Boys' Lacrosse Returns With 'Hungry' Team

Baron Wallenhurst’s boys’ lacrosse team is starting fresh this year after losing about half its players and many of its starters at the end of last season.

“I only have one guy who played every game last year returning … I don’t have a whole lot of guys with a lot of experience. We’re very young,” the head coach said, adding with a chuckle, “It’s a youth movement.”

But “rebuilding” doesn’t have to be a dirty word; it has its advantages. Such as?

“You gain some momentum in overall intensity, guys who want to prove themselves,” said Wallenhurst. “Who are hungry to prove themselves.”

The boys’ lacrosse team finished the season 13-8 last year, , before to eventual state champion Bridgewater. It was the second Group 3 championship the boys claimed in the last four years, despite playing in “one of the toughest conferences (Skyland) in the state,” the coach said.

Wallenhurst lost 17 seniors last year, many of them starters. He brings back senior Alex Martinelli, who sat out most of the 2011 season with a knee injury.

“He’s definitely the kind of player that leads by example on the field,” the coach said. “He’s a very good shooter, a very good dodger.”

The team also brings back Alex Melekos, a “high intensity” defensive player, said Wallenhurst. “He gives 110 percent every time he’s on the field.”

Though it’s a young team, the coach said the guys he has bring plenty of leadership qualities to the table.

“The leadership really is there this year, even though it’s small,” he said. “As long as we keep getting better, we can get to where we were last year, or even farther.”

The team kicks off its season at 11 a.m. Saturday with an away game at Christian Brothers Academy in Lincroft.

The boys get a chance for revenge against Bridgewater in an away game on April 11.

For the team’s full schedule, visit highschoolsports.net.