By DAVE O’SULLIVAN
Staff Writer
On X @GDsullysays
PISCATAWAY — On Friday afternoon, playing for the Non-Public B state championship at Rutgers University’s Jersey Mike’s Arena, the Gloucester Catholic High girls basketball team got off to about the worst start the Rams could have imagined. They were trailing Montclair Immaculate 9-1 after one quarter and turnovers were an early problem.
The Rams fought hard to get back in the game and after a solid second quarter, they trailed by just one, 18-17. But every time Gloucester Catholic made a run, the Lions had an answer, and Montclair Immaculate eventually pulled away for a 41-30 victory, closing out the final seven minutes on an 11-2 run. The loss denied longtime Gloucester Catholic coach Lisa Gedaka — who has more than 700 wins in her career — of her first state championship.
“It was certainly not the ending we wanted. We didn’t play very well, we didn’t take care of the basketball, and credit Montclair Immaculate. They were really good, but we certainly did not have our best game today,” said Gedaka, who won a sectional title for the first time in her storied 35-year career this season. “That’s disappointing, but, like I told the kids, it’s not one game that defines a season. Whether we won or lost this game doesn’t distract from what we did the entire year. They came to practice every day ready to go, the hardest working team I’ve ever had.
“We had a great year. We had a great schedule, and I thought they were up to the challenge day in and day out.”
The championship was bittersweet for the Lions (21-9, 9-1 SEC American), who learned last month that their school would be closing down in June. They played like a team wanting to leave a legacy, especially in the fourth quarter when they outscored the Rams 11-4. Nilah Rivera and London Caldwell combined for 21 points, six rebounds and seven steals in the game, and the Lions didn’t allow a single Rams player to reach double figures in points. Forward Jahzara Green led the way for Gloucester Catholic with nine points and eight rebounds.
“I think we got better as a team this year. I just wish (in the state final) we could have brought it together,” said Green, a junior. “But we have no seniors, so everybody is returning, and hopefully next year we can do better. We were sped up — I think in the first quarter we scored one point. We knew their guards were quick and we knew they were going to be good at defense, but we should have handled it better. The fact that we didn’t was kind of unlike us. We didn’t play the way we could have, and I know we could have beaten this team.”
“I transferred here my sophomore year and I knew we could win as soon as I got here,” added fellow junior Jalyn Moore, who had seven points, six rebounds and four steals. “I think we believed in this since our first practice. I think we started a little nonchalantly and that’s on us, but it was a good game. We should have come out with the win, we just didn’t, but that’s fine because everybody played amazing, we played hard. I’m proud of all the girls. All the girls are amazing, they’re all supportive, we work out every day, the environment is good and all the coaches care for us. I’m proud to be at Gloucester Catholic.”
Gloucester Catholic (26-5, 9-0 Tri-County Classic) may be the early favorite to win it all next year, as the Rams don’t have any seniors on the roster and will return two solid players in current junior Kendall Scott and sophomore Yazaniah Shumate, both of whom were injured for the entire season. Guards Amanda Eggers and Monet High are a sophomore and freshman, respectively, and Green and Moore are two of the best players in all of South Jersey.
“(Playing for a state title) really is awesome. I’m so happy for my kids, my team. I certainly wanted a different outcome for them. I thought they deserved to be here and were a very good team all year. I’m just disappointed for them that we didn’t quite get it done,” Gedaka said. “We’ll get the kids back who were injured — Kendall Scott and Yaz Shumate — who were out basically the whole year. Especially Yaz, she tore her ACL in the first scrimmage. So we can build on that, having everybody back we can continue to build on what we started. I look for us to be better and stronger next year.”
Moore, a Voorhees resident, said she loves what Gloucester Catholic is building.
“(This season) has been great. (My teammates) are like my family, I see them all the time. I see them more than my mom,” she said. “We’re always together, we’re like best friends on the team and we stick together like a family.”
