole Rainier (Calverton School) tallied three goals.  

By comparison, the Lazers (18-0) played the early semifinal game against Genesee C.C. and after a slightly competitive first quarter, strolled to a 17-6 win.

"There's a lot to be said for earning that number one seed in the tournament during the regular season and having that early game," said Knights head coach Shawn Burke. "I thought yesterday [we had] an incredibly tough semifinal game against Nassau."

Essex jumped out to an early 1-0 lead on a goal from Rainier.

Onondaga answered with a three-goal run to end the quarter, including two by Nick Sawyer and one by the Steve Caravena Offensive Most Valuable Player of the tournament, Matt Bennett.

Heading into halftime the Lazers held a 6-3 advantage.

The Knights cut the lead to two when Cameron Stone (Foothill) scored 27 seconds into the second half to make it 6-4. It would be the closest the Knights would get.

Less than a minute later Onondaga started another three-goal run and closed out the third scoring four of the last five.

Onondaga outscored Essex 6-3 in the final quarter to put the game away.

"They were hungrier than us," said Rainier. "We stuck to the game plan, then we changed it a little bit in the second half, but we just came up short."

Rainier finished the game with a team-high three goals and had one assist.

"We came out of the gates today with a lot of energy," said Burke. "But I think after that, especially in the second half, our legs caught up to us a bit. That and we played a very good Onondaga team. I think they're the best team in the country. They haven't won 105 games in row for no reason."

In the end, the Knights hard fought win against Nassau the day before appeared to take its toll on the eight-time defending Region XX champs.

"The coaches and I said a couple of times on the sideline that we looked tired. We felt like if we could jump out quick and get a lead it's easier to play when you're tired, you have a little bit more adrenaline, but when you get behind and you're tired it's a little tougher."

The Lazers did an admirable job containing the Knights Manganiello. One day after scoring six, the Pennsylvania native was held to zero points on nine shots.

Sophomore goalie Max Edelman (Middletown) played the entire 60 minutes and had more saves – 20 – than goals allowed.

2015 NJCAA Men's Lacrosse Championship All Tournament Team

Four Knights earned honors at the conclusion of Sunday's final.

Rainier and Manganiello each had six goals and one assist over the weekend.

Edelmann made 32 saves in two games.

Freshman defender Sid Ewell collected seven ground balls and forced three turnovers. He also scored a goal against Nassau.