Dominant Team Spikes Its Way to Championship
This winter, Madison Junior School athletics enjoyed its first championship in three years as the girls' volleyball team had a glorious season. Not only did the team bring home a title on March 12 by winning the GMCJSCA tournament, but they made it through the season undefeated.
Under the leadership of Coaches Steve Fenton and Hector Martinez, the girls began their season with somewhat limited practice time due to the number of snow days. As the games began, it became clear that this squad, led by eighth graders Mariana Fernandez, Angelina Martirano, Heather McCulloch, Carina Pacheco, Eve Sherwood, Maya Shukla, Kathryn Wilt, and Caroline Winsper, was the team to beat in Morris County. Despite the early season wins, the coaches made some adjustments and the girls were learning and improving rather than being satisfied with their success. This would pay off at the end of the season.
As the weeks unfolded, seventh graders Julia Bartie, Avery Donahue, Daiana Guevera, Chase Lucas, Brianna Masiello, and Megan Tierney provided strong play and gained experience to assist the eighth graders. The team earned the number one seed in the tournament after finishing the regular season without a loss.
The girls saved their best for last, as they easily conquered their opponents in the tournament. The final game was against Mendham Township, who was playing on its home floor since it is the host school for the tournament. Although they were the visitors, the girls from Madison quickly pounced on their opponents and it became clear that they would not be denied. The format for volleyball contests is two out of three games (scoring to 25), however the MJS team only needed two games to defeat most of its opponents throughout the season, and this was the case in the final as well. The Madison players were intense and determined, but after the winning point, the mood change to celebratory. The trophy, taking pictures, and eating cookies were enjoyed by all. Several days later, the championship banner in the MJS gym was updated to read girls' volleyball 2015.