Delbarton 1989

The School


Delbarton is an independent college preparatory school for boys located in Morristown, New Jersey. Founded in 1939, this school is administered by the Benedictine monks of St. Mary's Abbey and is rooted in the values of the Christian community and in the monastic tradition of a strong liberal arts education. The school’s motto is, "Succisa Virescit", or “cut down, it grows back stronger.”

The Players


Delbarton’s hockey team entered the 1989 campaign having won three consecutive Mennen Cups, and having competed in the State semi-finals in 1988 and State finals in 1987. The 1989 team had lost three senior defensemen and a first line forward and captain to graduation. However the year held much promise. The team’s captain, Brian Lonergan, was returning as a senior to lead his team again and try to become the first player to win four Mennen Cups. In the prior season, veteran lettermen Mike Pendy and James Olsen had provided the Green Wave with added scoring punch and were ready to take on increased responsibilities during their final season of Delbarton Hockey. Other seniors included Tim Reilly, Mike Phillips, Martin Schwartz and Greg Meyer.

In addition to the seniors, Derek Maguire, a first team All-State selection as a sophomore, returned for the Green Wave and would begin to stake his claim to being one of the best players in N.J. high school history. Maguire’s classmates included the 6’3” Peter Ramsey, who combined size and strength with a scoring touch, Jon Mortensen a largely unknown but smooth skating forward, as well as the Marshall brothers and Mike Crutchlow. Having won the starting goaltender job for the playoffs as a freshman, sophomore netminder Jason Waite entered the season with confidence. Returning with Waite from freshman year was the talented trio of Rich Falcone, Trey Whipple and Peter Nelson. The 1989 freshmen were Jimmy Bruce, Kevin Mahoney and Scott Ames. The team continued its tradition of early morning practices, every weekday morning, outdoors at the Essex Hunt Club.

The Season


In just his second season behind the bench, the first order of business for 33 year old coach Jim Brady, who would later be named the 1989 NJ Coach of the Year by the Star-Ledger, was to establish his defensive corps. He would do this by asking Lonergan and Olsen to step back to the blue line. Both seniors answered the call, creating a formidable threesome with Maguire. The team opened up the season 5-0, before heading north to New England for the Brooks-Governor Dummer Holiday Tournament, where they faced very tough competition. The Green Wave extended their in state record to 10-0 before going into the home of two-time defending state champion Montclair, and shutting them out in a hard fought 3-0 game. Shortly thereafter, the Wave tied Peddie on the road in another intense contest, and then dominated the rest of their schedule, extending their in state record to 16-0-1 before Morristown caught them flat footed on the eve of the post-season and played them to a 3-3 tie. It was a wake up call that was heard.

The Post-Season


The team marched through the Mennen Cup Tournament, beating its Morris County opponents by a combined score of 26-1 in three rounds of play, then moved onto the State Tournament, where it rolled through the first three rounds beating its opponents by a combined score of 31-5. Its semi-final victory over state power Brick was an 8-2 game that saw goals from Olsen, Mortensen, and Whipple, with Ramsey lighting the lamp twice, Pendy tallying a hat trick, and Waite stopping 24 shots.

The stage was set. Delbarton’s 1989 squad, ranked #2 in the state, with an in-state record of 23-0-2, and the state’s best defense, surrendering only 1.8 goals per game, would play #1 ranked St. Joseph’s and its state-best offense, which averaged 7.6 goals per game and was led by 50 goal scorer Ken Blum. It was not the first time these teams matched up in State Tournament play. In 1988, Delbarton had been ousted by St. Joe’s in OT of the semifinals in a 2-1 contest. In 1987, Delbarton took a thrilling victory in the semi-finals by beating St. Joe’s 6-5 in regulation after being down by two with 2:09 to play. In 1989, the teams were scheduled to meet again, and this time the State Championship was on the line. This was the greatest game never played.

The Roster