Rutgers Prep poses with its 2026 Somerset County Tournament championship trophy, the program’s 11th all-time. (Photo: Mike Pavlichko)
The Rutgers Prep girls basketball team could just about do no wrong Saturday afternoon.
The top-seeded Argonauts were tied 4-4 early on with a very good second-seeded Franklin team, and the Lady Warriors led 2-0, but 4-4 was as close as they would get, and Rutgers Prep pulled away for a 55-37 win in the Somerset County Tournament championship down at Montgomery Twp. High School in Skillman, in a game heard on Central Jersey Sports Radio.
It was the 11th SCT title for Rutgers Prep (23-2), all since 2004, and moves them to within one of the county record of 12, held by Immaculata, whose last title came in 2007.
Sophomore Hailey Benbow helped the Argonauts get some distance in the first half, giving them a big lead they would hold the rest of the game. She finished with 17, getting 16 of those in the first half thanks in part to her perimeter sharpshooting, which yielded four treys. Prep had seven in the first half.
Senior Ava LaMonica, who is three-for-three now in SCT finals, finished with 11 points.
Franklin was led by Aleah Sunkins, the talented junior, who finished with a game-high 21 points, 12 of which came after halftime as she tried to rally her team back.
But just like the rest of the game, Rutgers Prep was just too good. They’d work to find open shots, and knock down tough ones if they didn’t have one. And of course, they played Mary Klinger’s trademark suffocating defense, also doing a solid job rebounding, keeping Franklin to frequent one-and-done possessions.
Click below for postgame reaction from senior Ava LaMonica, sophomore Hailey Benbow, and head coach Mary Klinger, presented by Sportsplex at Metuchen:
Discover more from Central Jersey Sports Radio
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.