St. Vincent Martyr Eagles are 2017 Girls Group 1 GMCJSA Champs

Earlier this month, the 8th grade girls team from St. Vincent Martyr School in Madison captured the 46th Annual Harry Stilwell Memorial Girls Basketball Tournament in the Group 1 division. Over the span of 10 days, the Eagles won 4 games at the Memorial Junior School in Whippany to take home the Championship. Coming into the tournament, the team did not know what to expect as they were seeded last out of 9 schools, but got rolling in the play-in game, defeating Morristown Beard 38-32, earning the right to face #1 seed Mt. Arlington. The Eagles took command early and their impressive defense allowed them to coast to a 35-25 victory. In the semi-finals, St. Vincent had to square off against a familiar foe, meeting 4th seed Assumption School from Morristown. Despite losing to their arch rival twice this year in the regular season, the third time was a charm for the Eagles prevailing 30-19. The run through the bracket set-up the finals, where the #3 seed, Harding Junior School awaited. On Saturday, February 4th, in front of a jam-packed gym and a boisterous crowd, the game saw many lead changes and was a nail-biter throughout. Once again, St. Vincent’s defense came up big as their swarming full-court press was too much to handle for Harding as the Eagles held on for the 41-35 win. St. Vincent’s was the only team in the tournament having to play 4 games and the girls drive and determination was team wide, prompting Head Coach Jamie Cutler to say, “They deserved the trophy as their hard work and effort paid off. This Championship was a total team effort and the coaches and I are extremely proud of the girls, especially how they support each other and represent St. Vincent Martyr School.”

The 12 member squad is comprised of top scorers Gianna DeMattheis and Katie Brennan, key rebounders Ella Kretten and Lucy McGurn, tremendous defenders, Lauren Kilgore and Brianna Cutler, a trio of ball-handling guards, Grace McKenna, Ciara Collins and Mary McKenna, and three newcomers to the team this year known for their defensive work ethic, Sarah Barber, Abby DeChiara and Isabella Vescera