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2022 Winter Apex 350 Goalie Recap

By Apex Lacrosse Events, 01/21/22, 8:15AM EST

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JIm Hart, 2022/23 Winner


Hunter Fodera, Winner 2025/2026 Division


John Carrington, 2024 Division Winner


Staff from this Past Goalie 350

2024 Division

 

WINNER - John Carrington (True Illinois)

The theme of this winters showcase was “tall, wide-based righties” and John certainly fell into that category. The scary part is John doesn’t seem to be done growing into his full potential. The stopper out of Illinois is extremely relaxed with his lower body, but really aggressive with his top hand movement. With his stance and size, he seems to understand he already covers a lot of ground, and just trusts his hand speed to make the saves. Look out, because a 2024 with this calm demeanor (as a player and person) and skill set, combined with still so much room to tweak his game is a dangerous combination. Being crowned king of his class at the Apex 350 is just the start for this stud out of the midwest.

 

RUNNER UP - Liam Healy (Team 91)

Another hot-bed made goalie out of Long Island, Liam plays the position calm, cool, and relaxed and lets the shots come to him. He’s the type of goalie that you know has seen some of the best shooters in the country at his age, as to be expected coming from Manhasset, New York. He was particularly good at not flopping, staying efficient with his movement, and never really fell into guessing where the shooters were going to go, which is really difficult not to do with facing PLL caliber shooters. Having already laid that foundation, Liam has already mastered some of the hardest aspects of the goalie position.

 

SEMI-FINALIST - Carter Johnson (Jackson Hole)

Every so often you will find a good goalie from a non-hot bed area in the midwest or south, but finding a stud in Jackson Hole, Wyoming is next level growth for the sport. This tells you everything you need to know about Carter; Homegrown, self-determined, natural ability. The lefty out of Jackson Hole caught the eye of many late in the day on Saturday and into the Sunday tournament. Carters plays super relaxed and almost waits to get set for the shot right when its about to come (very similar to Blaze’s style). This is frustrating for the shooter, but at the same time puts the goalie in a relaxed head space to make the next save and to not get so caught up in a rigid stance, locked out elbows, and so on. Bright future ahead for the Wyoming native!

 

SEMI-FINALIST- Thomas Deangelo (3D Upstate)

The combination of being squatty with your lower body but playing with your stick higher than most is always super tricky to figure out as a shooter, and thats what Thomas DeAngelo seems to know best. The righty out of New York isn’t the biggest or tallest, but was fantastic this past weekend. Certainly not afraid to throw his body behind the ball, Thomas is a heavy stepper who excelled at controlling rebounds off of his stick or body. He is the type of goalie that your immediate thought is to make some tweaks, but after a heavy dose of shots you realize he truly excels at how he plays the game; A feeling any goalie that feels comfortable in their own style can relate too. 

2025/2026 Division

 

WINNER - Hunter Fodera (Predators)

Hunter Fodera came prepared to compete from the second the whistle blew on Saturday morning to the final shot that crowned him king of his division on Sunday afternoon. Stronger, stockier, and bigger than most his grade, the New Yorker attacked shot after shot with zero issue of being pelted by a frozen rubber ball without a flinch. Hunter is an exceptional ball tracker and really seemed to understand how to ignore the body language of the shooter and focus purely on the head of the stick. A skill set that most all seem to “think” they know but very hard to master. His limited movement, calm stick position, and quiet focus showed to prove that theory right. It’s only up for Hunter, as he continues to find tune his technique and style. Congratulations, Hunter! Well earned.

 

RUNNER UP - Matteo Sanders (Primetime)

The big righty played with a noticeable amount of energy and passion from the opening whistle on Saturday. Matteo stood out in particular on his doorstop saves, pipe to pipe drills, and quick reaction play. He knows his size and strengths very well, and was able to position himself really well on every shot. He was particularly strong in understanding his foot placement in the crease, and not letting the shooters see much of the far side pipe, which, any shooter can tell you that really screws with their minds in terms of where to place the ball. Matteo has a bright future in cage, having already understood how to play the little head games that all goalies must be good at. 

 

SEMI-FINALIST - Hunter Mezzatesta (Express North)

Not often do you get a goalie with a combination of big in stature but also really quick athletic feet, but that’s exactly what Hunter brings to the table. The righty from the Island plays an athletic, jumpy, feet moving, wild style that’s unique to him and has proven over and over again that if something works, don’t change it. Rebound control, stick work, and willingness to eat shots are all things that coaches at the next level look for, and Hunter has them all. I guarantee that he will continue to face some of the best players in the country being from Yorktown NY, time and reps for Hunter will continue to prove invaluable for the underclassman.

 

SEMI FINALIST - Jaxton Hansen (True Utah)

The calm Righty from Utah really started to shine come Sunday’s tournament. Most goalies tend to have a certain and consistent style to their game, but what was most unique about Jaxton was his ability to change up how he played each shot. Some see that as a problem, but for a lot of goalies at the highest level, they see that “style-less style” as a way to get into the shooters’ heads and thats exactly what Jaxton did. Whether that was playing with a wider base on down the alley shots, or getting narrow on step downs, the Utah native was masterful at reading and assessing every shot.

2022/2023 Division

 

WINNER - Jim Hart (West Coast Warriors, AZ Outlaws)

The vocal righty from Arizona put on an impressive showing on his way to being crowned champion of his division in Sunday’s tournament. Jim was particularly hard to score on down low. Playing in a lower stance allowed Jim to eat up everything at his feet, but also tricks shooters into thinking they can beat him up top, but turned out not to be the case. In other words, he excels at making the shooter think. Jim is the perfect example of a goalie that a defensive would want to play in front of; confident, energetic, positive, and plays with joy that often leads to playing with zero nerves and just ready to make the next save. That mindset ultimately carried him to be the last man standing.

 

RUNNER UP - Michael Busweiler (3D Florida)

The righty from Florida has the perfect combination of stature and body control. I don’t think there was another goalie that made the shooter miss the cage more, simply based off his positioning, stance, and size, which in my opinion is an extremely underrated and unmonitored statistic. The way in which he forced the PLL shooters to hit the perfect shot to score on him absolutely played into his strength. The combination of size as well as calm and efficient reaction time proved to work throughout the entire 350 experience.

 

SEMI-FINALIST - Griffin Caiozzo (Fighting Clams)

Griffin’s wide athletic stance combined with his height caused a lot fo confusion for the shooters as too where to place the shot. He keeps his stick a little higher than most, which leads to thinking that the low shots would draw success, but it seems to play right into his hand. Perhaps even more impressive than his saving ability, the big righty out of Massachusetts excelled in his stick work and clearing, as noted throughout the Saturday skills sessions. That combination of being an elite ball stopper, and showing how can lead in the clearing game is exactly what coaches at the next level are looking for.

 

SEMI-FINALIST - Ryan Beller (Thunder LB3)

Energetic, light on feet, and athletic would probably be the best ways to describe Ryan. I don’t think anyone was as quick to get to the low corner shots in a more impressive manner than him by way of his split saves or willingness to soak shots with his feet and legs. If you’re a fan of the position, Ryan just makes saves that are fun to watch and absolutely gets those around him fired up. It’s been great to watch Ryan’s growth in net since the Summer 350 Showcase and he has not missed a beat. Ryan checks all the boxes, and looks every bit of “college ready”.

Photo Album Courtesy of LSG Visuals