Chatham falls to Cherry Hill West in Group 3 girls basketball final
PISCATAWAY — Tears were still falling as McKenna Hogan tried to put the Chatham girls basketball season into perspective. The Cougars had just lost, 34-19, to Cherry Hill West in the NJSIAA Group 3 final.
But Hogan, a senior guard who head coach Joe Gaba described as "the kid who will be right in your face motivating you," came up with a positive spin.
"We're sad that it's over, not sad that we lost," she said. Added classmate Ella Kreuzer, "No matter what, we made history. There were some memorable moments."
The final marks Chatham's lowest point total since falling to Morris Catholic, 33-15, in a 2014 Morris County Tournament semifinal.
The Cougars have been to six Group finals and have yet to win. This is the second year in a row Chatham has fallen in the Group 3 final.
Cherry Hill West, meanwhile, won its first sectional title two weeks ago. The Lions (25-4) end the season on a nine-game winning streak, with their first state trophy.
Cherry Hill West sophomore Kirsten Gibson led all scorers with 16 points on Saturday. But where the low-scoring Lions excelled was forcing Chatham away from the basket. Cherry Hill West coach Dan Butler's game plan was to keep the Cougars' 3-point shooters in check.
Chatham shot just 2-of-11 from behind the arc, and couldn't get anything going inside either.
Senior guards Arden Alvarez and Ella von Doussa had five points apiece. Kreuzer, another senior guard, was held to just four points, four rebounds and three assists.
The Cougars also suffered from the absence of senior point guard Mia Semioli, who fell hard on her right shoulder in Tuesday's semifinal against Morris Knolls and was on the bench with a sling on her arm.
"Every look we got was a hard look," said Kreuzer, who has signed a National Letter of Intent with Bucknell. "We had to work through it. It wasn't easy."
Chatham (31-3) wraps up the season with three losses: at Immaculate Heart, to Non-Public A champion Morris Catholic in the MCT final, and Saturday's state final. The Cougars seniors, most of whom have played together since third grade, have a 95-31 all-time record, with all but seven of losses coming in their first two high school seasons.
"Our program has really high standards. (These seniors) set the standard even higher," Gaba said. "It's one thing to say at the end of last season, 'We should get back to this game.' It's another thing to go out and do it."
This article originally appeared on Morristown Daily Record: NJ girls basketball: Chatham falls to Cherry Hill West in Group 3 final
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