By Jimmy Allinder
Basketball is a team game, but the Spotswood High School girls’ basketball team will only go as far as senior Mary Beth Barnosky takes it.
The veteran has been a dependable source of scoring since she became a regular her sophomore year and is averaging slightly under 10 points in the early going. Barnosky has been the court leader with her steady ball-handling and defensive intensity and is the player the Chargers lean on in key situations.
Spotswood hopes to compete for the Greater Middlesex Conference (GMC) Blue Division title and is off to a 2-1 start.
The Chargers opened the season with a 52-14 victory over Carteret High School but dropped a 56-37 decision to South River High School. They followed with a dominant 61-8 victory over Mother Seton Regional High School and before the holiday break hosted Metuchen High School Dec. 23.
In addition to Barnosky’s scoring, other contributions have come from sophomore Savanah Robinson and freshman Jessica Addesso. Junior Erin Malin, sophomore Paige Dadika and freshman Maddie Hellerich are the rebound leaders.
“We need to replace two important players from last year,” Spotswood coach Jill Hetzler said. “Jessica Meagher was a four-year starter at point guard and Grace Mehr was a dependable scorer (7.4 points per game).”
Hetzler is also looking for seniors Lizzie Vignoulo and Olivia Hellerich to step up along with juniors Sarah Marotta, Malin and Courtney Potter. Seniors Julie Raba and Megan Gallagher, sophomores Dadika and Amber Meagher and Hellerich will also be regulars in addition to Robinson and Addesso.
“Our goal is to compete for the Blue Division title, play well against our other conference opponents and compete in the postseason,” Hetzler said. “I believe our strength lies in the ability to put different personnel on the floor so we can change pace if necessary. That also allows us to present different offensive-defensive looks. Any one of our bench players is capable of taking the place of the current starters.”
The Chargers hosted Bound Brook High School (3-0), a strong opponent outside the GMC, Dec. 27 in their only action during the holiday break.