BY AVERY PERSON
Sports Editor
The girls basketball team finished the regular season with a 12-8 record to earn the sixth seed and a home game in round one of the Greater Middlesex County Tournament tomorrow at 5pm. They will take on eleventh-seeded Piscataway, who the Knights beat in two close games this season.
The girls won three of their last four regular season games, including wins over county opponents North Brunswick and South Brunswick and a tough loss to Shore Regional. “I believe we played well as a team, but, unfortunately, we could not close out the game for the win,” said senior Zainab Soomro.
The impressive wins the team racked up throughout the season show that they can beat anyone this postseason. “We had some impressive wins over the second-seeded GMC team South Brunswick by a 16-point win, as well as a crucial victory over our rival, Monroe,” explained senior Leena Tran. “I believe the team has been playing its best basketball all season as we finished off our regular season games.”
Communication on both ends of the court helped drive the team’s success. “Chemistry has always been strong with this team as they have grown up playing basketball together,” said coach Alec Alspach.
Four of the team’s key players are seniors this year, including Tran, Gabrielle Walker, Malvina Sullivan, and Soomro. “It was nice being able to be a role model for the underclassmen,” shared Soomro, who stepped into a bigger role this season and finished second on the team in three-pointers with 22.
Senior leadership has combined perfectly with the growth of outstanding underclassmen. “I’ve been fortunate enough to play with a lot of amazing players in Old Bridge, especially all of our current seniors,” said junior Abigail Jazmin, who leads the team in scoring(232), blocked shots(10), and steals(45). “Being able to learn from them and be pushed by them every day has really upped my confidence and helped me expand my scoring abilities.”
The girls have worked to dominate both sides of the court all season. “When I check into the game, I am putting one hundred percent effort on every possession so I’m happy that it’s paying off,” said Walker, who led the team with 57 assists and contributed 201 points.
Amongst the team’s accomplishments, Tran, who leads the team in rebounds and three-pointers, won the NJ.com Player of the Week Award. “It feels great!” Tran explained. “I am proud to represent the Old Bridge team by being 1 of 5 girls in the conference highlighted for outstanding in-game performance.”
The team has the perfect combination of talent and experience to find postseason success. “I fully and confidently believe that our seniors can lead us to do something special this postseason,” asserted Jazmin. “I know that they have my back and I have theirs’s, no matter what happens, and we’re ready to give our everything for this team.”
To make the most of their hard work, the girls know they need to finish strong. “We need to step things up a bit and finish the season strong going into playoffs. Every game counts, and we’re practicing and playing our hardest ever now,” said Walker, who scored a season-high 32 points in the team’s win over South Brunswick on January 31.
The girls bypassed the play-in and preliminary rounds of the GMCs, and they will now look to get their first win of the post season tomorrow. “I can’t wait to see the energy our girls bring into the gym this Wednesday as we play in our first round of GMCs,” explained Tran.
The team will try to repeat their success from earlier in the season when they beat Piscataway at home 45-43 behind 15 points by Tram and 10 points and 5 assists by Walker on January 19. Make sure to come out and support the girls in the main gym tomorrow for their 5pm tip off.
Posted on 2/7/23
Photos by Gaby Malanga
Knight Life 