Shore Conference Season Review, 2023-24
player of the year
Michael Schmelzer, Manalapan
For a team to have a historic season, it takes a special player to make it happen. Schmelzer started his high school career at Christian His Brothers Academy and transferred to Manalapan before his junior year. He scored 25 goals that year, but this winter he flourished and scored 34 goals. He showed up when the team needed it most and put together the best postseason run in a long time. Over the past seven games, Schmelzer has scored 14 of the team's 21 goals. He scored the winning goal in four consecutive games at the state tournament and helped his team advance to the public state finals.
Coach of the Year
Matt Inzerillo, Manalapan
Manalapan hasn't always been a hotbed for hockey, but that may be changing. The team had a historic 2023-24 season and came close to winning its first state championship. Inzerillo joined the program as a coach during the 2017-18 season, and things have gradually improved since then. That year, the team had a record of 7 wins, 12 losses, and 1 draw, but this time they had a record of 19 wins, 4 losses, and 1 draw. Inzerillo led this team to the best season in program history.
team of the year
manala bread
Although Manalapan fell short of its goal of winning the Handchen Cup, the team was able to extend its streak of Shore Conference state finalists to three. Behind the aforementioned Michael Schmelzer's scoring, Christian Esposito has had a nice stretch, allowing two or fewer goals in 13 of his last 15 performances. Manalapan finished the 2023-24 season as the highest-ranked team in the Shore Conference, winning the South Jersey Public Division title.
Leader of final statistics
the goal
assist
point
keep
save rate
(Minimum 5GP)
Complete game
Brian Bobal can be contacted at: bbobal@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on X @Brian Bobal.
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