Piscataway – The New Providence Pioneers took on the Glen Ridge Ridgers for the NJSIAA Group 1 Girls Basketball State Championship on Saturday afternoon.
The game was relatively close in the first half as each team came out looking to find a way to establish some dominance. In the first quarter, the Pioneers enjoyed a one-point lead, shooting 40 percent from the field and 50 percent from behind the arc. The Ridgers were able to keep the quarter close thanks to their high percentage shooting; they made 57 percent of their shots, and senior Marjorie Boyle knocked down a couple of threes in the quarter.
In the second quarter, the defense seemed to tighten up from both sides as both teams struggled from the field with Glen Ridge shooting 30 percent from the floor while New Providence shot 25 percent. The Ridgers would take a slight one point lead going into half-time.
In the second half, it seemed to be the same trend as the first half; both teams were neck and neck till the very end. As the game was coming down to the wire with a score of 38-36 after the missed free throw from Riley O’Sullivan, that would’ve made it a one-point game with a minute to go. Glen Ridge senior Brenna Slattery swished a pair of free throws to put her team up four points. On the next possession, the Ridgers looked to cut the lead to one point with a 3-point attempt from Allison Snyder. Unfortunately, Snyder missed, and New Providence came up with the rebound, forcing the Ridgers to foul Annie Conover, who went to the free-throw line and made two shots to put the game to bed with a final score of 42-36.
The Pioneers were led in scoring by junior Annie Conover, who put up 18 points on a 43 percent field goal percentage and 50 percent from behind the arc. Glen Ridge got most of their scoring from senior Katie Powers as she played her last game for the program and put up 11 points while shooting 57 percent from the field.
