Consistency and high expectations have fueled the rivalry between Freehold Township and Saint John Vianney over the past couple of seasons and this year would be no different.
Last season, Saint John Vianney captured the Shore Conference Tournament championship over Freehold Township and then Freehold Township flipped the script and topped Saint John Vianney for the NJSIAA team championship.
These same two teams were once again going at each other and pushing one another to perform at their best the entire 2018 season. The two teams outperformed their opponents enroute to another Patriots-Lancers showdown. The two teams would enter the Shore Conference Tournament 1-2 and in the finals it came down to these two powerhouses once again, and once again they put on a show. It would be the Lancers again who would take home the Shore Conference Tournament championship.
Freehold Township knew how to rebound but would have to once again on the biggest stage, the NJSIAA Central Jersey Sectional 1 and team championships. The Patriots, looking to capture their first Sectional title in 17 years, did so in impressive fashion, finishing with 113.6 points and topping Saint John Vianney with 113.2 and Middletown South 111.3 points. Freehold Township put the meet away with a 1-2-3 finish on the uneven bars behind Anna Pagliaro’s 9.6, Alexis Rogers’ 9.475 and Jamie Polonet with a 9.475.
In the NJSIAA team championships, freshman Janelle Cloud and senior Rogers got the Patriots off to a fast start on the uneven bars and received a team score of 28.825. Freehold Township would latch onto the momentum and not let Saint John Vianney set the tempo for this year’s finals. The Patriots finished the meet strong in the final two events, receiving a team score of 28.2 points on beam and 27.95 on floor to secure their back-to-back NJSIAA team gymnastics title. Enroute to their title, this year’s group of girls set a meet record with 113.35, beating cross-town foe Freehold Boro’s mark of 113.1 back in 2011..jpg)
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“That was a surprise and definitely mind blowing. They are so excited about beating the meet record,” said Freehold Township head coach Ashley Montgomery about the feat.
Montgomery, who is in her second season as the head coach for Freehold, also took home some hardware this season, earning Gymnastics Coach of The Year honors. Montgomery got her coaching career started early due to ankle injuries that forced her competition career to come to an unexpected end. Once recovered from her injuries, she turned to coaching club gymnastics and becoming a certified judge. She took over her first high school coaching position for Freehold Township last season and has added her dedication and vision to the sport and it has only taken the Patriots higher and higher these past two seasons.
Not one to take the praise alone, Montgomery deflected a lot of the team’s success to her assistant coach. Montgomery added, “I couldn’t do this without Carlee Sobotka; she is absolutely an amazing assistant. She actually didn’t know anything about gymnastics coming in, which is funny because she was a field hockey and lacrosse player. She really brings a lot to the team and is learning gymnastics as we go and has done an amazing job. The girls absolutely love her and look up to her, and I could not have done this without her.”
Saint John Vianney’s senior Ariana Agrapides not only helped lead her team to the Shore Conference Tournament championships, second-place finish at the Central Jersey championships and second-place finish at the team championships, but also earned herself the All-Around title at the NJSIAA individual championships with a score of 38.475.
Afterwards Agrapides said, “It is really exciting. I am kind of sad because this is my final year with the team and I am just really excited I was able to end it with a bang.”
Her final performance of her outstanding high school career ended with her also capturing her first outright title with a first-place finish on the floor exercise with a 9.75. She also finished with a second-place finish on the uneven bars with a 9.55 and a sixth-place finish on the beam with a 9.375.
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