Tag: girls basketball

by Mike Pavlichko

Make it seven straight for St. Thomas Aquinas: Trojans top East Brunswick, 62-41, to win yet another GMC Tourney title

It never gets old for St. Thomas Aquinas.

Having won six straight GMC Tournament titles coming in to Friday night’s 40th championship game, second-seed East Brunswick hung around for a while. The Bears were down just six after one, and even had a chance to cut it to nine before the half, but missed a three and ended up down 12.

But the third quarter was the difference. Things opened up – for both teams – but the last thing anyone wants to do is get into a track meet with St. Thomas. They did, and STA extended its lead to 49-29 at the end of three, and by that time, it was well in hand.

In the end, it ended up as a 62-41 win for the top-seed St. Thomas Aquinas (22-5) over second-seed East Brunswick (21-5), as heard live on Central Jersey Sports Radio. It was the Trojans’ seventh straight title, extending their GMC-record streak, the longest for either the boys or girls in the 40-year history of the event.

Senior Jordan Barnes was the game’s high scorer, finishing with 20 points. She was MVP as a sophomore, and probably anyone could have been, but it went to Leah Kearney, well-deserved with a 12-point night, averaging 10 per game in the four tournament games.

The win wa also the 80th straight over GMC opponents – regular season and postseason – with their last loss coming in January of 2022, here against Monroe.

That means the senior fore of Barnes, Trista Whitney – who had nine in the final – and Kayla Navarro never lost a single game against a GMC opponent.

Click below for postgame reaction from Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko with junior and GMC Tournament MVP Leah Kearney, senior Trista Whitney, head coach Tim Corrigan, and senior Jordan Barnes, presented by Sportsplex at Metuchen:

by Mike Pavlichko

Somerset County Tournament Girls’ Final Preview: Rutgers Prep and Franklin to tussle Saturday in first title clash since 2019

Was the 2024-25 season a blip for Rutgers Prep girls basketball? Merely a speed bump in what has been a brilliant run for Mary Klinger’s program over the last 20-plus years?

It sure looks like it.

The Argonauts had won four straight titles before bowing out in last year’s semifinals to Hillsborough. And while the Raiders eventually won the state Group 4 championship, that didn’t take away the pain and heartache. And it’s probably good it didn’t, as it appears to have fueled them in 2025-26, because here they are back in the championship game.

For Franklin, it’s been a little while, They also had a great run a few years back, winning the Tournament of Champions in 2019 and 2019, and the Somerset County Tournament in 2018 and ’19, going 34-0 in that double-title season.

The two will face off Saturday afternoon at 1 pm – top-seed Rutgers Prep and third-seed Franklin – in the Somerset County Tournament Girls’ Championship Game at Montgomery High School in Skillman. Pregame is set for at 12:45, with Mike Pavlichko and Chris Tsakonas calling all the action; click here to listen. That game will be followed by the boys’ title tilt at 3 pm between top-seed Gill St. Bernard’s and second-seed Rutgers Prep.

Adding to the intrigue here is that the Warriors are on their third coach in four years, now led by Jimmy Kreie, who had a successful six-year run at Montclair-Immaculate, going 116-42 before the school shut down, and that their longtime coach before Darryl Robinson (the two seasons prior to Kreie), Audrey Taylor, is now an assistant for Rutgers Prep.

Taylor and Argos’ coach Mary Klinger – now in her 42nd season at the Somerset school on Easton Ave. – have been friends for years. After a couple of seasons taking a break and stepping away from coaching high school, Taylor has joined the bench, and has been an invaluable part of Klinger’s staff.

Either way, Saturday should be a great matchup between two top Somerset County programs, even if Franklin had been a bit down the past couple of seasons. Those results should be irrelevant when you consider that they had to knock off the two-seed to get here: defending champion Gill St. Bernard’s. Despite losing a slew of talent, the Knights have been solid again this year, got a top-seed in their playoff section, and even beat GMC juggernaut St. Thomas Aquinas on their home floor.

Franklin is no joke. Rutgers Prep learned the hard way last season against Hillsborough. Whether they learned from their painful lesson in 2025 will be on display over at least 32 minutes Saturday afternoon.

MORE ON THE SOMERSET COUNTY TOURNAMENT GIRLS’ FINAL:

(1) Rutgers Prep (22-3) vs. (3) Franklin (18-7)
When: Saturday, 1 pm
Where: Montgomery Township High School
Broadcast Team: Mike Pavlichko and Chris Tsakonas (LISTEN HERE)

COACHES:

Rutgers Prep: Mary Klinger (42nd season, 754-266)
Franklin: Jimmy Kreie (1st season, went 116-42 in six seasons at Montclair-Immaculate)

PREVIEW INTERVIEWS:

Rutgers Prep head coach Mary Klinger with Mike Pavlichko
Franklin head coach Jimmy Kreie with Chris Tsakonas

HOW THEY GOT HERE:

Rutgers Prep: Getting a double bye in the tournament beans the Argonauts officially began play in the round of eight quarterfinals. There, they smoked ninth-seed Watchung Hills, 73-30, getting 22 points and six rebounds from senior Ava LaMonica, with another 13 each from Natalia Valdez and Hailey Benbow. But the Argonauts got much more of a challenge from fifth-seed Bound Brook in last Saturday’s semifinals. They escaped with a 55-49 win in a game this very same team, a year ago, might have lost. Crusader freshman phenom Peytan Pugh was a big reason why the game was competitive, with 23 points and seven rebounds, but more importantly eight steals, many of which came in the second half as Bound Brook made it quite the game. But the Argonauts were balanced that afternoon, with Benbow scoring 11, Valdez and Sophia Goergiades adding ten each, and LaMonica scoring nine points in the game.

Franklin: Jamila McRiney was the top scorer in the Warriors’ quarterfinal win over sixth-seed Pingry, 45-33, also grabbing eight rebounds and going 7-of-10 at the foul line, but the semifinals belonged to Franklin’s best player, Aleah Sunkins. The junior had a double-double of 20 points and 14 rebounds, with a trey, and going 5-of-7 at the foul line in a 53-49 upset win over No. 2 seed Gill St. Bernard’s the tournament’s defending champion, snapping their four-year streak of finals’ appearances, and clinching their first trip to the SCT title game since they beat Rutgers Prep in 2019.

TOP SCORERS:

Rutgers Prep: Hailey Benbow (sophomore, 13.4 ppg, 21 treys), Ava LaMonica (senior, 12.2 ppg, 10 treys), Sophia Georgiades (senior, 9.1 ppg, team-best 30 treys)
Franklin: Aleah Sunkins (junior, 17.8 ppg, 27 treys), Aliva Stewart (8.6 ppg), Alissa Myers (8.5 ppg, 46 treys)

TOP REBOUNDERS:

Rutgers Prep: Hailey Benbow (6.4), Ava LaMonica (3.6)
Franklin: Aleah Sunkins (10.6), Aliva Stewart (6.5)

MISCELLANEOUS:

Rutgers Prep: Hailey Benbow (60 assists, 59 steals), Ava LaMonica (56 assists, 41 steals), Hannah Fraser (25 blocks)
Franklin: Aleah Sunkins (85 assists, 49 blocks, 53 steals) Jamila McRiney, Kayla Duncan (58 assists), Nola Bright (27 blocks), Alissa Myers (47 steals)

RECENT MEETINGS: Rutgers Prep has won the last 11 in this series, with its last loss against Franklin coming in the 2019 Somerset County Tournament title game. That eleven-game stretch includes Argo wins in the 2023 and 2024 SCT semifinals, and a regular season meeting in the Metro Classic at Franklin in 2024. The Warriors won three in a row before that stretch, and two were in the county finals. Franklin beat Prep in the 2018 title game, before reaching the Tournament of Champions final a year after its first TOC crown. They beat Prep the next year in the regular season, and again in the SCT title tilt, 63-49, en route to one of the greatest public school seasons of all-time, a 34-0 record and a second TOC championship.

SOMERSET COUNTY TOURNAMENT HISTORY:

Rutgers Prep (10-4):

  • 2004:     (2) Rutgers Prep beat (1) Immaculata 34-32
  • 2005:     (1) Hillsborough beat (3) Rutgers Prep 40-29
  • 2006:     (5) Hillsborough beat (2) Rutgers Prep 51-45
  • 2008:     (1) Rutgers Prep beat (2) Watchung Hills 38-34
  • 2011:     (1) Rutgers Prep beat (6) Bridgewater-Raritan 62-56
  • 2012:     (1) Gill St. Bernard’s beat (6) Rutgers Prep 57-45
  • 2015:     Rutgers Prep beat Franklin 52-46
  • 2016:     Rutgers Prep beat Gill St. Bernard’s 41-28
  • 2017:     Rutgers Prep beat Gill St. Bernard’s 62-35
  • 2018:     Franklin beat Rutgers Prep 68-49
  • 2019:     Franklin beat Rutgers Prep 63-49
  • 2020:     (1) Rutgers Prep beat (3) Watchung Hills 60-34
  • 2022:     (1) Rutgers Prep beat (2) Gill St. Bernard’s 64-35
  • 2023:     (1) Rutgers Prep beat (2) Gill St. Bernard’s 64-39
  • 2024:     (1) Rutgers Prep beat (2) Gill St. Bernard’s 58-55

Franklin (2-3):

  • 2013:     Gill St. Bernard’s beat Franklin 63-57
  • 2014:     Gill St. Bernard’s beat Franklin 55-51
  • 2015:     Rutgers Prep beat Franklin 52-46
  • 2018:     Franklin beat Rutgers Prep 68-49
  • 2019:     Franklin beat Rutgers Prep 63-49

OTHER NOTES:

Looking for more: Since the merger of the Somerset County Tournament from an A and B Tournament to one event in 1988, Immaculata has won the most titles with 12, followed by Rutgers Prep with ten. The Spartans won four straight from 1991-1994, then had a five-year run from 1999 to 2003.

Another for the publics: Last year, Hillsborough became the first public school to make the Somerset County girls’ final since Watchung Hills did it in 2020, falling to Rutgers Prep, 60-34. Now, Franklin is the second public school to gain a finals berth in as many years. The last time it happened was when they won those titles in 2018 and 2019 over Rutgers Prep. They also made three-in-a-row from 2013 through 2015, losing all three. The last besides them was Bridgewater-Raritan, which lost in 2010 to Gill St. Bernard’s and Rutgers Prep in 2011.

Two new teams: With Rutgers Prep facing Franklin in the title game, it’s the first time in a while the SCT championship will not feature a defending champion and a returning finalist, as neither 2025 champion Gill St. Bernard’s nor runner-up Franklin are in it. So, when was the last time that happened? It was 17 years ago, in 2009. Rutgers Prep beat Watchung Hills in the 2008 final, and it was Gill over Somerville the next year in the 2009 title tilt.

by Mike Pavlichko

GMC Tournament Girls’ Final Preview: Lucky 7? Or a boxcar? St. Thomas Aquinas and East Brunswick to battle Friday night for league title

Win a couple of championships, and people start talking about a dynasty. Win six in a row, and it’s a pretty good bet that’s what you’ve got.

Win seven?

That’s what the St. Thomas Aquinas girls’ basketball program will try and do Friday night down at Monroe Twp. High School when they play in the 40th Greater Middlesex Conference Tournament championship game.

As the top-seeded Trojans seek their ninth GMC title, and 10th county trophy overall, East Brunswick will be looking for its sixth GMC – and seventh overall as the second-seeded Bears return to the title game for the first time since 2016.

That year, the Bears beat Monroe for the title with Keith Lane at the helm, but the team they beat in the semifinals was Bishop Ahr, which now is St. Thomas (again – that was the school’s name originally). That’s also the last time they beat Ahr/Aquinas, with 14 losses in between.

You can hear Friday’s GMC Tournament championship doubleheader exclusively on Central Jersey Sports Radio Friday night, starting with the 6 pm girls’ opener, followed by the boys’ championship at 8:00 between top-seed St. Joseph-Metuchen and second-seed Piscataway. Mike Pavlichko and Justin Sontupe will call all the action, with pregame starting at 5:45 for the girls’ game. Click here to listen.

Until Colonia’s 20-point loss to St. Thomas on Tuesday in the semifinals, East Brunswick had gotten the closest to STA in almost three years back on January 17th, within 21 points in a 76-54 loss. It was their narrowest margin of victory against a GMC opponent since the Patriots got within seven in a 49-42 loss to Aquinas in the 2023 GMC Tournament title game.

MORE ON THE GMC TOURNAMENT GIRLS’ FINAL:

(1) St. Thomas Aquinas (21-5) vs. (2) East Brunswick (21-4)
When: Friday, 6 pm
Where: Monroe Township High School
Broadcast Team: Mike Pavlichko and Justin Sontupe (LISTEN HERE)

COACHES:

St. Thomas Aquinas: Tim Corrigan, 3rd season (66-20)
East Brunswick: Travis Retzlaff. 7th season (102-62)

PREVIEW INTERVIEWS:

St. Thomas Aquinas head coach Tim Corrigan with Justin Sontupe
East Brunswick head coach Travis Retzlaff with Justin Sontupe

HOW THEY GOT HERE:

St. Thomas Aquinas: The difference between the Trojans last year and this year in divisional play – the GMC’s top division, the Red American – is negligible; they won their ten games against East Brunswick, Piscataway, Monroe and North Plainfeld by an average 40.4 points per game. That’s down slightly from an even 45 last season, their highest in the last six seasons where they’ve won the GMC Tournament title. And in their first two games, they were not really tested. Not in an 83-39 win over 16-seed Sayreville in the round of 16, nor in a 79-41 win over 8-seed Middlesex in the quarterfinals. But in the semis, Colonia had some chances, but couldn’t get closer than 17 points in the second half after Aquinas built a sizeable lead, and Aquinas won by 20. That’s the closest anyone has gotten to STA in the GMC since the 2003 final, when the beat Colonia 49-42.

East Brunswick: The Bears cruised in their opening two games as well, 68-30 over 18th-seed North Brunswick in the first round, and 59-31 over seven-seed Monroe at home in the quarterfinals. The semis were a bit closer, but East Brunswick was able to control most of the way en route to a 52-38 win Wednesday night.

TOP SCORERS:

St. Thomas Aquinas: Jordan Barnes (senior, 16.9 ppg, 5 treys), Trista Whitney (senior, 11.8 ppg, 21 treys), Lauryn Downing (junior, 11.7 ppg, team-best 37 treys), Leah Kearney (junior, 10.8 ppg, 4 treys)
East Brunswick: Ava Catanho (sophomore, 18.1 ppg, team-best 50 treys), Zoey Alexio (junior, 10.1 ppg, 46 treys), Julianna DelosSantos-Branson (senior, 9.6 ppg, 15 treys)

TOP REBOUNDERS:

St. Thomas Aquinas: Leah Kearney (9.8), Jordan Barnes (5.5)
East Brunswick: Julianna DelosSantos-Branson (8.4), Sophia Tannura (junior, 4.4)

MISCELLANEOUS:

St. Thomas Aquinas: Lauryn Downing (143 assists), Leah Kearney (37 blocks), Trista Whitney (79 steals)
East Brunswick: Ava Krzywdzinski (133 assists, 59 steals), Ava Catancho (20 blocks)

RECENT MEETINGS: Aquinas has won 14 straight in the series, dating back to 2019 when they were still called Bishop Ahr, winning the first in that stretch under that moniker. Until the last few years, St. Thomas had been in the White Division, so the two didn’t play all that frequently. In fact, they only played four times – three times in the GMC Tournament – from 2014 to 2019. East Brunswick’s last win came in 2016, when they beat Ahr in the GMC Tournament semifinals, 44-0, en route to the title, which they won over Monroe. That was the Bears’ last trip to the title game.

GMC TOURNAMENT HISTORY:

St. Thomas Aquinas (also previously known as Bishop Ahr) (9-5):

  • 1984:  (1) Bishop Ahr 52, (2) St. Peter 49 (MCT)
  • 1985:  (1) St. Peter 40, (2) Bishop Ahr 21 (MCT)
  • 1986:  (1) Hoffman 55, (2) Bishop Ahr 52
  • 1987:  (1) Hoffman 74, (2) Bishop Ahr 46
  • 1994:  (2) Bishop Ahr 51, (1) East Brunswick 36
  • 1996:  (2) East Brunswick 50, (5) Bishop Ahr 43
  • 2001:  (5) Bishop Ahr 55, (2) East Brunswick 43
  • 2014:  (2) Piscataway 50, (12) Bishop Ahr 45
  • 2019:  (1) Bishop Ahr 47, (2) Edison 32
  • 2020:  (1) St. Thomas Aquinas 64, (3) Monroe 41
  • 2021:  (3) Monroe 46, (2) St. Thomas Aquinas 40 (de facto championship: Somogyi Family Pod)
  • 2022:  (1) St. Thomas Aquinas 64, (7) South Brunswick 58
  • 2023:  (1) St. Thomas Aquinas 49, (3) Colonia 42
  • 2024:  (1) St. Thomas Aquinas 71, (2) Colonia 52
  • 2025:  (1) St. Thomas Aquinas 93, (2) Monroe 34

East Brunswick (5-7):

  • 1992:  (2) St. Peter 60, (1) East Brunswick 58 (OT)
  • 1993:  (3) JP Stevens 62, (1) East Brunswick 42
  • 1994:  (2) Bishop Ahr 51, (1) East Brunswick 36
  • 1995:  (1) Piscataway 44, (3) East Brunswick 37
  • 1996:  (2) East Brunswick 50, (5) Bishop Ahr 43
  • 1997:  (1) Piscataway 58, (2) East Brunswick 40
  • 1998:  (2) Piscataway 52, (1) East Brunswick 51
  • 1999:  (1) East Brunswick 62, (3) Piscataway 51
  • 2000:  (1) East Brunswick 68, (2) Edison 43
  • 2001:  (5) Bishop Ahr 55, (2) East Brunswick 43
  • 2002:  (1) East Brunswick 62, (2) Edison 51
  • 2016:  (2) East Brunswick 42, (1) Monroe 31

OTHER NOTES:

Postseason Awards: The GMC coaches unveiled their All-Conference and All-Division picks Tuesday, and two St. Thomas players made the list of ten all-GMC picks: seniors Jordan Barnes and Trista Whitney. Barnes committed to Rider back in July, while Trista Whitney will be heading to Maryland-Eastern Shore. Ava Catanho of East Brunswick was named All-GMC, and she’s just a sophomore. The only other 10th grader to make the list was Alyssa Iduh of Piscataway. Head coach Travis Retzlaff of East Brunswick was named Coach of the Year. As for All-Division, besides Barnes and Whitney, juniors Lauryn Downing and Leah Kearney were honored from St. Thomas, and senior Julianna DelosSantos-Branson also was named from East Brunswick.

Athletic Lineage: Speaking of Catanho, if that name sounds familiar, it is. The young East Brunswick star is the daughter of Kara Motusesky, an assistant under head coach Travis Retzlaff, and former Rutgers football standout and Elizabeth native Alcides Catanho. Motusesky’s brother, Mark, is the boys’ coach at East Brunswick, having succeeded longtime head coach Bo Henning, and she herself was a standout for he Bears (a 1993 alum), scoring 1,614 points in her career. She held the girls’ scoring record until Jess Olszewski topped it in the 1999-2000 season, finishing 42 points ahead with 1,656. The Motuseskys are also cousins of longtime Spotswood baseball coach Glenny Fredricks.

Injuries? Not a problem: Not much to speak of here. Lauryn Downing missed a handful of games heading into the GMC Tournament – including a big clash up at Gill St. Bernard’s, which they lost 67-62 as heard on Central Jersey Sports Radio – with a slight ankle sprain. She probably could have played, but even a big game like that isn’t as important as having her healthy for the GMC Tournament run. Downing looked in fine form Tuesday night down in Monroe in the semifinal win over Colonia, draining a career-high six threes.

The names may change… The last four St. Thomas/Bishop Ahr girls’ coaches have all won championships for the Trojans. Current mentor Tim Corrigan has won the last two in his first two seasons as coach, following two titles under Joe Whalen. Before that, Britney Griffin won a pair of titles – in 2020 as Aquinas, and 2019 as Bishop Ahr. Her predecessor, longtime coach Kevin Harper – one of the winningest girls’ coaches in New Jersey history, with 722 victories at Piscataway Tech, Ahr and Middlesex – took them to four finals, winning in 1994 and 2001.

Second Win: Tim Corrigan is one of a dozen GMC girls’ coaches who have won multiple titles (also counting the MCT from 1975 through 1985), including two from his school – Kevin Harper and Brittney Griffin. The others are Reggie Carney of East Brunswick, who has the most titles at seven, followed by Ernie Vajda of now-defunct St. Peter’s-New Brunswick with five. Piscataway’s Pat Mayo won five in the 2000s at Piscataway. Andy Eng of JP Stevens and Bev Hall of Piscataway each won three times, while George Hosea (South Brunswick), Corey Floyd (Piscataway), Pat Daly (New Brunswick) and Paul Kumlin (Piscataway) all have won two. Four different Piscataway coaches have won multiple titles over the years.

Streaking: St. Thomas is third on the list of consecutive finals appearances, making their sixth in a row this year, winning all previous five. They also have won more consecutive games in the GMC Tournament than any other school in history, 27 and counting, four each in the past six tournaments, and three this year.

How the seeds fare: In 48 championship games, the top seed has won 31 times, while the second seed has won nine times. When it’s No. 1 vs. No. 2 in the title game, which has happened only 24 times, the top-seed is 19-5. When the top seed is in the final, it has won seven straight. The last team to knock off a No. 1 seed? East Brunswick in 2016.

1-2, 1-2: Since the dawn of the GMC in 1986, this is the ninth time both the girls’ and boys’ title games have featured the 1 vs. the 2 seeds. It happened last year, with both No. 1 seeds winning: the St. Thomas Aquinas girls and the Colonia boys. They last time both games had the top two seeds before that? Again, 2016 keeps popping up. , when the top-seeded St. Joe’s boys beat South Brunswick, and the 2nd-seeded East Brunswick girls beat top-seed Monroe. It also happened the year before, in 2015, when the second-seeded Colonia boys beat St. Joseph, and top-seed Piscataway topped Monroe on the girls’ side. Other double 1 vs. 2 years include 2010, 1998, 1994, 1992 and 1989.

by Mike Pavlichko

INSTANT REPLAY – GMC Tournament Girls’ Semifinals: (1) St. Thomas Aquinas 76, (4) Colonia 56

Junior Lauryn Downing scored 22 points – including six triples – to lead top-seed St. Thomas Aquinas to a 76-56 win over fourth-seed Colonia in the GMC Tournament semifinals, bringing the Trojans back to the title game for a chance to win their seventh straight championship.

Click below to listen to Mike Pavlichko and Dylan Allen call all the play-by-play from Monroe Township High School on February 17, 2026.

by Mike Pavlichko

INSTANT REPLAY – GMC Tournament Girls’ Semifinals: (2) East Brunswick 52, (3) Piscataway 38

Sophomore Ava Catanho scored 13 points while junior Mia Figueroa added another 11 second-seed East Brunswick clinched its first GMC Tournament finals berth in a decade with a 52-38 win over third-seed Piscataway.

Click below to listen to Mike Pavlichko and Dylan Allen call all the play-by-play from Monroe Township High School on February 17, 2026.

by Mike Pavlichko

East Brunswick earns first trip back to GMC Tourney final since they won it all in 2016, with 52-38 semifinal victory over Piscataway

The East Brunswick girls’ basketball team last won the GMC Tournament title in 2016.

Ten years later, that team could have another reason to celebrate.

That’s because the 2026-26 Lady Bears – the tournament’s second-seed are going back to the finals for the first time since, after a 52-38 win over third-seed Piscataway in the semifinals at Monroe Twp. High School Tuesday night, heard live on Central Jersey Sports Radio.

The Chiefs got the first basket of the game, but 2-0 was the only time they would lead. East Brunswick (21-4) went on a quick 9-0 run to take a seven-point lead, and though it would get closer at various points in the first half – even just 22-18 at halftime – the lead grew and shrunk, in double-digits most of the second half, but never changed hands again.

Thanks to Piscataway Township and Mayor Brian Wahler for sponsoring tonight’s game!

The Chiefs have been a team with great three-point range all year, but the shots just weren’t going in. Otherwise, it might have been a different game. Every time Piscataway would come up with a stop, or a mini-run, East Brunswick was there to counter back.

And while Piscataway – now 15-8 – has had a fine season with a starting five made up entirely of sophomores, it was another soph who was the difference for East Brunswick, as she has been the entire season.

Ava Catanho finished with a team-high 13 points for the Bears (20-4) and had one triple. Sophia Tannura had tow and finished with six points, but each seemed to come at big moments with Piscataway trying to get back in the game. Sophomore Violet Azcona of Piscataway was the game’s high scorer with 14 points.

Coming into the game, Piscataway was 17-0 when holding opponents to 54 points or less. Tuesday night was the exception, as the Bears won it with just 52 points.

Now, East Brunswick is going back to the title game in the GMC Tournament, where they’ll be back at Monroe Friday night at 6 pm against six-time defending champion and top-seed St. Thomas Aquinas, which was a 76-56 winner over fourth-seed Colonia in the nightcap semifinal. 

The Bears will be looking for their sixth GMC Tournament championship, and seventh county title overall.

Click below for postgame reaction with East Brunswick sophomore Ava Catanho and head coach Travis Retzlaff with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko, presented by Sportsplex at Metuchen:

by Mike Pavlichko

NJSIAA unveils 2026 girls’ basketball state tournament brackets: No. 1 seeds go to Franklin, Somerville, Gill St. Bernard’s and Rutgers Prep

The NJSIAA has announced its playoff pairings for the 2026 girls’ basketball state tournament, with the seeding taking place down in Robbinsville Tuesday morning, and four teams from the Central Jersey Sports Radio coverage area earned top seeds.

Among the publics, fresh off an upset of second-seed and defending champion Gill St. Bernard’s in Saturday’s Somerset County Tournament semifinals, Franklin got the top seed in Central Jersey Group 4, while Somerville earned the No. 1 seed in Central 2.

On the non-public side, just as they did on the boys’ side, the Gill St. Bernard’s and Rutgers Prep girls were awarded No. 1 seeds in Non-Public North and South B, respectively.

Overall, 36 teams from the CJSR coverage area qualified.

The NJSIAA state playoffs begins on Tuesday, February 24th, with the opening round for public sections in Groups 2 and 4. Groups 1 and 3 begin the next day, while Non-Public Group A begins play on Thursday, March 26, and Group B the day after. Public sectional finals are Friday and Saturday, March 6-7, while non-publics are held on Monday, March 9. The state finals will be at Rutgers, with Non-Public A and B title games on Thursday, March 12th, public Groups 2 and 4 Saturday, March 14, and Groups 1 and 3 on Sunday, March 15.

Here are the first-round matchups, section by section, with CJSR-area teams in bold. The brackets become official as of noon Wednesday.

Central Jersey Group 4

  • (16) Manalapan at (1) Franklin
  • (9) Sayreville at (8) Freehold Twp.
  • (12) Monroe at (5) Jackson Twp.
  • (13) Trenton at (4) Hunterdon Central
  • (14) West Windsor-Plainsboro South at (3) Hillsborough
  • (11) Old Bridge at (6) Princeton
  • (10) Montgomery at (7) Marlboro
  • (15) Hightstown at (2) East Brunswick

Central Jersey Group 2

  • (16) Ocean Twp. at (1) Manasquan
  • (9) Spotswood at (8) Delaware Valley
  • (12) Robbinsville at (5) Bordentown
  • (13) Metuchen at (4) South River
  • (14) Holmdel at (3) Johnson
  • (11) Governor Livingston at (6) Piscataway Magnet
  • (10 Delran at (7) Point Pleasant Beach
  • (15) Wall at (2) Rumson-Fair Haven

Central Jersey Group 1

  • (16) Dunellen at (1) New Providence
  • (9) Middlesex at (8) Shore
  • (12) Highland Park at (5) Brearley
  • (13) Henry Hudson at (4) South Amboy
  • (14) College Achieve Central at (3) Keansburg
  • (11) Florence at Roselle Park
  • (10) Manville at (7) Thrive Charter
  • (15) Dayton at (2) Bound Brook

North Jersey, Section 2, Group 4

  • (16) Scotch Plains-Fanwood at (1) Bayonne
  • (9) Woodbridge at (8) North Star Academy
  • (12) Linden at (5) Columbia
  • (13) Ridge at (4) Plainfield
  • (14) Perth Amboy at (3) Piscataway
  • (11) Union at (6) Elizabeth
  • (10) Watchung Hills at (7) Bridgewater-Raritan
  • (15) JP Stevens at (2) Westfield

North Jersey, Section 2, Group 3

  • (16) Warren Hills at (1) Somerville
  • (9) Carteret at (8) Summit
  • (12) Randolph at (5) Chatham
  • (13) North Plainfield at (4) Cranford
  • (14) Orange at (3) Millburn
  • (11) Fort Lee at (6) North Hunterdon
  • (10) South Plainfield at (7) Mendham
  • (15) Cliffside Park at (2) Colonia

North Jersey, Section 2, Group 2

  • (16) Harrison at (1) Caldwell
  • (9) Ridgefield Park at (8) Snyder
  • (12) West Morris at (5) Rutherford
  • (13) Weequahic at (4) Voorhees
  • (14) West Side at (3) Madison
  • (11) Hoboken at (6) Hackettstown
  • (10) Newark Collegiate at (7) Hanover Park
  • (15) Lyndhurst at (2) Bernards

Non-Public North A

  • (9) Oak Knoll at (8) Montclair-Kimberley, winner at (1) Morris Catholic
  • (12) Holy Angels at (5) Mount St. Dominic
  • (13) Newark Academy at (4) DePaul
  • (14) St. Elizabeth at (3) Pope John
  • (11) Kent Place at (6) Pingry
  • (10) Paramus Catholic at (7) Dwight-Englewood
  • (15) Morristown-Beard at (2) Immaculate Heart

Non-Public North B (all teams have first-round bye, will begin play with quarterfinals)

  • (8) Pioneer Academy at (1) Gill St. Bernard’s
  • (5) Eastern Christian at (4) Villa Walsh
  • (6) St. Dominic at (3) Hudson Catholic
  • (7) Roselle Catholic at (2) Saddle River Day

Non-Public South A

  • (9) Princeton Day at (8) Union Catholic, winner at (1) Red Bank Catholic
  • (12) Our Lady of Mercy at (5) Trinity Hall
  • (13) Immaculata at (4) St. Thomas Aquinas
  • (14) Mount St. Mary at (3) Paul VI
  • (11) Notre Dame at (6) Camden Catholic
  • (10) St. Rose at (7) Bishop Eustace
  • (15) Donovan Catholic at (2) St. John Vianney

Non-Public South B

  • (9) Holy Cross Prep at (8) Doane Academy, winner at (1) Rutgers Prep
  • (12) Noor-ul-iman at (5) Stuart Day, winner at (4) Holy Spirit
  • (11) Ranney at (6) Moorestown Friends, winner at (3) Wildwood Catholic
  • (10 Calvary Christian at (7) Koinonia, winner at (2) Gloucester Catholic
by Mike Pavlichko

GMC Girls’ Basketball Coaches name 2025-26 All-Division, All-Conference teams

On the eve of Championship week, the 34 girls’ basketball coaches in the Greater Middlesex Conference met to pick their All-Division teams, with ten student-athletes ultimately earning All-GMC Honors.

With the league tournament’s semifinals tonight, three of those teams are represented on the All-Conference list, including Jordan Barnes and Trista Whitney of St. Thomas Aquinas, Ava Catanho of East Brunswick and Alyssa Iduh of Piscataway.

For All-Division, slots for honorees by team typically – but not always – depend on the order of finish; where division champs generally are afforded the most representation.

East Brunswick’s Travis Retzlaff – whose second-seeded Lady Bears face third-seed Piscataway tonight at 5 pm in the first of two semifinal matchups – was named Coach of the Year. East Brunswick finished second to STA in the Red American Division this season and is 20-4 on the year, their first-20-win season under Retzlaff and first as a program since 2018.

Here’s the full list of GMC girls’ basketball honorees.

ALL-CONFERENCE

  • Jordan Barnes, St. Thomas Aquinas
  • Ava Catanho, East Brunswick
  • Layla Gutierrez, North Plainfield
  • Angel Smith, Woodbridge
  • Trista Whitney, St. Thomas Aquinas
  • Izabella Pardo, Perth Amboy
  • Gabrielle Hill, Spotswood
  • Kiera Longo, Monroe
  • Alyssa Iduh, Piscataway
  • Aliyah Manley, JP Stevens

Coach of the Year: Travis Retzlaff, East Brunswick

ALL-RED AMERICAN DIVISION

  • St. Thomas Aquinas: Jordan Barnes, Trista Whitney, Lauren Downing, Leah Kearney
  • East Brunswick:  Ava Catanho, Julianna DelosSantos-Branson
  • Piscataway: Alyssa Iduh
  • Monroe: Kiera Longo
  • North Plainfield: Layla Gutierrez
  • South Brunswick: Madison Rorie

Coach of the Year: Travis Retzlaff, East Brunswick
Sportsmanship Award: South Brunswick

ALL-RED NATIONAL DIVISION

  • Colonia: Nashaelah Hooker, Ariana Sosa, Samantha Howell
  • Old Bridge: Marilyn Togun
  • Spotswood: Gabrielle Hill, Cat Caro, Kayla Lewandowski
  • Middlesex: Avery Iskra, Taylor Lawrence
  • Edison: Kayley Smith

Coach of the Year: Jill Bachonski, Colonia
Sportsmanship Award: Middlesex

ALL-WHITE AMERICAN DIVISION

  • Woodbridge: Angel Smith, Laila Stanford, Bobbi Jo Timinski
  • JP Stevens: Aliyah Manley, Siddhangana Nelluri
  • North Brunswick: Shahd Elshamma, Shiloh Connage
  • South Plainfield: Jiselle Lennon, Samantha Moench, MaKenzie Harris

Coach of the Year: Bobby Timinski, Woodbridge
Sportsmanship Award: North Brunswick

ALL-WHITE NATIONAL DIVISION

  • Sayreville: Natalia Glazewski, Weronika Glazewski
  • Metuchen: Victoria Zaniecki, Grace Van Leeuwen
  • Carteret:  Anilah Diggs, Samantha Woode
  • JFK: Sanai Trotman
  • Highland Park: Ava Kohler
  • Perth Amboy: Izabella Pardo, Heilyn Cruz

Coach of the Year: Janet Cook, Sayreville
Sportsmanship Award: JFK

ALL-BLUE AMERICAN DIVISION

  • South River: Gianna Castelhano, Arianna Perez, Gabriella Castelhano
  • Calvary Christian: Sophia Hernandez, Meghan Mecke, Ella Vegnelis
  • Mother Seton: Mia Pumarada, Ava Barber
  • Wardlaw-Hartridge: Cydney Strauss
  • Dunellen:  Madison Fuller

Coach of the Year: Nicole Curran, South River
Sportsmanship Award: Calvary Christian

ALL-BLUE NATIONAL DIVISION

  • Piscataway Magnet: Eva Hernandez, Alivia Tucker, Alaina Tucker
  • Woodbridge Academy: Diya Sudhini
  • South Amboy: Gabby Evancki, Valerie Figueroa
  • East Brunswick Magnet: Leila Hagins, Victoria Harmon
  • Piscataway Magnet: Cyrae Brooks, Joanna Ajay

Coach of the Year: Rob Gardella, Piscataway Magnet
Sportsmanship Award: Woodbridge Academy

by Mike Pavlichko

East Brunswick, surging Piscataway to meet in GMC Tournament semis Tuesday, seeking first finals trips in a while

In the last six years that St. Thomas Aquinas has won the GMC Tournament, they have faced Monroe and Colonia twice, South Brunswick and Edison once.

And while they’re a heavy favorite to get back to the finals again this year – and win it all – there’s one certainty: they will finally face someone new if and when they get there.

Second-seed East Brunswick (20-4) and third-seed Piscataway (15-7) haven’t seen the title game in a while, but one of them will be there Friday night down at Monroe Township High School. To get there, they’ll have to win the opener of Tuesday night’s GMC Tournament semifinal doubleheader, also at Monroe.

You can hear that game live on Central Jersey Sports Radio, with Mike Pavlichko and Dylan Allen calling all the action. Coverage begins at 4:45 with the pregame show, and tip-off between the Bears and Chiefs at 5:00. Click here to listen. The game will be immediately followed by top-seed and six-time defending champ St. Thomas Aquinas playing fourth-seed Colonia at 7 pm.

East Brunswick has been fantastic all year long, in a season that has been the culmination of the vast majority of the team playing together for the last several years, even before they got to high school. They’re fast and athletic, can play “D” and shoot the three. Ava Catanho leads the team in scoring at 18.3 points per game, and has a team-high 49 treys on the year, with juniors Zoey Alexio and Sophia Tannura not far behind, with 46 and 42, respectively. They are one of the top three-point shooting teams in the state, with 188 on the year coming into the game.

Julianna DelosSantos-Branson – “JDB,” as she’s known to her teammates, is the team’s top rebounder at 8.3 per game, and also has a team-best 19 blocks and 15 steals. Sophomore Ava Krzywdzinski dishes out 5.3 assists per contest.

Thanks to Piscataway Township and Mayor Brian Wahler for sponsoring tonight’s Piscataway game!

They’ll face a Piscataway team that scores a little less – just under 54 points per game, while EB scores 59 – but can also hit from beyond the arc, with 135 on the season, led by sophomore Caelyn Cook, who has 47 treys, while leading the team in scoring at 13.5 and assists with 67. Sophomore Alyssa Iduh averages a double-double – 11.8 points and 14.1 rebounds, while also rejecting a team-best 64 shots. He has 15 double-doubles in 22 games played this season. Another sophomore, Violet Azcona, has 54 steals to lead the team, averaging 11.5 points a game.

Notice a trend here? This team is young. There are no seniors on the roster, one junior, and two freshmen. The starting lineup is all sophomores, as are their top six scorers.

East Brunswick may have a little more depth in what has been a tremendous season, the Bears’ first 20-win campaign since 2017-18. They lost in the GMC Tournament semifinals that year, and were knocked out of the state tournament in the first round. They are hoping for a better outcome this year, seeking their first finals berth since 2016, when they beat Monroe for their sixth county title overall.

Piscataway is seeking its first trip back since 2018, when they also won it, beating Edison for their 14th overall crown.

The Bears and Chiefs combined have won 17 of the 39 GMC Tournament titles, heading into this, the 40th edition. Two of Piscataway’s and one of East Brunswick’s crowns came in the old Middlesex County Tournament, before the formation of the GMC in 1985-86.

Click below for preview interviews with both head coaches:

East Brunswick head coach Travis Retzlaff with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko
Piscataway head coach Brian Tuskan with Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Dylan Allen
by Mike Pavlichko

Somerset County’s two 20-win teams to square off in Saturday’s SCT semifinals, as resurgent Bound Brook girls face powerhouse Rutgers Prep

By no stretch of the imagination did the Rutgers Prep and Bound Brook girls’ basketball teams have “bad” years, or even so-so seasons, at least not by most people’s standards.

The Argonauts finished 20-7, while the Crusaders went 19-7.

But Rutgers Prep didn’t make the county finals for the first time in ten seasons, and they got beat by Gloucester Catholic in the Non-Public South B Final. And The Brook won five titles in a row from 2016-2020.

This season, they are the only two 20-win teams in the Skyland Conference (so far), their county, and Saturday at noon they’ll face off at Franklin High School in the Somerset County Tournament semifinals, in a game you can hear live on Central Jersey Sports Radio. Mike Pavlichko and Chris Tsakonas will call all the action, with pregame set for 11:45 am. Click here to listen.

Rutgers Prep (20-2, 5-0 Skyland Delaware Division Champs) is the well-deserved No. 1 seed, their only two losses have come to Red Bank Catholic and Cardinal O’Hara (PA) in showcase games. Bound Brook (21-1, 8-0 Skyland Mountain Division Champs) took its only loss at the hands of Union Catholic, in their own Crusader Classic over the holidays. And yet, Bound Brook, the five-seed is a decided underdog.

Not that that’s ever stopped the Crusaders before. And it helps that hey have a freshman sensation in Peytan Pugh. Averaging 18.1 points per game, 7.7 rebounds, she’s also the team leader in assists (149, 6.8 per game) and steals (191, 8.7 per game), along with a team-best 20 blocks.

But she’s not the only one who can score. Senior Ti’asjah Ferguson is averaging 12.6 per game, and has 75 steals on the year for a defense that has logged more than Rutgers Prep, by a wide margin: 372-217.

That’s the kind of defense Bound Brook will need.

But while they have played a challenging schedule when they can, Rutgers Prep is another story. While Bound Brook coach Jen Derevjanik has been through the wars (go back to those five straight sectional titles) and has WNBA playing experience, her players have not – at least not yet – and with the Argonauts, they will see a veteran group.

Prep was fully expecting a bounce-back year coming into 2025-26, bringing back every starter and every single key bench player as well. Sophomore Hailey Benbow is the team’s top scorer (13.5 per game) and rebounder (7 per game), while also logging a team-best 52 steals, but the senior leader is Ava LaMonica.

Talk about someone who’s been through the wars, the four-year starter is averaging 12.7 points per game. Fellow senior Sophia Georgiades – in her second year at Prep after a transfer in from Ridge last season – is the team’s top three-point shooter, with 23 on the year.

Click below for preview interviews with both head coaches:

Rutgers Prep head coach Mary Klinger
Bound Brook head coach Jen Derevjanik