By, David Hashagen

Newark, NJ

A game with high expectations rarely lives up to the billing.  Rarer still is a game of high magnitude that exceeds the billing.  But the rarest of them all is a game that not only exceeds the billing but is historic, but that was certainly the case this year in the 2024 Non-Public Final as St. Augustine went back-to-back defeating #1 Don Bosco Prep 10-6 on Monday.

The 16 combined goals set a new bar in the state final, surpassing the previous record of 13 in 1984’s final where St. Joseph (Montvale) defeated Brick Twp 7-6 at the then South Mountain Arena.

The #3 seed Hermits came into the game used to being the underdog, after stunning #1 Delbarton in overtime in last year’s final. And while certainly not a similar dark horse this year, St. Augustine was certainly not favored by a majority going into the final. What was a consensus among everyone who had followed both teams all year was that it was going to be an entertaining final.

Little did everyone know, including the players involved, what an incredible final it would turn out to be.

The Hermits started the game with excellent pressure on the Ironmen which paid dividends just under 5 minutes in when Cameron DeLeo took advantage of a turnover and beat Tarabocchia.  Bosco responded with 2 quick goals, the first from Niko Pappachristou on a pinball shot on the power play, followed quickly by junior Erik Wrynn who buried one top shelf.  With 5:30 left Ty Simonet sent a brilliant feed in front to Robert Romarino who scored on a one-timer to tie it at 2. But just a minute and a half later, Bosco retook the lead as Wrynn fired another home to make it 3-2.

In the last two minutes of the first, St. Augustine started a run that would eventually dictate the course of the game.  With 1:42 Romarino fired one home from the blue line on the power play for his second of the game.  And then to put a bow on the first period, Ty Simonet forced another turnover and scored on a clean shot with 10 seconds left to give the Hermits a 4-3 lead.

The surge continued in the second period as Simonet found the back of the net again on the power play with another blue-line snipe, off a great feed by Tommy Browne.  For the next 7 minutes, the goaltenders James Tarabocchia and Bobby Kennedy put on a show with both making some incredibly athletic saves.  Then with just over 6 minutes left Coach Ammirato’s squad gained a lead they would never relinquish, as DeLeo forced a turnover and scored shorthanded past the Ironmen netminder.

Don Bosco then roared back to life late in the second.  Matt Shpungin knocked one out of the air to end the 4 goal run for St. Augustine.  But the drama was far from done, as a scramble developed in the last 10 seconds in front of Kennedy’s net. With 0.3 left on the clock, Eric Wrynn became the first of many to complete his hat trick as his whack at the biscuit sent it up high and scored to make it 6-5.

In the third period, the scoring got back underway just under 4 minutes in as DeLeo stuffed one home past the post to restore the Hermits’ two-goal lead.  They finally got back to a three-goal advantage with under 5 minutes to go as Romarino completed his hattie on a feed from James Reagan.  This goal got the game to 8-5 and saw John Gazzola take over in net for Bosco.  The Hermits added a ninth when Simonet again scored shorthanded on an empty net for his third goal and the record-breaking goal.

The Ironmen did not go down without a fight despite the four-goal deficit as Pappachristou scored on a feed by Fratisek Netsuil to make it 9-6. But St. Augustine had the last word as Romarino scored a fourth on the empty net to finish it with a minute to go.

16 goals. 4 hat tricks. 2 incredible teams.

It was a game that will remain in the memory for a long time for those who were there. It is a record that likely will stand for a very long time.  But for certain, it was a classic and St. Augustine is a program on the rise that has to be taken notice of as one of the state’s best for many years to come.