Cougar Roundup: Girls Soccer Wins Thriller, Boys Soccer and Volleyball Fall in Tough Battles
Nicholas Mistretta
MHS ’79 Cougar Sports Correspondent
MONTGOMERY, NJ — The Cougars closed out another busy stretch of competition this week, highlighted by a hard-fought girls soccer victory over Lawrenceville and competitive efforts from boys soccer and girls volleyball. The girls soccer team earned a 3-2 win at home Tuesday, while the boys soccer team fell 3-1 at Watchung Hills. Montgomery volleyball, meanwhile, battled Ridge through five sets before coming up just short in a 3-2 decision.
Girls Soccer Edges Lawrenceville, 3-2
Montgomery girls soccer found the scoring touch when it mattered most, breaking a halftime tie with two second-half goals to defeat Lawrenceville 3-2 on Oct. 28. The victory moved Montgomery to 8-8 on the season, while Lawrenceville fell to 6-6-3. The teams were tied 1-1 at halftime before Montgomery generated the difference after the break. Norah Coyle led the Cougars with two goals, while Emma Seamon added a goal and an assist. Seamon continued to play a key role in the Montgomery attack, finishing with three points in the victory. Quinn Donahue and Alex Kasimatis each contributed an assist, giving Montgomery three different players with helpers in the match. In goal, Nuvika Shah turned in a strong performance, finishing with 10 saves to help preserve the one-goal win. The win brought Montgomery back to the .500 mark at 8-8 and gave the Cougars another close-game victory late in the season.
Watchung Hills Tops Montgomery Boys Soccer, 3-1
Montgomery boys soccer faced an early deficit on the road Tuesday and was unable to complete the comeback in a 3-1 loss to Watchung Hills. The defeat moved the Cougars to 8-9, while Watchung Hills improved to 11-7. Watchung Hills struck twice in the opening half. Eric Edelman scored off an assist from Taalin Ravinath, and GianLuca Mannino followed with a goal assisted by Evan Belyarchik, sending the Warriors into halftime with a 2-0 lead. Watchung Hills added another goal after the break when Daniel Sutton scored off an assist from Duarte Cunha. Montgomery responded in the second half behind Ryan Spicer, who scored the Cougars’ lone goal of the match. The Cougars finished with four shots on goal, while Watchung Hills produced seven. Montgomery goalkeeper Nischal Ande recorded four saves.
Ridge Survives Five-Set Battle Against Montgomery Volleyball
Montgomery girls volleyball was pushed to the limit Monday night in a five-set battle with Ridge. The Cougars fought back twice to extend the match but ultimately fell 3-2, dropping to 19-6 on the season. Ridge won the opening set 25-22 before Montgomery answered convincingly in the second, 25-14. Ridge regained the lead with a 25-17 third-set win, but the Cougars responded again, taking the fourth 25-20 to force a deciding fifth set.
The finale was every bit as close as the match itself. Ridge edged Montgomery 15-13 to close out the victory. Sidney Koslow led the Cougar attack with 16 kills, while Anshika Verma added 15 kills and a block. Pooja Venkat and Leah Fenmore each finished with six kills, with Fenmore adding two blocks. Setter Ritisha Mungi directed the offense with 38 assists, while also contributing 16 digs. Montgomery’s back-row defense was active throughout the five-set match. Selina Tan led the Cougars with 27 digs, Venkat recorded 24 and Carly Zissman added 22. The Cougars finished with 96 digs overall, along with 44 kills, 42 assists and four blocks. Despite the loss, Montgomery again showed the depth and resilience that have defined much of its season, twice responding after dropping a set and pushing the match all the way to 15-13 in the fifth.
Photo Credit: Nick Mistretta/headlinenewsmontgomry.com