A recent article in “Coastal Engineering” suggests that a “Buried relic seawall mitigates Hurricane Sandy’s impacts” in Bay Head. The full text of the article is only available online for a fee, but you can read the abstract and see many of the figures here. There is also a non-scientific article on the same topic here.
In addition, if you have time, and would like to learn more about the science and the issues (and to understand both sides of the story) you can read the Manual for Coastal Hazard Mitigation which talks about many of technical details, and many of the options available to manage all of these issues. These include hard structures, beach replenishment, and more.