Category: SALEM TECH

Rising above the noise

Penns Grove distances itself from the distractions, beats Schalick as only Salem County winner of the night

TUESDAY’S BOYS GAMES
Glassboro 68, Pennsville 56
Gloucester Catholic 64, Salem 41
Overbrook 52, Woodstown 35
Penns Grove 53, Schalick 45
Wildwood 84, Salem Tech 38

By Riverview Sports News

PENNS GROVE – There was a lot going on inside the Hyper-Baric Chamber that is Penns Grove’s gym Tuesday night, but the Red Devils rose above the din and put away Schalick 53-45 to remain in the hunt for a first-round home playoff game in the South Jersey Group I playoffs.

The win left the Red Devils (8-12) in ninth place in SJ-I power points standings, 18 points behind eighth with only two games against Diamond Division county rivals fighting for a playoff spot before Saturday’s cutoff left. The top eight teams draw first-round home games.

“I don’t know if we can get up to having a home game, we’ll see what happens,” Red Devils coach Damian Ware said. “We want to try to get at least one home game. I won’t say that’s a goal, but the goal is to get home games in the playoffs. Since we had a slow start, if we can finish strong and get at least one home game then it’ll be great.”

There was a lot to distract the Red Devils from the task at hand. There were activities involving the cheerleaders, at halftime senior girls player Meely Horace was recognized for scoring her 1,000th career point at earlier in the day, and it was Senior Night, meaning a senior-heavy starting lineup that isn’t necessarily their SOP.

The Red Devils were slow out of the gate with the honor lineup and fell behind 10-5, but eventually the senior regulars emerged and they pulled away.

Giomar Conrad and Mehki Ballard led Penns Grove with 23 and 19 points, respectively. Conrad hit three straight 3s in the second quarter and it sparked a 23-8 run that gave the Red Devils the lead.

“That was two seniors who stepped up on Senior Night,” Ware said. “Back in the day they always played big on Senior Night.”

Daniel Lis led Schalick with 16 points. Jake Siedlecki hit a pair of 3-pointers and finished with 12.

PENNS GROVE 53, SCHALICK 45
SCHALICK (7-11) – Daniel Lis 6-4-16, Reggie Allen 0-4-4, Nasir Sutton 3-0-6, Nylan Sutton 2-1-5, Jake Siedlecki 5-0-12, Jordan Johnson 1-0-2. Totals 17-9-45.
PENNS GROVE (8-12) – Brandon Robbins 0-2-2, Roman Gipson 0-1-1, Giomar Conrad 9-2-23, KaRon Ceaser 0-1-1, Willie Slocum 1-0-2, Mehki Ballard 6-4-19, Camren Thompson 0-0-0, Khiry Higgs 0-1-1, Mr Peterson 2-0-4. Totals 18-11-53.

Schalick108189 –45
Penns Grove5231510 –53
3-point goals: Schalick 2 (Siedlecki 2); Penns Grove 6 (Conrad 3, Ballard 3).

OVERBROOK 52, WOODSTOWN 35: The Rams used an 8-0 run to pull away from an early tie and then held Woodstown without a field goal 10 and a half minutes in the second half to secure their sixth straight win and clinch their sixth straight divisional title.

The teams slugged it out early with Woodstown rallying to earn a 14-14 tie midway through the second quarter before the Rams took control with an 8-0 run. The Wolverines got back to within four on Rocco String’s put back with 10 seconds left in the first half, but they didn’t hit another field goal until String’s bucket in the paint with 5:38 left in the game.

The Wolverines were 0-for-7 with five turnovers in the stretch. Their only points came on five free throws.

“At halftime we challenged them defensively to (give) a little bit more effort and energy in winning those 50-50 balls and keeping them off the glass,” Overbrook coach Donny Lang said. “I know we went a pretty long time with maybe letting them only score maybe three points to close to a quarter. It was more of their energy and effort that stepped up in the second half.”

During their current run of division titles, the Rams have won four straight Tri-County Diamond Division titles and two Colonial Conference Patriot Division crowns before that.

“That was one of our goals, to put up another banner,” Lang said. “I like to look up at that banner, make sure our number’s there.”

OVERBROOK 52, WOODSTOWN 35
OVERBROOK (17-5) – Shaun Mills 5 2-2 13, Chris Grier 0 1-2 1, Nic Johnson 4 0-1 9, Lamar Little 3 0-0 7, Zair Green 4 2-3 11, Amare Kee 1 0-0 3, Maki Ortiz 1 0-0 2, Xavier Wright 0 0-0 0, Kevin Satchell 3 0-0 6, Jaden St. John 0 0-0 0, Tory Scott 0 0-0 0, Angel Bermudez 0 0-0 0, Elvin Santiago 0 0-0 0. Totals 21 5-8 52.
WOODSTOWN (10-8) – Manny Ortega 0 1-2 1, Blake Bialecki 0 2-2 2, Alejandro Vazquez 1 0-0 2, M.J. Hall 2 2-2 6, Connor Sanderson 0 0-0 0, Garrett Leyman 1 1-2 3, Anthony Bokolas 0 0-0 0, Lucas Fulmer 1 0-0 2, Max Webb 4 0-3 10, Rocco String 3 2-2 8, Elijah Caesar 0 1-2 1. Totals 12 9-15 35.
Overbrook12121612 –52
Woodstown6123 14 –35
3-point goals: Overbrook 5 (Mills, Johnson, Little, Green, Kee); Woodstown 2 (Webb 2). Total fouls: Overbrook 15, Woodstown 12.

GLASSBORO 68, PENNSVILLE 56
GLASSBORO (10-11) – Xavier Sabb 7 0-3 15, Charles Graves 9 3-3 24, Clinton Suggs 5 1-4 14, Michael Dougherty 2 0-0 5, Josh Buff 1 0-2 3, Tashean Thomas 0 0-0 0, Marley Crout 1 0-0 2, Jayce Grays2 1-1 5.
PENNSVILLE (9-13) – Luke Wood 8-21 0-0 17, Peyton O’Brien 1-6 1-2 3, Daniel Saulin 7-9 4-4 18, Cohen Petrutz 3-6 1-2 9, Mason O’Brien 3-6 2-2 6, Connor Starn 0-2 1-2 1, Cole Johnston 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 22-53 9-12 56.
Glassboro16182014 –68
Pennsville1271817 –56
3-point goals: Glassboro 9 (Sabb, Groves 3, Suggs 3, Daugherty, Buff); Pennsville 3-21 (Johnston 0-3, Starn 0-2 M. O’Brien 0-1, Petrutz 2-3, P. O’Brien 0-1, Wood 1-11). Fouled out: M. O’Brien, Saulin. Total fouls: Glassboro 13, Pennsville 16

GLOUCESTER CATHOLIC 64, SALEM 41
SALEM (13-7) – Anthony Farmer 3 9-10 16, Ramaji Bundy 3 0-0 5, Tymear Lecator 2 0-0 4, Jabez DeJesus 2 0-0 5, Marshall Stephens 4 0-0 8. Totals 14 9-10 41.
GLOUCESTER CATHOLIC (13-8) – Carlos Mendez 3 7-8 13, Jack Mustaro 4 0-0 12, Trey Battle 2 10-12 14, Kyle Guldin 6 3-6 15, Billy Ginipro 1 0-0 3, JonCarlo Coia 1 0-0 2, Nick Calzonetti 1 0-0 2, Ethan Dugue 1 1-2 3, Brody Gates 0 0-0 0, Jack Pund 0 0-0 0, Kybron Ricks 0 0-0 0, Danny Zellner 0 0-0 0, Jordan Mendez 0 0-0 0. Totals 19 21-28 64.
Salem811148 –41
Gloucester Catholic9161920 –64
3-point goals: Salem 4 (Farmer, Bundy 2, DeJesus); Gloucester Catholic 5 (Mustaro 4, Ginipro).

WILDWOOD 84, SALEM TECH 38
SALEM TECH (2-16) – Chase Wills 2 0-0 4, Haneef Frisby 4 1-1 9, Joseph Hayes 1 0-2 2, Daviontae Russell 2 0-0 4, Tyler Zampino 2 2-3 6, Antoine Robinson 3 4-4 11, Gio Holmes 1 0-0 2, Charlie Brown 0 0-0 0, Chase Ayers 0 0-0 0. Totals 15 7-10 38.
WILDWOOD (12-9) – Junior Hans 6 1-1 13, Ryan Troiano 2 0-0 6, Jordan Dozier 0 2-2 2, Jordan Fusik 3 0-0 9, Brian Cunniff 2 1-2 5, Josh Pintella 1 1-4 3, Haney Buscham 3 0-0 8, Lukas Basile 3 0-0 8, James Wyers 6 1-2 15, Keynan Alston 1 2-2 4, Nolan Mawhinney 1 0-0 2, Trevor Troiano 1 0-0 3, R.J. Blanda 1 0-0 2, Burke Fitzsimmons 0 0-0 0, Lance Lillo 2 0-0 4. Totals 32 8-13 84.
Salem Tech741215 –38
Wildwood25172616 –84
3-point goals: Salem Tech 1 (Robinson); Wildwood 12 (R. Troiano 2, Jordan Fusik 3, Buscham 2, Basile 2, Ayers 2, T. Troiano). Rebounds: Salem Tech 23 (Robinson 8); Wildwood 28 (Wears 4). Total fouls: Salem Tech 9, Wildwood 7.

Welcome to the club

Penns Grove’s Horace becomes fifth player in Salem County to reach 1,000-point milestone this season, roundup includes all Salem County girls games

TUESDAY’S GIRLS GAMES
Penns Grove 51, Schalick 30
Pennsville 40, Glassboro 38
Gloucester Catholic 61, Salem 12
Wildwood 62, Salem Tech 27
Woodstown 76, Overbrook 42

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PITTSGROVE – Every day since the start of her senior season Meely Horace has walked into the Penns Grove gym and looked at the big red banner on the wall of 1,000-point scorers in the girls program.

Penns Grove senior Meely Horace looks up at her name after it was revealed on the banner of 1,000-point scorers in the school’s girls basketball program.

And every time there has been this big strip of tape underneath the last name on the list, presumably covering the line that carried her name in anticipation of her joining the club just daring her to pull it down. She couldn’t wait to pull that piece of tape down.

Well, she doesn’t have to look at it or wait any more.

Horace became the latest member of the Penns Grove 1,000-Point Club Tuesday when she hit a short jumper from the right side with 6:18 left in the second quarter of the Red Devils’ 51-30 win over Schalick.

“It meant a lot,” she said of the milestone. “It’s been a minute since somebody hit 1K, so I feel like I achieved a goal. My cousin, Tamara Walker, is on that banner, too. I wanted to be up there with her.

“Every day at school when I was in PE and all that I would go in there and look at it and be like, ‘I can’t wait to pull this down.’”

The moment of truth came at halftime of the boys game once her team returned to campus from its road win. She stood on the baseline with the congratulatory banner they presented at her game, then turned and looked upwards as the tape was removed to reveal her name. The space for points remains blank as she still has games to play.

Horace is the 19th player in Penns Grove history to score 1,000 points and the seventh girl. She’s the fifth player in Salem County to reach the milestone this season, joining Woodstown’s Talia Battavio and Megan Donelson, Salem’s Anthony Farmer and Pennsville’s Luke Wood. Both Farmer and Wood hit their marks in games against Penns Grove. Farmer is the only one to have done it at home.

The last Penns Grove player to clear the hurdle was Jamar Johnson in 2020. The last girl was Natrice Reed in 2018.

Horace has been sitting on 998 since Thursday night when she put 38 on Overbrook and she admitted the suspense was killing her.

It was expected she would reach the milestone early in Tuesday’s game, maybe even on the first play of the game, but it took a while. She was turned away the first three times the Red Devils came down the floor – traveling in the right corner, getting double teamed at the top of the key without getting a shot and missing a fast break layup.

She hit 999 with the first of two free throws with 5:38 left in the first quarter. She missed the second shot, but got the rebound and had the ball stripped as she drove to the basket.

Acting coach Taylor Smith took her out with 4:57 left in the quarter. It wasn’t because anyone thought she was pressing to score the milestone points, but rather to give more family members a chance to get to the gym to witness the historic occasion when it came.

“I was frustrated at first, but then I was like it’s going to come to me,” she said. “I feel like (she rushed things) a little bit, then I realized I’ve got to slow it down; there are four quarters. After I missed a couple I didn’t force anything, I let it come to me. I knew I was going to get it regardless. My teammates and my coaches were going to make sure.”

She reentered the game with 12 seconds left in the quarter and missed a layup at the buzzer. She missed two more free throws and then lost a ball in the lane.

The milestone finally came on a short jumper from the right side. They stopped the game, family poured onto the floor from the stands and she was presented with a game ball, a congratulatory 1,000-point banner and balloons that spelled out ‘1K.’

“Congrats to Meely because that’s a great accomplishment,” Smith said. “That’s not an easy thing to do in your high school career. We would like to salute her and congratulate her a million times for it because it is a great accomplishment.

“I was excited for her. Everybody was excited for her. We were all waiting on the moment for her.”

When the milestone finally arrived it was like a weight was lifted off everyone on the Penns Grove side. Her basket gave the Red Devils a 12-7 lead and touched off a run that stretched the lead to 28-7 before the Cougars scored again.

Horace finished with 12 points and now has 1,010 for her career.

PENNS GROVE 51, SCHALICK 30
PENNS GROVE (9-8) – RaNiyah Wilson 4 4-4 13, Meely Horace 5 2-7 12, Brianna Robbins 5 1-3 12, Amani Taylor 1 2-4 4, Zoey Caesar 2 2-6 6, Semijah Hines 0 0-0 0, Syanna Robbins 1 0-0 2, Arianna Down 1 0-0 2. Totals 19 11-24 51.
SCHALICK (5-13) – Cianna Gaines 1 3-4 5, Taylor Sparks 1 1-2 4, Ava Scurry 4 2-2 10, Abby Willoughby 0 0-0 0, Cali Fisler 0 2-4 2, Carly Vicente 3 0-0 8, Emma O’Neill 0 0-0 0, Kyleigh Cutler 0 0-0 0, Olivia Lunemann 0 1-4 1. Totals 9 9-16 30.

Penns Grove824127 –51
Schalick77610 –30
3-point goals: Penns Grove 2 (Wilson, B. Robbins); Schalick 3 (Sparks, Vicente 2). Technical fouls: Robbins. Fouled out: Willoughby. Total fouls: Penns Grove 17, Schalick 17.

PENNSVILLE 40, GLASSBORO 38: Taylor Bass’ only basket of the game, a put back with a minute left, broke a 38-38 tie and the Eagles made it stand for their third straight win. Marley Wood led three Pennsville scorers in double figures with 16 points, 10 in the second half. Nora Ausland had 12 points, 10 in the first quarter, and Bella Farina had 10.

PENNSVILLE 40, GLASSBORO 38
PENNSVILLE (10-11) – Nora Ausland 5 0-0 12, Taylor Bass 1 0-1 2, Bella Farina 5 0-0 10, Marley Wood 7 1-2 16, Celli Ausland 0 0-0 0, Izzy Saulin 0 0-0 0. Totals 18 1-3 40.
GLASSBORO (12-6) – Sanaa Thomas 3 2-2 8, Tamia Smith 5 3-4 13, Kezia Brackett 7 0-2 17, Ante Davis 0 0-0 0, Sianna Wedderburn 0 0-0 0, Kimora Miles 0 0-0 0. Totals 15 5-8 38.

Pennsville197410 –40
Glassboro86186 –38
3-point goals: Pennsville 3 (N. Ausland 2, Wood); Glassboro 3 (Brackett 3). Total fouls: Pennsville 6, Glassboro 8.

WILDWOOD 62, SALEM TECH 27: In the return game of two-day home-and-home, the Warriors jumped out to a 15-point lead in the first quarter and then held the Chargers scoreless in the second. Wildwood’s Macie McCracken led all scorers with 23 points.

WILDWOOD 62, SALEM TECH 27
SALEM TECH (1-16) – Hanna DeWitt 2 3-4 7, Demajae White 2 0-0 4, TiRonna McGaha 0 2-2 2, Morgan VanDover 3 2-2 8, Lavae Scott 0 0-2 0, Rylee Doerr 2 2-2 8. Totals 9 9-12 27.
WILDWOOD (16-5) – Sophia Wilber 3 0-0 7, Angela Wilber 2 0-0 5, Macie McCracken 9 2-3 23, Kaliah Sumlin 4 0-0 8, Rebecca Benichou 4 0-0 10, Ashley Nagle 3 0-0 8, Janet Gonzalez 0 0-0 0, Mia Chips 1 0-0 2. Totals 26 2-3 63.
Salem Tech401112 –27
Wildwood1916235 –62
3-point goals: Wildwood 9 (S. Wilber, A. Wilber, McCracken 3, Benichou 2, Nagle 2).

WOODSTOWN 76, OVERBROOK 42: The Wolverines opened a comfortable 10-point lead, then pulled away with a 33-3 second quarter.

Talia Battavio had eight points in the quarter, while Megan Donelson and Shannon Pierman had six apiece. The only basket they allowed in the quarter was a 3-pointer by Zahaisha Nevius.

“We hammered it inside to Shannon in their zone defense and moved the ball really well,” Wolverines coach Kara Straughn said. “We have also been focusing a lot on our drives and kicks and the girls did a much better job executing that tonight.”

Battavio led the Wolverines with 19 points. Donelson and Pierman had 14 each. Ten players scored.

Donelson now had 1,029 career points and Battavio 1,028.

WOODSTOWN 76, OVERBROOK 42
WOODSTOWN (15-4) – Talia Battavio 7 2-2 19, Megan Donelson 5 2-2 14, Alyssa Baber 3 0-0 7, Gianna Maiorini 2 0-0 4, Shannon Pierman 7 0-0 14, Emma Perry 2 0-0 4, Brae DiGregorio 1 0-0 2, Jala Thomas 2 0-0 4, Lizzy Daly 0 0-0 0, Kailyn Kennedy 2 0-0 4, Kendall Young 2 0-0 4, Talia Guardascione 0 0-0 0. Totals 33 4-4 76.
OVERBROOK (4-14) – Gianna Simon 1 0-0 2, Joel Presley 4 2-6 11, Kaylee Burckhardt 2 0-0 4, Zahaisha Nevius 6 4-7 19, Sarah Evans 1 0-0 3, Leiani Knight 0 0-0 0, Alahni White 0 0-0 0, Kayla Reynolds 0 0-0 0, Nahia Smith 0 0-0 0, Talia Wiggins 0 0-0 0. Totals 14 6-13 42.

Woodstown2033914 –76
Overbrook1031514 –42
3-point goals: Woodstown 6 (Battavio 3, Donelson 2, Baber); Overbrook 6 (Presley, Burckhardt, Nevius 3, Evans). Total fouls: Woodstown 10, Overbrook 8.

GLOUCESTER CATHOLIC 61, SALEM 12
GLOUCESTER CATHOLIC (16-6) – Jahzara Green 6 1-2 13, Julianna DeFebbo 5 0-0 10, Talia Shumate 5 0-0 10, Yazaniah Shumate 2 0-0 4, Jalyn Moore 2 0-0 4, Ashlynn Eggers 4 0-0 10, Kendall Scott 0 2-4 2, Anna Gerardi 1 0-0 2, Maya Hutchinson 2 2-2 6, Julia Calzonetti 0 0-2 0. Totals 27 5-10 61.
SALEM (7-13) – Marjziah Bundy 0 0-4 0, Ameriyona Hunter 3 1-4 7, Carlysia Pierce 1 3-4 5, Lyric Hayes 0 0-0 0, Ava Rodgers 0 0-0 0, Zaniyah Freison 0 0-0 0. Totals 4 4-12 12.

Score by quarters not available.
3-point goals: Gloucester Catholic 2 (Eggers 2).

On the rise

Woodstown scores big win on the road, Schalick may have gotten its signature win, includes box scores from all of Monday night’s Salem County basketball action

MONDAY’S SALEM COUNTY SCORES
Boys
Gloucester City 76, Pennsville 62
Penns Grove 63, Williamstown 22
Schalick 66, Maple Shade 37
Woodstown 55, Glassboro 49
Girls
Kingsway 64, Salem 29
Maple Shade 43, Schalick 15
Pennsville 53, Gloucester City 20
Wildwood 70, Salem Tech 29

By Riverview Sports News

GLASSBORO – Just about a week ago the Woodstown basketball team was teetering precariously on the edge of the South Jersey Group I playoff bubble. Two wins later they’ve come off the edge and now have a little breathing room in the final days of the regular season.

The Wolverines earned their largest power point haul of the season Monday night with a 55-49 road victory over Glassboro. Put that with a blowout win over nine-win Pennsville and an overtime loss to 12-win Gloucester Catholic, over the last five days they have gone from 15 to 13 in the power points standings, 46 points ahead of the 16th and final qualifying spot from the section.

They have three games between now and Saturday’s state cutoff date to pick up more points.

Blake Bialecki (21) and Max Webb (19) combined for 40 points to lead the Wolverines (10-7) in this one, outscoring Glassboro’s two leading scorers, Xavier Sabb and Charles Graves, who had 13 points apiece.

Webb was involved in one of the headiest plays in the game. With about 30 seconds left, the Wolverines were trying to get the ball inbounds. With no timeouts and nobody getting open, Webb smartly threw the ball off a defender in front of him and got it back to save the possession.

Bialecki then made a pair of free throws with five seconds left to ice it.

Another crucial factor to getting the win was the play of Rocco String. The 6-foot-7 junior played the entire fourth quarter with four fouls and never picked up his fifth. And he managed to pick up a couple blocked shots and key rebounds.

WOODSTOWN 55, GLASSBORO 49
WOODSTOWN (10-7) – Blake Bialecki 6-4-19, M.J. Hall 2-0-4, Garrett Leyman 1-0-2, Max Webb 6-4-19, Rocco String 3-1-7, Elijah Caesar 2-0-4. Totals 20-9-55.
GLASSBORO (9-11) – Xavier Sabb 5-3-13, Charles Graves 5-2-13, Clinton Suggs 2-2-8, Michael Dougherty 2-0-6, Josh Buff 1-0-3, Crowly Marley 2-0-4, Jayce Grays 1-0-2. Totals 18-7-49.

Woodstown2081115 –55
Glassboro1021108 – 49
3-point goals: Woodstown 6 (Bialecki 3, Webb 3); Glassboro 6 (Graves, Suggs 2, Dougherty 2, Buff).

SCHALICK 66, MAPLE SHADE 37: The Cougars have been looking for that signature win in their winningest season in five years and may have gotten it here.

The teams they had beaten prior to Monday had a combined 12 wins and they picked up a season-high 28 power points for this one. It puts them at No. 18 in the South Jersey Group I power points standings, technically No. 17 since they beat Maple Shade who sits one spot above them.

Nasir and Nylan Sutton led the Cougars with 15 and 13 points, respectively. It was the second time this year and fourth time in their careers they both scored in double figures in the same game. Dan Lis had 14 with three 3-pointers.

The Cougars, now with more wins than the last three seasons combined, have won back-to-back games for the first time since winning the last three games of the 2019-20 season.

MAPLE SHADE (8-13) – Nicholas Gowen 2 0-0 4, Amir Hall 2 0-0 5, Elijah Ashe 3 2-2 8, Antjuan Johnson 2 0-0 6, Hezekiah Delvalle 0 1-2 1, Corey Volcy 6 1-2 13. Totals 15 4-6 37.
SCHALICK (7-10) – Dan Lis 5 1-2 14, Jake Siedlecki 2 0-2 6, Reggie Allen 3 0-2 7, Nylan Sutton 6 1-2 13, Nasir Sutton 6 3-3 15, Jase Volovar 1 0-0 3, Justin Iacona 1 0-0 3, Nyzier Wynder 1 0-0 2, Dylan Sheehan 1 0-0 3. Totals 26 5-11 66.

Maple Shade691111 –37
Schalick16101723 –66
3-point goals: Maple Shade 3 (Hall, Johnson 2); Schalick 9 (Lis 3, Siedlecki 2, Allen, Volovar, Iacona, Sheehan).

PENNS GROVE 63, WILLIAMSTOWN 22
PENNS GROVE (7-12) – Brandon Robbins 1 0-0 3, Roman Gipson 3 6-6 12, Giomar Conrad 5 3-4 14, KaRon Ceaser 3 1-1 7, Willie Slocum 1 0-0 2, Mehki Ballard 6 0-0 13, Camren Thompson 2 2-2 6, Luis Colon 1 0-0 2, Mr Peterson 2 0-0 4, Will Roy 0 0-0 0. Totals 24 12-13 63.
WILLIAMSTOWN (1-20) – Drew Schnapp 1 0-0 3, Tyrone Price 3 0-0 6, Basill Mateen 3 3-4 10, Josh Roberts 1 0-0 2, Jordan Foley 0 1-5 1. Totals 8 4-9 22.

Penns Grove9241317 –63
Williamstown5872 –22
3-point goals: Penns Grove 3 (Robbins, Conrad, Ballard); Williamstown 2 (Schnapp, Mateen).

GLOUCESTER 76, PENNSVILLE 62: Ryan James was 6-for-6 from the foul line in the fourth quarter to help Gloucester pull away from a close game.

Danny Saulin returned to the Pennsville lineup after a four-game absence and had 23 points and six rebounds. Peyton O’Brien had 10 rebounds and six assists, and Luke Wood had q8 points and nine boards.

GLOUCESTER (11-10) – Ryan James 4 6-8 15, Marcus Flagg 2 0-0 4, Keegan Cohan 6 2-3 19, Jake Smith 8 1-2 17, Kadon Harris 3 5-6 11, Mike Light 4 0-0 10, Kevin Wall 0 0-0 0. Totals 27 14-19 76.
PENNSVILLE (9-12) – Luke Wood 7-18 0-0 18, Peyton O’Brien 3-9 0-4 6, Daniel Saulin 10-15 3-9 23, Cohen Petrutz 3-9 0-4 8, Mason O’Brien 2-8 0-0 4, Connor Starn 1-1 0-0 3. Totals 26-60 3-13 62.

Gloucester15142423 –76
Pennsville11231612 –62
3-point goals: Gloucester 8 (James, Cohan 5, Light 2); Pennsville 7-20 (Starn 1-1, M. O’Brien 0-3, Petrutz 2-6, P. O’Brien 0-1, Wood 4-9). Technical fouls: Saulin. Total fouls: Gloucester 15, Pennsville 16. Officials: McCormick, Brown, Lundy.  

Girls Games

PENNSVILLE 53, GLOUCESTER 20
PENNSVILLE (9-11) – Nora Ausland 4 4-5 14, Taylor Bass 4 3-5 12, Bella Farina 2 2-4 6, Marley Wood 8 3-6 21, Izzy Saulin 0 0-0 0, Kylie Harris 0 0-0 0, Calli Ausland 0 0-0 0. Totals 18 12-20 53.
GLOUCESTER (5-14) – Logan Thomson 1 1-4 3, Kierstynn O’Donnell 0 3-8 3, Elizabeth Schultes 1 0-0 2, Bailey Schoenfeldt 2 0-1 5, Victoria Serrano 2 0-0 5, Alexis Ulman 1 0-0 2. Totals 7 4-13 20.

Pennsville15111215 –53
Gloucester2756 –20
3-point goals: Pennsville 5 (N. Ausland 2, Bass, Wood 2); Gloucester 2 (Schoenfeldt, Serrano).

WILDWOOD 70, SALEM TECH 29
WILDWOOD (15-5) – Sophia Wilber 1 2-2 5, Angela Wilber 7 0-0 19, Macie McCracken 11 3-4 27, Kaliah Sumlin 1 2-3 4, Rebecca Benichou 4 0-0 10, Cydnee Kilian 1 0-2 2, Ashley Nagle 1 0-0 3, Mia Cripps 0 0-0 0, Janet Gonzalez 0 0-0 0. Totals 26 7-11 70.
SALEM TECH (1-15) – Morgan VanDover 3 0-0 6, Kaylin Beardsley 2 0-0 4, Lavae Scott 2 0-0 4, Demajae White 6 0-0 12, Rylee Doerr 0 1-2 1, TiRonna McGaha 1 0-0 2. Totals 14 1-2 29.

Wildwood2818213 –70
Salem Tech44912 –29
3-point goals: Wildwood 11 (S. Wilber, A. Wilber 5, McCracken 2, Benichou 2, Nagle); Salem Tech 0. Notes: Wildwood’s McCracken had 10 steals and Sophia Wilber had nine assists.

MAPLE SHADE 43, SCHALICK 15
SCHALICK (5-12) – Abby Willoughby 2-0-4, Cianna Gaines 1-0-2, Carly Vicente 2-1-7, Olivia Lunemann 1-0-2, Ava Scully 0-0-0, Taylor Sparks 0-0-0, Cali Fisler 0-0-0. Totals 6-1-15.
MAPLE SHADE (15-5) – Billie Ormsby 1-1-3, Addison Yackel 7-6-22, Alexis Andrada 3-0-7, Maddy Vessels 3-1-8, Mel Bimmer 1-0-2, Molly Mitchell 0-1-1. Totals 15-9-43.

Schalick2337 –15
Maple Shade108205 –43
3-point goals: Schalick 2 (Vicente 2); Maple Shade 4 (Yackel 2, Andrada, Vessels).

KINGSWAY 64, SALEM 29
SALEM (7-12) – Ava Rodgers 1 1-1 3, Ameriyona Hunter 3 1-4 8, Marjziah Bundy 0 0-0 0, Ryann Foote 0 2-6 2, Lyric Hayes 0 0-0 0, Dakirah Gray 0 0-0 0, Carlysia Pierce 2 2-3 7, Nevaeh Hickman 3 1-3 9, Zaniyah Freison 0 0-0 0. Totals 9 7-17 29.
KINGSWAY (9-11) – Erin Lail 2 0-0 5, Kellis Greer 2 0-0 4, Vienna Gantz 4 0-0 10, Emily Barber 2 0-2 4, Olivia Myers 4 2-2 12, Ava Valente 1 2-2 4, Jaylynn Curtis 3 3-4 10, Paige Horton 2 2-2 6, Bella Archer 1 0-0 3, Chloe McNeill 2 0-0 4, Ojanile Gabriel 1 0-0 2. Totals 24 9-12 64.

Salem9695 –29
Kingsway25515 19 –64
3-point goals: Salem 4 (Hickman 2, Hunter, Pierce); Kingsway 7 (Lail, Gantz 2, Myers 2, Curtis, Archer). Notes: Salem’s Bundy had 10 points and seven blocked shots.


Tri-County pairings

Here are the pairings for the Tri-County Conference Tournament; only one Salem County team has a first-round home game

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

Timber Creek’s Liberty Division-leading boys and Williamstown’s Royal Division-leading girls have pulled down the overall No. 1 seeds for next week’s Tri-County Basketball Tournament.

The tournament begins next Monday with 22 games at the higher seeds. The brackets were finalized Sunday and became official at noon today.

Timber Creek is currently 13-3, 8-0 in the Liberty Division, riding a 10-game on-the-floor winning streak and fourth in the South Jersey Group III power points standings. Williamstown is 14-5 overall, 6-0 in the Royal Division and leads the South Jersey Group IV power points standings.

As far as Salem County’s teams are concerned, no county boys team has a first-round home game and Schalick’s girls are the only county team playing at home in the opening round.

Pennsville’s boys and Salem’s girls have No. 1 seeds in their respective seven-team C Flight brackets, have first-round byes and will play home games in Round 2 Feb. 14. Pennsville is 5-0 against the other teams in its bracket, Salem 3-1.

“It’s bittersweet,” Pennsville coach Joe Mecholsky said of his team’s seeding. “It’s not our goal to be the best of the bottom. However, we will get two solid days of practice in as we prepare for the playoffs.

“Hopefully, two home games and the good vibes that come with winning a C bracket will help build momentum into the first round of the playoffs.”

On the girls side, Woodstown is No. 5 in the A Flight and will open the tournament at current Classic Division No. 2 Gloucester Catholic, a team the Wolverines opened the season against and are presently scheduled to play in Saturday’s consolation bracket of the SJIBT. Pennsville is No. 5 and Penns Grove 8 in the B Flight, and Salem is 1, Schalick 3 and Salem Tech 7 in the C Flight.

On the boys side, Salem is No. 6 in the A Flight and will open at Diamond Division leader Overbrook, a solid No. 7 in the South Jersey Group II power points standings. Penns Grove is No. 7 and Woodstown 8 in the B Flight, while Pennsville is No. 1 in C, followed by Schalick (6) and Salem Tech (7).

Day 1 winners are guaranteed two more games. Day 1 losers (except in Flight C) will play one consolation game.

The pairings for all six flights are listed below:

TRI-COUNTY CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT
BOYS BRACKETS
A FLIGHT
Feb. 12
No. 8 Gloucester Catholic (12-8) at No. 1 Timber Creek (13-3)
No. 5 Triton (11-8) at No. 4 Pitman (15-6)
No. 6 Salem (13-6) at No. 3 Overbrook (15-5)
No. 7 Wildwood (11-9) at No. 2 Delsea (13-7)
Feb. 14
Gloucester Catholic-Timber Creek winner vs. Triton-Pitman winner
Salem-Overbrook winner vs. Wildwood-Delsea winner
Consolation games
Feb. 16
Third-place game
Championship

B FLIGHT
Feb. 12
No. 8 Woodstown (9-7) at No. 1 Kingsway (11-10)
No. 5 Glassboro (9-10) at No. 4 Deptford Twp. (10-9)
No. 6 Washington Twp. (11-9) at No. 3 Highland (9-9)
No. 7 Penns Grove (6-12) at No. 2 Clearview (11-8)
Feb. 14
Woodstown-Kingsway winner vs. Glassboro-Deptford Twp. winner
Washington Twp.-Highland winner vs. Penns Grove-Clearview winner
Consolation games
Feb. 16
Third-place game
Championship

C FLIGHT
Feb. 12
No. 1 Pennsville (9-11) bye
No. 5 Clayton (3-16) at No. 4 Cumberland (2-18)
No. 6 Schalick (6-10) at No. 3 Williamstown (1-19)
No. 7 Salem Tech (2-15) at No. 2 GCIT (7-14)
Feb. 14
Clayton-Cumberland winner at Pennsville
Schalick-Williamstown winner vs. Salem Tech-GCIT winner
Schalick-Williamstown loser vs. Salem Tech-GCIT loser
Feb. 16
Third-place game
Championship

GIRLS BRACKETS
A FLIGHT
Feb. 12
No. 8 Highland (10-9) at No. 1 Williamstown (14-4)
No. 5 Woodstown (14-4) at No. 4 Gloucester Catholic (15-5)
No. 6 Washington Twp. (10-8) at No. 3 Wildwood (14-5)
No. 7 Timber Creek (13-8) at No. 2 Clearview (14-3)
Feb. 14
Highland-Williamstown winner vs. Woodstown-Gloucester Catholic winner
Washington Twp.-Wildwood winner vs. Timber Creek-Clearview winner
Consolation games
Feb. 16
Third-place game
Championship

B FLIGHT
Feb. 12
No. 8 Penns Grove (7-8) at No. 1 GCIT (12-7)
No. 5 Pennsville (8-11) at No. 4 Delsea (8-10)
No. 6 Pitman (9-8) at No. 3 Kingsway (8-11)
No. 7 Clayton (8-9) at No. 2 Glassboro (12-5)
Feb. 14
Penns Grove-GCIT winner vs. Pennsville-Delsea winner
Pitman-Kingsway winner vs. Clayton-Glassboro winner
Consolation games
Feb. 16
Third-place game
Championship

C FLIGHT
Feb. 12
No. 1 Salem (7-11) bye
No. 5 Overbrook (3-12) at No. 4 Triton (6-11)
No. 6 Deptford (3-15) at No. 3 Schalick (5-11)
No. 7 Salem Tech (1-14) at No. 2 Cumberland (4-13)
Feb. 14
Overbrook-Triton winner at Salem
Deptford-Schalick winner vs. Salem Tech-Cumberland winner
Deptford-Schalick loser vs. Salem Tech-Cumberland loser
Feb. 16
Third-place game
Championship

This week’s schedule

Here is the Salem County sports schedule for the week of Feb. 5-11

Monday

BASKETBALL
Girls
Wildwood at Salem Tech, 4 p.m.
Pennsville at Gloucester City, 5:30 p.m.
Salem at Kingsway, 5:30 p.m.
Schalick at Maple Shade, 5:30 p.m.
Boys
Gloucester City at Pennsville, 5:30 p.m.
Maple Shade at Schalick, 5:30 p.m.
Penns Grove at Williamstown, 5:30 p.m.
Woodstown at Glassboro, 5:30 p.m.

WRESTLING
South Jersey Group I Tournament
At Woodstown
Audubon vs. Palmyra, 6 p.m.
Haddon Twp. at Woodstown, 6 p.m.
Audubon-Palmyra winner vs. Haddon Twp.-Woodstown winner, 7 p.m.
At Paulsboro
Pitman at Paulsboro, 5:30 p.m.
Pennsville vs. Gloucester, 5:30 p.m.
Pitman-Paulsboro winner vs. Pennsville-Gloucester winner, 7 p.m.

Penns Grove, Camden, Riverside at Lindenwold, 4 p.m.
Schalick at Northern Burlington, 6 p.m.

SWIMMING
NJSIAA Playoffs
Schalick vs. Barnegat at St. Francis Community Center, 4:30 p.m.
Woodstown vs. Cape May Co. Tech at GCIT, 6:30 p.m.

INDOOR TRACK
Salem at Ocean Breeze Complex, Staten Island, N.Y., 5 p.m.

Tuesday

BASKETBALL
Girls
Penns Grove at Schalick, 4 p.m.
Pennsville at Glassboro, 4 p.m.
Salem Tech at Wildwood, 4 p.m.
Gloucester Catholic at Salem, 5:30 p.m.
Woodstown at Overbrook, 5:30 p.m.
Boys
Salem at Gloucester Catholic, 5 p.m.
Glassboro at Pennsville, 5:30 p.m.
Overbrook at Woodstown, 5:30 p.m.
Schalick at Penns Grove, 5:30 p.m.
Salem Tech at Wildwood, 5:30 p.m.

COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Women
Salem CC at Bucks County CC, 5 p.m.
Men
Montgomery County CC at Salem CC, 7 p.m.

BOWLING
TCC Showcase at 30 Strikes, 4 p.m. 

SWIMMING
Schalick at West Deptford, 3:30 p.m.

Wednesday

BASKETBALL
Girls
Glassboro at Woodstown, 4 p.m.

WRESTLING
Pennsville at Haddon Heights, 5 p.m.
Pitman at Schalick, 5 p.m.
Salem at Gloucester Catholic, 6 p.m.

SWIMMING
Schalick at Camden Academy Charter, 3:30 p.m.

Thursday

BASKETBALL
Girls
Penns Grove at Pennsville, 5:30 p.m.
Salem Tech at Pitman, 5:30 p.m.
Salem at Clayton, 5:30 p.m.
Schalick at Overbrook, 5:30 p.m.
Boys
Penns Grove at Pennsville, 4 p.m.
Clayton at Salem, 5:30 p.m.
Overbrook at Schalick, 5:30 p.m.
Woodstown at Washington Twp., 5:30 p.m.
Salem Tech at Pitman, 7 p.m.

SWIMMING
South Jersey Group C Tournament
Schalick at Middle Twp.
Woodstown at Oakcrest

Friday

BASKETBALL
Girls
Schalick at Penns Grove, 4 p.m.
Pleasantville at Salem, 5 p.m.
Cape May Co. Tech at Salem Tech, 5:30 p.m.
Millville at Pennsville, 5:30 p.m.
Woodstown at Lower Cape May, 5:30 p.m.
Boys
Buena at Woodstown, 5:30 p.m.
Penns Grove at Schalick, 5:30 p.m.
Pennsville at Paulsboro, 5:30 p.m.
Salem Tech at Cape May Co. Tech, 5:30 p.m.

WRESTLING
Woodstown at Delran, 6 p.m.

Saturday

BASKETBALL
Girls
South Jersey Invitational Tournament
at Eastern Regional HS
Woodstown vs. Williamstown, 8 p.m.
Boys
Bridgeton at Salem, 12:30 p.m.

COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Women
Salem CC at Lackawanna College, 1 p.m.
Men
Harrisburg Area CC at Salem CC, noon

WRESTLING
Schalick, Burlington Twp., Cherry Hill-West at Maple Shade, 8 a.m.
Pennsville, Cedar Creek, Delran at Hightstown, 10 a.m.
Salem, Mainland, Timber Creek at Pennsauken, 10 a.m.

BOWLING
Girls
NJSIAA Sectionals

Identity through adversity

Shorthanded Pennsville comes through a rough week 3-1 to gain confidence for stretch run; updated to include boxscores of other county games

FRIDAY’S GAMES
Boys
Pennsville 49, West Deptford 46
Riverside 59, Salem Tech 31
Schalick 49, Gateway 40
Girls
Gateway 41, Schalick 33
Gloucester Catholic 83, Salem 31
St. Joe (Hamm.) 43, Salem Tech 36

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PENNSVILLE – No team deserves to go through the turmoil the Pennsville basketball team has endured this past week. But it happens. And because it did, it just might have been the thing the Eagles needed to establish their identity.

The Eagles have been down three starters for a variety of reasons since last Saturday. Many other teams might have packed it in, but the Eagles were determined to rise above. They went 3-1 this week without them, capped by Friday night’s 49-46 win over West Deptford.

It wasn’t easy and the bullet they dodged could have put them on the deck. They needed a big second half to beat one-win Gateway, but lost the night’s leading scorer Jayden Thomas to a severe ankle sprain in the closing seconds. They needed overtime to get past Schalick, got blown out by Woodstown Thursday and then needed a put-back by Peyton O’Brien with 18 seconds left and two Luke Wood free throws with 3.9 seconds to go to turn back West Deptford after blowing an second-half lead.

Thomas wasn’t the only one who’s been out. Center Danny Saulin was serving the final game of a four-game state/school suspension for a flagrant foul in the Triton game Saturday and they were missing Malik Rehmer for disciplinary reasons. Saulin is due back Monday, while Thomas remains day-to-day.

The Eagles came out of the gauntlet 9-11 on the season when under different outcomes they could easily be 6-14.

“We’re gaining a lot of confidence because guys are stepping up that haven’t had to step up a lot this year and we’re just coming together as a team,” O’Brien said. “Having that many issues you’re not like scared, but you know there are going to be some struggles, but I feel like we faced adversity pretty well.”

“Through the fire, now we’re stronger,” coach Joe Mecholsky said. “I didn’t think (they needed that to find their identity), but that’s the outcome. I didn’t think so, but hindsight being undefeated, that’s what we got.”

Pennsville was hot right out of the gate on this night, opening a 15-4 lead and holding a seven-point lead in the third quarter under a hail of 3-pointers. The Eagles made a season-high eight 3s in the game. They had hit eight in their previous three games combined.

Wood had six of them, including a running buzzer-beater to give them a nine-point halftime lead. He finished with 22 points and moved into fifth place on Pennsville’s all-time boys scoring list (1,107).

“When the roulette wheel keeps coming up red, red, red, red, red – missed 3s, missed 3s, missed 3s, missed 3s – it had to come up black one time,” Mecholsky said. “It came up black for us tonight. The little ball landed on the black for us tonight.”

“We haven’t been able to shoot all season and to finally break through and make some 3s, the whole team, it felt really good,” Wood said.

But their biggest plays of the game came around the basket in the final minute. After being down most of the game, West Deptford held a 46-43 lead with 1:21 to play.

Cohen Petrutz’ putback got Pennsville within one with 56 seconds left. West Deptford gave Pennsville the chance to get back in it when Aiden Cranmer missed two free throws, Mark Koszowski missed the putback and O’Brien cleared the rebound.

Wood missed a spinning layup in traffic for the lead at the other end, but O’Brien was in the perfect spot underneath to rebound and put it back to give Pennsville a 47-46 lead. O’Brien had 10 points, five rebounds and three blocked shots.

“I’m exhausted still from yesterday,” O’Brien said. “Yesterday I had to play a full game and that was a tough game, too. I tried my hardest to get that rebound, doing whatever it takes. I knew if that one didn’t go in then I had to be the one to get it back.”

Cranmer missed again with 3.9 seconds left. This time Wood rebounded and was fouled. He sank both free throws at the other end to make it a three-point game and after a time out to set the final play Cranmer missed a shot from mid-court at the buzzer.

“To go up and get shellacked last night and come back tonight and not fold under the pressure after we gave up a nine-point lead and stick to what we were doing showed a tremendous amount of fortitude in these young men,” Mecholsky said.

“I think our team has just found itself,” Wood said. “This whole past week I think we’ve jelled together, realized what everyone’s good at it, we’ve started playing together a lot better like we know we can. As a whole team it made us stronger. This whole past week I think we’ve really shown up and down our lineup we’re going to go out there and compete and we’re really a basketball team.”

PENNSVILLE 49, WEST DEPTFORD 46
WEST DEPTFORD (6-13) – Andre Johnson 4 0-1 8, Zayd Mijahid 1 0-0 3, Mark Koszowski 2 8-9 12, Jalen Chandler 0 0-0 0, Nick Senatore 4 1-2 11, Allen Eastlack 0 0-0 0, Aiden Cranmer 5 0-2 11. Totals 16 9-14 46.
PENNSVILLE (9-11) – Luke Wood 6-18 4-7 22, Peyton O’Brien 4-7 1-2 10, Cohen Petrutz 4-10 0-0 9, Mason O’Brien 0-4 3-6 3, Connor Starn 1-1 1-2 3, Carlos Merindino 1-2 0-0 2, Cole Johnston 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 16-43 9-17 49.

West Deptford7101514 –46
Pennsville1511914 –49
3-point goals: West Deptford 5 (Mujahid, Senatore 3, Cranmer); Pennsville 8-19 (Wood 6-13, P. O’Brien 1-2, Petrutz 1-3, Johnston 0-1). Total fouls: West Deptford 19, Pennsville 11.

RIVERSIDE 59, SALEM TECH 31
SALEM TECH (2-15) – Chase Wills 5 0-0 10, Haneef Frisby 4 1-2 9, Daviontae Russell 0 1-2 1, Tyler Zampino 3 0-0 6, Antoine Robinson 2 0-0 5. Totals 14 2-4 31.
RIVERSIDE (8-11) – Jashir Bridges 8 2-6 21, Carmine Smith 7 0-0 14, Jamir Brown 2 0-0 4, Cameron Brown 2 0-0 5, John Boston 0 0-0 0, Zaire Ali-Lewis 4 0-0 8, Dan Ventura 1 0-0 2, Isaiah Ali-Lewis 1 0-0 2, Anthony Martinez 0 0-0 0, Jayion Howell 0 0-0 0, John Salerno 1 0-0 3. Totals 26 2-6 59.
Salem Tech1194 9 –31
Riverside19121416 –59
3-point goals: Salem Tech 1 (Robinson); Riverside 5 (Bridges 3, Brown, Salerno).

SCHALICK 49, GATEWAY 40
SCHALICK (6-10) – Levi Freeney-Childers 2 9-15 13, Jake Siedlecki 5 0-0 12, Nylan Sutton 4 1-4 9, Daniel Lis 3 0-0 7, Reggie Lewis 2 1-4 6, Nasir Sutton 1 0-0 2. Totals 17 11-23 49.
GATEWAY (1-19) – Sean Cawley 10 0-0 25, Steven Morlachetta 2 1-2 6, Nahmeire Rowe-Walls 1 1-2 4, Benji Contarino 0 3-4 3, A’Key Talley 1 0-0 2, Cody Shaw 0 0-0 0. Totals 14 5-8 40.
3-point goals: Schalick 4 (Siedlecki 2, Lis, Allen); Gateway 7 (Cawley 5, Morlachetta, Rowe-Walls).

Girls Games

GATEWAY 41, SCHALICK 33
GATEWAY (11-8) – Angelina Zagone 4 4-8 12, Gabby Gasis 1 0-0 3, Tabby Bay 1 2-4 4, Bella Fini 6 5-8 19, Molly Sholders 1 1-2 3, Sydney Hughes 0 0-0 0, Jayda Catoe 0 0-0 0. Totals 13 12-22 41.
SCHALICK (5-11) – Ava Scurry 1 0-0 2, Cianna Gaines 1 1-6 3, Taylor Sparks 3 0-0 8, Abby Willoughby 2 0-0 6, Cali Fisler 5 1-7 12, Carly Vicente 1 0-0 2. Totals 13 2-13 33.

Gateway1114412 –41
Schalick67218 –33
3-point goals: Gateway 3 (Gasis, Fini 2); Schalick 5 (Sparks 2, Willoughby 2, Fisler). Total fouls: Gateway 12, Schalick 15.

ST. JOESEPH (HAMM.) 43, SALEM TECH 36
ST. JOSEPH (8-8) – Cassidy Perri 8 1-2 21, Erica Paranzino 3 0-0 6, Giselle Pescatore 2 0-0 4, Leylani Muniz 1 0-0 2, Madyson Longwith 4 2-2 10. Totals 18 3-4 43.
SALEM TECH (1-14) – TiRonna McGaha 1 0-2 2, Morgan VanDover 4 2-5 11, Hanna DeWitt 2 0-0 4, Kaylin Beardsley 1 0-0 3, Demajae White 2 0-0 4, Shelby Drummond 2 0-0 5, Rylee Doerr 3 1-2 7. Totals 15 3-9 36. 

St. Joseph186613 –43
Salem Tech811710 –36
3-point goals: St. Joseph 4 (Perri 4); Salem Tech 3 (VanDover, Beardsley, Drummond).

Cover photo: Pennsville’s Peyton O’Brien puts back an offensive rebound with 18 seconds left in the game to give the Eagles the lead for good against West Deptford.






Ain’t life grand

Donelson reaches 1,000-point milestone as Woodstown overcomes slow start to beat Pennsville; includes other Salem County games and box scores

THURSDAY’S GIRLS SCORES
Woodstown 66, Pennsville 57
Penns Grove 81, Overbrook 24
Glassboro 67, Schalick 14
Wildwood 67, Salem 22
Clayton 51, Salem Tech 30

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PENNSVILLE — Megan Donelson might have had prettier baskets in her career, but not many were more memorable than the one she dropped in the fourth quarter Thursday night.

The Woodstown junior became the 10th player in her school’s girls basketball history to score 1,000 career points — and the third player in Salem County to reach the milestone this season – in the Wolverines’ 66-57 win over Pennsville.

She needed 29 points to reach the milestone entering the game and hit it on the number. She hit the milestone on a layup with 1:57 left in the game.

“I was really determined to get my thousandth point and it put me to drive to get that goal,” she said. “I set that goal for myself as soon as I walked in my freshman year and I just wanted to complete my goal.”

Donelson was four points short of the milestone entering the fourth quarter, but given the weight of the situation they were as hard to get as the final three outs of a no-hitter and made harder by picking up her fourth foul with five minutes left in the game. She didn’t peel away the first two points until 2:41 remained – and they were on free throws. The milestone came about a minute later.

It wasn’t artistic, but it was effective. She took the outlet pass from one of Shannon Pierman’s defensive rebounds, drove the length of the floor and tossed an off-balanced shot towards the basket in traffic from the right side of the lane. It went through just as she was falling out of bounds.

“I thought it was a really good way to score the thousandth,” she said. “I had the defender on me and I got the thousandth point off the defender.”

She is the first Woodstown girls player to reach the milestone since Riley Fulmer in 2022. Junior teammate Talia Battavio could join her in the club as early as Saturday when the Wolverines play Cherokee in the South Jersey Invitational Basketball Tournament at Eastern. The girls school record for points is 1,566 by Tori Smick (2013).

Boys players Luke Wood (Pennsville) and Anthony Farmer (Salem) joined the club earlier this year and Penns Grove girls guard Meely Horace, who needs just two points after putting 38 on Overbrook Thursday, is a lock to get it in her next game against Schalick.

“There was anxiousness all day of is she going to get it, when is she going to get it, how is she going to get it, is she going to have to get Saturday,” Wolverines coach Kara Straughn said. “Once she got it, it was just like this overwhelming sense of relief, like, all the hard work she put in came to fruition.

“She’ll say she wasn’t counting, but I know inside she probably was.”

Woodstown’s Megan Donelson (24) drives on Pennsville’s Marley Wood (4) in the fourth quarter on the way to the basket for her 1,000th career point.

The final score may have looked like another routine win for the Wolverines (14-3), but it was anything but that. Pennsville (7-11), playing the best it has all season, jumped out to leads of 13-0, 15-2 and 26-15 before Donelson and Pierman brought their team back.

Donelson scored the last nine points in an 11-0 run that drew the Wolverines even at 26 with 1:27 left in the half. She made two free throws with 10 seconds left to give them a 32-30 halftime lead.

They never trailed again. They scored the first 10 points of the third quarter and by the end of it led by 15.

“I’m really proud of the way we didn’t give up,” Pierman said. “We obviously did not give up. We pushed back, we fought harder and it showed. We knew we could play better. We knew we were better than that. Eventually something has to change, especially when we know how we can win.”
Pennsville built its early lead by making layups inside Woodstown’s 2-3 zone and caught the Wolverines on a cold start.

Taylor Bass got it started with a 3 and two free throws. Marley Wood made three buckets and Bella Farina hit two free throws. Suddenly it was 13-0 and the Wolverines called time looking for energy. It was 17-8 at quarter’s end.

“We talked about what the best way to open up the court to get open looks, we talked about where the cuts need to be,” Eagles coach Sam Trapp said. “As long as that kept happening we kept scoring.”

The quick start wasn’t without a hitch, however. Post Bella Farina picked up three fouls in the first six and a half minutes and sat the rest of the half.

Meanwhile, the Wolverines were just stuck in the mud. They missed their first 11 shots and had five turnovers before Donelson finally broke the ice off an inbounds play with 2:34 left in the first quarter. They shot 2-for-14 from the floor in the quarter.

The Eagles’ inspired play continued through the first half of the second quarter, extending the lead to 26-15. The Wolverines were 7-of-25 from the field before Donelson and Co. started the charge to get back in the game.

“Their two leading scorers were creeping into their 1,000, that always makes a kid nervous, that kind of got in their head a little bit and this is the first time they’ve seen us at full strength and now they’re being able to see what the girls Pennsville basketball team can really bring,” Trapp said. “I think that was what executed that great 13-0 stretch at the beginning.

“I’ve been putting a big emphasis on playing together, looking ahead, focusing on using each other’s strength and I think that’s a big component. I keep telling the girls when we play together, when we’re sharing the ball, distributing the ball, making everybody work to help us get to a good place we play our best basketball.”

Nora Ausland led the Eagles with 21 points. Wood had 15.

Donelson’s 29 points matched her season-high. Pierman had 12 points and 15 rebounds for her fourth straight double-double. Battavio had 21 points and needs 19 to become the next member of Woodstown’s 1,000-Point Club.

WOODSTOWN 66, PENNSVILLE 57
WOODSTOWN (14-3) — Talia Battavio 7 4-4 21, Megan Donelson 9 7-8 29, Gianna Mairoini 1 0-2 2, Alyssa Baber 0 1-2 1, Shannon Pierman 4 4-4 12, Lauren Hengel 0 1-2 1, Emma Perry 0 0-0 0, Brae DiGregorio 0 0-0 0, Jala Thomas 0 0-0 0, Lizzy Daly 0 0-0 0. Totals 21 17-22 66.
PENNSVILLE (7-11) — Celli Ausland 0 0-0 0, Nora Ausland 9 1-1 21, Taylor Bass 3 2-2 9, Karsen Cooksey 0 2-2 2, Bella Farina 1 2-2 4, Kylie Harris 0 0-0 0, Izzy Saulin 2 2-2 6, Marley Wood 7 0-2 15. Totals 22 9-11 57.

Woodstown8242311 —66
Pennsville17131017 —57
3-point goals: Woodstown 7 (Battavio 3, Donelson 4); Pennsville 4 (N. Ausland 2, Bass, Wood). Fouled out: Farina. Total fouls: Woodstown 16, Pennsville 18.

WILDWOOD 67, SALEM 22
WILDWOOD (14-4) — Sophia Wilber 4 3-4 12, Angela Wilber 2 0-0 5, Macie McCracken 9 0-0 25, Saliah Sumlin 2 0-0 4, Rebecca Benichou 8 1-2 20, Cydnee Kilian 0 0-0 0, Mia Cripps 0 1-4 1, Ashley Nagle 0 0-0 0, Janet Gonzalez 0 0-0 0. Totals 25 5-10 67.
SALEM (7-10) — Ryann Foote 1 1-6 3, Ava Rodgers 3 1-2 7, Ameriyona Hunter 1 0-0 3, Kaela Nichols 1 0-0 3, Carlysia Pierce 1 0-0 2, NaeNae Logan 1 0-0 2, Marjziah Bundy 1 0-0 2, Zaniyah Freison 0 0-0 0, Nevaeh Hickman 0 0-0 0, Marissa Bower 0 0-0 0. Totals 9 2-8 22.

Wildwood19191613 —67
Salem7645 —22
3-point goals: Wildwood 12 (S. Wilber, A. Wilber, McCracken 7, Benichou 3); Salem 2 (Hunter, Nichols). Rebounds: Wildwood 29 (McCracken 9, Sumlin 9); Salem 57 (Rodgers 13, Logan 10).

CLAYTON 51, SALEM TECH 30
SALEM TECH (1-13) — Morgan VanDover 5 3-4 15, Kaylin Beardsley 2 0-0 5, Hanna DeWitt 1 0-2 2, Rylee Doerr 2 0-0 4, Shelby Drummond 2 0-0 4. Totals 12 3-6 30.
CLAYTON (8-9) — Jordyn Jones 9 6-8 24, Deondria Simon 4 1-2 9, Ava Delaney 4 0-0 8, India Williams 1 0-0 3, Janice Blair 0 2-4 2, Kaya Gunther 1 1-4 3, Sophia Petsch 1 0-0 2. Totals 20 10-18 51.
Salem Tech65127 —30
Clayton9121516 —51
3-point goals: Salem Tech 3 (VanDover 2, Beardsley); Clayton 1 (Williams).

GLASSBORO 67, SCHALICK 14
SCHALICK (5-10) — Ava Scurry 1 0-2 2, Gianna Gaines 0 3-4 3, Taylor Sparks 1 0-0 3, Abby Willoughby 0 0-2 0, Cali Fisler 3 0-0 6, Victoria Basich 0 0-0 0, Olivia Lunemann 0 0-2 0, Carly Vicente 0 0-0 0. Totals 5 3-10 14.
GLASSBORO (11-5) — Sanaa Thomas 5 0-0 13, Tamia Smith 8 3-8 21, Kezia Bracektt 9 6-8 28, Sianna Wedderburn 2 0-2 4, Kimora Miles 0 1-2 1, Ante Davis 0 0-0 0, Jayde Darling 0 0-0 0, Nevaeh Cox-Clement 0 0-0 0, Samyra Lane 0 0-0 0. Totals 24 10-20 67.
Schalick2354 —14
Glassboro 1592518 —67
3-point goals: Schalick 1 (Sparks); Glassboro 9 (Thomas 3, Smith 2, Brackett 4). Fouled out: Davis. Total fouls: Schalick 16, Glassboro 13.

Practice makes perfect

Salem Tech scores its first Tri-County Conference divisional win in shootout with Clayton; includes Salem County games and box scores

THURSDAY’S BOYS SCORES
Glassboro 44, Schalick 41
Overbrook 53, Penns Grove 37
Salem 62, Wildwood 52
Salem Tech 86, Clayton 76
Woodstown 81, Pennsville 51

By Riverview Sports News

WOODSTOWN – The two things Salem Tech worked on all week in preparation for Thursday night’s basketball game were the two things that helped the Chargers score an historic victory.

The Chargers outran Clayton for an 86-76 victory that was their first in Tri-County Classic Division play in school history.

They had lost 16 straight division games since officially joining the conference last academic year and were 0-6 this season.

“The first thing I did was congratulate the boys, they did exactly what I told them do,” Chargers coach Bryan Riley said. “And then I told them this was our first win in the Tri-County Classic. They were pretty excited.”

The 86 points were the most the Chargers have scored in a game in Riley’s two seasons as the coach and the most they’ve scored in any game since putting 88 on Clayton in a win in January 2022. The school record is 92, in a pre-Christmas loss to the Clippers in 2019.

Five players scored in double figures for the Chargers (2-14), led by junior Tyler Zampino’s career-high 25 points. Joseph Hayes had a career-high 17 points with four 3-pointers. Haneef Frisby had 14, Chase Wills 13 and Antoine Robinson 11.

Clayton’s Demetris Williams led all scorers with 28 points.

“There was no set offense, it was just run and gun; we had to keep up with them,” Riley said. “I knew it was going to be a high scoring game. I told the boys it’s a track meet, bring your running shoes.

“We finished at the rim. It was fast breaks, beat the press, finish at the rim. We’re 49 percent from the (foul) line this season and were 63 percent today. It was those little things. That’s what I had them doing all week, shooting foul shots and full-speed sprints to the basket, and that’s exactly what they did.”

The Chargers got a good jump out of the blocks. Zampino had nine points in the first quarter as the Chargers jumped out to 22-13 lead.

“He finished at the rim,” Riley repeated. “He was the deep guy. They moved the ball around beating that press and he was the guy down at the other end. We found him and he connected on most of his drives.”

SALEM TECH 86, CLAYTON 76
CLAYTON (3-15) – Dillon Jones 3 0-0 6, Nazir Davis 5 2-7 15, John Carter 1 2-2 5, Demetris Williams 10 7-11 28, Jon Cox 2 0-0 4, Cristan Scott 0 0-2 0, Ashaud Hine-Pope 4 1-2 9, Nasir Carter 2 0-0 5, Mason Gable 0 0-0 0, Chimali Mitchell 0 0-0 0, Earl Townsend 1 0-0 2, Michael Akosah 0 1-4 1, Brian Marshall 1 0-0 2. Totals 29 13-28 76.
SALEM TECH (2-14) – Chase Wills 6 0-0 13, Haneef Frisby 7 0-3 14, Joseph Hayes 6 1-2 17, Daviontae Russell 0 0-0 0, Tyler Zampino 8 9-11 25, Gio Holmes 3 0-0 6, Antoine Robinson 3 5-8 11. Totals 33 15-24 86.

Clayton132224 17 –76
Salem Tech22172819 –86
3-point goals: Clayton 6 (Davis 3, Carter, Williams. N. Carter); Salem Tech 5 (Wills, Hayes 4). Fouled out: Willis. Total fouls: Clayton 18, Salem Tech 19.

WOODSTOWN 81, PENNSVILLE 51
PENNSVILLE (8-11) – Luke Wood 4 3-4 12, Peyton O’Brien 6 4-6 16, Mason O’Brien 5 0-0 10, Cohen Petrutz 1 0-0 2, Connor Starn 0 1-2 1, Cole Johnston 3 0-0 7, Logan Hitt 0 1-2 1, S. Jefferson 1 0-0 2. Totals 20 9-14 51.
WOODSTOWN (9-6) – Manny Ortega 2 0-2 5, Blake Bialecki 4 0-0 10, Alejandro Vazquez 5 0-0 14, M.J. Hall 7 1-2 17, Connor Sanderson 0 0-2 0, Garrett Leyman 1 0-0 2, Anthony Bokolas 0 0-0 0, Lucas Fulmer 2 0-0 4, Max Webb 3 5-6 12, Rocco String 6 3-3 15, Elijah Caesar 1 0-0 2. Totals 31 9-15 81.

Pennsville10131414 – 51
Woodstown19232514 –81
3-point goals: Pennsville 2 (Johnston, Wood); Woodstown 10 (Ortega, Bialecki 2, Vazquez 4, Hall 2, Webb).

OVERBROOK 53, PENNS GROVE 37
PENNS GROVE (6-12) – Brandon Robbins 6, Roman Gipson 2, Giomar Conrad 16, Willie Slocum 4, Mehki Ballard 7, Luis Colon 2.
OVERBROOK (14-5) – Lamar Little 1 0-0 2, Xavier Wright 0 2-4 2, Chris Grier 2 1-2 5, Amare Kee 3 0-0 9, Maki Ortiz 0 0-0 0, Shaun Mills 5 0-0 10, Tory Scott 2 0-0 4, Zair Green 3 3-4 9, Kevin Satchell 1 0-0 2, Nic Johnson 4 1-5 10. Totals 21 7-15 53.

Penns Grove810109 –37
Overbrook6171713 –53
3-point goals: Penns Grove NA; Overbrook 4 (Kee 3, Johnson)

GLASSBORO 44, SCHALICK 41
GLASSBORO (9-10) – Xavier Sabb 3 4-8 10, Charles Graves 4 8-12 16, Michael Dougherty 3 1-2 10, Tashean Thomas 1 1-2 3, Crowly Marley 2 1-3 5. Totals 13 15-25 44.
SCHALICK (5-10) – Reggie Allen 3 3-6 11, Danny Lis 6 2-2 16, Jordan Johnson 2 5-7 9, Ryan Johnson 2 0-0 4, Nasir Sutton 0 1-4 1, Jake Siedlecki 0 0-0 0, Dylan Sheehan 0 0-0 0, Jase Volovar 0 0-0 0. Totals 13 11-19 41.

Glassboro1218122 –44
Schalick131297 –41
3-point goals: Glassboro 3 (Dougherty 3); Schalick 4 (Allen 2, Lis 2).

SALEM 62, WILDWOOD 52

Salem (12-6)16181117 –62
Wildwood (11-8)9131515 –52


Feels good to finish

Penns Grove finally pulls out close game, edges Woodstown to snap five-game losing streak; Salem slams Salem Tech, shorthanded Pennsville beats Schalick in OT

TUESDAY’S BOYS GAMES
Pennsville 42, Schalick 37
Penns Grove 47, Woodstown 42
Salem 83, Salem Tech 41

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PENNS GROVE – That Penns Grove won a basketball game for the first time in two weeks was cause enough for celebration in the locker room after it was over, but the way it won the game might have been the most welcoming news of all.

The Red Devils snapped a five-game losing streak – their longest slide in seven years – Tuesday night with a 47-42 win over Tri-County Diamond Division rival Woodstown. They did it by outscoring the Wolverines 7-2 over the final minute and hitting five of six free throws down the stretch.

Exactly a week ago they lost a game they were leading by three with less than a minute to go.

“We needed it bad,” Penns Grove coach Damian Ware said. “The five-game losing streak was really rough. To get this win today against a good Woodstown team is very important for us. It gives us confidence.

“The guys work so hard and it hurts when you have those close losses because you want the kids to have success. I want them to have the success and feel the success because they work for it.”

Now, teams win games with late runs all the day, but if you knew anything about the Red Devils’ recent history, you knew endgame scenarios haven’t been kind to them.

The losses on the front and back ends of the five-game losing streak were hopeless blowouts, but in each of the three in the middle – in a span of four days – they had legitimate chances to win and couldn’t finish.

They lost at Clearview on a steal and layup with 12 seconds left and missed two shots to win or tie it. They got beat at home by Glassboro on a buzzer-beater 3 in a game they were leading by three with a minute left. And then they lost at home to Wildwood in overtime when they just ran out of gas.

“I think the fact of winning a close game that came down to when it was winning time (was the big thing),” Ware said. “I tell the kids all the time the thing with winning and losing is it’s one possession here or there. Everything has to be solid. 

“You can’t try to be fancy because that one possession could be the one that we needed at the end of the game. I try to make them value every single possession and we’re starting to get to that point.”

Penns Grove’s Mr Peterson (10) comes out to challenge a shot by Woodstown’s Alejandro Vazquez in the game’s closing seconds.

Neither team would let the other get too far ahead. The way they were going after it defensively, a six-point lead felt like it was a lot bigger than it actually was.

Early in the game Rocco String gave the Wolverines an edge with his commanding inside presence. But soon both he and Max Webb would be in foul trouble and sat most of the second quarter. Penns Grove’s Mr Peterson was there to take advantage of the opening and command the respect his name demands.

Peterson had six points and two rebounds in an 11-2 run that gave the Red Devils the lead early in the quarter. The Wolverines followed with their own rally to cut Penns Grove’s halftime lead to 20-19. It stayed close like that the rest of the game.

“Tonight was all about playing harder than I did last night,” Peterson said, referring to the Red Devils’ 40-point to Salem. “So, I came out and did it. To be honest, it felt good.”

With the game tied at 40, Penns Grove guard KaRon Ceaser made a basket around String and then stole the inbounds pass like a defensive back. He got it to Mekhi Ballard who was fouled and hit the first two of his four free throws with 41 seconds left to give the Red Devils a four-point lead.

“Coach called the press and I got the middle,” Ceaser said. “It’s like playing safety in football, so I just reacted when the ball was in the air. I had to go get it and make a play.”

“The last couple days at practice we’ve been doing situationals,” Ware said. “I think we’re starting to understand what it takes at the end of games to win, especially when we’re in these close games. I’m glad we got one today.”

“It feels like we just broke the spell, so we’re just going to keep winning from here on,” Mekhi Ballard said.

Woodstown’s Garrett Leyman converted a crisp pass from Alejandro Vazquez into a layup to make it 44-42 with 25 seconds left. The Wolverines called time to set up their end game, then came out of the break and fouled Ballard in the backcourt. The Red Devils’ guard, the player Ware wants at the line down the stretch of a close game, made those two to make it 46-42. 

The Wolverines missed three shots to get closer – 3-pointers by Blake Bialecki and Webb and a wild turnaround jumper in the lane by Connor Sanderson – then fouled Willie Slocum on the defensive rebound. Slocum made one of two for the final margin.

The Red Devils were 7-of-10 from the free throw line in the fourth quarter. They were 6-for-10 in the first three, usually making the first and missing the second.

“I remember going to the line thinking I’ve got to make these free throws if we want to win this game,” Ballard said. “I think in the clutch we come through as a team and we end up making our free throws.

“Sometimes in the beginning of the game we start off real shaky. In the beginning of the game I don’t think we really try as hard to make our free throws as at the end of the game. When it’s time to win the game I think we come through as a team and make our free throws.”

While it may be debatable just how good a win it was for the Red Devils, there’s no denying it was a bad loss to for the Wolverines. 

Woodstown is currently one of the bubble teams in the South Jersey Group I power points standings. The Wolverines went into the game as the only team between No. 10 and the bottom (No. 23) with a winning overall record, but they were No. 15 in the standings.

PENNS GROVE 47, WOODSTOWN 42
WOODSTOWN (8-6) – Manny Ortega 0 0-0 0, Blake Bialecki 3 1-2 8, Alejandro Vazquez 1 0-0 2, M.J. Hall 4 0-0 8, Connor Sanderson 0 0-0 0, Garrett Leyman 3 0-0 6, Anthony Bokolas 1 0-0 2, Max Webb 1 1-2 3, Rocco String 5 0-0 10, Elijah Caesar 1 0-0 3. Totals 19 2-4 42.
PENNS GROVE (6-11) – Roman Gipson 0 0-0 0, Giomar Conrad 7 0-0 16, KaRon Ceaser 1 4-10 6, Willie Slocum 1 3-4 5, Mekhi Ballard 3 4-4 12, Camron Thompson 0 0-0 0, Khiry Higgs 0 2-2 2, Mr Peterson 3 0-0 6. Totals 15 13-20 47.

Woodstown9101013 –42
Penns Grove6141314 –47
3-point goals: Woodstown 2 (Bialecki, Caesar); Penns Grove 4 (Conrad 2, Ballard 2). Total fouls: Woodstown 16, Penns Grove 10.

SALEM 83, SALEM TECH 41: One night after senior Anthony Farmer became the latest member of the school’s 1,000-point club and they nearly turned over the scoreboard, the Rams poured it on again. They opened a a 60-15 halftime lead and cruised to their fourth straight win and 13th in a row over Salem County competition.

Freshman Tymear Lecator led three Salem scorers in double figures with 19 points. Jabez DeJesus had 11 and Davonte Jackson doubled his season output with a career-high 10, and four other Rams had at least eight points. Farmer saw limited action after scoring 36 points in each of his previous two games.

Salem has won four in a row.

SALEM 83, SALEM TECH 41
SALEM TECH (1-14) – Chase Wills 3 0-0 7, Haneef Frisby 3 2-6 8, Joseph Hayes 4 1-2 9, Daviontae Russell 1 0-0 2, Tyler Zampino 3 0-0 6, Antoine Robinson 3 3-5 9, Gio Holmes 0 0-0 0. Totals 17 6-13 41.
SALEM (11-6) – Anthony Farmer 0 0-0 0, Donovan Weathers 1 0-0 2, Ramaji Bundy 3 0-0 6, Jabez DeJesus 4 0-1 11, Paul Weathers 2 3-4 8, Tymear Lecator 8 0-0 19, Xavier McGriff 3 0-0 8, Antwone Rogers 4 1-2 9, Marshall Stephens 4 0-0 8, Joseph Tunis 1 0-0 2, Davante Jackson 4 0-0 10. Totals 34 4-6 83.
Salem Tech1141511 –41
Salem32281211 –83
3-point goals: Salem Tech (Wills); Salem 11 (DeJesus 3, P. Weathers, Lecator 3, McGriff 2, Jackson 2). Total fouls: Salem Tech 8.

PENNSVILLE 42, SCHALICK 37 (OT): The Eagles were down three starters and had only eight varsity players available, but found enough within themselves to win for the second night in a row, this time in overtime.

Jayden Thomas, Danny Saulin and Malik Rehmer all missed the game for various reasons and probably won’t be available when the Eagles go to Woodstown Thursday. Coach Joe Mecholsky pulled up two junior varsity players to make sure he had two full units

The Eagles led most of the game, but fell behind 30-29 with 1:47 left before Cohen Petrutz put them back on top with a 3-pointer.

Schalick’s Danny Lis’ tip-in off a missed 3 with 4.8 seconds left tied the game at 33. The Eagles had a shot to win it in regulation and got what they wanted with Petrutz driving the lane. There was contact, but no foul and the game went to overtime.

Petrutz and Mason O’Brien gave the Eagles the lead in overtime and their defense did the rest.

“When you give up 36 points you’ve done something right,” Mecholsky said.

Peyton O’Brien led the Eagles with 13 points. Petrutz had 12. Luke Wood had all nine of his points in the fourth quarter and overtime.

Reggie Allen led Schalick with 13 points – all in the second half – and Lis had 12.

“To be shorthanded and to pull through the adversity will make us tougher for the stretch run,” Mecholsky said.

PENNSVILLE 41, SCHALICK 37 (OT)
SCHALICK (5-9) – Reggie Allen 5 0-4 13, Levi Feeney-Childers 1 1-2 3, Dan Lis 6 0-0 12, Nylan Sutton 3 0-2 7, Nasir Sutton 0 0-0 0, Jake Siedlecki 0 0-0 0, Ryan Johnson 0 0-0 0, Dylan Sheehan 1 0-2 2, Jase Volovar 0 0-0 0. Totals 16 1-10 37.
PENNSVILLE (8-10) – Luke Wood 2 5-5 9, Peyton O’Brien 6 1-4 13, Cohen Petrutz 5 1-2 12, Mason O’Brien 2 0-0 4, Connor Starn 1 0-0 3, Cole Johnston 0 0-0 0, Carlos Merendino 0 0-0 0. Totals 16 7-11 41.
Schalick 668144 –37
Pennsville867118 –41
3-point goals: Schalick 4 (Allen 3, Ny. Sutton); Pennsville 2 (Petrutz, Starn). Total fouls: Schalick 14, Pennsville 7.

Tri-County Conference

CLASSICALLDIVDIAMONDALLDIV
Pitman14-46-0Overbrook13-56-1
Gloucester Cath.10-75-3Glassboro8-105-2
Salem11-64-3Penns Grove6-114-2
Wildwood11-74-3Woodstown8-63-4
Clayton3-141-5Pennsville8-102-5
Salem Tech1-140-6Schalick5-90-6

Shannon steps up

Tuesday’s girls roundup: Pierman produces in a big way on Woodstown’s Senior Night, Pennsville sees what its full complement can do, Salem back in win column

TUESDAY’S GIRLS GAMES
Woodstown 60, Penns Grove 44
Pennsville 49, Schalick 16
Salem 52, Salem Tech 32

By Riverview Sports News

WOODSTOWN – Shannon Pierman enjoyed a big Senior Night and juniors Megan Donelson and Talia Battavio both moved within 40 points of 1,000 for their careers Tuesday leading Woodstown’s girls to a 60-44 victory over Penns Grove.

Pierman had 14 points and 10 rebounds for her third straight double-double and ninth of her career. It was the seventh time in the last eight games she has had 10 or more rebounds and the 10th time all season. She has averaged 12.7 points and 11.7 rebounds over the past three games, the best three-game stretch of her career.

“Shannon played her butt off,” Wolverines coach Kara Straughn said. “She is by far the best center in Salem County.”

Donelson and Battavio, meanwhile, both continued their march to a milestone. Donelson led the Wolverines’ offense with 23 points and now stands at 971 for her career. Battavio added 16 points and is now at 960.

The Wolverines (13-3) opened the game on a 16-2 run, led 24-18 at halftime and pulled away in the third quarter.

“The girls played solid, composed team ball,” Straughn said, “and that’s what wins us games over and over.”

Penns Grove’s Meely Horace also is on track to reach the 1,000-point plateau. She scored 15 points in the game and now had 959. RaNiyah Wilson was the Red Devils’ leading scorer with 22 points.

WOODSTOWN 60, PENNS GROVE 44
PENNS GROVE (7-8) – RaNiyah Wilson 9 1-2 22, Meely Horace 7 0-0 15, Brianna Robbins 2 0-2 5, Amani Taylor 0 0-0 0, Zoey Caesar 0 1-2 1, JaNiyah Cummings 0 0-0 0, Rolande Delva 0 0-0 0, Semijah Hines 0 1-2 1. Totals 18 3-8 44.
WOODSTOWN (13-3) – Talia Battavio 6 4-4 16, Megan Donelson 7 9-13 23, Gianna Maiorini 1 0-0 2, Alyssa Baber 2 1-2 5, Shannon Pieman 4 6-8 14, Emma Perry 0 0-0 0, Lauren Hengel 0 0-0 0, Jala Thomas 0 0-0 0, Lizzy Daly 0 0-0 0, Brae DiGregorio 0 0-0 0. Totals 20 20-29 60.

Penns Grove612917 –44
Woodstown1681917 –60
3-point goals: Penns Grove 5 (Wilson 3, Horace, Robbins).

SALEM 62, SALEM TECH 32: Nine players scored and four players flirted with double-doubles as Salem bounced back from a Monday loss to Penns Grove to pick up a win that moved it into third place in the Tri-County Classic Division behind two of the best teams in South Jersey.

Ameriyona Hunter led the Rams with 11 points. She also had seven rebounds and seven steals. Ryann Foote had nine points and 10 boards. Ava Rogers had eight points and nine rebounds. NaeNae Logan had seven points, 14 rebounds and seven blocked shots (raising her season total to 74).

SALEM 52, SALEM TECH 32
SALEM (7-9) – Ameriyona Hunter 4 0-0 11, Ryann Foote 4 1-3 9, Lyric Hayes 1 0-0 3, Carlysia Pierce 1 1-2 3, Madison Dixon 1 0-0 2, Ava Rodgers 4 0-0 8, NaeNae Logan 3 1-2 7, Kaela Nichols 1 1-1 3, Dakirah Gray 0 0-0 0, Nevaeh Hickman 3 0-0 6, Zaniyah Freson 0 0-0 0, Marjziah Bundy 0 0-0 0. Totals 22 4-8 52.
SALEM TECH (1-12) – Hanna DeWitt 0 0-4 0, Morgan VanDover 3 0-0 7, TiRonna McGaha 2 1-1 5, Kaylin Beardsley 1 0-2 2, Rylee Doerr 2 1-2 5, Shelby Drummond 2 2-2 6. Totals 10 4-11 25.

Salem1561813 –52
Salem Tech65615 –32
3-point goals: Salem 4 (Hunter 3, Hayes); Salem Tech 1 (VanDover).

PENNSVILLE 49, SCHALICK 16: Nora Ausland had the best game of the two she’s played since returning from a foot injury and hit five 3-pointers on the way to leading the Eagles with 19 points. Marley Wood had 15 points.

The Eagles held their hosts scoreless in the second quarter and without a field goal in the second and third quarters.

“It was a much-needed win,” Pennsville coach Sam Trapp said.

The Eagles had lost four in a row.

PENNSVILLE 49, SCHALICK 16
PENNSVILLE (7-10) – Nora Ausland 7 0-0 19, Taylor Bass 3 1-2 7, Karsen Cooksey 0 0-0 0, Bella Farina 0 2-4 2, Kylie Harris 0 0-0 0, Izzy Saulin 3 0-0 6, Marley Wood 7 0-0 15. Totals 20 3-6 49.
SCHALICK (5-9) – Ava Scurry 2 1-3 5, Gianna Gaines 0 0-2 0, Taylor Sparks 2 1-4 7, Abby Willoughby 0 0-0 0, Carly Vicente 0 0-0 0, Cali Fisler 1 2-4 4, Victoria Basich 0 0-0 0, Kyleigh Cutler 0 0-0 0, Olivia Lunemann 0 0-0 0. Totals 5 4-11 16.
Pennsville13111213 –49
Schalick6028 –16
3-point goals: Pennsville 6 (N. Ausland 5, Wood); Schalick 2 (Sparks 2). Total fouls: Pennsville 9, Schalick 7.

Tri-County Conference

CLASSICALLDIVDIAMONDALLDIV
Wildwood13-46-0Woodstown13-36-0
Gloucester Cath.13-55-1Glassboro10-55-2
Salem7-93-3Pennsville7-104-3
Pitman8-72-4Penns Grove7-82-4
Clayton7-92-4Schalick5-91-5
Salem Tech1-120-6Overbrook3-121-5