SJ_sportsweekly_101619

INSIDE THIS ISSUE SJ PoWER PoLL ........S2 GAMES to WAtCH .....S2 PLAYER oF tHE WEEk ............. S6 www.southjerseysportsweekly.com

Clearview trying to stay perfect PAGE S4 FREE

OCTOBeR 16-22, 2019

ning back n u r r ta s r io n Highland ju lped knock off e h s a h o h w , n Johnny Marti ack seasons, -b o -t k c a b in k e re rival Timber C sire to help his family de is motivated by

By RYAN LAWRENCE Sports Editor

The act couldn’t possibly be called a symbolic one for the state of high school football in Gloucester Township. It was too blatant.

But the emotion made the moment when then-Highland sophomore Johnny Martin, the second the final whistle sounded, sprinted to the visiting sideline, collected a four-foot-long baby blue flag with an “H” insignia, sprinted back to the field and planted it dead-center on the 50-yard line.

This was Sept. 28, 2018, when Highland upset Black Horse Pike Regional School District rival Timber Creek on the Char-

gers’ home field in a wild win.

Two Fridays ago, exactly 371 days since that stunning victory, Martin and Highland once again took care of Timber Creek in another riveting football game between the two schools.

Martin scored one touchdown, his lowest single-game output of the season, in a 21-17 game that came down to the game’s final seconds. Tartans freshman Hamin Anderson secured the win with an interception.

Martin didn’t have to plant a flag this time around. The Tartans, after all, defended their home turf.

“I knew they were coming, but we’re the kings of the Pike,” said Martin, who saw his Tartans collect their fourth straight win following a season-opening loss to St. Joseph (Hammonton).

“They can’t beat us! They can’t beat us, man. It was a great team win. That’s our sister school, it’s a rivalry game, I knew they were going to come hard so I just had to come harder.”

In the season’s first five weeks, entering Highland’s game vs. Moorestown on Oct. 11, Martin had amassed more than 700 rushing yards and scored 10 touchdowns.

In his aforementioned sophomore season, Martin earned second-team all-state honors after rushing for 2,002 yards (second in the state) and collecting 19 touchdowns. Highland’s win over Timber Creek two Fridays ago was a true testament to the development of the program as a whole, as Martin was just one cog in the team-wide effort.

It was also an effort that please see JOHNNY, page S5

RYAN LAWRENCE/South Jersey Sports Weekly

Martin, a junior, earned second-team all-state honors after rushing for 2,002 yards (second in the state) and collecting 19 touchdowns in 2018.

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SOUTH JERSEY SPORTS WEEKLY

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S2 SOUTH JERSEY SPORTS WEEKLY — OCTOBER 16-22, 2019

GIRLS VOLLEYBALL

Ready to re-gain the crown

1. Eastern Field Hockey

For the second time in the past month, the Vikings took on two teams in MAX Field Hockey’s National top 20 and came away winners. Eastern has outscored opponents 73-9 since loss to oak knoll, the nation’s top team. (Last week: 2)

2. Moorestown Friends Girls Tennis

the unbeaten Foxes are the state’s top team as the playoffs are underway. MFS has won seven of its last eight matches by 5-0 scores. (1)

3. Eastern Girls Soccer

the next couple of weeks should be among the most challenging for the Vikings, topranked in the country according to USA today, with the Coaches Cup and postseason getting underway. (3)

4. Williamstown Football

the Braves outscored opponents 174-28 in their first five weeks. A big matchup with No. 8 Shawnee is looming on oct. 25. (4)

5. Camden Catholic Field Hockey

What a week for the irish: beat rival Bishop Eustace, 6-0, and made their debut on MAX Field Hockey’s national rankings, at No. 25. (6)

6. Clearview Boys Soccer

the Pioneers headed into the second week of october unbeaten, but also won three consecutive games by just one goal. Can they keep their record unscathed? (7)

7. Haddonfield Boys Cross Country

the senior-laden Bulldawgs are steamrolling along and seem primed to make a run at collecting their 10th state title in the last 14 years. (5)

8. Shawnee Football

Senior Jake Barnett scored two touchdowns in a convincing 45-0 win over Moorestown, giving him five touchdowns in a three-game span. (8)

9. Williamstown Girls Volleyball

Mckenzie Melvin and Raina Hughes had eight kills apiece as the Braves eked by a strong Cherry Hill East team to remain unbeaten in South Jersey play. (10)

10. Haddonfield Girls Cross Country

the Lady Bulldawgs won their first Shore Coaches team title in 11 years as Sarah Naticchia, Payton Weiner, Lilly Sirover, Linsday Colflesh and Evie Andrews all finished in the top 15. (Not ranked)

GAMES TO WATCH

MikE MoNoStRA/South Jersey Sports Weekly

Mckenzie Melvin prepares to serve for Williamstown during last Monday’s match against Cherry Hill east. The Braves’ 2-1 victory over the Cougars last Monday kept them on track to win their first conference title since 2015.

Three years after seeing its run of 15 straight conference champions end, Williamstown girls volleyball is dominating the competition in South Jersey

By MIKE MONOSTRA Sports Editor

As they walked into Cherry Hill East’s DiBart Gym last Monday, Williamstown seniors Lilyanna Martucci and Summer Wroniuk knew the significance of their game against Cherry Hill East.

Both of them knew the Braves went into the DiBart Gym three years ago and suffered a tough, 2-1 loss, to Cherry Hill East.

The loss was instrumental in the Cougars

Wednesday, Oct. 16

Girls Soccer: Cinnaminson vs. Delran 6 p.m. at Delran High School

winning the Olympic Conference American Division that year, snapping Williamstown’s run of 15 consecutive conference titles in the process.

They also knew Williamstown hadn’t won a conference title in the two years that followed and that a win in last Monday’s meeting with the Cougars would put the Braves in the driver’s seat to end their three-year drought.

“Like (head coach Chris Sheppard) says, in 2001 they started it up all the way through 2015,” Martucci said. “They lost right here back in 2016 and this year, we’re going to be the group that starts it back up again.”

Last Monday, the Braves took one step closer to re-gaining the Olympic Conference American Division crown when they grinded out a thrilling, 2-1 win. Williamstown edged out Cherry Hill East, 26-24, in the final set to close out the victory and a sweep of the season series against the Cougars.

Wednesday, Oct. 16

Volleyball: timber Creek vs. Burlington twp.

5 p.m. at Burlington twp. HS.

Friday, Oct. 18

Football: Seneca vs. Pemberton 7 p.m. at Seneca High School

Sheppard felt last Monday’s win showed how tough his team is in pressure situations. The match was the first time Williamstown had played a three set match all year.

“That was a good character win because we dropped that second-set, we were in control of the third set and Cherry Hill East did a lot of good things to get back into it,” he said.

After three straight seasons where a combination of inexperience and injuries hurt Williamstown’s chances for a conference title and deep playoff run, the Braves are off to an outstanding start in 2019. Prior to last Monday, the Braves had won 12 straight games against South Jersey opponents and hadn’t dropped a set in any of those matches.

The only two losses Williamstown had heading into the Cherry Hill East match were against Union Catholic and North Hunterdon, two schools ranked in the top five of NJ.com’s state rankings. The Braves’ 17-2 start to the season was the best since 2015, a year when Williamstown won 31 games and advanced to the Group 4 state championship.

“It’s a group that, themselves, is pretty focused on winning,” Sheppard said of the 2019 team. “I have a group right now that recognizes what’s out in front of them.”

Wroniuk believes this year’s team has grown in confidence with each win, especially when the Braves were able to rack up victories over ranked North Jersey foes St. John Vianney and Southern Regional in September.

“Our confidence is growing more and more as we play,” Wroniuk said. “We’d rather play (highly) competitive teams such as Cherry Hill East, who is a good opponent. It only makes us better.”

Even with all of the team’s achievements in the season’s first month, the Braves recognized a loss to Cherry Hill East last Monday could put their dreams of a conference title in jeopardy. Things looked even more tenuous for Williamstown when the Cougars won the second set last Monday, 27-25.

It was the first time Williamstown had lost a set to a South Jersey opponent all season. please see COUGARS, page S8

Saturday, Oct. 19

tennis: NJSiAA Singles tournament Championship 10 a.m. at Mercer County Park

Tuesday, Oct. 22

Field Hockey: Haddonfield vs. Camden Catholic 5 p.m. at temple University

OCTOBER 16-22, 2019 – SOUTH JERSEY SPORTS WEEKLY

Lenape’s Gianna Monaco prepares to drive the ball deep.

Cherokee’s Gab Crysler looks to make a pass.

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players from Cherokee and Lenape High School paid tribute to loved ones who have been diagnosed with breast cancer during a special pre-game ceremony.

Cherokee and Lenape field hockey faced off under the lights in a special Breast Cancer Awareness game last Thursday in Marlton.

The Indians got a first half goal from Megan McKenna in a 1-0 victory over the Chiefs.

Lenape’s Megan Mckenna leads the Indians up the field.

A shot from Lenape’s Lina Neilson bounces off Cherokee goalkeeper Sarah Crysler’s pad and then off the post.

Cherokee’s erin Jackson tries to gain control of a bouncing ball.

Lenape’s Allie Halfpenny and Cherokee’s Gab Crysler battle for possession.

All Photos: MikE MoNoStRA, South Jersey Sports Weekly

Cherokee’s Anna Donaldson tries to work her way around Lenape’s Tori Sutera.

S4

SOUTH JERSEY SPORTS WEEKLY — OCTOBER 16-22, 2019

BOYS SOCCER

A clear view of the postseason Senior-laden Clearview has been hardened by the challenges of the last two seasons. The Pioneers’ confidence has grown with each game in 2019, when they took a season-long unbeaten streak into the second week of October.

By RYAN LAWRENCE Sports Editor

Jack Accorsi and Kevin Donohue have been on this path before, but before they hang up their Clearview soccer kits for good, they’d like to take care of some unfinished business.

The fact that they have the Pioneers back on path toward a possible championship is a testament to their work, and the collective efforts of a senior-laden team in 2019.

After being a part of Clearview teams that went a combined 18-17-3 in the last two seasons, Accorsi, Donohue, and the rest of the close knit group of 12th graders established the Pioneers as the best team in South Jersey entering October. Clearview ran its season-long unbeaten streak to 13 with a 1-0 win over Williamstown on Oct. 8.

Five weeks into the season, with the prestigious South Jersey Coaches Association Tournament on deck, Clearview looks nothing at all like the team that finished with a losing record two years ago.

What changed?

“I think we’re doing very well with the team as a group,” Accorsi said. “We’ve been playing with each other for almost all of our lives. We know how we all play.”

“It feels good to get us back to that point,” said Donohue, a fellow four-year varsity player. “We put a lot of effort into this year and we’ve been waiting for this for a long time, so hopefully we’ll get something good

RYAN LAWRENCE/South Jersey Sports Weekly

Clearview senior Jack Accorsi attempts to keep possession with Highland’s Liam Lamaina closing in.

out of it.”

The season is not unlike the first varsity year for Accorsi and Donohue. When they were freshmen, Clearview began its season with a 10-game unbeaten streak. The 2016 Pioneers had just three losses on the season, but one of those came to Egg Harbor Township in the quarterfinals of the South Jersey Group 4 tournament.

In 2019, Clearview expects to at least compete for a sectional championship and then take their talents to the state level, too.

“It’s our last run,” Accorsi said. “Win-

ning Group 4 states, I’ve wanted to do that since freshman year. That’s the ultimate goal, winning Group 4.”

“The next few weeks are really important,” added Donohue. “We’ve clinched the conference, but that doesn’t mean anything.

We still have to keep going.”

Clearview, 12-0-1 entering play on Oct. 11, scored a 2-0 win over perennial South Jersey power Delran late last month to announce itself as a legitimate contender. The only blemish on the Pioneers schedule?

A scoreless tie two weeks ago to reigning

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@SJSportsWeekly

Group 4 state champ Washington Township.

Another pivotal moment in the evolution of Clearview’s journey — from contender to rebuilding team to contender again in the last three years — may have come in the Coaches Tournament last year, when they hung with Washington Township before dropping a 3-2 decision.

“I wouldn’t say there was a turning point,” Accorsi said.

“From the beginning of (this) season, we knew we had a deep senior class. We knew we could be special.”

With 10 seniors among its 11 starters, and 14 seniors on the roster in total, the now-or-never mindset could be the secret sauce in Clearview’s recipe for a memorable 2019 season. The majority of the Pioneers are old enough to remember the team’s run when they were freshmen and they’ve been hardened by the path they’ve had to take as a team in the last two seasons.

Clearview’s veteran roster knows opportunity doesn’t present itself every year. And it realizes this is its last shot at adding some hardware to the school’s trophy case.

“We have a lot of senior leadership on the team this year,” coach Dodd Terry said. “The team is really coming together.

We had high hopes coming into the season. So really we’re just trying to get better with each game and continue to grow throughout the season. … Kevin Donohue and Jack Accorsi are both four-year varsity soccer players, they are our co-captains. Pearse Costello, Robbie Albertson, Anthony Careless, J.J. Bilderback, Vincent Fedoryka, Zane Martin our goalkeeper — there’s too many to name. It’s a total group effort. All of the seniors, the whole class.”

It’s a class that entered this season knowing what was possible, and that winning mindset has paid dividends so far.

“We knew we had great potential, we just had to stick with it and never let up,” Donohue said, “and we haven’t.” ■

South Jersey Sports Weekly

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OCTOBER 16-22, 2019 – SOUTH JERSEY SPORTS WEEKLY

JOHNNY

continued from page S1 should give Highland the confidence to finish out the rest of October strong, too.

“I just told them we’re a family,” Martin said of addressing the team after the game. “This was a big game and (our guys) came through. A lot of times I play a big role on the team, but I feel like my role was minimized today. My team stepped up for me. It was a team win.”

The future Division-I running back — Baylor, Rutgers, Temple, Syracuse, Penn State and West Virginia could all be possible suitors — spoke with South Jersey Sports Weekly at length following the Timber Creek win.

South Jersey Sports Weekly: So I guess you have to have a lot of respect for a team like Timber Creek?

Johnny Martin: I got real respect, I watched film of them all week, they’re a great team, no doubt, and that game could have gone any way. It was a great team win.

SJSW: How long have you been playing football?

Martin: Since I was 4.

SJSW: Who taught you the game?

Martin: My dad. Johnny Martin Jr. SJSW: Did he play somewhere?

Martin: He played in high school, at Haddon Heights.

SJSW: What inspires you on the field, or motivates you to perform well?

Martin: I just don’t want to be in Jersey. I want to make it out of here. I don’t want this life, a regular life, I don’t want to work 9-to-5. I want to be able to take my family and make them rich.

That’s what makes me go harder.

It’s not about me, I’m not playing for me — I’m playing for my whole family.

SJSW: How is the college process going?

Martin: It’s going great, I’m getting a lot of interest. I just love being recruited. I love every school I’m interested in, I never turn a school down, I just love the recruiting process.

SJSW: How far can this Highland team go?

Martin: Timber Creek, that’s

a championship team, and we just beat a championship team.

They have a good history of going to the championship. So I think this win makes us one of the best teams in South Jersey SJSW: If you could pick any kid from another team in South Jersey and put him on Highland’s team, who would you pick? Or, who is your favorite player on another team?

Martin: I like Kyle McCord.

He’s from South Jersey but he plays in Philly (at St. Joe’s Prep).

I played against him my whole life. That’s my boy. We talk all the time. So if he was at Highland, (that’d work). He’s a great quarterback, I think he’s the best quarterback in the country.

SJSW: Who is the best tackler in South Jersey?

Martin: I’d say Miami commit Tirek Austin-Cave from Camden High.

SJSW: Who is your most athletic teammate?

Martin: Javon Holley, he’s the fastest on the team, he’s our quarterback and it’s really his first year as the quarterback, so for him to come in here and manage the game so well (is great).

And as you can see he can break off a run, he can throw the ball, he can play defense, safety or corner. So yeah, he’s the best athlete on the team.

SJSW: Funniest teammate?

Martin: Funniest teammate?

Zay Butler or Naiem. Not little Naiem, fat Naiem.

SJSW: [Laughs] What’s his last name?

Martin: What’s Fat Nai’s last name? I forgot.

[Editor’s note: six-foot Naiem McNeil, not 5-6 Naiem El.] SJSW: How about smartest teammate?

Martin: Winston Jordan.

He’s probably going to go to an Ivy League school, he’s really smart, he’s got something like a 4.6 (GPA).

SJSW: Who would play you in a movie?

Martin: I was just talking about this the other day. Michael B. Jordan.

SJSW: How about a favorite TV show?

Martin: “All-American.” It’s football, reality, so I love it.

SJSW: Did you ever play any other sports?

Martin: I played basketball,

S5

RYAN LAWRENCE/South Jersey Sports Weekly

What motivates Martin? “I just don’t want to be in Jersey,” he said. “I want to make it out of here. ... I want to be able to take my family and make them rich. That’s what makes me go harder. It’s not about me, I’m not playing for me — I’m playing for my whole family.” from like third grade until eighth, but my dad told me to stop because of high school, he didn’t want me to get hurt.

SJSW: Do you have a favorite pro or college player?

Martin: Oh yeah, Ezekiel Elliott. I try to model my game after him. I like how he’s a downhill runner and how he’s very durable. People say he’s not the best back in the league, but all the best backs get hurt, like Todd Gurley with the knee, David Johnson, Saquon Barkley. But Zeke never gets hurt.

SJSW: What’s your favorite thing to do outside of football?

Martin: Probably just hang out with my friends, my girlfriend, and just chill. And relax with my family. I know I don’t have much (down) time (with football), so being with them, with my family, is really good.

SJSW: If they were to announce the starting lineup at a state championship game and you get your own walkout song, what are you telling them to play?

Martin: Meek Mill’s “On the Regular.” ■

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SOUTH JERSEY SPORTS WEEKLY

PLAYER OF THE WEEK!

Megan McKenna Lenape High School Senior Field Hockey

Lenape field hockey has emerged as one of the hottest teams in South Jersey entering the final stretch of the regular season. A 1-0 victory over Cherokee last Thursday was Lenape’s sixth win in their previous seven games, with the only loss in that span being a 4-1 defeat against national powerhouse Eastern. Midfielder Megan McKenna has been a big reason for the team’s success.

She scored two goals in Lenape’s 3-1 win over Moorestown on Oct. 5 and was the lone goalscorer in the Cherokee win. McKenna has scored a career-high 10 goals so far in 2019.

“We’ve had a lot of focus practices to focus on the little things because we were trying to get back to the basics to improve our overall game,” McKenna said. “The Eastern game, even though we lost, was only 4-1 and even scoring on them really boosted our confidence for the rest of the season. Hopefully we’ll keep the streak going.”

Quotable: “She’s kind of a momentum builder and then she becomes the foundation of that momentum throughout the rest of the game,” Lenape head coach Sarah Moretti said. “She has improved impressively on being a leader and leading girls around her to step up and rise up.”

“Her on-the-ground stick skills, her 3D stick skills, her weak-side stick skills, her strong-side stick skills, they’re unstoppable. “And her ability to create deception.” Moretti later added about McKenna’s ability to possess the ball. “She baits (opponents), she pulls like it’s nothing.” ■

S6

SOUTH JERSEY SPORTS WEEKLY — OCTOBER 16-22, 2019

CROSS COUNTRY

Ram Pride Senior Ryan DiGiacomo has followed in the footsteps of his dad and older brother as a standout athlete at Gloucester Catholic

By MIKE MONOSTRA Sports Editor

There’s nothing senior Ryan DiGiacomo enjoys more than sporting the Gloucester Catholic maroon and gold uniform on the cross country course.

DiGiacomo’s family has been a part of the Gloucester Catholic community for more than 40 years. Ryan’s dad, Gary, was a 1975 Gloucester Catholic graduate and played for the Rams’ legendary baseball program.

His brother, Matt, graduated in 2011 and was a sprinter with the track team. Attending Matt’s meets led Ryan to pursue running.

“I used to go to all of his meets,” Ryan said of his brother. “I thought it was the coolest thing.”

Now, Ryan is the latest member of the DiGiacomo family to star for the Rams. An all-TriCounty Conference selection in cross country in his first three seasons, DiGiacomo has been one of Gloucester Catholic’s

Mike Monostra/South Jersey Sports Weekly

Gloucester Catholic’s Ryan DiGiacomo (right) passes GCIT sophomore Joseph Addeo as the two runners round a corner in a Tri-County Conference meet last Tuesday. DiGiacomo’s time of 17:54.95 was his best of the season. top runners since he joined the program and is aiming to be one of the fastest finishers at next month’s NJSIAA Non-Public Championships.

DiGiacomo’s achievements are remarkable considering he didn’t focus on long distance running at first. He began running in fourth grade at Christ the King School in Haddonfield and followed his older brother’s footsteps as a sprinter. Stamina and running long distances were not DiGiacomo’s strengths when he arrived at Gloucester Catholic in 2016.

“Freshman year, it was rough because I had never run more than maybe a mile and a half,” DiGiacomo said. “At the very beginning, it was very tough just to get through all of the longer runs because your lungs aren’t used to that.”

DiGiacomo credits Glouces-

ter Catholic cross country head coach John Heath with being instrumental in his growth as a long distance runner. He said Heath helped in developing a training program where he gradually built up his stamina and his ability to run long distances at a quick pace.

Heath doesn’t want to take any of the credit from DiGiacomo, however, describing him as one of the hardest working runners he’s come across.

“He’s like a coach’s dream,” Heath said. “He’s done everything you could ask for. He goes out, runs on his own, gets up early and runs distance. He’s a hard worker and it’s really paying off. I think he’s going to have his best season this year by far.”

By his sophomore year, DiGiacomo was Gloucester Catholic’s fastest runner. His improvement between ninth and

10th grade was evident in his times at the Non-Public Championships. As a freshman, DiGiacomo finished in 97th place with a time of 20:36. One year later in the same race, DiGiacomo finished more than 60 spots higher, in 34th place with a much faster time of 18:50.

DiGiacomo is not just a hard worker on the cross country course. He is one of the top students in Gloucester Catholic’s senior class. This year, DiGiacomo is taking three advanced placement classes and plans to major in either computer or electrical engineering in college.

“AP Psychology is a really interesting class,” DiGiacomo said about his AP classes. “It’s not necessarily my favorite, but I think it’s great. Calculus, for whatever reason, is my favorite class. Math has just come naturally to me.”

“Your best runners are also good students,” Heath said. “At Gloucester Catholic, we’ve had the valedictorian of the class almost every year from the cross country team. (Ryan) fits the profile. He may not be the valedictorian, but he’s one of the top students in his class.”

Entering his final cross country season, DiGiacomo has big goals for where he wants to be for the Non-Public Championships in November. After finishing a career-high 32nd in the Non-Public finals last year, DiGiacomo plans to break into the top 20 this year.

“I wanted to beat all of my times from last year,” he said.

“My best time from last year was about 17:40 and that was at the end of last season. This is about midway through the season and I’m already at 17:55. Hopefully by the end of the season, I’ll be able to beat that.”

Regardless of how DiGiacomo’s senior season ends, Heath believes he has left a lasting impact on the program by encouraging the team’s other runners to shoot for the stars.

“It gives them something to aspire to,” Heath said. “When the best kid on your team is a hard worker, a good student and he’s setting the pace for the team, they see what’s possible.” ■

OCTOBER 16-22, 2019 – SOUTH JERSEY SPORTS WEEKLY

Timber Creek senior Logan Koester in control at midfield while Paul VI senior Allison English gives chase.

Timber Creek freshman Julianna Coluccio and Paul VI senior Natalie Schooley battle for the ball.

S7

Timber Creek senior Olivia Gabriel dishes off to a teammate.

Paul VI High School got two goals from Sophia Erichetti en route to a 2-1 win over Timber Creek on Thursday, Oct. 10. The victory was the sixth in a row for the Eagles. Kayla Branham collected the Chargers’ lone goal in the second half.

Paul VI senior Sydney Corbett gets set to kick the ball upfield.

Paul VI senior Carly Zaccaria saves a ball from going out of bounds.

Paul VI junior Hannah Exley heads the ball during the second half.

Timber Creek freshman Haley Thaler and Paul VI junior Hannah Exley pursue a 50-50 ball.

All Photos: RYAN LAWRENCE, South Jersey Sports Weekly

Timber Creek freshman Rebecca Gordon sends a free kick upfield.

S8

SOUTH JERSEY SPORTS WEEKLY — OCTOBER 16-22, 2019

COUGARS

continued from page S2 After dropping the set, there wasn’t a look of fear or sadness in the eyes of the Braves. Instead, there was a look of determination.

“I just told my girls right before that third set, ‘We’re going to play together. I want to play with you girls as long as I can because I’m a senior and this is my last shot, best shot,’” Martucci said. “I just told those girls to leave it all out on the court and play the way we know how to play.”

“We just learned that by staying together, we improve more on and off the court,” Wroniuk added.

The togetherness Martucci and Wroniuk talked about is an intangible that could be the difference for Williamstown in the postseason. Wroniuk believes this year’s team is the tightest she’s been with in her four years with the program and Sheppard felt the team’s unity may have been the difference in last Monday’s win.

“To find a way to stick together and pull that out was big,” Sheppard said. ■

HEATING

•

Mike Monostra/South Jersey Sports Weekly

Williamstown head coach Chris Sheppard gives his team instructions in between sets during last Monday’s 2-1 win over Olympic Conference rival Cherry Hill East. The Braves’ win last Monday was their 13th consecutive victory over a South Jersey opponent.

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