Salem CC women’s basketball has ‘historically busy’ offseason, signing eight players, two assistants
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
CARNEYS POINT – Brian Marsh has had an “historically busy” offseason, as busy as any the Salem CC women’s basketball coach can remember as a player, coach or manager. And it was all in the name of bringing his program up to speed with the competition and on the map.
Marsh has spent the last few months scouring the landscape to bring aboard players and assistant coaches that will provide flexibility in games and even conduct proper practices.
He has brought in eight new players – four bigs and four guards – and a pair of assistant coaches to give the Mighty Oaks full complements in each area.
Last year he was recruiting to build a brand new program, at least one that hadn’t fielded a team in 10 years, and this year he was basically doing the same, but with the benefit of a product to show the prospects he was chasing.
“You remember the team last year,” Marsh said. “I only had eight, so I didn’t have enough to go 5-on-5 (in practice), so me and the assistant coach had the jump in. I wanted not only the players to be 5-on-5, but in case something happened I wanted some numbers.”
No chance of being short now. The goal was to get bigger, more physical, more athletic and more sure-handed, and with this bunch he’s done that, giving him 13 players (with maybe one more to come) for what he considers his first full year as head coach.
The bigs:
Imara James, 5-11, Bridgeton. The first commitment in the class to get the ball rolling and a projected power forward considered a nice steal.
Akira Chambers, 5-11, Cleburne Texas. A strong rebounder who can take charge inside and still shoot out to 15 feet.
Daniella Gustin, 6-0, Houston. Long and athletic, a combination of James and Chambers who could have a immediate impact. Attended the same Texas high school as Mighty Oaks softball player KC Garcia.
Jolee Robinson, 5-9 , Delta, Colo. Coming to Salem to play softball alongside her sister Jill Robinson, but also was a strong basketball player in high school.
“We had to get bigger,” Marsh said. “We needed to do a better job on rebounding and our interior defense. I told the team I needed to do a better job of getting them in positions to succeed. I thought we were small, we’re going to play fast, but we’d get outrebounded by 30 rebounds a game sometimes and it’s really hard to win games like that. So, my first priority was to go big. We got big.”
The guards:
Imirah (MyMy) Trader, 5-5, Wilmington. College transfer with two years of eligibility. Led A.I. Dupont is points, assists, steals as a senior. She played on the boys varsity as a sophomore when her school cancelled the girls season because of COVID.
Ny’Aijah Jackson, 5-9, Wilmington. Versatile player who led A.I. Dupont in rebounds and was second in assists, steals and blocked shots looking forward to reuniting with Trader.
Ray’Nesecia King, 5-4, Dallas. Blue-collar defensive specialist who brings the toughness to set up and break the press.
Genovanna (Gia) Tjaden-Smith, 5-9, Wilmington.A long, athletic wing from Delaware Military Academy who can play multiple positions.
“Once I got my rebounding and my interior defense, one of the other things we needed to get better at was our ballhandling and setting up the press and breaking the press,” Marsh said. “We just didn’t have enough ballhandlers.
“I loved my players from last year’s depth, but we needed some toughness and that’s what we got. Last year we just didn’t have the numbers to press. I want to play an up-tempo style, I want to press; we just didn’t have the numbers last year. I have the numbers now.”
Kiara Eubanks and Garret Sample are the two new assistants. Eubanks was a four-year player at Wilmington and an assistant on that staff last year. Eubanks was a senior manager and women’s basketball practice player at Temple – just like Marsh – and he’ll work with the guards.
“They know what it takes to play at a high level,” Marsh said.
The pieces seem to be in place. Now, it’s just a matter of finding the right combinations and going to play a schedule that includes 16 home dates.
“To be really honest I was hoping after we recruited last year what I was going to do was have five new incoming players, but with the way things worked out I realized that wasn’t going to be enough,” Marsh said.
“It was definitely easier recruiting this year because we have a team and people can go on our website and see what we have,. It’s easier once you set the table already. Last year it was hard to recruit … because we don’t even have a team yet. They set the table. It’s time to eat.”
Woodstown girls basketball coach steps away from coaching after one season to devote more time to her family
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
Woodstown is in the market for a boys and girls head basketball coach today after Wolverines girls coach Kara Straughn confirmed she is stepping away from coaching after one dynamic season to devote more time to her family.
“I’m still at Woodstown,” she said, “but with my daughter being so young and my parents retiring/moving down south, I needed more time to devote to my family.
“It really broke my heart, but as a mom and parent I knew it had to be done. I know the girls will be great and will always have my support.”
In Straughn’s single season as head coach, the Wolverines went 21-7, won a fourth straight Tri-County Diamond Division title and lost at Wildwood in the South Jersey Group I championship game marred by a chaotic finish.
In the closing seconds of that game, the crowd poured onto the floor after the Warriors hit a go-ahead 3-pointer from the left corner believing time had expired. Straughn, however, had called time immediately after the basket, game officials conferred and put a few seconds back on the clock, but the Wolverines never got a good shot after rushing down the floor.
The process of finding Straughn’s successor continues as the Wolverines prepare for their summer league season. The teaching opportunities available in the school system will be a factor in the search.
Whoever gets the job, they will inherit a team with two of the most dynamic scorers in South Jersey. Rising senior guards Talia Battavio and Megan Donelson are both on track to surpass more than 1,500 career points next season.
The Wolverines recently were installed as the No. 2 seed in the West Region of the South Jersey Invitational Basketball Tournament.
Woodstown boys coach Phil Campbell stepped away at the end of the season.
Cover photo: Woodstown girls basketball coach Kara Straughn watches her team during a game last season. Her father and assistant coach, retiring Wolverines teacher and softball coach Dave Wildermuth. is seated next to her on the bench.
Wolverines expected to elevate quarterbacks coach to head coach at Thursday, school board to hear of Campbell’s resignation and Wildermuth’s retirement
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
WOODSTOWN – There will be a lot of athletics related activity at the Woodstown-Pilesgrove school district board meeting Thursday.
From the comings dept., in-house candidate Frank Trautz will be put forward for approval as the Wolverines’ new football coach, succeeding John Adams, who stepped down at the end of the season to focus on his family.
From the goings dept., the board will hear the resignation of boys basketball coach Phil Campbell and retirement at the end of the school year of softball coach Dave Wildermuth.
Attempts to reach Woodstown athletics director Joe Ursino Tuesday were unsuccessful.
Trautz, a Haddon Twp. grad who played football and baseball at Moravian, has been a longtime assistant in football, basketball and baseball at Haddonfield, Lindenwold and Willingboro.
“All I can say is I’m excited about the potential opportunity,” Trautz said.
A teacher in the Woodstown Middle School, Trautz was the Wolverines’ quarterbacks coach this past season, helping guide Max Webb through his senior year and develop Webb’s cousin, Jack Holladay, for the future. He also was Campbell’s basketball assistant and the junior varsity boys basketball coach.
Campbell stepped away from the basketball program for personal reasons and preferred not to comment further. His teams were 21-26, 11-13 this past season after starting the year 4-0.
Campbell took the program after Wildermuth stepped away to focus on his softball team. The last two years, the softball team went a combined 35-12 and lost one-run games to Audubon in the South Jersey Group I semifinals each year. This year’s team is expected to be one of the best in South Jersey.
With Trautz’ expected approval, all three Salem County head football coaching vacancies will be filled this week. Matt Maccarone was approved as the new Penns Grove coach Monday and former Penns Grove and Winslow coach Kemp Carr, a Salem native, is expected to be approved as the new Salem coach Wednesday.
Here is the sports schedule for Salem County teams and the NJSIAA Final Four for the week of March 4-9
MARCH 4 COLLEGE BASEBALL Salem CC vs. Cairn JV at Myrtle Beach, 9 p.m.
MARCH 5 COLLEGE BASEBALL Salem CC vs. Penn State Kensington (MB), 7:30 p.m. NJSIAA BASKETBALL Boys Final Four Group IIRamsey vs. Arts, Elizabeth, 7 p.m. Camden vs. Manasquan, Central Regional, 7 p.m. Group IV Ridgewood at Elizabeth, 5 p.m. Lenape vs. Montgomery, Central Regional, 4:30 p.m. Girls Final Four Group II Jefferson vs. Madison, Bloomfield, 4:30 p.m. Middle Twp. vs. Manasquan, Monroe, 7 p.m. Group IV Morristown vs. Hillsborough, Bloomfield, 7 p.m. Lenape vs. Howell, Monroe, 5 p.m.
MARCH 6 COLLEGE BASEBALL Salem CC vs. Rochester C&T (MB), 2 p.m. Salem CC vs. DuPage (MB), 6:30 p.m. COLLEGE SOFTBALL Salem CC vs. Southeastern (2) (MB), 1 p.m. NJSIAA BASKETBALL Boys Final Four Group I Paterson Charter vs. Newark Tech, Bloomfield, 7 p.m. Pitman vs. College Achieve, Monroe, 7 p.m. Group III Colonia vs. Ramapo, Bloomfield, 4:30 p.m. Mainland vs. Freehold Borough, Monroe, 4:30 p.m. Girls Final Four Group I Park Ridge vs. University, Ramapo, 4:30 p.m. Wildwood vs. Shore, Deptford Twp., 5 p.m. Group III Teaneck vs. Chatham, Ramapo, 7 p.m. Mainland vs. Ewing, Deptford Twp., 7 p.m.
MARCH 7 COLLEGE BASEBALL Salem CC vs. Muskegon CC (MB), 3 p.m. Salem CC vs. Bay (MB), 6 p.m. COLLEGE SOFTBALL Salem CC vs. Fayetteville (2) (MB), noon
MARCH 8 COLLEGE BASEBALL Salem CC vs. Rays Collegiate (MB), 11 a.m. Salem CC vs. Manhattanville (MB), 4 p.m. COLLEGE SOFTBALL Salem CC vs. Harford (MB), 3 p.m. Salem CC vs. Henry Ford (MB), 5 p.m.
MARCH 9 COLLEGE BASEBALL Salem CC vs. Westmoreland County (2) (MB), 9 a.m. COLLEGE SOFTBALL Salem CC vs. Madison (MB), 9 a.m. Salem CC vs. USC-Sumter (MB), 11 a.m. NJSIAA BASKETBALL at Rutgers Group II Boys Championship, noon Group II Girls Championship, 2 p.m. Group IV Boys Championship, 4:30 p.m. Group IV Girls Championship, 6:30 p.m.
Wildwood freshman hits a 3-pointer in the final seconds to break Woodstown’s heart in South Jersey Group I girls title game
NJSIAA GROUP I GIRLS ELITE 8 South: Wildwood 54, Woodstown 53 Central: Shore 44, Middlesex 36 North I: Park Ridge 43, Mountain Lakes 28 North II: University 86, Glen Ridge 52
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
WILDWOOD — The last time these two teams played here, the home team was throwing in 3-pointers from everywhere in the gym. Wildwood didn’t hit nearly as many 3s this time, but it made the one that counted most.
Freshman Rebecca Benichou buried a 3 from the left corner right before the buzzer to give the Warriors a 54-53 win Saturday and rip away the South Jersey Group I girls basketball title that five minutes earlier looked all of Woodstown’s to win.
Wildwood hit 21 of 41 3s when it beat the Wolverines here in January and was 15-of-32 against Paulsboro in the first round of the tournament, but was only five of 35 Saturday as the Wolverines defended them man all game to negate the deep threat. Macie McCracken and Angela Wilber, who each hit seven 3s in the first meeting, were a combined 2-for-20 Saturday and McCracken, who was playing ill, was oh-fer for just the fifth time in the last two seasons.
“All week long I’ve been telling the girls (to) get that game out of your head because it’s not going to happen again,” Wildwood coach Teresa Cunniff said. “The last few days we haven’t been shooting well and today I told them (if) your shot’s not falling you’ve got to do other things.
“It will come. If you have your legs under you and you take the shot it’s gonna fall – eventually. And they believed it. Rebecca taking that shot in that crunch time, that’s amazing. I’m her biggest fan right now.”
None of the 3s were bigger than Benichou’s, who called it “the shot of my life.” She had six in the first meeting with Woodstown, but the dagger at the end Saturday was her only one of the game and one of just two baskets she made. She scored eight points.
“I was so happy,” she said. “It was a dream moment.”
Replays show Benichou actually launched the shot from her go-to spot over a leaping Gianni Maiorini with 4.6 seconds left and it went through the hoop at 3.1. When the shot went through, the Wildwood players and their fans storming the floor in celebration while Woodstown coach Kara Straughn was frantically waving from her bench to clear the court because there was time remaining.
There were no injuries to either players or spectators as a result of the storming, which many in the Woodstown camp considered “unacceptable” at best and something found in a South Jersey farmer’s field at worse. There were no technical fouls or warnings issued.
“We tell our kids every single game you’ve gotta stay, you’ve gotta stay, you’ve gotta stay until we tell you to go,” Straughn said. “I guess that’s not a thing. The bench came on the floor, too, and that in my opinion is a T, but …”
The officials conferred and once the floor was cleared and order restored, they put 2.1 seconds on the clock. The Wolverines did get a timeout and put in a plan to get a potential winning shot in the hands of one of their 1,000-point scorers, Megan Donelson or Talia Battavio.
They got it in Donelson, who raced up the floor, got some separation from Benichou on the right side and put up a rushed 3 with some contact. Donelson hit the floor gesturing for a foul. The shot missed, there was no whistle and the Warriors (23-7) could finally enjoy their victory.
“I was just focused on getting down the court and trying to score,” Donelson said. “There was a lot (of contact). There should’ve been a foul.”
“I told the girls you can only control what you can control,” Straughn said. “We controlled everything we possibly could. It sucks (to lose), but we did everything we could. They played their butts off and they wanted it so bad and I’m proud of them. It just didn’t fall the way we wanted it to fall.”
Battavio’s scoring and Donelson’s headstrong approach coming out of the break helped Woodstown (21-7) take command in the second half. The Wolverines built an eight-point lead after three quarters. They led by 10 early in the fourth, by nine when top Wildwood defender Kaliah Sumlin fouled out with 7:20 to play and 50-41 with 5:26 left before the Warriors mounted their comeback.
Battavio had 10 points in the third quarter and finished with 18. Donelson had 11.
Shannon Pierman was dominant in her final high school game. The senior post had another double-double in the first quarter and despite early foul trouble finished with 24 points and 28 rebounds.
In spite of the big game, the senior post lamented missing a few short ones in the paint in traffic late in the game that could have made a difference.
“It’s a little upsetting, we had a good lead, but in the end, God’s will be done,” Pierman said. “We were right there. We almost had it, but it is what it is.”
Woodstown’s Megan Donelson puts up the potential game-winning shot at the buzzer under the pressure on Wildwood’s Rebecca Benichou. On the cover, Benichou launches the go-ahead 3-pointer that brought Wildwood its 54-53 win. (Cover photo by Brian Tortella)
Salem rallies from 12 down in second half to make it a two-point game late in fourth quarter, then comes up dry, falls to Pitman in SJ Group I semifinals
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I THURSDAY’S BOYS SEMIFINALS Pitman 51, Salem 42 KIPP Cooper 70, Wildwood 48 SATURDAY’S CHAMPIONSHIP GAME No. 2 Pitman (22-7) at No. 1 KIPP Cooper (22-8), 3 p.m.
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
PITMAN – Anthony Farmer, the coach, slumped on a bench in the back row of the locker room, his head buried in his hands. Paul Weathers leaned against a wall with a towel over his head to hide his emotions. The rest of Salem players cleared out their stalls and silently stuffed gear in their bags. The despair in the dressing room was palpable.
The Rams gave it all they had and were in it with three minutes to play, then went dry.
Pitman pulled away from a close game with three minutes to play and then held off the Rams 51-42 in the South Jersey Group I boys semifinals. The second-seeded Panthers (22-7) now travel to top-seeded KIPP Cooper Norcross Academy (22-8) for Saturday’s 3 p.m. sectional title game.
Pitman junior Elijah Crispin led the all scorers with 32 points. He buried three straight deep 3-pointers in a 90-second stretch late in the second quarter to give his team an eight-point halftime lead. Sonny Myers had 15 rebounds. Trey Tinges did an admirable job on Salem senior guard Anthony Farmer, holding the coach’s son and 1,000-point scorer to nine points in his final high school game and none in the fourth quarter.
“It hurts,” guard Farmer said. “We were right there. I really wanted this. It’s definitely tough when you know you’re that close and you come up short. We gave it everything we had, but … they got the best of us tonight.”
Salem’s Anthony Farmer (L) and Pitman’s Elijah Crispin share a moment after facing each other for the final time in Thursday’s SJ Group I playoff game.
Ramaji Bundy led Salem in his final high school game with a career-tying 15 points and six rebounds and drew the defensive assignment on Crispin. He hit all three of the Rams’ 3-pointers and was their driving force early with seven points in the first quarter. Jabez DeJesus had 10 points and nine boards. Weathers also grabbed nine rebounds.
The Rams (18-9) trailed by 12 early in the third quarter and by seven early in the fourth, but refused to fold. DeJesus got them within four on a driving layup with 5:04 to play and Bundy made it a two-point game with a pair of free throws with 2:56 left. But they were the last points Salem would score.
They nearly brought it all the way back, but just couldn’t get over the hump.
“That right there is the dagger in my heart,” DeJesus said. “I’m proud of my guys for fighting to the end. I know we didn’t get the end result we wanted, but that goes to show even if you give 100 percent the wins are never promised. Sometimes things just happen like that. We did what we could, we live with the results.”
Crispin extended the lead with a basket, then hit two free throws with less than a minute to go to make it 48-42. Chris Wyllie closed the scoring with a three-point play, his only points of the game, with 48.4 to go.
“We had opportunities,” Coach Farmer said. “We had plenty of clean looks that we could take the lead or blow it open, maybe play with a little lead, (but) the opportunities didn’t go down for us, shots didn’t go down for us. Give them credit. They hit the ones they needed to make.
“What more do you want? You cut it two, two minutes to go, you’re on the road, it’s yours for the taking. You’ve gotta make plays.”
NOTES: Bundy scored 35 points in his last three games and averaged almost 10 over his last seven games … It was only the third time in his last 40 games Farmer was held out of double figures … The nine points he did get left him with 1,175 for his career … Crispin hit four 3s in the game and now has 65 and 184 in his career. “It’s a nice feeling to hit a deep one,” he said … The Panthers were 13-of-13 from the free throw line before Crispin missed two with 34 seconds left.
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I BOYS SEMIFINALS PITMAN 51, SALEM 42 SALEM (18-9) – Ramaji Bundy 5 2-2 15, Anthony Farmer 4 1-2 9, Jabez DeJesus 5 0-0 10, Paul Weathers 2 0-0 4, Tymear Lecator 1 0-2 2, Donovan Weathers 0 0-0 0, Marshall Stephens 1 0-0 2. Totals 18 3-6 42. PITMAN (22-7) – Porter Kostiuk 0-2 0-0 0, Stephen Devanney 3-11 0-0 7, Elijah Crispin 8-25 8-10 28, Trey Tinges 1-2 2-2 4, Chris Wyllie 1-2 1-1 3, Michael Fisicaro 1-9 0-0 3, Sonny Myers 2-8 2-2 6, Greg Peterson 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 16-59 13-15 51.
Woodstown plays best game of the year when it needed it most, routs Woodbury to reach SJ-I girls title game; includes remaining Group I playoff schedule
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I THURSDAY’S GIRLS SEMIFINALS Woodstown 80, Woodbury 57 Wildwood 62, Audubon 36 SATURDAY’S CHAMPIONSHIP GAME No. 4 Woodstown (21-6) at No. 2 Wildwood (22-7), 1 p.m.
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
WOODBURY – On a night when the Woodstown girls basketball team had to be at its best, the Wolverines were just about perfect.
That’s the way coach Kara Straughn described it Thursday night after her team dismantled top-seeded Woodbury 80-57 in the South Jersey Group I girls semifinals.
The Wolverines (21-6) now play at second-seeded Wildwood (22-7) Saturday at 1 p.m. for the SJ-I title. The winner advances to the state semifinals March 6 at Deptford Twp. against Central Jersey champ Middlesex or Shore Regional.
“They played as a team more than I’ve ever seen them play as a team before,” Straughn said. “They were perfect. They were so seamless, so … just flawless.
“They played together. They saw the court. They were composed. They handled the pressure. They were showing the ball. It was perfect. They were just so great.”
Perfect is as perfect does.
The Wolverines scored more points in a game in more than 14 years on the road against the top team in the bracket. They got scoring from six players with their Big Three – Talia Battavio (25), Megan Donelson (24) and Shannon Pierman (21) – combining for 70 points.
Pierman also pulled down 16 rebounds for her 12th double-double of the year and 11th in the last 14 games; the Wolverines are 10-2 this season when the senior double dips.
And when Donelson and Pierman both were strapped to the bench in the first half with three fouls, Lauren Hengel and Emma Perry came off the bench were “just as perfect” as the starters.
The Thundering Herd (18-11) were playing without their top player, Maya Braxton-Young, suspended two games for a flagrant foul ejection in Tuesday night’s quarterfinal win over Pennsville, and were a mere shell of themselves. But the way the Wolverines played on this night, even if she were available it might not have made a difference.
Woodstown opened a 22-6 lead in the first quarter behind Donelson and Pierman and turned it into a rout with a 23-5 run in the third quarter behind the Big Three.
The win sends the Wolverines to face Wildwood with payback on their minds. When the teams met in late January, the Warriors took advantage of some friendly rims to shoot 21-of-42 from 3-point range. Angela Wilber and Macie McCracken hit seven each and Rebecca Benichou hit six.
Straughn said her team will be ready for anything. Last year they beat the Warriors in the sectional final.
“We’ve learned our lesson,” Straughn said. “We’ve watched the game when we played them before. We watched (Wildwood’s) Glassboro game. We’ve watched so much film and taken so many notes and learned all of the lessons. We’re going to have a good practice tomorrow and we’re ready to go.”
3-point goals: Audubon 3 (Speyerer 2, Munn); Wildwood 10 (S. Wilber 2, A. Wilber 3, McCracken 3, Benichou, Nagle). Rebounds: Wildwood 34 (McCracken 10, A. Wilber 6, Sumlin 7).
GROUP I ELITE 8 Saturday’s Games South: Woodstown (21-6) at Wildwood (22-7) Central: Shore Regional (16-11) at Middlesex (17-13) North Jersey I: Mountain Lakes (19-7) at Park Ridge (22-5) North Jersey II: Glen Ridge (20-6) at University (24-3)
STATE SEMIFINALS March 6 North I vs. North II, Ramapo, 4:30 p.m. South vs. Central, Deptford Twp., 5 p.m.
SJ Group I girls: Pierman powers Woodstown past Penns Grove and into semifinals; Pennsville falls to top-seeded Woodbury in Trapp’s final game as coach; includes Tri-County Diamond, Classic all-stars
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I GIRLS QUARTERFINALS Woodbury 68, Pennsville 34 Woodstown 43, Penns Grove 32 Audubon 43, Maple Shade 35 Wildwood 51, Glassboro 40 THURSDAY’S SEMIFINALS No. 4 Woodstown at No. 1 Woodbury, 4:30 p.m. No. 6 Audubon at No. 2 Wildwood
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
WOODSTOWN — Coaches and teammates describe Shannon Pierman’s demeanor in her every day comings and goings as sweet, quiet, stoic, reserved, nice. They’re always the dangerous ones.
Cross her on the basketball court and that all changes.
Like that thing that happens whenever the Hulk gets mad, get under Pierman’s skin and she switches into beast mode and people better get out of the way.
The Woodstown senior’s personality changed dramatically in the fourth quarter Tuesday and by all accounts on both sides of the scorer’s table she was the difference in her team taking down Penns Grove 43-32 in the South Jersey Group I girls quarterfinals.
“She’s quiet, mature, but, man, don’t mess with her,” Wolverines coach Kara Straughn said. “She is our leader. She’s a constant. She’s so mature, so stoic, just quiet, but, man, if you come at her or somebody she cares about, it’s like she’s ready to go, but calmly.
“She’s emotionally mature. She knows when to give and take. She gets overshadowed by the other two (1,000-point scorers Talia Battavio and Megan Donelson), but she is our foundation. She keeps us together.”
The Wolverines (20-6) advance to play at top-seeded Woodbury in the semifinals Thursday. It will be against a Thundering Herd team without their best player, as point guard Maya Braxton-Young was ejected for a flagrant foul in her team’s quarterfinal win over Pennsville and by rule will not play.
Pierman got angry, too, but her ire had its limits. She had all her points and a double-double in the fourth quarter alone, dominating a 16-0 run that gave the Wolverines control of the game. Perhaps most out of character, she bowed up and went nose-to-nose with Zoey Ceasar in the lane after being fouled by the Penns Grove post going after an offensive rebound.
There was nothing calm about the response when the Wolverines’ foundation got rocked to her core. It seemed egregious enough to bring a technical foul, but instead she received only a warning for taunting. What followed it was vintage Pierman.
She made both free throws to extend the Wolverines lead and then wrapped seven more points around a Lauren Hengel basket before the Lady Devils ended their drought on Meely Horace’s runner with 2:42 to play. By then, Woodstown was up 41-27.
The decisive run actually got started with Battavio’s go-ahead 3-pointer with 6:33 left in the game. It was the Wolverines’ only 3 of the game. The junior guard added a basket on the next possession and then it was basically all Pierman, all starting with the confrontation with Ceasar.
“For a second I let the anger get to me,” Pierman admitted. “I heard her saying some stuff to me. I let it get the best of me for a second, but then I started thinking it’s my last home game I’ve got to get it together.
“I’d like to think I’m nice, I’m reserved. Usually I’m very good at keeping my cool and I try to be a good, kind person. That’s kind of just out of nowhere. I’m trying to go up and I just hear talking in my ear and I get fouled and my emotions got the best of me.”
“Out of all five of (her players on the floor) she was the one I least expected (to erupt),” Straughn said. “Obviously you don’t want them to be unsportsmanlike, but I’m proud of her for standing up for herself and standing up for her team. They’re a family and they’re going to protect each other and protect themselves. But like I said she knows when to put it on and cool off.”
Pierman finished with 10 points and 17 rebounds. It was her 11th double-double of the season and tenth in her last 13 games.
The win gave the Wolverines a third-straight 20-win season and fourth in the last five years, It also extended long winning streaks against Tri-County Conference Diamond Division (32) and Salem County opponents (29).
Penns Grove, the No. 12 seed, came into the game primed to pull off an upset and had things going its way in the first half. The Lady Devils held the Wolverines to only four points through the first 13 minutes of the game and once they established the lead successfully took the air out of the ball further frustrating their hosts.
Woodstown eventually started taking chances against the ploy and drew even at 13 with less than a minute left in the half before RaNiyah Wilson scored the last two buckets of the half to send the Lady Devils into the locker room with a four-point halftime lead.
Wilson led Penns Grove with 10 points. Horace had nine and finished her career with 1,063 points. Caesar was force in the paint early in the game and scored seven of her nine points in the first quarter.
The lead changed hands four more times before Woodstown went on the run the decided the game.
“I’m very proud of the girls,” Penns Grove coach Jennifer Denby said. “I’m glad that they came to play and let them know that they can play with anybody.”
3-point goals: Penns Grove 1 (Horace); Woodstown 1 (Battavio). Rebounds: Woodstown 28 (Pierman 17). Total fouls: Penns Grove 16, Woodstown 19. Officials: Carolyn Jackson, Crystal Marshall, Chris Seher. 3-point goals: Penns Grove 1 (Horace); Woodstown 1 (Battavio). Rebounds: Woodstown 28 (Pierman 17). Total fouls: Penns Grove 16, Woodstown 19. Officials: Carolyn Jackson, Crystal Marshall, Chris Seher.
Pennsville girls basketball coach Sam Trapp greets her players leaving the floor for the last time with her at the helm. (Photo by Chris Watson)
Eagles fall in Trapp’s finale
WOODBURY – Sam Trapp knew it was going to be emotional when she made the emotional announcement to her team five weeks ago, but is anyone ever really prepared for when the last game finally comes?
The Pennsville girls basketball coach knew her final game was coming at some point in this South Jersey Group I playoff season and it arrived Tuesday night when the Eagles were eliminated by top-seeded Woodbury in the quarterfinals 68-34.
Next month, Trapp will be leaving the school where she has been head soccer and basketball coach the last three years to become the athletics director at Triton Regional.
“I have so many emotions right now,” she said. “It’s just hard to know this is the last time you’ll be courtside. You start coaching because you’re so passionate about what you do, you’re so excited about the sport, you have a love for the sport and you love to see these kids grow and develop.
“Through that you just want to see so many great accomplishments and milestone. Of course, every coach dreams of being on the big stage and winning the big game and putting the trophy over your head.
“I just thought back to all those moments of what we’ve accomplished and what I was hoping we’d accomplish. We fell short today, but that doesn’t take away from the things that I’ve done and the hard work that I’ve put in and just how proud I am of what we have accomplished. I didn’t want to overly focus on this was the end, but grateful for all that’s happened throughout it.”
The game was manageable for about a quarter and a half. The Eagles trailed by seven after the first quarter, but the Thundering Herd steadily stretched the lead. It did get testy in the second half when Herd standout Maya Braxton-Young was ejected for a flagrant elbow against Pennsville’s Nora Ausland, a foul that likely will have her suspended for Thursday’s semifinal game with Woodstown.
Braxton-Young finished with 17 points to lead three Herd scorers in double figures. Abby Bush (16) and Dasani Talley-Dorrman (13) combined for 15 points in the fourth quarter.
Ausland led Pennsville with 11 points and will go into next season needing 195 points for 1,000. Tri-County Diamond Division first-teamer Marley Wood had nine points and she’ll need 280 next season for the milestone.
Trapp never had a losing season in her three years with the basketball team. She was 15-11 each of her first two years and was hoping for better this season, but a series of midseason injuries limited this year’s team to 14-14. The Eagles were 8-5 after she told the team her plans on Jan. 26. Her last official function with the team is its awards night March 11.
“It didn’t shake out the way we had hoped and dreamed at the start of the season, but like I told the girls afterward we fought hard to get an 8-seed,” Trapp said. “We made that our goal so we could get a home playoff game; we did that. We got a win more than we did last season as far as the playoff run goes.
“They’re a great bunch of girls who have a lot of potential to be a solid program again next year if they stay healthy and keep working in the offseason. All you can really ask and hope for is that when it’s not going the way we hoped to turn it around and set new goals and keep working hard for those and I think we did just that.”
SJ Group I boys: Rams finally get past Glassboro, earn a spot in semifinals; Penns Grove gets out to fast start, but falls to top-seeded KIPP; also includes TCC Diamond, Classic all-star teams
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I BOYS QUARTERFINALS KIPP Cooper Norcross 64, Penns Grove 59 Wildwood 49, Audubon 38 Salem 62, Glassboro 55 Pittman 47, Paulsboro 37 THURSDAY’S SEMIFINALS No. 4 Wildwood at No. 1 KIPP Cooper Norcross, 5:30 p.m. No. 3 Salem at No. 2 Pitman, 5:30 p.m.
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
SALEM – Anthony Farmer and the Salem Rams have been trying to beat Glassboro for nearly a decade now. They finally got the Bulldogs on the biggest stage.
Salem ended a seven-game losing streak to the Bulldogs Tuesday night with a 62-55 victory in the quarterfinals of the South Jersey Group I boys tournament. The Rams’ last win in the series was in the 2014-15 season opener. All of the previous eight games were in the regular season. The majority of the losses were by double-digits.
“Those guys have been a tough out,” Farmer said. “They’ve had our number. It was good to get the most important one.”
The Rams (18-8) didn’t have history on their mind when they took the floor Tuesday as much as doing what it took to get where they want to go. They took control of the game early, weathered a storm in the third quarter and held on through the fourth.
“You can’t change the past, so, honestly, we’ve got a one-track mind,” Farmer said. “We know what we’re trying to get to. This is about us and how we continue to come together and make the right plays at the right moment and be one step ahead. We at this time it’s survive and advance, so we’re preparing like everything is our last.”
The difference in the game was the play of Jabez DeJesus and Anthony Farmer. DeJesus scored a team’ high 21 points, grabbed nine rebounds and blocked a couple shots. Farmer, the coach’s son, scored 17 points. Ramaji Bundy added 10 points.
Both DeJesus and Farmer were confirmed as Tri-County Conference Classic Division first-team all-stars earlier in the day.
“Those guys are no secret,” Farmer said. “I think we have one of the top backcourts is South Jersey, no doubt. They’ve been consistent all year long. They’re the reason we’re the third seed and in the position we’re in. Those guys are seniors and they’ve just been doing what they’ve been doing.”
The win sets up a showdown with second-seeded Pitman in the semifinals Thursday night. The Panthers have gotten them twice this year, none more painful than the one in late December in which the Rams jumped out to a big early lead only to lose by two at the end.
“This is what high school basketball is about,” Farmer said. “This is why you play the game, why I coach the game. I coach the game for the kids, for them to have experiences like this that they’ll talk about forever.
“I want them to go seize the moment. Once again, it’s more about us and where we’re trying to go. Obviously they got us twice and we understand that as well. Once again, this one means the most.”
3-point goals: Glassboro 5 (Graves 3, Dougherty, Buff); Salem 4 (Farmer 2, P. Weathers, Lecator). Rebounds: Salem 30 (P. Weathers 10, DeJesus 9). Fouled out: Graves. Total fouls: Glassboro 21, Salem 16.
KIPP Academy 64, Penns Grove 59
CAMDEN – When Penns Grove coach Damian Ware saw Willie Slocum and Camren Thompson hit 3-pointers early in the game he had to think this just might just be the Red Devils’ night to pull an upset. But he also knew there was a lot of basketball to play.
Slocum and Thompson combined to hit just one 3-pointer this season – and Slocum hadn’t hit any – but there they were, playing in a game to extend their careers, each hitting one from beyond the arc to help the Red Devils forge an early 10-point lead.
The good fortune didn’t last, however. Karon Ceaser and Slocum both got in foul trouble that cost them valuable minutes in the first half and top-seeded KIPP Cooper Norcross Academy began its long march to the foul line that proved the difference in scuttling the Red Devils’ season.
“Going into the game I expected to win, so it was not a big surprise we were up,” Ware said. “We had an opportunity to win the game going into it, we had a chance and I felt good about it, but we just didn’t have enough to pull it out.”
The Titans (21-8) took 31 free throws in the game compared to only seven for a Red Devils team that likes to attack the basket. They made 16 with leading scorer Meleake Kelly (18 points) going 8-for-14 and Tahmir Dixton (15) going 5-for-10.
Slocum wound up hitting two 3s in the game and finished with 10 points. Roman Gipson was the Red Devils’ leading scorer with 16 points, while Giomar Conrad and Thompson had 13 apiece.
Here is this week’s sports schedules for teams in Salem County for the week of Feb. 25-March 2
Sunday
WRESTLING NJSIAA Girls Regionals, Pennsauken
Tuesday
BASKETBALL South Jersey Group I Tournament Girls No. 8 Pennsville at No. 1 Woodbury, 4:30 p.m. No. 12 Penns Grove at No. 4 Woodstown, 5:30 p.m. No. 6 Audubon at No. 3 Maple Shade, 5:30 p.m. No. 7 Glassboro at No. 2 Wildwood, 4 p.m. Boys No. 9 Penns Grove at No. 1 KIPP Cooper Norcross Academy, 5:15 p.m. No. 5 Audubon at No. 4 Wildwood, 6 p.m. No. 6 Glassboro at No. 3 Salem, 5 p.m. No. 10 Paulsboro at No. 2 Pitman, 5:30 p.m.
Thursday
BASKETBALL South Jersey Group I Tournament Girls Pennsville-Woodbury vs. Penns Grove-Woodstown Audubon-Maple Shade vs. Glassboro-Wildwood Boys Penns Grove-KIPP Cooper Norcross Academy vs. Audubon-Wildwood Glassboro-Salem vs. Paulsboro-Pitman WRESTLING NJSIAA State Championship, Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City
Friday
COLLEGE BASEBALL Ocean CC at Salem CC (Carneys Point Rec), 3 p.m. WRESTLING NJSIAA State Championship, Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City
Saturday
BASKETBALL Girls South Jersey Group I championship Boys South Jersey Group I championship WRESTLING NJSIAA State Championship, Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City COLLEGE BASEBALL Salem CC at Ocean CC (2), noon
Riverview Sports News 