Cranford Stuns Chatham

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Cranford Stuns Chatham

McKeary three-pointer silences opposing team. Girls' basketball team wins 53-49.

By Edward Kensik | Email the author | March 6, 2011

 

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CHATHAM - Cranford freshman Mairead McKeary heard the crowd screaming 3-2-1 in the second overtime battle Saturday night at Chatham High School and fired up a three-point shot.
But as it turned out there were still 23 seconds remaining in the second overtime and it was just a bunch of Chatham fans pulling one of the oldest tricks in the book in basketball.
"I heard 5-4-3-2-1 so I shot it," said McKeary who was befuddled after she hit the basket and admitted that if she knew there were 23 seconds on the clock. "I probably would not have shot it."
After hitting the three-point bucket, McKeary looked around to the Cranford bench wondering why everybody was going the other way – finally realizing that there were 23 seconds remaining in the second overtime.
Chatham came running back, but could not put the ball in basket, fouling Cranford's Jenna Goeller. With the clock at 7.7 seconds in the second overtime, Goeller hit both free-throw attempts and sealed the game with a four-point lead, 53-49, in beating the top-seeded Chatham Cougars on Saturday night.
Jessica McCoy led Cranford with 14 points while Goeller and Morgan Miller added 13 and 12 points each. Chatham was led by Amanda Berntsen with a game-high 17 points.
The game was a battle of defending state sectional champs, Cranford from Group 3 North 2 and Chatham Group 2 North 2 who moved up to Group 3 this season.
McKeary and Goeller's heroics would not have been possible if not for the defense of Carly Maucione and a three-point basket and bucket from senior Sara Gugliucci, hitting a jumper in the paint with 17 seconds left in the fourth quarter to send the game into overtime.
After Gugliucci's basket that tied the game at 39, Chatham's Amanda Berntsen bucked another shot in what appeared to give the Chatham Cougars a 41-39 lead.
But the referees ruled that Berntsen was fouled before she took the shot. Berntsen missed both the free throw shots with 14.5 seconds remaining in regulation.
Cranford took the ball down court, but could not get a decent shot off and the contest was sent to the first overtime.
In the first overtime Goeller hit one of two free throws with 47 seconds left in the first overtime to give Cranford a 43-41 lead.
But Chatham’s Kelsey Davies hit a pair of free throws with 23 seconds left in the second overtime to tie the game at 23. Neither team could get the game-winning basket in the last seconds of the second overtime.
In the final overtime Chatham led most of the way, but again Goeller came through again on the free throw line to give Cranford a 48-47 lead with a minute left in the second overtime.
During the timeouts through all six quarters, Cranford head coach Jackie Dyer kept reminding her team that they were the defending state sectional champions.
"I kept telling them that it’s your title until somebody has taken it away from you," said Dyer.
McKeary said that winning contests at the end of the game is just typical of the Cranford girls' basketball team. "We always seem to come on at the right time," McKeary said.
 The fourth-seeded Cranford Cougars (22-5) move on Tuesday night where they will travel to third-seeded West Morris at 7 p.m. in the hopes of making it back-to-back state titles.

http://highschoolsports.nj.com/game/news/915028/

Cranford (53) at Chatham (49), NJSIAA Tournament, Semifinal Round, North Jersey, Section 2, Group 3

The Star Ledger, March 05, 2011 10:20 p.m.

Mairead McKeary hit a deep 3-pointer for the lead with 24 seconds remaining in the second overtime and Jenna Goeller followed with two free throws in the closing seconds as Cranford advanced in the semifinal round of the North Jersey, Section 2, Group 2 tournament in Chatham. Cranford will play at West Morris tomorrow night for the sectional title. Cranford overcame an eight-point deficit in the fourth quarter to force overtime. Kelsey Davies of Chatham sank two free throws for a 43-43 tie at the end of the first extra period. Jessica McCoy had 14 points, Goeller scored 13 and Morgan Miller added 12 points for Cranford. Amanda Berntsen finished with 17 points and Kelsey Hart scored 16 for Chatham.

Cranford (53) at Chatham (49), NJSIAA Tournament, Semifinal Round, North Jersey, Section 2, Group 3
Final	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	OT1	OT2	T
Cranford	6	9	10	14	4	10	53
Chatham	7	6	16	10	4	6	49

 

Millburn Girls Basketball Team Can’t Recover from Slow Start; Loses to Cranford 64-34 in Second Round of North 2, Group 3 State Tournament

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Millburn Girls Basketball Team Can’t Recover from Slow Start; Loses to Cranford 64-34 in Second Round of North 2, Group 3 State Tournament

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CRANFORD, NJ – The Millburn Lady Millers gave up 23 points in the first eight minutes of play and were without a field goal in the first quarter.  They were down by 20 heading into the second, and could never really get their offense going, en route to a 64-34 loss in the second round of the North 2, Group 3 State Tournament on Thursday night in Cranford.
The Millers were down by 23 points at the beginning of the second when sophomore Jenny Smith hit a three point field goal at the 5:59 mark.  It was the Millers' first basket of the game.  Their first four points of the contest came off four made free throws.
“We never got anything off the fast break.  We were in too much of a standstill depending on Jenny Smith to hit the three,” Millburn Head Coach Bill Drennan said after the game.  “We didn’t get the ball to the kids that we wanted to.”
Smith’s basket seemed to provide a little momentum for the Millers.  Soon after, they went on a 6-0 run to make the score 13-29.  Emily Justich hit a jump shot, Smith made a layup off a nice steal and Hallie Pickard added a basket during that stretch.
Later in the quarter, the Millers went on another 6-0 run to bring the game to within 13 points a few minutes before halftime.  Smith provided all six of those points on a 3-point field goal, a long jumper and a free throw.  She finished with a team high 15 points.
“I said to the kids at halftime.  If we keep making runs and get it from 18 to 14 and then get it lower (then we have a chance),” Coach Drennan said.
Going into the third quarter the Millers were down by 15.  Smith scored the first basket of the second half on a layup.  About a minute later, junior guard Taylor Peretti forced a Cranford turnover and scored a basket.  Gabby Lee then made a jump shot to keep pace with Cranford; however, the Millers were still down by 15 in the middle of the fourth quarter.
Unfortunately for the Millers, Cranford scored the final six points of the third quarter to effectively put the game away.  Millburn had three turnovers during that stretch and were down 52-31 heading into the final quarter of play.
“We didn’t play a good defensive game.  Give them (Cranford) credit.  We didn’t play one of our better games at all, but I think they deserve all the credit,” a frustrated Coach Drennan mentioned.
In the fourth quarter, the Millers only managed to score three points.  Proshat Zarrabikia put in a basket and Sam Abrams made a foul shot.  Cranford scored the first eight points of the fourth quarter to take a 29 point lead.
The real problem for the Millers was Cranford's hot shooting in the first quarter.  Jenna Goeller made two three pointers and Morgan Miller hit a shot from long distance.  Jessica McCoy added eight points in the first for Cranford.  The Millers also had problems breaking the Cranford full court press as they turned the ball over four times in the first eight minutes of play.
“They shot the hell out of the ball.  They ran some good stuff and they have overall size,” Coach Drennan said of the Cranford team.  “No matter what we did…they kept (making baskets).”
With the loss, the Millers finished their season with a 20-6 record.  They won a conference title and finished 16-0 in their conference.

http://millburn.patch.com/articles/miller-girls-basketball-ousted-from-playoffs#photo-5127349

Miller Girls Basketball Ousted From Playoffs

Cranford defense stifles the girls in the second round on Thursday.

By Jose Ortiz | Email the author | 8:48am

The Millburn girls basketball team saw its playoff run come to an end on Thursday night in Cranford. The Cougar defense swarmed the Millers from start to finish and Millburn’s offense had no answers for the Cranford girls, who rolled to a 64-34 victory in the second round of the North II Group 3 state sectional playoffs.
It was pretty clear early on that Cranford’s defense would control the game when they held the Millers without a field goal for the first 10:03 minutes. A three-pointer from Jenny Smith with 5:57 left in the second quarter was the Miller girls’ first basket of the game and made the score 27-7 in favor of the Cougars.
“We work on defense in almost 90 percent of our practice, that’s what we concentrate on,” said Cranford head coach Jackie Dyer. “That’s what we kind of pride ourselves in so this is one of the best defensive games we’ve had in a long time.”
After falling behind by 22 points, the Millers went on a second quarter run, sinking six of their next nine shots to end the quarter down by 15. But just when the Millers had crept back into the game, Cranford’s defense stepped up a notch in the second half. And Millburn could not keep up.
The Millers knocked down two of their first three shots of the third quarter behind a pair of lay-ups from Smith and Taylor Perretti. But from there they made just 16.6 percent of their shots from the floor to close out the game and turned the ball over nine times during that stretch.
“We’re too much of a stand still, depend on Jenny Smith to hit the three,” said Millburn head coach Bill Drennan. “They’re not stupid, they know who the scorer is, they were in her face. We did not get out of all of our kids what we usually do.”
Millburn scored a total of nine second half points, including three in the fourth quarter. Meanwhile, Cranford’s offense produced 24 second half points and ran very efficiently throughout the game. Cranford also drilled seven three-pointers to help them run away with this it.
“Give them the credit. They shot the heck out of it, they ran some good stuff and overall size killed us,” Drennan said. “They just shot the heck out of it, no matter what we did. We went under the screens, over the screens, and they just kept sticking them.”
Morgan Miller, Jenna Goeller and Jessica McCoy all scored in double figures for the Cougars. Miller led the way with 18 points, McCoy scored 14 and Goeller added 11. Jenny Smith led Millburn with 15 points, 12 of which came in the second quarter.
“[Miller] is our oldest person per se on the floor, she’s the only junior,” Dyer said. “She just sets the tone. She’s very experienced and she’s a big time leader on the floor for us.”
The Millers had been a typically strong defensive team heading into the game but seemed to give up too much size and speed to the Cougars, who turned the ball over just eight times in the game compared to 20 turnovers for Millburn.
“Everyone stepped up to the plate, everyone came to play today,” Dyer said. “They did everything that we prepared to do. So I was overall pleased with everyone.”
“If we’re not running with the ball, if we’re not getting down there, our key is to beat the zone down or at least get down there and get something coming from the baseline up,” Drennan said. “We never got that. We never got any fast breaks. We walked it up.”
Another possible factor in the game for Millburn was the absence of freshman starter Courtney Brosnan, who was away in Dallas for a soccer tournament.
“Brosnan is not here and it kills us,” Drennan said. “She’s a soccer player before a basketball player.”
Millburn ends its season with a 20-6 record and as Super Essex Conference Colonial Division champs for a second year in a row, after posting a 16-0 divisional record. They will be moving up to the Liberty Division next season.
“This was a pretty good team,” Drennan said of the Millers. “I don’t care what league you’re in, to win 20 games, go 16-0 in your conference, beat everybody twice is pretty good. And they beat some good teams.”
The defending section champion Cranford Cougars, who improved to 21-5, are moving on to the semifinals on Saturday, where they’ll face top seeded Chatham.
“I feel pretty good. We were the third seed last year when we won the whole thing,” Dyer said. “We talked to the girls and said that this is our title that we need to hold on to unless we give it to someone else. So it’s all in their control.”

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http://highschoolsports.nj.com/news/article/-6615113150461335146/millburn-34-at-cranford-64-njsiaa-tournament-quarterfinal-round-north-jersey-section-2-group-3/

Millburn (34) at Cranford (64), NJSIAA Tournament, Quarterfinal Round, North Jersey, Section 2, Group 3

The Star Ledger, March 03, 2011 10:10 p.m.

Jessica McCoy connected for 16 points to lead four players in double figures for Cranford in the quarterfinal stage of North Jersey, Section 2, Group 3 in Cranford. Morgan Miller supplied 13 points while Jenna Goeller and Mairead McKeary finished with 11 apiece for Cranford, which jumped out to a 23-3 lead. Jenny Smith led Millburn with 15 points.

Millburn (34) at Cranford (64), NJSIAA Tournament, Quarterfinal Round, North Jersey, Section 2, Group 3
Final	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	T
Millburn	3	22	6	3	34
Cranford	23	17	12	12	64

 

Player Stats
Millburn - Game stats
Player	FG	3FG	FT	Reb	A	S	Blk	Pts
Proshat Zarrabikia	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2
Emily Justich	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2
Gaby Lee	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	5
Taylor Perretti	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	4
Hallie Pickard	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	5
Jenny Smith	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	15
Sam Abrams	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1

Player Stats
Cranford - Game stats
Player	#	FG	3FG	FT	Reb	A	S	Blk	Pts
Jessica Casale	30	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2
Morgan Miller	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	13
Jenna Goeller	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	11
Mairead McKeary	13	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	11
Kaitlin McGovern	22	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	4
Sara Gugliucci	24	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	7
Jessica McCoy	20	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	16

http://cranford.patch.com/articles/cougars-cage-mendham

Cougars Cage Mendham

Cranford varsity girls' basketball team win opening round of Region 3 state tournament.

Maintaining focus against lesser foes has been an ongoing issue with the talented and often-dominating Cranford Cougars girls' basketball team this season, and it popped up again on Tuesday night in the opening round of the Section 2, Group 3 state tournament.
Fortunately, Mendham was hardly a match for the Cougars, who experienced little trouble in their 43-31 victory. Now things are about to get tough. Fourth-seeded Cranford hosts fifth-seeded Milburn in the quarterfinals on Thursday at 7 p.m. Milburn improved to 20-5 with a victory over 12^th seed Nutley on Tuesday.
Morgan Miller led the way against a young and inexperienced Mendham team on Tuesday at Cranford High School, scoring 12 points – 10 in the second half – and adding six rebounds, five assists, four blocked shots and three steals. Eight Cougars scored in the contest, but Cranford, despite dominating in the first half, could never quite put the Minutemen away.
While the outcome never seemed in doubt, Mendham used an 8-0 run to whittle a 17-point lead to nine, and had two chances to draw even closer. But when it failed to do so, Cranford regained its balance and went on its own 8-0 run midway through the final period to erase any lingering doubt.
“I think as a team we sometimes get a little over-confident,” said Miller after her team improved to 20-5. “We need to focus on playing the same way the entire game and it shouldn’t matter if we’re way up or way down.”
Head coach Jackie Dyer also cautioned against the dangers of such an attitude, especially as the competition gets tougher down the stretch.
“We’ve had a problem of playing down to teams’ levels,” she said. “That’s one of our problems, getting a little lackadaisical. We called a time-out and came out more focused.”
That was after the Cougars saw a 33-16 lead following Jess McCoy’s 14-footer late in the third period dwindle to 33-24 after a couple of Mendham free throws, two steals and baskets by Paige Russell and a 10-footer by Elizabeth Malman.
After another Cranford turnover, Mendham misfired on the other end, and Miller scored on a spinning bank shot in the lane. She blocked two shots on the other end – two of her four blocks over a two-minute span in the final period – and Jenna Goeller grabbed the rebound and fed ahead to freshman Mairead McKeary for a fast break lay-up.
Another freshman, Carly Maucione, followed with two straight baseline baskets and the game was sealed at 41-24 with 3:15 remaining.
Mendham made only one field goal in the first half, when Cranford forced 15 turnovers. But the Cougars were almost as careless, turning it over 13 times. With seven players scoring between two and four points at intermission, Cranford was able to take a 19-7 lead into the locker room.
“We’re working on not having just one or two people doing all the scoring,” Dyer said. “That way, teams have to watch out for four or five of us. I like that balance a lot.”
Mendham was much better in the second half, turning it over only five times and knocking down 9 of 19 shots after making only 1 of 13 in the first half.
Maucione provided her typical instant spark off the bench when she blocked three shots in the first two minutes of the second quarter. She also immediately made two perimeter shots and finished with eight points, four blocks, three rebounds, a steal and an assist.
“I don’t think she’s missed her first shot in a game all year,” Dyer said.
Added Miller: “She’s a really good shooter. We need to get her open and get her involved. She knocks it down every time and she also blocks shots.”
A fast-break lay-up by Sara Gugliucci and Kaitlyn McGovern’s 8-footer in the lane put the Cougars up 12 at the half.
McKeary scored seven points and dished out two assists, while McCoy, one of Cranford’s most reliable scorers, sat out the entire fourth period with foul trouble and scored only four points. But she grabbed six rebounds and had two steals. Goeller and McGovern added four apiece, with Goeller also handing out five assists and grabbing six rebounds.
Millburn, which has won six of its past seven games, lost to New Providence by 25. Cranford lost twice to New Providence – by 16 and six points. The two teams’ other common opponent is Livingston. Cranford beat the Highlanders by 16 in a tournament back in December, while Millburn beat Livingston twice, by 36 and 34 points.
Cranford has won eight of its previous nine games.

http://highschoolsports.nj.com/game/score/915037/

Mendham (31) at Cranford (43), NJSIAA Tournament, First Round, North Jersey, Section 2, Group 3

The Star Ledger, March 01, 2011 10:50 p.m.

Morgan Miller's 12 points led eight Cranford scorers in a North Jersey, Section 2, Group 3 first-round tournament game in Cranford. Carly Maucione totaled eight points, four blocks, two rebounds and two steals and Mairead McKeary added seven points for Cranford. Jacklyn Walsh led Mendham with 12 points.

Mendham (31) at Cranford (43), NJSIAA Tournament, First Round, North Jersey, Section 2, Group 3
Final	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	T
Mendham	4	3	15	9	31
Cranford	9	10	14	10	43

 

Player Stats
Mendham - Game stats
Player	#	FG	3FG	FT	Reb	A	S	Blk	Pts
Rachel Powell	24	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	2
Paige Russell		3	0	0	0	0	0	0	6
Aubree Udell	3	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	3
Jacklyn Walsh	35	2	0	8	0	0	0	0	12
Lauren Murphy	22	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	2
Elizabeth Malman	4	2	0	2	0	0	0	0	6

Player Stats
Cranford - Game stats
Player	#	FG	3FG	FT	Reb	A	S	Blk	Pts
Kaitlin McGovern	22	2	0	0	2	0	1	0	4
Brianna Capece	12	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	2
Mairead McKeary	13	3	0	1	2	0	1	0	7
Carly Maucione	15	4	0	0	2	0	2	4	8
Jenna Goeller	4	2	0	0	5	0	3	0	4
Morgan Miller	3	3	2	0	3	0	4	3	12
Jessica McCoy	20	2	0	0	6	0	5	0	4
Sara Gugliucci	24	1	0	0	2	0	1	0	2