The Northern Valley Demarest Norsemen Varsity Girls Basketball Team(23-3) coasted to a 60-46 victory over the Montville Mustangs(8-18) in the NJSIAA North Jersey Section 1, Group 3 Tournament First Round at Northern Valley Regional High School at Demarest.

Gabriella Mittleman, fresh off a 21-point performance against Ramapo in the Bergen County Tournament Championship Game, followed up with another impressive showing, tallying a game-high 21 points, while Zoe Wasserlauf supplied 20 points. Montville Chase Agrusti amassed a team-high 17 points, and Lily Smith totaled 14 points.

Demarest Head Coach Jenny Jurjevic said, “Montville shot well and matched their average threes in the first half. It's fun to see a team play with nothing to lose.” 

“I thought it was a good opportunity for our girls to stretch the bench and minutes and we’re going to need some of that experience and exposure later in the tournament and hopefully we keep surviving and advancing at that point.”

The Norseman jumped out to an early 9-3 lead in the first quarter, but Montville responded with back-to-back trifectas by Chase Agrusti and Emma Spoto to tie the game up and then jumped in front 11-9 on a steal by Agrusti and driving to the basket for the layup with less than three minutes remaining.

Demarest then cranked up the defensive intensity with a smothering full-court press and double-teaming that led to a 6-0 spurt. The Norseman was also sparked by the offensive output from Zoe Wasserlauf, netting eight points.

In the second quarter, the Mustangs twice cut the deficit to two points, but then Gabriella Mittleman buried a triple to stem the tide. Demarest's potent defense resulted in a bunch of steals and blocked shots, translating into an up-tempo transition game and fast-break points, and a 7-0 run.

"We extended the defense, and today was about making plays," Head Coach Jenny Jurjevic said.

The Norseman continued to exert ferocious pressure and expanded the margin to double digits at 32-19 with a minute and a half left. Gabriella Mittleman was in the zone offensively for Demarest in the period, tallying nine points. Montville answered back with a late blitz to narrow the gap to single digits, 34-25, at halftime.

“Gabriella Mittleman is seasoned at this point and a well-oiled machine,” Head Coach Jenny Jurjevic described.” “I’m happy with Zoe Wasserlauf, and she’s picking up things now.” “We definitely can identify some assets here in and don’t know who’s going to step on any given night, and we’re patiently waiting to see who the next kid is, and that’s a testament to the team’s patience and resilience.”

Once the third quarter commenced, the Norseman rapidly extended their lead by canning pearls first with Ella Peck and consecutive shots from behind the arc by Zoe Wasserlauf.

The Mustangs' offense then became stagnant and struggled to put points on the board, which did not come until there were less than six minutes left on a trey by Emma Spoto. By the time the quarter ended, Demarest was up 51-35.

In the fourth quarter, the Norsemen's scoring output dropped, but they still had a comfortable enough lead and were able to get players off the bench quality time on the court.

Montville demonstrated tenacity as four different players got on the scoresheet, but the margin was too much to overcome.

Demarest now awaits the winner of the matchup of the seventh seed Roxbury and the tenth seed Northern Highlands in the Quarterfinals.

Coach Jurjevic noted, “We don't feel pressure. We're grateful, humble, and never take opponents lightly. We focus on appreciating every moment.”

“We’re more emotional in the fact we lost last year on our court after being up by eight to Morris Knolls then going down and being up by eight again and going down and losing the championship game.” 

“This is a family affair, and I know a lot of coaches don’t want to hear and say that and try to keep up the walls up and separation, but our parents do a wonderful job of respecting and letting me do what I do and it’s a shared passion.” “We come to watch our kids play and what do we do at home talk basketball around the kitchen table.” “Our text messages are always comprised of something related to basketball at least in season and I acknowledge our 12 players plus their parents.”