By BRIAN TORTELLA
Correspondent
On X @tortreports
MULLICA HILL — Alaina Lomonaco found out what it’s like to lose on the biggest stage — Clearview Regional’s crushing state finals loss to North Hunterdon two years ago. A sophomore at the time, she scored just five goals that season as a rotational player.
The following year, she learned what it’s like to win on the biggest stage when her Pioneers avenged their loss to North Hunterdon in the Group 3 state championship.
The difference?
The 2022 version of Alaina Lomonaco couldn’t touch the 2023 version even if she tried.
She went from being sixth on the team in goals (5 in 2022) to leading her squad with 15 last year, including a dagger in double-overtime that gave the Pioneers their first state championship since 2019. Experiencing what it was like to shoot around on that beautiful Bordentown, turf, where the state finals are played, and coming away with the biggest victory of her young career in the process has given her all the motivation she’s ever needed to repeat.
“I think we have a very strong team this year and we can definitely make it back to states,” she said. “A lot of us train year-round with our club teams and put in the extra work outside of the high school season, which definitely makes a difference.”
Clearview enjoyed a 11-0 blowout win over Delsea in the Pioneers’ second game of the season on Tuesday, largely due to Lomonaco’s astonishing play. She had a hat trick in the first quarter alone and finished the game with four goals. It likely would have been more, too, if coach Brittany Ewan didn’t substitute most of her upperclassmen for underclassmen in the second half.
“It was a great first (home) game,” Lomonaco continued. “A lot of different people scored with different types of shots. We did a good job of connecting our passes too and working on what we practiced.”
“I’m really excited,” (for the rest of the season and a possible state-title repeat).
The 2024 version Alaina Lomonaco is here, and this version is not only extra terrifying for opposing defenses, but a role model to underclassmen. As the commander of the ship, it’s evident that Lomonaco has been a leader for some of the younger players on the team. That includes standout freshman Maddie Reeves, who tallied two goals in Tuesday’s victory.
“She’s so nice,” Reeves said of Lomonaco. “She’s a good friend, I love playing with her. She helps us a lot. Through the games this season and school. She helps us around the school with classes and schoolwork.”
Said Ewan, “(Lomonaco) knows the game. She knows where to be. She understands every tactic that we implement, and that’s huge. She is so great handling the ball and she knows how to place the ball and that’s something that I emphasize with my girls — that you don’t always need a big hit, you don’t always need to whack the ball down the field. It’s about placement, it’s about putting the ball into space and finding the open player.”
“She could be, absolutely,” she continued, when asked if Lomonaco could end up being South Jersey Player of the Year when the season is complete. “She’s one of those players that if you can get her that ball inside the circle, the defense is going to have a tough time stopping her. I definitely think she’s on a mission to end her senior year on a bang, and that’s another state championship.”
“Another state championship would be amazing, especially as a senior,” she said. “Experiencing it last year was unreal and I would love to close out my high school career with back-to-back state championships. It’s going to take a lot of hard work, but this team has the potential to do it again.”
