Mountain Lakes Standouts Make College Decisions

Mountain Lakes

MOUNTAIN LAKES — Chase Winter and Jake Tripucka have pretty much known where they were going to end up going to college for about a year now, and their Mountain Lakes High School teammate Greg DeLuca for at least six months or so, but their decisions weren’t made known except on an occasional Internet forum or perhaps a friend of a friend heard something.

 

 

 

 

 

Recently, the Lakers lacrosse trio put the whispers to rest and signed their National Letters of Intent. Winter is going to be attending Johns Hopkins University while Tripucka and DeLuca are looking forward to their futures as Duke Blue Devils.

 

All three along with UMass bound girls lacrosse standout Jordan Renna were recognized for their achievement during a gathering at Mountain Lakes High School in late November.

 

The boys are members of back-to-back state champion boys lacrosse teams and will be playing for the most prestigious and successful college lacrosse teams in the country. Both Duke and Johns Hopkins competed in last year’s NCAA Division I Final Four which was won by Syracuse University.

 

The chance to potentially compete with and against each other for national titles and also get a quality education in the bargain is something that doesn’t happen every day for one of the smallest public schools in Morris County.

 

“It’s cool to finally have something in writing and actually see it,” DeLuca said. “It’s pretty exciting. It also goes a long way in the national reputation of Mountain Lakes. You have all these kids going to DI schools. Not only are they making an impact in college but it also gives our high school national respect.”

 

All three were junior midfielders and strong contributors in the success of last year’s 22-1 boys lacrosse state championship team. Chase Winter (6-foot, 165) finished with 29 goals and 11 assists including four goals in a dramatic Group final against Chatham. Jake Tripucka (6-foot-1,195) finished with 15 goals and 13 assists and Greg DeLuca (6-foot, 190) played more of a defensive role and wasn’t needed to score as much but still contributed six goals and four assists.

 

“Jake and I had a good showing at the Blue Chip (summer) camp and that helped us,” Winter said. “But with the tradition here at Mountain Lakes with what Coach (Tim) Flynn has started. When I was little I looked up to (Joe) Cinosky who went to Maryland. We have a lot of top guys going to top programs.”

 

The Lakers have not sent a lacrosse player to JHU since Rich Schwester played in the mid 90’s. Winter is well aware of the school’s reputation in lacrosse circles.

 

“The coaching is great and the kids are great,” Winter said. “They have the same ideas. They always go out together. It’s similar to what we have at Mountain Lakes.”

 

Lacrosse is still in the background for now as all three of them are working to continue the Lakers football success. Mountain Lakes will play in a Group I state tournament sectional final on Friday at Giants Stadium in the Meadowlands.

 

Jordan Renna also signed her National Letter of Intent to go to the University of Massachusetts. Renna was a standout midfielder for the Mountain Lakes girls team that had a solid Group I state tournament run and finished at 17-4.

 

This item was adapted from a published report.

Mercy tabs Chatham’s Manitta

DOBBS FERRY, NY – (October 10, 2008) — Mercy College Director of Athletics Pat Kennedy named Steve Manitta the school’s first head men’s lacrosse coach on Tuesday. He will begin his duties effective immediately. Manitta will take the reigns and spend the remainder of 2008-2009 recruiting and laying the groundwork for the team. The Mavericks will begin competition in 2009-2010 in the East Coast Conference (ECC), traditionally one of the strongest NCAA Division II conferences in the nation.

“We are excited to have Steve Manitta become Mercy’s first men’s lacrosse coach,” said Kennedy. “We are very fortunate to find a coach who possesses a great combination of experience and passion for the sport of lacrosse and an understanding of the College’s mission. Steve’s vision and leadership abilities will be the cornerstones of the program and I look forward to watching him build it from the ground up.”

“I am grateful to President Cline and Pat Kennedy for the exciting opportunity to spearhead the inaugural Mercy men’s lacrosse program,” Manitta said. “I am eagerly anticipating the process of building the team. What makes this start-up program unique is that Mercy College is geographically placed in the center of several converging lacrosse hotbeds. Student-athletes who make the decision to share my vision will contribute immediately to the success of this fledgling program.”

Manitta served as the head boys lacrosse coach at Chatham High School (NJ) from 2001-08. He will continue to coach the Chatham team this spring since both the college and the high school do not consider it a conflict of interest. The college team will not be active until the spring of 2010. He was the winningest coach in program history, compiling a 115-47 record. During his tenure he coached five All-American players, including 2008 New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) Player of the Year Peter Coleman. In his first season, he produced the first state-ranked team in school history and reached No. 7 in the state in 2006.

In 2002, Manitta guided his team to an appearance in the quarterfinals of the New Jersey State Championships. He was rewarded with Waterman Division Coach of the Year honors while also being tabbed Coach of the Year by the Star Ledger and the Daily Record.

Manitta notched his 100th career win in 2005. He went on to lead Chatham High School to back-to-back Iron Hills Conference titles in 2007 and 2008, earning NJSIAA Coach of the Year honors in 2007 followed by New Jersey Interscholastic Lacrosse Association (NJILCA) and Fitch Division Coach of the Year honors in 2008. He also recorded his 100th win with the Cougars and guided the team to a No. 4 ranking in the state. Manitta was selected to coach the Gill Gibbs Senior All-Star Game twice (2002, 2008).

Manitta also brings a wealth of experience with U.S. Lacrosse and International Lacrosse, coaching since 1998. During his tenure he has created rosters of elite players from northwest New Jersey. Manitta has coached numerous all-stars from Morris County and directed the squad to 11 straight Garden State Challenge Games championships.

Prior to his time at Chatham High School, Manitta was the head coach at Roxbury High School in Succasunna, NJ from 1993-2000. He built the program into a state tournament participant in his third year and made yearly appearances in the Morris County Tournament.

A native of Fulton, NY, Manitta played at SUNY Morrisville, earning All-Region honors as a midfielder in 1989. He went on to earn a bachelor’s degree in business management from Nyack College. He and his wife Kimberly, a teacher in the Somerset Hills School District, have two children – Teddy (4) and Colin (2).

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