Township girls keep an eye on .500 as year winds down

Township girls keep an eye on .500 as year winds down

By Wayne witkowski

Staff Writer

The Brick Township High School girls’ basketball team talked about the goals that still lie ahead during their annual late-season brunch at the Westwood in Westfield on Sunday.

Although the Green Dragons were eliminated from qualifying for the Shore Conference Tournament last Monday by Wall, 55-49, despite Kathy DeTata’s 27 points and 11 from freshman sister Alessandra, they still have hopes for a .500 season. And their 7-12 record is two wins more than last season with five games left.

As for individual recognition, Kathy DeTata has widened her leads in the Shore at 19.2 points per game and 6.0 steals per game to comfortable margins.

"What I love about this year is the support we’ve gotten from the people in the stands," said coach Mark Truhan. "This season is more than satisfying. It’s been successful."

That was evident in Saturday’s 47-42 Shore Conference A South loss to 17-2 Toms River North. Although Kathy DeTata again carried the scoring with 18 points, the rest of the team contributed tenacious defense and hustle to keep the game close throughout.

"I’m very proud of the way we played against them," said Truhan. "There was only one game this year where we lost by more than eight points, so we were in nearly every game. And it’s with defense. We held every team we beat to 10 points or less in the fourth quarter."

With one senior in the starting lineup and three others on the bench, there are enough players who can return to make for a solid future. Two are from the DeTata family. While Kathy DeTata, a junior, and freshman sister Alessandra return, older sister Marissa graduates. All three contributed handily to this season, with Alessandra moving into the starting lineup five games ago.

Cara Capestro also will be back. The junior contributed a career-high 13 points and Kathy DeTata had 18 in a 53-35 victory over Point Pleasant Boro last week. Alyssa Hankins fired in 10 points and got her 10th double-double of the season with 10 rebounds.

Kaity McCabe, a junior, also has contributed, as has freshman Michelle Harder, who has gotten increased playing time.

"I never doubted Michelle’s ability at point guard, but we left her on junior varsity so she could get some minutes in real competition (before playing on varsity)," Truhan said.

In an effort to finish with a .500 record, Truhan recently booked games at Ocean on Feb. 18 and at Asbury Park the next day, and has set up another game at home against Henry Hudson Feb. 24 that will meet the state-mandated maximum 24-game limit.

— Wayne Witkowski