Unbeaten Boys Lacrosse Registers Historic Victory

It may have been a regular-season victory, but the unbeaten boys lacrosse team had plenty of reasons to be proud on Tuesday.

The Cougars’ 5-4 triumph against Delbarton was historic. After years of trying, Chatham had finally defeated the Morris County juggernaut that usually provides the standard to which other local teams are matched. The victory also showed that the Cougars (5-0) have learned a lot from last year’s tough defeats and discovered how to turn them into victories.

“Last year we lost a heart breaker to Delbarton by one,’’ Chatham coach Anthony Calandra said. “We lost to Mountain Lakes in the county semifinals by one. We lost to Summit in five overtimes by one (in the state tournament). The core group is back. They have learned how to play in big games. Now they know how to win big games.’’

They have been doing it with defense. Thomas Stephan, Will Weichert and Owen Hewes, along with goalkeeper Corey Fritts, have held their opponents to less than five goals a game. They are strong, tough and quick players that are great at communicating with each other and know Chatham’s defensive schemes inside and out.

“We’ve got a lot of good players but that’s not all it takes,’’ Stephan said, who will play lacrosse at Notre Dame after his senior season. “It’s all about coming together collectively. Playing a lot together helps us now because we all know each other. Everything is one moving part. We just try to play our game.’’

Chatham succeeds in forcing its opponents to take tough shots and make poor decisions. Any opposing player that tries to work his way into the crease area for an easy score usually finds himself on his back and out of luck.

“You can’t hold a team to zero shots, but we’ll take (forcing them to shoot) low angle shots,’’ Stephan said. “We’ll take far away shots. We trust our goalie enough that Corey will save them.’’

And Fritts usually does. He came up big in the final seconds of Tuesday’s game when a desperation Delbarton shot bounced off his helmet.

“Corey comes through in big situations,’’ Stephan said. “He makes the saves that he has to. There just aren’t enough words to describe what he does for us.’’

Calandra is pleased at the way the Chatham defense has performed so far.

“They are all athletic,’’ Calandra said. “They can all handle the ball. They are coachable. They did enough to keep them away from the goal and not to give them opportunities. We were man down six times and I don’t think we gave up more than three or four shots.’’

The strong defensive performances have allowed the Chatham offense to develop and improve with each contest. Tuesday’s hero was Thomas Guida. The younger brother of former scoring standouts Rob and Nick, he’s proven capable of making a name for himself as well. He scored off a Kyle Howard-Johnson feed for the game-winning goal midway through the fourth quarter.

“He’s only a sophomore, ‘’ Calandra said. “So to step up and get the game-winner in a game like this is great. … It was the only shot he took all game. He didn’t get frustrated. He put himself in a good position and took a good shot.’’

Guida gave full credit to his teammate, Howard-Johnson, a senior attackman who is just as adept at feeding behind the cage as he is finishing in front of it.

“Every time he gets the ball, he draws a bunch of people to him,’’ Guida said. “He is such a great shooter that he just looked over the top to me. I got the goal but it was mostly him.’’

The Cougars have not been prolific on the offensive end but have been scoring just enough (eight goals a game) to win. Sam Carson and Howard-Johnson have converted plenty of opportunities in the early season and Joe Ritter has also been a solid contributor. The athletic midfield of Matt Proto, Cory Heideran and David Gill often creates opportunities for others if they are not scoring goals themselves.

Chatham also has the advantage of quality depth. They run three talented midfield lines and are capable of putting solid back ups in most key positions. The situation allows for practices to become competitive and fuels fierce battles for varsity playing time.  

“The camaraderie is great with these guys,’’ Calandra said. “They are very coachable and they have aspirations. We just kind of go game by game -- practice by practice -- and there is good leadership and good balance as well.’’

The Chatham players can feel good about themselves and what they have accomplished so far but plenty of challenges still await, starting with a contest against Ridge (4-1) on Thursday.

“It [beating Delbarton] means a lot but we can’t really focus on it too much,’’ Guida said. “It’s like our first game against St. Augustine Prep [a 9-7 win]. We have to focus on the season because this is only the beginning.’’