Pitman ends Pennsville’s run

Pitman hands Pennsville first loss of season, snapping its 22-match winning streak, in South Jersey Group I title match; Panthers win first sectional title in 18 years

NJSIAA SECTIONALS
South: Pitman 4, Pennsville 1
Central: New Providence 4, Highland Park 1
North Jersey I: Glen Rock 4, Pascack Hills 1
North Jersey II: Hanover Park 4, Glen Ridge 1
STATE FINAL FOUR
Mercer County Park, Thursday
Pairings TBA

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PITMAN – The Pennsville girls tennis team loaded the bus when it was over and quickly put Shertel Park in their rearview mirror. No sense sticking around to watch someone else’s celebration at their expense.

“There was just way too much orange,” one was heard to say.

Top-seeded Pitman did something Tuesday no team has been able to do this season – find a way to put the Eagles away. It handed the Eagles their first loss of the season, snapping their 22-match winning streak, in a 4-1 victory for the South Jersey Group I championship.

The Panthers now travel up the turnpike to the State Final Four at Mercer County Park Thursday. Their semifinal opponent won’t be determined until Wednesday when the Final Four is reseeded. All four finalists won their sectional finals 4-1.

“I told the girls that wasn’t the best version of Pennsville, Pitman did not see the best version of Pennsville today,” Eagles coach Dan LaMont said. “I just felt we could have competed.

“We’re disappointed, we’re really disappointed. I told them I hope it hurts, I hope it stings, but you know what, you wake up tomorrow, the sun rises and we’ve got a match to play. We’re going to come back tomorrow, go out to Millville and we’re going to see what we can do.”

The Eagles knew the sectional final was going to be a tight match. Pitman was solid, athletic and driven and certain matches had to go their way to get the outcome they desired.

Pitman won matches at the critical No. 2 doubles and No. 2 singles spots to move into position to clinch their first sectional title in 18 years. That came when No. 1 singles Anna Fisicaro closed out Megan Morris, 6-2, 6-0.

“I really thought we were up 2-0 from the beginning, no disrespect to the Pennsville girls, and we needed to find one more,” Pitman coach Gene Reid said. “That was the joke on the sideline, we need Anna to win one more game. That was a great position to be in.”

The No. 2 doubles team of Abby Heil and Jess Bretz that got things started rallied from a 3-2 deficit to win the first set, then dominated the second set, losing only a handful of points. The win was especially personal for Bretz, who was a teammate of Pennsville’s Lily Edwards and Gabi Farino on the 2023 Pennsville LL Senior Softball World Series team.

“I think the biggest thing is the bragging rights,” Bretz said, “but it feels great because we’ve been working for this for three or four years now and to finally get that championship feels amazing.”

Edwards won Pennsville’s only point, taking a straight-set victory at No. 3 singles to remain undefeated on the season. The junior has won 27 matches in a row since losing to Pitman’s Colette Rollins (Tuesday’s No. 2) in last year’s tournament.

But she conceded it was a hollow victory given the results unfolding around her.

“It means a lot, but at the same time it doesn’t because I already knew what had happened on the other courts,” she said. “It’s a weird approach to it.”

Cover photo: Pennsville’s Lily Edwards returns a shot during her No. 3 singles match against Pitman Tuesday. (Photo by Brian Tortella)

SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I FINALS
PITMAN 4, PENNSVILLE 1
Anna Fisicaro (Pi) def. Megan Morris, 6-2, 6-0
Colette Rollins (Pi) def. Regan Witt, 6-2, 6-2
Lily Edwards (Pe) def. Ava Mollehhauer, 6-1, 6-0
Kendall Bennett-Amanda Bradley (Pi) def. Emma Cornette-Izzy Schrenker, 6-2, 7-5
Jessica Bretz-Abigail Heil (Pi) def. Naomi Hess-Morgan Holt, 6-4, 6-1
Records: Pennsville 16-1, Pitman 19-2