Madison's ST. VINCENT 8TH Grade EAGLES Soar to Championship

Standing L-R: Lauren Kilgore, Gianna DeMattheis, Brianna Cutler, Katie Brennan, Ella Kretten, Isabella Vescera, Lucy McGurn. Kneeling L-R: Mary McKenna, Sarah Barber, Grace McKenna and Ciara Collins. (Missing from photo Abigail DeChiara

Over the course of a long basketball season, sometimes it takes a little adversity for a team’s fortune to turn positive. That certainly can describe the St. Vincent Martyr 8th grade girls basketball team for the 2016-2017 season. At one point during the year, the team found itself riding a 3 game losing streak, bringing their overall record to 3 wins and 6 losses. The season appeared lost and the girl’s confidence level was at it’s lowest. Two days later, an amazing, incredible resurgence commenced fostering an eleven game winning streak, enabling the St. Vincent Eagles to win 14 of their last 15 games and finish the season at 17-7. Earlier this month, during the annual ‘March Madness’ Tournament in the Morris County Catholic Basketball League, the team’s great run culminated with the Girls Varsity National Division Championship.

Heading into the tournament, the Eagles were seeded 3rd out of 7 teams and knew their road to a championship would lead to some familiar opponents. In the first round, St. Vincent’s squared off against a spirited St. Mary’s team of Denville, and took control early holding on for a 37-24 victory. The next day in the semi-final round, St. Vincent’s would face the Assumption School from Morristown, marking the 5th time this season that the two rivals met with each team winning twice. The Eagle’s fast start offensively and their suffocating press defense, proved to be no match for Assumption as St. Vincent’s won in convincing fashion 37-14. The stage was set for the finals to be played a week later against St. Elizabeth’s School of Bernardsville. On Saturday night, March 11th, at the Academy of St. Elizabeth’s High School gym in Convent Station, both teams came prepared to finish off their grammar school basketball careers in strong fashion. The game’s importance loomed large as fans from both teams poured into the gym.
St. Elizabeth’s came out strong and took an early 8 point lead, sending St. Vincent’s on their heels, prompting Head Coach Jamie Cutler to call a very prudent timeout. Once nerves were calmed, St. Vincent’s settled in and managed to take the lead at halftime. The tightly contested game came down to the final quarter where once again, the Eagle’s tenacious press defense was the difference as they prevailed 38-26 to win it all and end their 8th grade season as champions. The win inspired Assistant Coach Kevin Kilgore to remark, “These girls are great in how they came back from adversity, how they listened to their coaches and truly learned how to play together this year. This championship was a testament to them coming together as a team and each of them played a role in the team’s success. The coaches are very proud of this special group of girls and look forward to following them in their high school careers.”

The 12-member squad was led by Gianna DeMattheis, who was top scorer all season long and the Eagle’s go-to player; Lauren Kilgore, who was called upon each game to defend the opponent’s best player and thrived in her role; Brianna Cutler, a versatile forward, who became a scoring machine late in the season and sparked the team in the championship game; center Ella Kretten, whose rebounding prowess was key both on defense and offense; Katie Brennan, the sharp-shooting guard who was automatic from the wing; twin sister ball handling point guards, Grace and Mary McKenna, who ran the offense and sped up and down the court on defense; Lucy McGurn, a rebounding machine and stellar foul shooter when the team needed her most; Ciara Collins, a steady shooting guard and solid zone defender; Sarah Barber, the screen-setting specialist and most supportive teammate; and Isabella Vescera and Abby DeChiara, two new-comers to the school and squad this year, who provided much needed adaptability playing various positions throughout the year