Woodstown boys, girls teams headed to semifinal showdowns at Haddon Twp.; Pennsville’s historic girls season ends under barrage of Wildwood 3s
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I
Girls Quarterfinals
Haddon Twp. 35, Glassboro 25
Woodstown 46, Audubon 38
Wildwood 75, Pennsville 55
Clayton 56, Palmyra 38
Boys Quarterfinals
Pitman 61, Burlington City 38
Woodbury 62, Audubon 55
Haddon Twp. 47, Palmyra 43
Woodstown 53, KIPP Cooper 49
TUESDAY’S GAMES
Girls Semifinals
(4) Woodstown at (1) Haddon Twp., 5:30 p.m.
(7) Clayton at (3) Wildwood
Boys Semifinals
(5) Woodbury at (1) Pitman, 6 p.m.
(7) Woodstown at (3) Haddon Twp., 7:30 p.m.
By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News
WOODSTOWN – The Woodstown boys and girls basketball teams have taken different roads to success under first-year head coaches this season, but now their paths converge in the same place, against the same opponent, on the same day with a big prize on the line.
The Wolverines’ travel expenses will be reduced greatly Tuesday when both teams travel to Haddon Twp. to play their respective South Jersey Group I semifinals games.
The girls will play at 5:30 p.m. after taking down Audubon 46-38 Saturday. The boys will follow at 7:30 after holding off and upsetting second-seeded KIPP Cooper Norcross Academy on the road 53-49.
“I think it’s a special moment,” Wolverines boys coach Ramon Roots said.
“It’s a very neat and unique experience and we’re looking forward to it,” girls coach Matt Smart agreed.
The two coaches got to know each other working on the Wolverines football staff in the fall and they’ve since admired each other’s work during the basketball season. And the teams have become fans of each other, with the boys Saturday cheering loudly behind the girls’ bench before heading up the highway for their own game and the girls sticking around to watch the boys Tuesday after their game had finished.
The boys plan on leaving a little earlier Tuesday so they can watch the girls play.
“We talked about this in the first round when I heard it was like a chance,” Roots said. “I really wasn’t looking ahead, but now it’s a great feeling.
“It’s great for the school, great for the program. I feel like both teams really have a chance. It’s going to be a great atmosphere. I’m just excited for the city of Woodstown. It would’ve been better if we were both in Woodstown, but I’m glad we’re in the same location. We’re definitely going to be there to support them. Hopefully we both get the win and can go to the South Jersey championship.”
What the boys saw Saturday was the girls take control of their game with a defensive-minded second quarter that saw them hold the Green Wave to four points and take a 24-16 halftime lead.
Megan Donelson took a charge in a big moment, Ryann Foote and Emma Perry grabbed some big defensive rebounds and the Wolverines were on their way.
“We talked at the end of the first quarter to the defense not letting back-door cuts, finding open shooters, playing good help defense, the things we talked about in practice all week and I think the girls took that with stride,” Smart said. “It was about boxing out and rebounding and not letting second- and third-shot opportunities happen.”
With the Green Wave focusing on stopping Woodstown all-time leading scorers Talia Battavio and Donelson, it was imperative for the Wolverines get points from the other players on the floor. Donelson scored 17 to pass Tori Smick as Woodstown’s second all-time leading scorer – with Smick in the stands and later visiting the pair that passed her – but they also got 10 points from Lauren Hengel and seven points and 13 rebounds from Kyia Leyman.
“Coming into the game we figured they were going to triangle-and-two us,” Smart said. “So all week after Gateway our talk was our other three on the court have to produce. If they’re going to try to shut down Megan and Talia, it’s those other three girls’ time to shine and Kyia took advantage of being down low.
“What we’ve talked about with Kyia all year is confidence. She’s a great player. She had a rough go the past two years (with knee injuries), but this is the year she has to shine and she’s improved each and every day in practice and each and every game and we’re very proud of her.”
In the boys game, the seventh-seeded Wolverines took down the No. 2 seed in the bracket, but don’t call it an upset. Roots wouldn’t.
The Wolverines opened up a comfortable lead through three quarters by playing tough defense. When they had a 15-point lead with three minutes left it looked like they were going to cruise into the semifinals, but the Titans didn’t make it easy on them.
They took their press and trap up a notch and quickly began knocking back the deficit and Woodstown had no time outs let some of the steam off. The Titans got it to one with 30 seconds left. The Wolverines went back up two, then Alejandro Vazquez hit a pair of free throws with 10 seconds left to ice it.
Vazquez was 6-for-6 from the free throw line – all in the second half. He finished with a team-high 12 points.
“They definitely played us tough, we knew they wouldn’t quit,” Roots said. “I think we were just pressing it too much, eager to get the ball down the court and it caused a lot of turnovers. I wasn’t really worried. I trusted the guys.
“We knew it was going to be a dogfight and when the fourth quarter came they were going to take their best shot. (His team) did a great job overcoming adversity. They did a great job on us, but we definitely did a good job responding.”
GIRLS GAME
WOODSTOWN 46, AUDUBON 38
AUDUBON (19-7) – Ashley Flynn 3 1-3 7, Emma Speyerer 3 3-4 10, Giavanna Hellter 5 1-2 11, Sophia Homa 3 1-3 8, Molly Sullivan 1 0-0 2, Peyton Marrone 0 0-0 0, Kylie Cannaday 0 0-0 0, Vivian Edwards 0 0-0 0. Totals 15 6-12 38.
WOODSTOWN (19-6) – Talia Battavio 3 0-0 6, Megan Donelson 5 5-6 17, Gianna Maiorini 2 0-0 4, Kyia Leyman 3 1-1 7, Lauren Hengel 4 0-0 10, Emma Perry 1 0-0 2, Ryann Foote 0 0-0 0. Totals 18 6-7 46.
| Audubon | 12 | 4 | 12 | 10- | 38 |
| Woodstown | 14 | 10 | 11 | 11- | 46 |
BOYS GAME
WOODSTOWN 53, KIPP COOPER NORCROSS 49
WOODSTOWN (17-9) – Elijah Caesar 3 0-0 7, Garrett Leyman 2 0-0 5, Rocco String 1 5-7 7, Blake Bialecki 3 2-3 11, Jalen Markward 1 0-0 2, Alejandro Vazquez 2 6-6 12, M.J. Hall 3 0-1 9. Totals 16 13-17 53.
KIPP COOPER (15-11) – Troy Morton 1 0-0 2, Maleake Kelly 2 3-6 7, Noel Campbell 0 0-2 0, TaJon Chambliss 0 1-2 1, Gabe Paul 1 0-0 2, Jeremiah Shelton 6 3-4 17, Tahmir Dixon 7 6-10 20. Totals 17 13-24 49.
| Woodstown | 16 | 17 | 11 | 9- | 53 |
| KIPP Cooper | 8 | 6 | 5 | 20- | 49 |
Girls game
WILDWOOD 75, PENNSVILLE 55: Wildwood hit a season-high 19 3-pointers, outscoring Pennsville from behind the arc alone – to advance to the South Jersey Group I semifinals and end the Eagles’ historic season.
Macie McCracken and Angela Wilber each hit six treys for the Warriors (21-7), while Rebecca Benichou hit five. McCracken scored a game-high 27 points, Wilber had 19 and Benichou 15. McCracken also had 12 rebounds and seven assists.
The 19 3s were the most the Warriors have hit in a game since draining in 21 against Woodstown on Jan. 25, 2024. McCracken and Wilber each had seven in that game.
“How do you defend a team that makes 19 3-point baskets,” Pennsville coach Steve Merritt said. “The only baskets they made in the first half were 3-point baskets and yet we were closer at half today than we were the first time we played them. Zones or man-to-man, it didn’t matter.”
The one thing that worked in Pennsville favor was its transition/fast break offense. When the Eagles were able to spring her, Taylor Bass ran the floor and converted the layup. She led the Eagles with 18 points to finish her junior year with 894 career points. Since Feb. 1 Bass has averaged 18.3 ppg.
Addie Johnston hit four 3-pointers for the Eagles and added 14 points. Nora Ausland scored nine to finish her high school career with 1144 points – exactly the same number her brother Gate scored before graduating Salem in 2020.
After the game the Pennsville player had a visit from former Wildwood coach Dave Troiano, who won more than 600 games in nearly 40 years as a coach. He praised them for their grit and determination and told them not to be too disheartened – he saw a number of good things, just not enough of them.
“High praise from a man who should know,” Merritt said.
The loss ended the program’s winningest season in nearly 40 years. At one point they won six in a row, their longest winning streak in five years. They had two players pass the 1,000-point barrier.
“It was a great year and all 12 members of the squad deserve the credit,” Merritt said. “Those who didn’t get a lot or any varsity play still came to practice, participated in drills and contributed to their teammates’ and the team’s success. True team players.
“I am unabashedly proud of the season, but even more proud of how they performed. Grateful and thankful to have been given the opportunity to coach (Pennsville’s girls team). I’m looking forward to next year eagerly.”
PENNSVILLE (18-10) – Taylor Bass 7 4-4 18, Marley Wood 2 2-6 6, Nora Ausland 3 2-4 9, Addie Johnston 5 0-0 14, Izzy Saulin 2 0-0 4, Jaida Burns 2 0-2 4. Totals 21 8-16 55.
WILDWOOD (21-7) – Macie McCracken 10 1-1 27, Angela Wilber 5 1-2 19, Bebecca Benichou 5 0-0 15, Addison Troiano 3 2-7 8, Kiana D’Antuono 0 0-0 0, Laila Fathi 1 0-0 3, Julia Ennis 1 0-0 3. Totals 26 4-10 75.
| Pennsville | 10 | 12 | 24 | 9- | 55 |
| Wildwood | 18 | 15 | 24 | 18- | 75 |
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