New Providence girls win State Group 2 basketball championship

Here is the story by Lauren Knego of NJ.com

Meghan Lamanna stood near the baseline, bleeding from the top of her left shoulder and having a long scratch on her arm following New Providence’s game against Secaucus.

It was a physical matchup, with Lamanna taking a few bumps during the game, with the cut opening up at one point during the game.

But Lamanna had a smile on her face through it all. It was worth it after the final outcome.

Behind a strong second-half performance from beyond the arc and some defensive adjustments, No. 9 New Providence defeated Secaucus 55-32 in the Group 2 championship game on Saturday at RWJBarnabas Health Arena in Toms River.

The championship is New Providence’s fourth overall and its first since 2015. It’s also the first one as a Group 2 school, with the previous three coming as a Group 1 program.

New Providence finishes the season with a 28-3 record, and Lamanna, one of the seniors on the team, ended her decorated high school career with 14 points in the final.

“I’m just so excited and so happy,” Lamanna said. “This team was special. We have a really good group of teammates and coaches, and that’s why we were able to do this.”

Junior Grace Kinum added 14 points and five rebounds for New Providence, which moved from Group 1 to Group 2 last season.

New Providence was placed in the always-tough Central Jersey, Group 2 section, matching up against Shore Conference powerhouses Manasquan, Rumson-Fair Haven and Holmdel.

After falling short last season in the sectional final, coach Cap Pazdera’s team won the section and parlayed that to a win over Middle Township in the Group 2 semifinals and then took care of business in the final against Secaucus, with Pazdera getting emotional when talking about the impact of the senior class

“A lot, said Pazdera when asked what the senior class has meant to him and the program. “They’ve been through thick and thin. (A) COVID year where we kind of had a really good season and had to cut it short. That year before, when we were in the sectional and got cut short, and we played in the semifinal in front of nobody.

“And then, last year to lose to Manasquan, win the county, which was the first time in 30-plus years for New Providence, and then to expect them to come back and do all of that again, and I put that on their plate? You can’t say enough about them and the team to adopt that, grasp it as their own and then go after it.

Secaucus (29-4) led 14-10 after the end of the first, courtesy of a 10-1 run at the end of the period.

New Providence led 25-22 at halftime after closing the quarter on a 13-4 run.

The contest changed in the third quarter.

Pazdera and his coaching staff made a slight defensive adjustment, putting Kinum on Secaucus junior Alyssa Craigwell, who scored nine points in the first half, taking the ball to the basket and finishing.

Kinum scored nine points in the second half and played her usual tough defense on Craigwell.

“I think we were a little nervous. (Craigwell) is intimidating,” Kinum said. “I think we got into our groove the nerves went away. Offensively, played a lot better. It’s such a big pressure game. It’s the biggest game we’ll play. It’s our last game. There were a lot of nerves going in, but once we started playing (well), we just got into the groove and weren’t as nervous.”

What also helped was the shots that New Providence was missing from the perimeter in the first half started going in. The Pioneers connected on four 3-pointers, including two by freshman Annie Conover, who scored 11 points.

Conover’s role increased as the season went on, becoming an important piece to the rotation.

“I’m just so honored to be able to play with them,” Conover said. “It’s really nice to be a part of this team and get better with them. I definitely gained more confidence.” “I was happy to be happy to contribute. Having great coaches helped. It gave me a chance to gain confidence playing with them.”

For Secaucus, it’s the end of a historic season for veteran coach John Sterling’s team.

Secaucus won its first-ever sectional championship after falling short several times over the last handful of seasons.

Craigwell scored a game-high 19 points and Daniela Peschetti added nine more.

“We did things that Secaucus has never done before,” Sterling said. “We won a sectional championship for the first time. We got to this game for the first time in school history, they have so much to be proud of. I said (to them), I’m leaving here no less proud of them than I’ve been at any time during the year.

“It’s not that we just let New Providence win. They earned the victory because our girls killed themselves out there. We battled, we played hard. They were just better than us in the second half today.”

After the celebration, Pazdera stood near his team. He had tears in his eyes as he began to reflect on the state championship. He also coached Saturday with a heavy heart.

Pazdera said his former soccer coach growing up and New Providence resident, Joe Smith, died on Friday. Smith coached Pazdera through the youth level and into middle school, teaching him the qualities of how to be a head coach.

Pazdera dedicated the win to Smith.

“I’d like to dedicate this win to him and what he taught me as a coach,” Pazdera said as his voice trailed off. “This win is for him.”