Montville lost its final two regular season home games to ECC Large teams - no way for the Indians' fine senior class to complete a four-year career dominated by success.
So the Indians took full advantage to send out their six seniors in style, advancing in the girls' basketball league tournament Thursday at home in a 60-44 victory over Stonington.
Senior guard Stephanie Jones shook off a brief late-season scoring slump with a game-high 19 points, and senior forward Dani Autencio contributed her usual steady inside play with nine points and 12 rebounds. But it was an unheralded player who saved the Indians from Stonington's fourth-quarter comeback attempt.
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Jones fouled out with 6:25 left and Montville up by 11, 46-35. In her place, German exchange student Sonja Baulecke, likely playing her last home game, ran the team at point guard, scoring seven points and extending the lead for the Indians (14-7).
"Stephanie is our best player and foul shooter, so you want he to have the ball at the end, but Sonja stepped up," Montville coach Derek Wainwright said. "She wanted the ball in her hands. [Stonington's] Briana Johnson was doing a great job defending our point guard. We decided whichever guard she wasn't on would handle the ball, and their pressure didn't bother us after that."
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Montville advances to the quarterfinals 2 p.m. Saturday against ECC Small champ Plainfield in what shapes up as a toss-up game. Wainwright likes Montville's chances and wants to see this solid senior group, which has seen MHS compile a 62-28 record in the last four years, maximize its final games.
The seniors excel on and off the court. Jones and Autencio are honor roll students. Mandy Joyce, Stephanie Gauthier and Allie Clark are High Honors students, and Chelsea McDermott is a High Honors Roll student with distinction.
"With Sonja, who we expect to go back to Germany, we have seven seniors graduating," Wainwright said. "It's been a great class, led by Stephanie, by far our best player and a great kid, and Dani, one of the most unselfish kids I've ever coached."
It's been an emotional senior year for Jones, whose mother passed away in November. Jones bypassed opportunities to accept scholarships at Division II schools to stay close at home and play at Eastern Connecticut State University next year.
"Stephanie has been through a lot," Wainwright said. "For any 17 year old kid who has a parent pass away, it's crushing. I didn't know what it was going to do to our team, but she's stepped up more than I could imagine and been a leader. When she's playing well, everyone is playing well."
One of the hallmarks of this senior class is the quality of kids who don't command a lot of attention.
"In all reality, I have three seniors who don't get much playing time, but they do everything they are supposed to do," Wainwright said. "They cheer on teammates, they show up to practice. These are kids who would be playing on other teams. They get it, realizing I have to play the best kids. It's unfortunate, but I'm extremely proud of them because nowadays it's easy for kids to say the coach is a jerk and quit."
Competition for playing time is fierce thanks to the emergence of two freshmen, largely 6-foot-2 center Cassidy Bundy, who had 11 points and five blocked shots off the bench. Brother of former NFA All-Area center Trevor Bundy, Cassidy reminded some SHS fans of a very young Heather Buck. She scored three baskets off on inbounds plays under the basket.
"She finished tonight and only missed one shot," Wainwright said. "It's nice having a 6-2 girl for out-of-bounds lob plays. When Stephanie is hitting from the outside and Cassidy from the inside, we're very good."
