THE OFFICIAL HOME OF
MANALAPAN YOUTH LACROSSE CLUB
INFORMATION
MISSION AND GOAL
To promote youth sports in the community while encouraging teamwork, positive self-esteem, sportsmanship, respect for others, personal responsibility and perseverance. We believe that the attainment of athletic skill and the winning of games are secondary to the development of character and good citizenship.
Our goal is to prepare our youth athletes to be competitive lacrosse players and at the same time keep our mission in focus. Balancing the need to be fair but still competitive is an important aspect of achieving our mission and goals. It is not always possible to be fair while remaining competitive.
In order to further our mission, we encourage each athlete to be the best lacrosse player that he/she can be. We strive to put every child in the best possible situation to succeed as a lacrosse player so they can gain confidence and enjoy playing the game.
COACHES
ERIC STEIN
Founder and Head Youth Coach, Braves Youth Lacrosse Club NJ
Eric founded the club in 2015 after having coached in multiple youth programs in Central New Jersey.
VIN DEMAYO
Director of Lacrosse Operations and Coach
Coach Vin is our Director of Lacrosse Operations and a Coach. His focus and drive keeps this program moving forward and the boys excited about coming back to the next practice or game.
ANDREW GREENBERG
COACH
Coach Andrew is a dedicated coach focused on improving the boys teamwork and lacrosse IQ. His knowledge and passion for the game is evident in his dedication to the program and the boys that he coaches.
ANDY PALUMBO
Coach
Palumbo played high school lacrosse at St. Joseph’s in Metuchen, NJ from 1994 to 1998. He then attended University of Scranton where he played midfield and specialized in face-offs for the Royals. Andy then came back to Central New Jersey where he coached and played for the TROG Club Lacrosse team. Palumbo has two boys in the program, Michael (little laxers) and Andrew (3rd Grade).
ANTHONY DISANZO
Coach
Anthony was an All-American D-III Lacrosse Standout and now spends time coaching our youth and high school players.
JAY LYNCH
Coach
Jay graduated from East Brunswick High School in 1999 where he earned All-Division honors as an attackman and was chosen to play in the Gil Gibbs North-South All-Star Game. He helped start the program at EB in 1996, playing Varsity all 4 years. He went on to play for Wesley College from 1999-2004 in which he was a three-year starter as an attackman where he led his team in goals his senior year. He was selected to the PAC All-Conference team as well as the PAC All-Conference Academic Team his senior year. Coach Lynch started his coaching career at his Alma Mater in 2004, as an assistant coach, coaching with his former college assistant coach, Mark Grilo, running the offense. He then coached at St. Joes High School (Metuchen) from 2005 to 2006, where he helped coach and run the offense and man-up units. He continued his coaching career at Jackson Liberty High School from 2007 to 2012 where he was the head Varsity Lacrosse coach as well as an Assistant Football Coach during his tenure there. Many of his players went on to play at the collegiate level and had successful playing careers. Coach Lynch is currently a Middle School Vice Principal for Old Bridge Township Public Schools, where he has been since leaving Jackson in 2012. He also helps out with the middle school lacrosse team there as well. He resides in Manalapan with his wife, Nicole, and two sons, Aiden (6th Grade) and Danny (little laxers), and his daughter, Mikayla (little laxers).
NICK FILIPPONE
Manalapan High School Boys Lacrosse Head Coach
Nick grew up on Long Island playing for Northport HS, where he was an All-Long Island Midfielder. He played his college lacrosse as a 3 year starter as a defender and Captain. Nick coached college lacrosse at Kean University as the defensive coordinator of a top 10 defense in the country. He won a sectional state championship and New Jersey Assistant Coach of the Year at Cranford HS in 2015. Nick is now the head lacrosse coach of Manalapan HS, has two boys in the youth program, and plays an important role in helping to develop the youth program.Nick grew up on Long Island playing for Northport HS, where he was an All-Long Island Midfielder. He played his college lacrosse as a 3 year starter as a defender and Captain. Nick coached college lacrosse at Kean University as the defensive coordinator of a top 10 defense in the country. He won a sectional state championship and New Jersey Assistant Coach of the Year at Cranford HS in 2015. Nick is now the head lacrosse coach of Manalapan HS, has two boys in the youth program, and plays an important role in helping to develop the youth program.
BRYAN DOEL
COACH
Brian Doel is an integral part of our coaching staff. His dedication to coaching and teaching the game at all levels really elevates the quality of our coaching staff.
ANDREW JONES
HS Assistant Coach
Coach Jones is the assistant coach for the Manalapan High School boys lacrosse team.
TONY SHERRY
Coach
Tony grew up on Long Island where he was a member of the first official South Side High School Lacrosse team. After high school, Tony continued his playing career at Herkimer College where he won 2 NJCAA National Championships. He then transferred to Marist College where he finished his college lacrosse career. While in college, Tony was one of the lead Lacrosse counselors at Camp Tecumseh in NH. Tony has 3 boys, Conor (9), Tyler (9), and Adrian (8) who are all lacrosse players for the Manalapan Youth Lacrosse Club. In addition to lacrosse, the boys play Football, Soccer, and Baseball.
TAYLOR BONNER
Coach
Taylor was a high school lacrosse standout for Old Bridge High School from 2002 thru 2005. As a High School player, Taylor was team captain and earned All-State honors in 2004 and 2005. He attended Montclair State University where he led his team to back to back Skyline Conference Championships (in 2009 and 2010) and earned USILA All-American honors in 2010 and was a North/South game All-Star participant. Taylor also played football for the Montclair State Red Hawks. Taylor has also help grow the game off the field, spearheading a Lacrosse for Autism fundraiser. Post-college, Taylor has been an active assistant coach for both his college alma mater, Montclair State (2011) and helping coach his high school team to a GMC Tournament Championship in 2013. Taylor brings his love of the sport to the Manalapan Youth Lacrosse Club and is now introducing his son, Vincent, and daughter, Ava, (both little laxers) to the sport of lacrosse.
Joe Ventresca
Coach
Joe grew up in the heart of lacrosse country in Syracuse NY. After High School he went on to play for Herkimer Community College where he play for two National Championships. After Herkimer, Joe received a full scholarship to play at Radford University a division I school at the time in Virginia where he lead the Highlanders as the Teams Captain and was named MVP of the Carolina classic his senior year. Joe went on to play for STX all stars and traveled to Australian open where he was named outstanding defense of Player. Also, Joe has been playing for various club team over the years and still plays today where his team recently won the GrandMasters Championship in Florida in 2020.
On the coaching front, Joe as always had great mentors/coaches over the years and is very passionate about the game and giving back. He has a 25 years track record of coaching all levels of lacrosse from Youth to High School both boys and girls lacrosse. He has had numerous players from his coaching tenure go on to play college lacrosse at all levels and most rewarding is seeing his players playing it back now coaching the game today.
CONTACT
Questions? Feel free to reach out to Braves Lacrosse NJ Manager
Tel: 516-672-3755 Email: info@mysite.com