OIB Ortho Girls Basketball Team of the Week: Red Bank Catholic
2025 OIB Ortho/Shore Sports Insider Girls Basketball Team of the Week Series
Red Bank Catholic started the season as the No. 1 team in the Shore Conference and the preseason favorites to win the Shore Conference Tournament. After opening the season with five games against teams outside of New Jersey, the Caseys started their Shore Conference schedule with an upset loss against No. 3 St. Rose to start the new year.
After that defeat, many questioned if RBC would be the favorites entering the SCT or would they fall short like they did the previous two years. Well the Caseys responded and responded big by winning 18 straight games on their way to winning their first SCT since 2013.
“This (SCT) is the hardest thing in the state of New Jersey to win,” said Head Coach Joe Montano after the win. “I saw Max Prep today, they named our state bracket as one of the top ten state brackets in the country. I would say the Shore Conference championship is a lot harder than that.”
RBC made it look easy in the first three games of the tournament, winning the first two games by an average of 48 points and their semifinal game against top seeded Manasquan by 19 points.
Junior Lola Giordano provided a spark off the bench, scoring a season-high 14 points against Manasquan. Tessa Carman and Addy Nyemchek caused problems for the Warriors on the inside with Carman scoring a team-high 15 points and Nyemchek adding 13.
Red Bank Catholic junior Lola Giordano shoots over Manasquan junior Jordyn Hollawell. (Photo: Tom Smith | tspimages.com)
In their rematch against St. Rose, RBC battled back several times throughout the game on their way to the championship. Trailing 46-41 with 3:23 left in the game, the Caseys were able to tie the game 48-48 and had the ball with 26 seconds left. Carman, who will play at Monmouth University next season, received a pass from Nyemchek under the basket to score the game winner with 4 seconds left.
Red Bank Catholic senior Tessa Carman blocks a drive to the basket by Manasquan senior Shea Donnelly. (Photo: Tom Smith | tspimages.com)
Every player played a role in the victory on both ends of the floor. The three Liggio sisters, Christina, Tessa and Katie, each hit a 3-pointer and combined for 7 steals in the game. Giordano once again provided a spark off the bench and Nyemchek and Carman played just as well on the defensive side of the floor as they did on offense.
Addy Nyemchek driving to the basket against Manasquan in the SCT semifinal at RW Barnabas Arena. 2/18/25 – Photo by Tom Smith
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