Kevin Williams Christmas Classic: Girls Basketball Kathy Snyder Bracket preview, predictions

The Kevin Williams Christmas Classic will take place on December 26th through December 30th on the campus of Toms River North High School.  The girls’ tournament is broken down into two sections: The Ray Cervino Bracket, which is comprised of the top 8 seeds in the tournament, and the Kathy Snyder Bracket, made up of the bottom 8 seeds in the tournament. Below are the first round games for the Snyder Bracket, including our predictions.

 

(9) Wall vs (16) Point Pleasant Beach 12/26 1:30 pm

Records: Wall 1-1  Point Beach 1-2

Key Players: Wall-Erin McBarron (Jr., 23 ppg); Sophia Koepping (Sr., 8 ppg, 7 rpg)  Pt Beach- Elliana Loffreno (Sr., 8 ppg); Parker Stizza (Sr, 5 ppg, 7 rpg)

Notes: Wall comes in as the top seed in the Snyder Bracket. The Crimson Knights are off to a 1-1 start, with a victory over Brick Memorial. Junior Erin McBarron has been on a tear to start the season, averaging 23 points per game, including 8 makes from downtown. Senior Sophia Koepping anchors the front court, dropping 8 points and 7 rebounds per game. Point Beach is feeling the effects of graduation, losing its leading scorer from the last four seasons, Erin Frauenheim. Senior Elliana Loffreno has stepped up as the Gulls go-to scorer, averaging a shade under eight points per game. Fellow senior, Parker Stizza, is having a nice start to the season as well, averaging five points and seven boards per contest.

Predictions: Doug- Wall  Nick- Wall

 

(10) Toms River South vs (15) Brick Memorial 12/26 10:30 am

Records: Toms River South 2-1 Brick Memorial 1-3

Key Players: Toms River South- Linsey Cribbin (Jr., 23 ppg, 6 rpg); Danielle Gordon (So., 10 ppg); Kylee Ford (So., 8 ppg)  Brick Memorial- Mikaela Rivers (Fr., 11 ppg); Maren Schnieder (Jr., 5 ppg, 5 rpg)

Notes: This will be the second meeting of the young season between the Indians and Mustangs. Toms River South dominated the Mustangs 54-30 in their first matchup behind 21 points from junior guard Linsey Cribbin. Cribben has been a force so far this season, averaging 23 points and five rebounds per game. Cribbin has had help from two sophomores, Danielle Gordon (10 ppg) and Kylee Ford (8 ppg). Brick Memorial has had a tough start to the season, starting 1-3 with a win over Freehold Boro. The Mustangs have been led by freshman Mikaela Rivers, who is scoring at an 11 point per game clip.  Junior Maren Schnieder is contributing five points and five boards per game.

Predictions: Doug- Toms River South Nick- Toms River South

 

(11) Point Boro vs (14) Toms River North 12/26 9 am

Records: Pt Boro 2-1 Toms River North 1-3

Key Players: Point Boro- Georgia D’Agnelo (So., 10 ppg); Angela Forese (Sr, 6 ppg, 7 rpg); Taylor Lappke (So., 7 ppg)  Toms River North- Cara Sarluca (Sr., 15 ppg); Montana Knoeller (Fr., 11 ppg, 7 rpg)

Notes: Point Boro was hit hard by graduation, losing their entire starting five that carried them to a 20-win season. Replacing those seniors won’t be easy, but sophomore Georgia D’Angelo has stepped up in the early season, dropping 10 points per game. Fellow sophomore Taylor Lappke is averaging seven points, and battle-tested senior Angela Forese is chipping in seven points and six boards per game. Toms River North has not had an easy schedule to start the season, dropping their first three contests to teams with a combined 8-1 record. Senior Cara Sarluca is back as the Mariners leading scorer, averaging 15 points a game. Freshman Montana Knoeller has made a name for herself early in the season, scoring at an 11 points per game clip to go along with seven boards per contest.

Predictions: Doug- Toms River North Nick- Point Pleasant Boro

 

(12) Donovan Catholic vs (13) Lacey 12/26 Noon

Records: Donovan Catholic 0-2 Lacey 3-1

Key Players: DC- Sarah Franks (Jr., 11 ppg); Anais Friedman (Sr.); Madison Kohller (Jr.)  Lacey- Brooklyn Bell (Sr., 16 ppg, 7 rpg); Ava Flanagan (Sr., 6 ppg, 4 rpg)

Notes: Donovan Catholic is off to an 0-2 start, having lost to two tough opponents in Ranney and Southern. Junior Sarah Franks leads the Griffins in scoring at 11 points per game. Donovan has a group of veteran players who have had success, including senior guard Anais Friedman and junior Maddy Koehler. Lacey is off to surprising 3-1 start, with wins over Lakewood, Raritan, and New Egypt to start the season before falling to Central. Lacey is led once again by senior Brooklynn Bell, who comes in averaging 16 points and seven boards per game, including a 16 point and 11 rebound performance against New Egypt. Senior Ava Flanagan has provided the Lions with a spark, dropping six points and four boards per contest.

Predictions: Doug- Lacey Nick- Lacey