MHS girls’ run ends in sectional hoops final
By Justin Feil, Assistant Sports Editor
NORTH BRUNSWICK — The Montgomery High School girls basketball team made a season of making opponents uncomfortable.
In the Central Jersey Group IV final Tuesday, it was the Cougars of Colts Neck that got the Cougars of Montgomery out of sorts. Colts Neck captured its first CJ IV crown, 49-28.
”Central Jersey Group IV is the best basketball in the state,” said Montgomery head coach Kevin Kretschy. “That just shows why. We knew we belonged. We knew to be a champ, we had to beat a champ. We knew we had to play a lot better than we did.
”We ran into Trenton last year and they were obviously top 10 in the country. I think this (Colts Neck) team next year will be something special to watch. It’s the best brand of basketball in the state and I’m just proud to be a part of it.”
Montgomery finished the season 23-5 after earning its first trip to the CJ IV final. Its first trip did not start well, as MHS turned the ball over 10 times in the first quarter while Colts Neck jumped out to a 14-4 lead.
”It wasn’t even the turnovers that bothered me,” Kretschy said. “It was just the fact that we were getting beat by an offense that we looked at, that we went over yesterday. We didn’t close out fast enough and they don’t miss. We knew that.
”We did a good job of keeping them out of the middle, but coming down on the break, there were people wide open. That’s not how we play. We’re so much better than that. That was frustrating. I think that took the girls out of the game offensively. They knew they were better than that defensively and when they got down on the offensive end, they were still thinking about their defense.”
Colts Neck only made it tougher when it scored the first 13 points of the second quarter. A slow start against anyone makes it tougher. It spells certain doom against Colts Neck.
”You can’t press them,” Kretschy said. “You can’t trap them in the halfcourt. When you’re down one or two possessions, that’s one thing. But when you’re down several and you have to make them up in a hurry, it’s next to impossible.
”They’re so talented. All five kids shoot it. All five kids handle it. All five kids don’t miss free throws. All five kids finish. All five kids rebound. All five kids run the break. They’ve got a very special group of kids, and they’re all juniors.”
Montgomery looked more like itself in an even third quarter in which they held Colts Neck to six points. MHS outscored Colts Neck, 14-11, in the fourth quarter.
”We got refocused, and then they got a little more comfortable,” Kretschy said. “Then we were actually a little aggressive going to the hole, which we weren’t in the first half. It was a tale of two halves. It’s obviously too little, too late, but I’m proud of them. It’s a heck of a group.”
The game was the finale for four MHS seniors who have played big roles in helping the Cougars advance farther in CJ IV in each of the last three seasons. Jen Wysocki had eight points to lead the Cougars on Tuesday, Marcia Voigt had seven points, Laura Coletti had five blocked shots, and Allie Pedinoff provided a big lift in the second half boxing out and rebounding before adding two free throws before her curtain call.
”She knows what she’s expected to do,” Kretschy said of Pedinoff. “She knows her role very well. We live and die with them, and we’re all going to miss them. That’s all I’ve known since I’ve been here is starting those girls and having them on my team and playing them every day. Next year is going to be a little bit of a change. Forget not playing them, just not having them around.”
The seniors leave behind a group that saw them lead one of the best seasons in program history. Kretschy is hoping that his returning players understand what made this season so special.
”The difference this year is our practices were so much better,” he said. “I think that helped us along the year. Last year, we didn’t have anyone that could push Marcia and Carlee and Laura. This year, everyone pushed each other so we didn’t take a day off in practice. We just kept going at it, and that has helped the junior group. Knowing the work ethic that Marcia and Laura put in will carry over to next year and that’ll keep us going.”

