RAIDER ROUNDUP
by Rudy Brandl, Sports Editor
Hillsborough High girls’ basketball coach Jim Reese is making a habit out of reaching milestones.
Prior to last week’s home game vs. Watchung Hills, the team honored Reese for accumulating 300 career victories as a varsity head coach. Reese won his 235th game as the HHS girls’ head coach and 300th overall when the Lady Raiders eliminated Ridge in the first round of the Somerset County Tournament Jan. 26.
”All that means is that I’ve had the ability to remain upright for that long,” Reese said with a smile. “Before the season started, they asked me to add up my wins and (the total) came to 296. For a while, I was wondering if I’d ever get there.”
Two years ago, Reese won his 200th game as the head coach of the Hillsborough girls. He also has 57 wins as the HHS boys’ head coach in the 1980s and eight in a brief stint with the Manville girls in the early 1990s.
The Lady Raiders made sure he celebrated in style, putting out their best effort of the season to produce a 49-42 upset victory over Watchung Hills.
Senior power forward Kaitlin Capriccio led the winners with 15 points, including four in the fourth quarter when Hillsborough closed with a 17-9 spurt. Senior guard Sara DiClemente had another solid game, finishing with 14 points and six steals. DiClemente led the fourth quarter charge with five points. Six other Lady Raiders scored in the victory.
”Beating Watchung Hills was nice,” Reese said. “We played very, very well.”
Two nights later, the team’s three-game win streak was snapped in a 50-32 loss at Franklin. Hillsborough managed only 10 points in the first half and faced an uphill battle the entire game.
Franklin dominated the boards and did not allow a HHS player to reach double digits. Capriccio (8), Janice Jeschke (7) and Alexa Voitovich (6) paced the offense.
Ice hockey team
needs more wins
The HHS ice hockey team entered the week still two games below .500 with two more to play before the NJSIAA qualifying deadline. Hillsborough went 0-1-1 last week, falling 4-2 at West Essex Jan. 30 and tying Montclair Kimberly Academy 2-2 Friday night at Aspen Ice.
Hillsborough (7-9-2) came from behind twice to tie MKA. Matt Daugherty knotted the score on a power play goal with 2:42 remaining in the third period. Joe Kubrak also connected on a power play in the second period when MKA took a 2-1 lead after a scoreless first period. Trevor Bierwirth, John Cohn and Corey DeFranco notched assists for the Raiders.
Two nights earlier, the Raiders squandered a 2-1 lead in the third period. West Essex scored three times and rallied to victory to knot the season series. Brett Siegrist and Bierwirth scored for Hillsborough.
The Raiders need to beat Watchung Hills on the road Wednesday and Montgomery at home Friday to make the NJSIAA playoff cut.
Losing streak
knocks out boys
The HHS boys’ basketball team suffered four straight losses to powerful teams in an eight-day span and won’t be going back to the state playoffs this winter.
Hillsborough (9-10), which started a new two-game win streak with victories against Franklin and Rutgers Prep, fell vs. Bridgewater-Raritan, Immaculata, Notre Dame and Watchung Hills. The Raiders needed a three-game sweep of last week’s games but their 58-48 loss to Watchung knocked them out.
Watchung led by one point after the first quarter and three at the half in a tight game. The Warriors continued to build their lead by winning all four quarters.
Junior guard Jason Smartt led the Raiders with 13 points, including two 3-pointers. Sophomore Frank Mitchell also hit a three and finished with 11 points.
HHS completed a season sweep of Franklin for the first time in head coach Ian Progin’s five years with Thursday’s 56-50 triumph in Hillsborough. Smartt led the way with 15, while Steve Westphal (14) and Mitchell (12) joined him in double figures. Westphal and Mitchell each connected on two 3-pointers.
The Raiders are still alive in the Somerset County Tournament and have a new goal of finishing with a winning record. They were scheduled to play at Montgomery Tuesday night and on the road at Immaculata in Saturday’s SCT quarterfinals.