Sister power and levels of commitment lead Shore to Group title

By Walter J. O’Neill, Jr.

Shore Regional High School varsity field hockey team 2025 NJSIAA Group 1 State Champions.

On a cold windy night in Bordentown, the Blue Devils of Shore Regional High School were red hot as they were competing in the NJSIAA Group 1 state finals in field hockey. They entered the finals with a 23-1-1 record, their only loss was to Point Borough in the Shore Conference finals.

In the Group 1 finals they faced a tough squad from Madison High School, who entered the game with 20-3 record. The Dodgers last appeared in a state Group final back in 2017.

The first goal of the night was scored by sophomore Finley Elias at 13:59 in the first quarter. It came off a corner shot by Marielle Montenegro, junior forward/midfielder player, who is the leading scorer this season for the Blue Devils. The shot was blocked and landed directly in front of Finley, who plays midfield or forward. She said that she saw the ball and just said to herself, get it in the goal. She also scored the winning goal over West Deptford in the South Group 1 Sectional Championships. “It doesn’t matter what the goal looks like. It’s got to get in the goal,” Finley said .

The winning goal in the 2-0 victory over Madison came at 14:47 in the third quarter. It was scored by senior Briella Elias, who also plays forward and midfield. Her goal, was something special as it was a backhanded shot that went up and over the Dodgers goalkeeper. She stated that she just went for the shot. “I was on the ground watching it and it went in. I just stood up and I could not believe it. I just ran to my teammates,”she said Next season Briella will be playing for Ohio State University..

Shore head coach Kelly Koenig said that it was something special to see both sisters score in the championship game. And it was especially fitting for Briella to get the game winner as she sat out all last season after suffering an anterior cruciate ligament injury to her right knee in May of 2024. She had to have surgery and missed all of her junior season while she recovered.

“Briella’s return speaks to her commitment. She just locked in and got back to a higher level of fitness and endurance than she was prior to her injury,” said Koenig. The coach noted that not every athlete can return and be at full strength after having such a devastating injury.

Shore finished with a 5-4 shot on goal advantage over Madison. However, the Dodgers had a 7-6 edge on penalty corners, where most points are scored in field hockey. “It’s hard to put into words, the layers of love and support that Shore Regional field hockey has. People throw around the word dynasty. When I was driving home last night I was thinking about all the layers my players have to be successful,” said Koenig.

One of the biggest layers of support that players at Shore Regional has, according to Koenig, is the coaching staff. “All the staff are former Division 1 players and have a love of the game. Molly Santi, Lilly Santi, Maggie Lamb, Nadine Surak-Bower are all alumni of Shore. So four of my coaches have lived this experience and they are able to give back with their knowledge and the parents do so much for these girls, they deserve it and work so hard,” said Koenig. The investment from the school, staff, administration, players, community are all a part of the winning attitude and level of desire and commitment to be successful according to the coach. “The legacy of Shore field hockey is that girls want to be a part of this system and know what it takes to be winners year after year.” Another member of the coaching staff is Kelly Finch, who played at Rider University and a graduate of Middletown North, where she was the Shore Conference 2005 Player of the Year.

Koenig said to look at the 2025 roster which has a strong mix of senior leadership; Hava Cannamela, Meghan Chewing, Briella Elias, Emma Haynes, Mackenzie Lockwood, and Haylee Townsend. The five juniors on varsity were Claudia Bufano, Sarah Keeshen, Marielle Montenegro, Molly Schulze and Marin Stefanelli.

The underclassman on the varsity roster has six sophomores; Lauren Baxter, Finley Elias, Madison Mateicka, Alex O’Connell, Kate Patton, and Scarlett Watson. Two freshman were also on the varity this season; Alexandra Menconi and Emmy Vaughan.

Shore Regional’s field hockey legacy has 51 Shore Conference divisional titles, 30 NJSIAA Sectional titles, 17 NJSIAA state titles, 19 Shore Conference Tournament championships.

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