Young Sayreville hoops team finishes strong
BY WARREN RAPPLEYEA Staff Writer
The Sayreville High School girls basketball team ended its season with a run of four victories in its final six games. With five sophomores making major contributions, the future looks bright for the Bombers.

Overall, coach Tara Currie's girls finished at 11-12. In the closing weeks, the Bombers came alive, downing Lawrence in overtime, and beating Colonia, Carteret and Old Bridge, the latter in the opening round of the Greater Middlesex Conference (GMC) Tournament.

The Lawrence game was particularly exciting, when trailing by three Sayreville's Cheyenne Grant hot a three-pointer sent the game into the extra session.

Grant, who had 15 points on the night, nailed another three with time running out in OT to give the Bombers the win. Jessica Kitrys had a strong game as well, scoring 23 points. Both Kitrys and Grant are sophomores.

Kitrys pumped in 18 points, and Grant added 10 more to lead the team to a 49-41 triumph over Old Bridge in the GMC. The Bombers were eliminated in the second round by New Brunswick.

"It was a good way to end the season and it showed howmuch their confidence has improved," Currie said. "As a team, we really had to overcome some confidence issues early in the season.When we wouldmake a turnover, for example, sometimes our players would react. I told them mistakes happen, just get back on defense right away and keep playing. We certainly made improvements in that area."

Kitrys, a 5-11 forward, led the Bombers in scoring and rebounding, averaging 14 points and 10 caroms, respectively. She also topped the team with 20 blocked shots and added 19 steals.

Grant, meanwhile, came on towards the end of the campaign. She averaged 5.2 points, but steadily earned more playing time and made more contributions.

Sayreville's other sophomores include point guard Jackie Ciak, who showed she can move the ball while averaging 5.7 points; guard Lanie Andrews, who averaged 6.8 points; and guard Tanasia Wilson, who played tough on the boards.

Guard Kelli Seaman, one of the team's top defensive players, averaged 5.2 points. Seaman and reserve forward Cassia Copeland are the only seniors on the team.

Junior forwards Heather Roy and Keira Williams also played important roles. Roy averaged 5.4 points and 5.5 rebounds, while Williams averaged 5.3 points after returning from an ankle injury that kept her out for the first half of the season.

"Our team showed a lot of promise and withmost of themcoming back they know a lot will be expected," Currie said. "Our goal is always tomake the state tournament and that's where we want to be next year."

Sayreville will remain in the GMC White Division next year, but its schedule is likely to get tougher with the addition of Cardinal McCarrick and Bishop Ahr to the division.

"We'll have 16 games in our division next year and, as a result, they'll be even more important because we'll have fewer non-conference games," Currie said. "So we need to show up every night with confidence and ready to play."

The coach said she will encourage her players to work on improving quickness and strength during the off-season. In addition, she would like her team to play better defensively.

"There's always room for improvement," Currie said. "I want them to work together to continue developing the chemistry they need on the floor."