Luiza De Oliveira leads Wave over Falcons

By Walter J. O’Neill, Jr.

Leading Long Branch in the 4-3 win over Monmouth Regional was Luiza De Oliveira (2) with three goals.

Wednesday, April 23, was senior recognition night at Long Branch High School where the girls’ lacrosse team honored eight players and two managers before the start of the game against Monmouth Regional. Long Branch is having their best season in girls’ lacrosse history as they are undefeated in division play.

The Green Wave play in the Independence division of the Shore Conference, where they lead all seven teams with a perfect 5-0 record. Overall, the Wave are now 8-3 with the exciting 4-3 win over Monmouth Regional. “Luiza De Oliveira led the team with three goals. One was assisted by Giana Anechiarico and another assisted by Brittany Garcia-Mendoza,” said Amanda Olsen, head coach. The other Green Wave goal was scored by Lauren Maxwell, an unassisted goal off of a free-position opportunity.

The first quarter had Long Branch taking a 2-0 lead. In the second quarter, Long Branch added one goal and took a 3-0 advantage into the halftime break. The second half of the game was nail-biting for the Wave, as the Falcons stormed back with one goal in the third quarter. Going into the final minutes of the game, Long Branch was up 3-1. Long Branch added one goal in the fourth, while Monmouth Regional scored twice in the fourth quarter. The last goal was with 28 seconds remaining and closed within one goal of the Green Wave.

“Valentina Perez-Mora, Giana Anechiarico and Ashley Martinez-Garcia dominated on the draw, winning eight of 11 throughout the game,” said Olsen. The coach also praised Keira Emick, who had five saves in the goal. “Our starting defenders, Maria-Luisa Mendes Martins, Emily Lopez-Cota, Ashley Diaz-Arellano and Layla Bland had 10 of the teams 17 forced turnovers.”

“It was a very competitive game that came down to the end with both teams playing as hard as they could,” said Daniel Wendel, head coach of the Falcons.

With the 4-3 loss, Monmouth Regional slips to 0-9 overall and are 0-6 in the Freedom division. Ava Diedrichsen had two goals for Monmouth Regional and Aliyah Henry scored once. In the goal for the Falcons was Gia Elliot who had 10 saves. “Our girls may not have the record they have wanted, but they continue to work hard and improve every day and have played in a lot of close games this season. I’m very proud of how they handle themselves and continue to compete day in and day out.”

Leading Monmouth Regional in goals during the loss to Long Branch was Ava Diedrichsen (4) who had two goals.

“This season has been one for the books for us. To my recollection, I cannot remember the last time the Long Branch girls’ lacrosse team had a better start to their season. I have gone through our records going back to 2010, and our best record over the last 16 years was probably the 2021-2022 season where we went 6-9,” said Olsen. The most wins the Wave has notched in a single season was 2023-2024, when they went 7-12. “We are currently undefeated at 5-0 in our division with only two divisional opponents left to play. We have a very good chance on winning the Independence division,” added Olsen.

When Olsen was asked what has changed within the lacrosse program, she said it’s hard to give one definitive answer. “I believe we have been so successful this year because our team is finally all working together. It isn’t just offense vs defensive anymore. They are working together as a cohesive unit and transitioning the ball from one end to the other, instead of relying on one or two players to get the ball upfield,” said Olsen. She added that all eight seniors have been with the program since they were freshman and know what Olsen and her assistant coach, Alexis Corbett, expect.

In just 11 games this season De Oliveria has doubled both her goals and assists from last year. She currently leads the Wave with 12 assists. Leading the team in goals is Lauren Maxwell with 23. Leading the squad in ground balls with 56 is Brittany Garcia-Mendoza. Anechiarico is right behind her with 48 ground balls. Valentina Perez-Mora leads the Green Wave in draw controls with 22.

“Giana has the biggest heart and cares so much about the success of her team. She has been such an amazing captain this season; a true role model for the underclassman both on and off the field,” Olsen said. Anechiarico is the 2026 NJSIAA Scholar Athlete of the Year for Long Branch High School.

Olsen said that this season the defensive unit has never given less than 110% effort. They are constantly communicating with each other and the backbone according to Olsen is backer Layla Bland, who has phenomenal footwork, speed, and game sense. “She has incredible instinct and athletic ability,” Olsen said.

“The success and growth of this program is not something I can take full credit for. I have had the pleasure of coaching alongside my assistant coach, Alexis Corbett, for all four years since I took over the program,” said Olsen. She added that Corbett is the voice of reason and someone that she trusts to help build the Green Wave program. “This year, Brittany Caputo, has been an incredible addition to our coaching staff. Her lacrosse knowledge, patience, and love of the game has led our junior varsity team to a winning record of 4-1 so far.”