Built to Win: Montgomery Volleyball’s 16-2 Run Defined by Depth, Toughness and Response

Nicholas Mistretta

MHS ’79 Cougar Sports Correspondent

MONTGOMERY, NJ — Eighteen matches into the season, Montgomery High School’s girls volleyball team has experienced just about every kind of test.

There have been convincing sweeps and three-set battles. Matches controlled from the opening serve and others decided by just two points. Nights when the Cougars’ hitters dictated play, and others when defense, serving and patience made the difference. There have also now been two losses. And perhaps just as telling as Montgomery’s 16-2 record is what the Cougars have done after them. Under head coach Lauren Matlack, Montgomery has developed into a team whose success is difficult to attribute to one player or one statistical category. Captains Ritisha Mungi and Anshika Verma lead a lineup that has repeatedly shown depth, balance and an ability to adjust depending on what a match demands. The result has been one of the strongest seasons among Montgomery’s fall programs — and one that is still very much being written.

A Fast Start Becomes Something More
Montgomery’s first and, for several weeks, only defeat came against Hopewell Valley on Sept. 18. The Cougars responded by piling up victories. Against Voorhees, Sidney Koslow delivered 10 kills as Montgomery prevailed in three sets. She followed with 16 kills in another three-set victory over Franklin. Mungi supplied 23 assists against Voorhees and 25 against Franklin, while Selina Tan recorded 17 and 27 digs, respectively. The pattern continued as Montgomery moved through its schedule. The Cougars swept Phillipsburg 28-26, 25-23, with Koslow and Verma combining for 15 kills. They followed with commanding victories over Pingry and Bound Brook, improving to 12-1 while continuing to receive production from throughout the lineup. But not every victory came comfortably.

Warren Hills Tests Montgomery’s Composure
Against Warren Hills, Montgomery found itself in two sets that refused to end easily. The Cougars survived 26-24 and 31-29, winning both extended sets to complete another sweep. Koslow led the attack with 12 kills. Mungi recorded 22 assists and 11 digs. Pooja Venkat produced 20 digs, and Carly Zissman added 13. Montgomery did not overwhelm Warren Hills. It outlasted them. For a team that had already demonstrated an ability to win decisively, the match offered evidence of something else: composure when virtually every point mattered.

Different Players, Same Result
That depth has become one of Montgomery’s defining qualities. Koslow has consistently provided one of the Cougars’ most dangerous offensive options. Mungi has been the primary distributor, repeatedly recording assist totals in the 20s while also contributing defensively. Verma has supplied production at the net as both a hitter and blocker. Venkat, Tan and Zissman have helped anchor the back row, while Leah Fenmore, Avery Zhao and Anita Balashova have given Montgomery additional attacking options. Against Bernards, for example, Koslow led the Cougars with nine kills, but the match was just as notable for Venkat’s seven aces and Tan’s 12 digs. Then against College Achieve Central, Fenmore stepped forward with a team-high nine kills. Koslow added seven, Venkat five and Verma four as Montgomery rolled 25-8, 25-12. The names at the top of the stat sheet can change from night to night. The result usually has not.

Bridgewater-Raritan Delivers Second Loss
That run eventually met another test against Bridgewater-Raritan. The Cougars took the opening set 26-24, only to see the Panthers answer with a 26-24 victory of their own. Bridgewater-Raritan then pulled away 25-18 in the deciding set, handing Montgomery its second loss of the season. Venkat turned in one of her strongest all-around performances with 10 kills and 17 digs. Koslow added seven kills and 11 digs, while Mungi recorded 26 assists. Tan led the defense with 20 digs, and Montgomery finished with 63 as a team. It was hardly a poor performance. Two of the three sets were separated by only two points. But for only the second time all season, Montgomery walked away without the win. The matchup also carries significance beyond the regular-season result: Montgomery and Bridgewater-Raritan are scheduled to meet again in the Somerset County Tournament. That means the Cougars received more than a loss. They received a firsthand look at an opponent they will soon see again when the stakes are higher.

Cougars Answer Immediately Against Hillsborough
How Montgomery responded was revealing. One day later, neighboring rival Hillsborough took the first set from the Cougars, 25-22. For a team coming directly off only its second loss, Montgomery suddenly found itself trailing again. The Cougars answered. Montgomery reversed the score in the second set, winning 25-22, and forced a deciding third. Then came one of the most demanding finishes of the season. The teams pushed beyond 25 points, neither able to create the required two-point margin. Eventually, Montgomery broke through, taking the set 29-27 and the match 2-1. Koslow delivered 14 kills, 12 digs and two blocks. Mungi finished with 23 assists, seven digs, four kills and a block. Venkat recorded 17 digs, while Tan added 18. Fenmore contributed five kills and three blocks, and Verma added five kills, a block and eight service points. Montgomery totaled 37 kills, 66 digs and seven blocks. It was not a dominant sweep. It may have been something more useful. After losing to Bridgewater-Raritan, the Cougars were immediately placed in another three-set fight — and won it.

Captains at the Center of the Run
Mungi and Verma have provided continuity throughout a season in which Montgomery has relied heavily on its depth. Mungi’s setting has been central to an offense capable of distributing opportunities among several hitters. Her contributions have also extended into defense, serving and attacking. Verma has given the Cougars another consistent presence at the net while contributing in several phases of the game. As captains, their role extends beyond the box score. On a roster where different players can emerge on different nights, Mungi and Verma help provide the stability around which that depth operates. And that may be one reason Montgomery has been able to absorb difficult moments without allowing them to become prolonged slides.

More Than an Offensive Team
The Cougars’ record can easily draw attention to kills and assists, but Montgomery’s success has been built just as much behind the attack line. Tan has recorded matches with 20-plus digs. Venkat has done the same. Zissman has repeatedly contributed defensively, while Koslow has combined hitting production with significant work in the back row. Serving has also become a weapon. Montgomery recorded 17 aces against Bernards, including seven from Venkat, and followed with 10 against College Achieve Central. That balance makes the Cougars difficult to reduce to a single formula. Take away one hitter and Montgomery has others. Extend rallies and the Cougars have defenders capable of keeping the point alive. Put pressure on their offense and Mungi has repeatedly found different options. And when a match becomes tight, Montgomery has now demonstrated that it can stay in it deep into extra points.

Two Losses Tell Part of the Story
At 16-2, Montgomery’s season is not perfect. That may actually make the story more interesting. Hopewell Valley handed the Cougars their first loss in September. Montgomery responded with a prolonged run of victories. Bridgewater-Raritan delivered the second. Less than 24 hours later, Montgomery dropped the opening set to Hillsborough before fighting back to win in three. Great seasons are rarely defined only by what happens when everything is working. They are also shaped by what happens when it isn’t. So far, Montgomery has answered those moments well.

A Season Still Being Written
There is still meaningful volleyball ahead, including a Somerset County Tournament that will bring another meeting with the Bridgewater-Raritan team responsible for Montgomery’s most recent defeat. That rematch will offer another measure of just how far this group can go. But whatever comes next, the first 18 matches have already established the identity of Matlack’s Cougars.

They can win quickly.

They can win ugly.

They can survive extended sets.

They can lean on offense, defense or serving.

They can get major performances from different players.

And now they have shown they can absorb a loss, return to the court the following day, fall behind again — and respond.

Sixteen wins. Two losses. And plenty of volleyball still ahead.
For Montgomery, this season has become about more than an impressive record. It has become a story of a team that simply keeps finding another way forward.

Photo Credit: Nick Mistretta/headlinenewsmontgomry.com