Here is the sports schedule for teams in Salem County for the week of Feb. 19-24
Monday
COLLEGE BASKETBALL Men Camden County College at Salem CC, 6 p.m.
Tuesday
BASKETBALL Boys Wildwood at Salem Tech, 5:30 p.m. Girls LEAP Academy at Salem, 5:30 p.m.
BOWLING SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I TOURNAMENT Boys Quarterfinals Maple Shade at Gloucester, 3:45 p.m. Salem at Camden Catholic, Westbrook Lanes4 p.m. Doane Academy at Clayton, 4 p.m.
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP II TOURNAMENT Boys Quarterfinals Cinnaminson at Manchester Twp., 3 p.m. Pennsauken Tech at Salem Tech, 4 p.m. Medford Tech at Overbrook, 4 p.m. Girls Quarterfinals Salem Tech at Manchester Tech, 3 p.m. Pemberton at Barnegat, 3 p.m.
Wednesday
BOWLING SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I TOURNAMENT Boys semifinals Maple Shade-Gloucester winner at Donovan Catholic, 3 p.m. Girls semifinals Salem at New Egypt, Thunderbowl Lanes, 3:30 p.m.
Thursday
BASKETBALL Girls SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I TOURNAMENT No. 16 Salem at No. 1 Woodbury, 5:30 p.m. No. 9 Gateway at No. 8 Pennsville, 5:30 p.m. No. 12 Penns Grove at No. 5 Palmyra, 4 p.m. No. 13 Cape May Tech at No. 4 Woodstown, 5:30 p.m. No. 14 Pitman at No. 3 Maple Shade, 5:30 p.m. No. 11 Clayton at No. 6 Audubon, 4 p.m. No. 10 Burlington City at No. 7 Glassboro, 3:30 p.m. No. 15 Paulsboro at No. 2 Wildwood, 4 p.m. Boys SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I TOURNAMENT No. 16 Burlington City at No. 1 KIPP Cooper Academy, 6 p.m. No. 9 Penns Grove at No. 8 Woodbury, 4 p.m. No. 12 LEAP Academy at No. 5 Audubon, 5:30 p.m. No. 13 Woodstown at No. 4 Wildwood, 6 p.m. No. 14 New Egypt at No. 3 Salem, 5 p.m. No. 11 Riverside at No. 6 Glassboro, 5:15 p.m. No. 10 Paulsboro at No. 7 Palmyra, 5 p.m. No. 15 Pennsville at No. 2 Pitman, 5:30 p.m.
Friday
BASKETBALL Girls Overbrook at Woodstown, 4 p.m.
BOWLING SOUTH JERSEY GROUP II TOURNAMENT Boys semifinals Manchester Twp. at Seneca Salem Tech at Overbrook
WRESTLING Region tournaments
Saturday
BOWLING SOUTH JERSEY GROUP II TOURNAMENT Boys championship at Laurel Lanes
Schalick’s Hadfield, Salem’s Parker score in two individual events, highlighting the Salem County effort at the Group I state indoor meet; Salem’s Buzby second in girls 800
By Riverview Sports News
TOMS RIVER – Schalick’s Jordan Hadfield and Salem’s Anthony Parker both scored points in a pair of individual events Saturday to highlight Salem County’s showing at the NJSIAA Group I Indoor Track Championships in the Bennett Center Bubble.
Hadfield finished third in both the girls 3200 (11:30.76) and 1600 (5:09.28). Her time in the 1600 was a personal best.
Parker finished fourth in the 55 hurdles (7.82) and sixth in the 400 (51.89), with personal bests in both races.
Salem’s Anna Buzby was the county’s highest finisher in an individual event. The senior was second in the girls 800 (2:22.27). She finished second to Verona sophomore Gwendolyn Neale who ran a personal best 2:19.37.
Salem’s Karima Davenport-White picked up a point with her sixth-place finish in the 55 hurdles (9.20) and Woodstown’s Cole Lucas finished third in the boys 800 (2:01.40).
The county had two teams score in the girls 4×400 relay. The Woodstown team of Jaime Deal, Kayla Ayars, Sarah Seiden and Arie Still finished third in 4:22.43. The Salem team of Davenport-White, Buzby, Anyzha Williams and Rhionna Timmons finished sixth in 4:26.93.
The top three finishers in each event advance to the Meet of Champions March 3.
Here are the Group I team scores
BOYS GROUP I TEAM SCORES (Top 10 and Salem County) Metuchen 59, Glassboro 36, Woodbury 30, Pequannock 18, Glen Rock 18, Hasbrouck Heights 11, Weehawken 10, Hanover Park 10, Burlington City 10, Pompton Lakes 10, Shabazz 10. Salem County: 16. Woodstown 6, 20. Salem 5
GIRLS GROUP I TEAM SCORES (Top 10 and Salem County) Clayton 41, Audubon 34, Hasbrouck Heights 26, Metuchen 24, Wallkill Valley 20, Ridgefield 18, Becton 12, Verona 12, Schalick 12, Haddon Twp. 12, Whippany Park 11. Salem County: 12. Salem 10, 16. Woodstown 6
Here is Wednesday’s schedule and scores for the Tri-County Basketball Tournament; look for separate stories on Pennsville-Clayton boys, Penns Grove-Pennsville girls elsewhere on the website
TRI-COUNTY TOURNAMENT WEDNESDAY’S GAMES BOYS A Flight Timber Creek 63, Pitman 61 Delsea 56, Salem 54 Overbrook 59, Wildwood 43 Triton 59, Gloucester Catholic 52 B Flight Kingsway 64, Deptford Twp. 41 Clearview 54, Highland 52 Washington Twp. 63, Penns Grove 40 Glassboro 73, Woodstown 45 C Flight Pennsville 90, Clayton 62 GCIT 62, Williamstown 46 Salem Tech 52, Schalick 49 GIRLS A Flight Gloucester Catholic 62, Williamstown 46 Clearview 54, Wildwood 42 Woodstown 71, Highland 67 Timber Creek 55, Washington Twp. 34 B Flight Penns Grove 41, Pennsville 38 Glassboro 48, Pitman 34 GCIT 34, Delsea 24 Kingsway 56, Clayton 48 C Flight Overbrook 52, Salem 48 Cumberland 60, Schalick 28 Deptford 51, Salem Tech 23
Boys Games
DELSEA 56, SALEM 54: A wise coach once said sometimes you’re the bull and sometimes you get the horns. Salem caught the horns Wednesday night.
Chase Ambrosius hit the last of his seven 3-pointers with 13 seconds left to give Delsea the lead and the Rams couldn’t get a a final shot to tie or win the A Flight semifinal.
The Rams led 23-3 after the first quarter and 38-15 at halftime and couldn’t hold it.
The loss came two days after they beat Overbrook 51-50 in the opening round.
Ambrosius led Delsea with 21 points. Luke Van Auken had 17 points and 10 rebounds. Max Van Auken had 13 points and eight boards.
Salem’s Anthony Farmer led all scorers with 23 points. Jabez DeJesus had 20.
The loss sends Salem to a consolation game matchup with Pitman.
SALEM (16-8) – Anthony Farmer 7 6-8 23, RaMaji Bundy 1 0-0 2, Jabez DeJesus 6 5-5 20, Paul Weathers 0 0-2 0, Tymear Lecator 3 1-2 9. Totals 17 12-17 54. DELSEA (17-8) – Luke VanAuken 7 3-5 17, Max VanAuken 4 4-5 13, Mike McGinley 2 1-1 5, Chase Ambrosius 7 0-0 21, Frank Master 0 0-0 0, Shane Madden 0 0-0 0, Jimmy Reardon 0 0-0 0, Jelani Poles 0 0-0 0, Dahmir Hart 0 0-0 0. Totals 20 8-11 56.
SALEM TECH 52, SCHALICK 49: The Chargers steadily built their lead over the first three quarter and it was big enough to withstand a fourth-quarter charge by the Cougars.
WASHINGTON TWP. 63, PENNS GROVE 40: The Minutemen got out to a quick start and carried it to a victory in a B Flight consolation game. Washington Twp.’s Gevon Conrad led all scorers with 23 points. He also had seven rebounds and seven assists. Giomar Conrad was Penns Grove’s only scorer in double figures (20).
3-point goals: Penns Grove N/A; Washington Twp. 6 (Conrad 3, McKenty, Rodia 2).
GLASSBORO 73, WOODSTOWN 45: Clinton Suggs hit five 3-pointers on the way to 23 points, Charles Graves had 20, Xavier Sabb had 17 and Glassboro pulled away with a big fourth quarter. Max Webb and Blake Bialecki had 13 points each for Woodstown.
WOODSTOWN 71, HIGHLAND 67 (OT): Highland’s Big Three outscored Woodstown’s Big Three, but the Wolverines complementary players were just a little stronger and it proved to be the difference.
Megan Donelson scored 23 points and Talia Battavio had 19 and both made big plays down the stretch in regulation and in overtime as the Wolverines (17-8) rallied from an early 10-point deficit to beat the Tartans (14-11) for the second time this season. Shannon Pierman added 14 points despite fouling out in the fourth quarter to join the 500-500 Club in career points and rebounds.
Highland’s Dacia Mack led all scorers with 24 points. Breelynn Learn had 21 and Alonsa Thomas had 16.
OVERBROOK 52, SALEM 48: Salem senior NaeNae Logan reached a significant individual milestone in the game, but all things considered, she’d rather have been celebrating a victory.
Logan surpassed 100 blocked shots for the season in the first half of the C Flight semifinals. She had eight altogether and now has 104 for the year.
“She’s a kid who’s real heavy on herself, so for her to come back and get to have a moment like that and her teammates counting it down for her, she deserved it,” Salem coach Tiasia Tatem said.
The Rams, the No. 1 seed in the flight, celebrated Logan and her feat in the locker room at halftime with a 28-17 lead. They should have ridden that wave into the second half, but somebody forgot to tell Overbook. The visitors stormed through the third quarter on a 23-3 blitz to take the lead.
CUMBERLAND 60, SCHALICK 28: The Cougars were held scoreless in the first quarter and never recovered. Addison Weist scored 16 points and Isabella Albert had 13 to lead the Colts into the C Flight championship game. Taylor Sparks hit three 3-pointers and led Schalick with nine points.
WEDNESDAY’S GAMES BOYS A Flight Pitman at Timber Creek Salem at Delsea Wildwood at Overbrook Gloucester Catholic at Triton B Flight Deptford Twp. at Kingsway Highland at Clearview Penns Grove at Washington Twp. Woodstown at Glassboro C Flight Clayton at No. 1 Pennsville Williamstown at GCIT Salem Tech at Schalick GIRLS A Flight Gloucester Catholic at Williamstown Wildwood at Clearview Highland at Woodstown Timber Creek at Washington Twp. B Flight Penns Grove at. Pennsville Pitman at Glassboro Delsea at GCIT Clayton at Kingsway C Flight Overbrook at No. 1 Salem Schalick at Cumberland Salem Tech at Deptford
Boys Games
SALEM 51, OVERBROOK 50: Anthony Farmer scored 19 points and the Rams rallied from 10 down with four minutes left to upset the No. 3 seed in the A Flight. Marshall Stephens blocked four shots, including two in a row down the stretch to keep the Rams in front.
The win was Salem’s third in a row and ninth in its last 10 games and sent Overbrook to its second straight one-point loss.
SALEM (16-7) – Anthony Farmer 19, Ramaji Bundy 3, Jabez DeJesus 10, Paul Weathers 2, Tymear Lecator 10, Marshall Stephens 5, Antwone Rogers 2. Totals 17-40 12-16 51. OVERBROOK (18-7) – Shaun Mills 2 2-4 8, Chris Grier 0 2-4 2, Nic Johnson 3 3-7 9, Lamar Little 4 0-1 10, Zair Green 2 2-2 6, Maki Ortiz 2 1-1 5, Xavier Wright 4 0-0 8, Kevin Satchell 1 0-0 2, Amare Kee 0 0-0 0. Totals 18 10-19 50.
Salem
7
13
11
20 –
51
Overbrook
15
16
6
13 –
50
3-point goals: Salem 5-16; Overbrook 2 (Little 2). Rebounds: Salem 23 (DeJesus 6, P. Weathers 6, Stephens 7).
WILLIAMSTOWN 48, SCHALICK 46: The Braves had won only one game all season and lost 10 in a row, but they were the third seed and beat the Cougars on a couple late free throws. Daniel Lis hit four 3-pointers and led Schalick with 19 points.
GLOUCESTER TECH 75, SALEM TECH 55: Trent Phillips led four scorers in double figures with 16 points and Michael Stanwood had a double-double (12/13) to lead GCIT’s victory. Haneef Frisby had a double-double for Salem Tech (13/14).
SALEM TECH (4-18) – Josh Muntz 3 1-2 7, Tyler Zampino 6 0-1 13, Antoine Robinson 5 3-3 14, Haneef Frisby 3 6-8 13, Chase Wills 3 1-2 7, Joseph Hayes 0 1-2 1. Totals 20 12-18 55. GLOUCESTER TECH (10-14) – Trent Phillips 8 0-0 16, Mark Hallman 5 4-4 15, Michael Stanwood 5 2-2 12, Carl Schmidt 5 0-0 12, Ian Malgapo 2 0-0 5, Patrick Monaghan 2 0-0 4, Gavin Shainline 1 1-2 3, Charles Donaldson 1 0-0 2, Ethan Morris 1 0-0 2, Brady Johnson 1 0-0 2, Amad Traore-Koffi 1 0-0 2. Totals 32 7-8 75.
CLEARVIEW 51, PENNS GROVE 50: The Red Devils missed a potential game-tying 3-pointer in the fourth quarter and could only get a layup at the buzzer for the final margin. Kaprice Stewart scored 24 points to lead Clearview.
PENNS GROVE 54, GLOUCESTER TECH 44: Brianna Robbins is returning to the scoring form she displayed early in the season, going for a career-high 26 points as the Red Devils upset top-seeded GCIT in their B Flight opener. Robbins has been on a tear of late, scoring 63 points in her last three games. RaNiyah Wilson added 17 points. The Red Devils have won a season-best five in a row and six of their last seven.
The Red Devils will play at Pennsville in the Flight semifinals Wednesday.
Pennsville beat Delsea 43-35 behind Marley Wood’s 16 points. The win got the Eagles (12-12) back to .500 for the first time since mid-January.
SCHALICK 43, DEPTFORD 37: Cianna Gaines scored in double figures for the second time in her career and Abby Willoughby had 11 points and 10 steals as the Cougars won a first-round game in the tournament for the first time since 2021.
The Cougars got off to a slow start, falling behind 12-5 in the first quarter, but held the Spartans to just 13 points over the next two quarters to take control of the game. They outscored Deptford 16-5 in the second quarter behind eight points from Willoughby to grab the lead by halftime.
“We game planned to be a little more aggressive than normal and we were just that – aggressive and created turnovers,” Schalick coach John Whelan said. “Offensively, we showed a lot of growth in our confidence as we didn’t second-guess decision and that confidence showed with good ball movement and the highest amount of assists in a game this season. All the girls deserve a shoutout as the hustle and effort was there from everyone, but Abby played a great game today.
“The team wanted to get our seniors a win in their final home game and played for one another tonight. It was fun to see as a coach.”
The Tri-County Conference Tournament highlights the Salem County sports schedule for the week of Feb. 12-17
Monday
BASKETBALL TRI-COUNTY TOURNAMENT BOYS A Flight No. 8 Gloucester Catholic at No. 1 Timber Creek No. 5 Triton at No. 4 Pitman No. 6 Salem at No. 3 Overbrook, 5:30 p.m. No. 7 Wildwood at No. 2 Delsea B Flight No. 8 Woodstown at No. 1 Kingsway, 6 p.m. No. 5 Glassboro at No. 4 Deptford Twp. No. 6 Washington Twp at No. 3 Highland No. 7 Penns Grove at No. 2 Clearview, 6 p.m. C Flight No. 5 Clayton at No. 4 Cumberland No. 6 Schalick at No. 3 Williamstown, 4 p.m. No. 7 Salem Tech at No. 2 GCIT GIRLS A Flight No. 8 Highland at No. 1 Williamstown No. 5 Woodstown at No. 4 Gloucester Catholic, 5:30 p.m. No. 6 Washington Twp. at No. 3 Wildwood No. 7 Timber Creek at No. 2 Clearview B Flight No. 8 Penns Grove at No. 1 GCIT, 4 p.m. No. 5 Pennsville at No. 4 Delsea, 5:30 p.m. No. 6 Pitman at No. 3 Kingsway No. 7 Clayton at No. 2 Glassboro C Flight No. 5 Overbrook at No. 4 Triton No. 6 Deptford at No. 3 Schalick, 4 p.m. No. 7 Salem Tech at No. 2 Cumberland
COLLEGE BASKETBALL Men Williamson College of Trades at Salem CC, 6 p.m.
Wednesday
BASKETBALL TRI-COUNTY TOURNAMENT BOYS A Flight Gloucester Catholic-Timber Creek winner vs. Triton-Pitman winner Salem-Overbrook winner vs. Wildwood-Delsea winner Consolation games B Flight Woodstown-Kingsway winner vs. Glassboro-Deptford Twp. winner Washington Twp.-Highland winner vs. Penns Grove-Clearview winner Consolation games C Flight Clayton-Cumberland winner at No. 1 Pennsville Schalick-Williamstown winner vs. Salem Tech-GCIT winner Schalick-Williamstown loser vs. Salem Tech-GCIT loser GIRLS A Flight Highland-Williamstown winner vs. Woodstown-Gloucester Catholic winner Washington Twp.-Wildwood winner vs. Timber Creek-Clearview winner Consolation games B Flight Penns Grove-GCIT winner vs. Pennsville-Delsea winner Pitman-Kingsway winner vs. Clayton-Glassboro winner Consolation games C Flight Overbrook-Triton winner at No. 1 Salem Deptford-Schalick winner vs. Salem Tech-Cumberland winner Deptford-Schalick loser vs. Salem Tech-Cumberland loser
Thursday
COLLEGE BASKETBALL Men Salem CC at Northampton CC, 7 p.m. Women Salem CC at Montgomery County CC, 5 p.m.
Friday
BASKETBALL TRI-COUNTY TOURNAMENT BOYS/GIRLS All Flights Third-place games Championship games
Saturday
BASKETBALL Girls Overbrook at Woodstown
COLLEGE BASKETBALL Men Sussex County CC at Salem CC, 1 p.m.
Salem senior center quietly goes about his business, puts up another double-double as Rams dump Bridgeton to secure a South Jersey Group I top 3 seed; Woodstown girls fall in SJIBT consolation game
SATURDAY’S BASKETBALL SCORES BOYS Salem 88, Bridgeton 76 GIRLS SJIBT Consolation Williamstown 81, Woodstown 59
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
SALEM – With all the high-flying, high-scoring guards on the Salem basketball roster, it would be easy to overlook Paul Weathers in the lineup. But the Rams are glad he’s there and they let him know it every chance they get.
WEATHERS
There is no doubt without the things the senior center brings to the table, the Rams wouldn’t be in the position they are today.
And that would be a solid No. 3 seed in the upcoming South Jersey Group I playoffs following their 88-76 victory over Bridgeton Saturday that coach Anthony Farmer said was “exactly what we need going into the playoffs.”
Weathers was a big, if not silent, part of that. He may be the unsung starter, but he just goes about his business delivering double-doubles with regularity. He went for 13 points and 13 rebounds against the Group IV Bulldogs and is now averaging 10.9 points and 11.0 rebounds a game.
“Paul has done an excellent job for us,” Farmer said. “I told him going into the offseason we were going to give him an opportunity because I believed in him. He worked really hard and has been a force for us. He’s been a senior; that’s all we can can ask for.
“He might not get it from the media spotlight but we always make sure we let Paul know how important and how valuable he is to our team. He is so quiet and laid back sometimes we forget that he’s around, but once that motor gets going and he’s out there rebounding and blocking shots he’s a force.”
And nothing if not consistent. Guard Ramaji Bundy calls him a “selfless guy” who’s “just an all-around good dude.”
The effort Saturday was Weathers’ 14th double-double in 20 games this season. Let the guards get all the points, he knows what he’s on the floor to do.
“I’m always on the floor doing all the little things, the things that coaches want to see,” he said. “The blocks, the rebounds, everything that counts on the defensive end.”
Weathers was one of five Rams to score in double figures in the game. Jabez DeJesus was their leading scorer with 24 points, with 19 coming in the second half. Anthony Farmer had 18, Bundy 12 and Tymear Lecator 11 (with 10 assists).
Antwone Rogers came off the bench to give them eight points – all in the final 5:38 of the second quarter as the Rams came out of a timeout down 31-30 and took control of the game.
Bridgeton’s Jameel Purnell led all scorers with 30 points (and 13 rebounds).
For Salem’s Bundy, it was his second straight game scoring in double figures He had a career-high 15 in the Rams’ win over Clayton Thursday night. He had seven points in the first quarter Saturday when the Rams jumped out to a 20-11 lead..
“I’ve been comfortable with basketball, it’s just that I had to find my shot again,” he said. “In the first game we played Woodbury my shot was there, then I was getting in the groove where I was trying to be a facilitator, not really trying to shoot the ball but get other guys the ball. Now I’m started to get my groove back so I’m doing stuff I usually do.”
3-point goals: Bridgeton 2 (Purnell 2); Salem 7 (Bundy 2, Farmer 2, DeJesus 2, Lecator). Rebounds: Bridgeton 28 (Purnell 13); Salem 39 (P. Weathers 13, Dejesus 9). Total fouls: Bridgeton 19, Salem 16.
Cover photo: Salem guard Anthony Farmer brings the ball across the floor in the Rams’ game against Bridgeton Saturday.
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I BOYS TOURNAMENT PROJECTED ROUND 1 MATCHUPS (Based on power points) No. 16 Burlington City at No. 1 KIPP Cooper Academy No. 9 Penns Grove at No. 8 Woodbury No. 13 Woodstown at No. 4 Wildwood No. 12 LEAP Academy at No. 5 Audubon No. 14 New Egypt at No. 3 Salem No. 11 Riverside at No. 6 Palmyra No. 10 Paulsboro at No. 7 Glassboro No. 15 Pennsville at No. 2 Pitman
Girls Game SJIBT Tournament
VOORHEES – Williamstown used a defensive switch and a big second half to pull away from Woodstown in an 81-59 win in a South Jersey Invitational Elite Eight consolation game.
Woodstown opened a seven-point first-quarter lead, but the Braves, the projected No. 1 seed in South Jersey Group IV and top seed in the upcoming Tri-County Conference Tournament, rallied to take a 32-30 halftime lead. They outscored the Wolverines 49-29 in the second half.
“They switched to a triangle-and-2 (on Talia Battavio and Megan Donelson) and we couldn’t string enough baskets and stops together,” Woodstown coach Kara Straughn said. “We played as tough as we could on their big (Iriona Gravely) and shooter (Alivia Mauz), but they’re No. 1 in Group IV for a reason.
“We don’t always get to play in those type of games or against teams like tonight in our division/regular-season schedule so a loss to Williamstown, as tough as it is, is going to make us better than some of our wins have. We’re looking towards the TCC Tournament (where they have a chance to see Williamstown again) and playoffs now.”
Battavio led Woodstown with 27 points. Donelson had 19. Shannon Pierman had 11 points and 10 rebounds for her third straight double-double and seventh in her last eight games.
Gravely led all scorers with 30. Mauz had 26, 19 in the second half. Mia Pezzato scored all nine of her points in the second half.
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I GIRLS TOURNAMENT PROJECTED ROUND 1 MATCHUPS (Based on power points) No. 16 Salem at No. 1 Woodbury No. 9 Gateway at No. 8 Pennsville No. 13 Cape May Tech at No. 4 Woodstown No. 12 Penns Grove at No. 5 Palmyra No. 14 Pitman at No. 3 Maple Shade No. 11 Clayton at No. 6 Audubon No. 10 Burlington City at No. 7 Glassboro No. 15 Paulsboro at No. 2 Wildwood
Salem’s Logan goes for triple-double in Senior Night victory that clinches a playoff spot; Penns Grove wins its fourth in a row, Pennsville pushing for a home game in playoffs
FRIDAY’S GIRLS SCORES Penns Grove 52, Schalick 14 Salem 58, Pleasantville 12 Cape May Tech 35, Salem Tech 24 Pennsville 52, Millville 36
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
SALEM – NaeNae Logan let everything go and turned it loose Friday night. The result was a game for the ages.
LOGAN
The Salem senior enjoyed her second triple-double of the season, going for 19 points, 25 rebounds and 13 blocked shots to lead the Rams to a 58-12 Senior Night victory over winless Pleasantville that snapped five-game losing streak and locked up a spot in the South Jersey Group I playoffs.
The Rams (8-14) came into the game holding the 16th and final SJ-I power points position and a 30-point cushion on No. 17 Schalick, which lost at Penns Grove. They gained a point overnight and are solidly at No. 16, projected to play at No. 1 Woodbury in the opening round.
“I’m just happy that my seniors get a fighting chance at doing something in their last year,” Rams coach Tiasia Tatem said. “Last year we didn’t have any seniors, so we always knew all the girls would be coming back where this year they’re actually going to fight for it.”
The spotlight Friday shined on all the Salem seniors in this game, but Logan projected the brightest light.
She had her first triple-double against Oakcrest on Dec. 27 (10 points, 11 rebounds, 15 blocked shots). She now has 96 blocked shots on the season.
“I feel like today was one of those days where you could see she had her confidence up,” Tatem said. “All season we’ve been on her to push her to her full potential. I told her before the game forget everything else, this night is for y’all, so just go out there and have fun and just play basketball.
“I think that took the pressure off of her and she was just relaxed and playing.”
All three sets of numbers were impressive, but the one that jumped out to Tatem were her points. She’d scored in double figures only one other time in her career – the triple-double game once this year – but had 10 or more rebounds in seven of her last eight games and had at least five blocked shots 10 times this season.
Over her last eight games she has 108 rebounds, 46 blocked shots and 45 points.
“Her rebounding and her blocking skills come natural,” Tatem said. “As her coach watching her throughout the season I know how hard she gets on herself. I tell her all the time your defense is phenomenal, it’s OK if you don’t always make all these points. So for her to have those 19 points today, I feel like she needed that.”
3-point goals: Pleasantville 1 (Reyes); Salem 1 (Hunter).
PENNS GROVE 52, SCHALICK 14: Arianna Dowe matched her career-high with 14 points and Meely Horace had 12 to lead the Red Devils to its second win over the Cougars in three days. Horace scored her 1,000th career point in the first meeting Tuesday.
Dowe scored all her points in the second half. Horace and RaNiyah Wilson scored nine points each in the first half as the Red Devils opened a 32-8 halftime lead.
3-point goals: Schalick 0; Penns Grove 4 (Wilson, Horace, Down 2). Total fouls: Schalick 9, Penns Grove 10.
PENNSVILLE 52, MILLVILLE 36: The Eagles hit four of their five 3-pointers and five of their six free throws in the second half to pull away from a close game and pick up enough point to go into the cutoff day in a position to host a first-round playoff game.
It didn’t look good after their lost to Penns Grove the night before, but the Eagles moved into eighth place in the South Jersey Group I power point standings by the end of the day. The top eight seeds host first-round games.
“We know we are in the playoffs,” Pennsville coach Sam Trapp said. “We will play wherever we need to play.”
The Eagles spread the wealth in the second half. Taylor Bass hit both of her 3-pointers in the third quarter and scored all 10 of her points in the second half. Nora Ausland hit both of her 3s in the second half and finished with 11 points. Bella Farina scored nine of her 13 in the second half and Marley Woods had seven of her 12 in the half.
Penns Grove, Pennsville play to an empty house in second half as gym cleared in third quarter; includes all of Thursday’s Salem County girls games
THURSDAY’S GIRLS GAMES Penns Grove 39, Pennsville 32 Clayton 58, Salem 30 Pitman 43, Salem Tech 28 Overbrook 41, Schalick 27
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
PENNSVILLE – Games between Pennsville and Penns Grove in every sport are always a spirited affair, but Thursday night added a new layer of intensity to the rivalry, at least on the girls basketball side of things.
Tensions spilled over from the visitors’ bleachers in Salberg Gym midway through the third quarter, precipitating a 30-minute delay and forcing site managers to clear the gym before allowing play to continue. When it did resume, Penns Grove closed out a 39-32 victory that helped it solidify a spot in the South Jersey Group I playoffs and win for only the second time in its last 10 games against the Eagles.
The drama developed after a hard collision between the Red Devils’ recently installed 1,000-point scorer Meely Horace and Pennsville’s Taylor Bass on a 50-50 ball in the frontcourt with 3:32 left in the third quarter and Penns Grove leading 34-26.
Fans in the Penns Grove stands took exception to the contact and let the officials know about it. It was so concerning to Pennsville athletics director Jamy Thomas that he approached the group, directed authorities to remove the most vocal individuals and announced over the public address system the game “will not continue until the bleachers are cleared.”
Both teams left the floor and waited in the bench area before finally retiring to their respective dressing rooms. Three Pennsville police officers appeared on the scene to help restore order while Thomas watched from the center circle. Three more officers arrived later. At one point Penns Grove coach Jennifer Denby crossed the floor to engage the crowd.
After about 15 minutes game managers began to clear the stands on both sides of the gym with the Penns Grove group the last to leave. After about a 30-minute delay, which included a brief warmup for the teams, play resumed with no spectators in the gym.
Horace and Bass collided again diving for a loose ball in the fourth quarter without incident between the players.
“I was trying to remove the folks who were instigating the whole thing and getting a little bit too aggressive,” Thomas said. “They asked where’s my warning; your warning’s at the beginning of the game. There’s a sportsmanship message in there and it clearly says this is your first and last warning, we’re not issuing warnings.
“When you’re standing up and approaching the court and screaming at the top of your lungs, that’s over the top, because what’s the next step. It’s trying to almost cut the head off the snake right away and be done with the problem. I think we let some go that got to a point we had to shut it down. It’s unfortunate you’ve got to get rid of everybody.”
There were no arrests and a game management report was being prepared after the game to send to the respective district superintendents, principals, officials assignor, Penns Grove athletics director Anwar Golden and the Tri-County Conference. Details of the report will not be made public.
It wasn’t the first time tensions in the series red-lined. There was a dust up in this game at Pennsville last year that resulted in fan ejections on both sides.
“Our fans have got our back and we’ve got their back,” Denby said. “They support us, we support them, so that’s what we’ve got to do because we’re tired on 7-on-5.”
Pennsville coach Sam Trapp declined to comment on any aspect of the game.
Right before the incident, the Red Devils (10-8) had rebuilt a 10-point lead after Pennsville (10-12) closed the second quarter with a 7-0 run to get back within three at halftime. Marley Wood had five of her team-high 12 points in the rally.
But Penns Grove opened the third quarter with runs of 6-2 and 7-2 to gain some breathing room. Brianna Robbins had a spinning layup to start the first run and a three-point play to cap the second. She had 13 points in the game. RaNiyah Wilson led the Red Devils with 16.
“What we try to teach the girls is we’re always like 7-to-5, so you’ve got to continue to play,” Denby said. “I’m happy they came out and continued to play regardless of the calls that were made and things like that. I think the girls played through the situation and that speaks volumes about them.”
The win moved Penns Grove to 12th in the South Jersey Group I power points standings with a game against Schalick left before Saturday’s state cutoff. Pennsville remained tied for ninth with Burlington City, 18 points behind the final spot for a home game in the first round of the playoffs.
“Every game is important at this point,” Denby said.
3-point goals: Penns Grove 2 (Wilson 2); Pennsville 1 (Bass). Fouled out: Bass. Total fouls: Penns Grove 14, Pennsville 19. Officials: Lahm, Moskovitz, Ryan.
Pennsville athletics director Jamy Thomas (L) talks with a Pennsville police office as fans file out of the gym before play is resumed in the Penns Grove-Pennsville girls basketball game.
CLAYTON 58, SALEM 30: NaeNae Logan led Salem with eight points, 12 rebounds and seven blocked shots. She now has 83 blocks for the season and 100 for her career. Carlysia Pierce had seven points, five rebounds and four steals. Ava Rodgers grabbed nine rebounds and Marjziah Bundy had eight.
OVERBROOK 41, SCHALICK 27: Zahaisha Nevius and Gianna Simon led Overbrook with 19 and 11 points, respectively.
Schalick (5-14)
8
4
10
5 –
27
Overbrook (5-14)
8
13
9
11 –
41
Cover photo: Penns Grove’s RaNiyah Wilson tosses a pass to Meely Horace in an empty gym during the second half of their game with Pennsville Thursday night.
Penns Grove closing in on goal of home playoff game, Pennsville hoping to secure a spot; includes all Salem County games
THURSDAY’S BOYS GAMES Penns Grove 60, Pennsville 51 Salem 89, Clayton 63 Overbrook 75, Schalick 38 Washington Twp. 50, Woodstown 46 Pitman 76, Salem Tech 42
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
PENNSVILLE – The goal for the Penns Grove basketball team this week was pretty straight forward.
Play four games, win four games. Do that and there’s a good chance they can collect a nice reward at the end of the week.
Ever since the second half of the season began the push for the Red Devils has been to fight their way back for a first-round home game in the South Jersey Group I playoffs.
They moved a step closer to locking that up Thursday with a 60-51 win over Pennsville for their third win of the week. It’s their longest winning streak since late in the 2021-22 season.
“It keeps it rolling,” Penns Grove coach Damian Ware said. “It’s three in a row; we want to keep winning.
“Our goal for this week was to go 4-0 and move into the Tri-County Conference (on a roll). Right now we’ve got three of them so we look to finish off the week tomorrow.”
The Red Devils (9-12), 5-11 on Jan. 29, entered the day in ninth place in the SJ Group I power points standings, 24 points behind of Palmyra that holds the eighth and final home game slot. They cut the gap to eight points with their win over the Eagles with a winnable game Friday at Schalick before Saturday’s state cutoff. Palmyra plays LEAP Academy (13-8) Friday.
If they win Friday and get the same 25 power points they did for beating Schalick on Tuesday, the Red Devils would net gain 16 power points in their best 16-game ledger. If Palmyra loses, it would net gain six points and the Red Devils would jump them with a win.
“As long as we win tomorrow we should be locked into it, but we’ve got to finish the job,” Ware said. “We’ve had a really good week. If we finish tomorrow, we’ll have a great week. I’ve told these guys all year it’s not about how you start, it’s how you finish. We’re trying to finish strong.”
Pennsville, meanwhile, has been living on the bubble. The Eagles (9-14) are 15th after Thursday’s game, but feel good about their position despite the loss because they’re 27 points ahead of the final qualifying spot and the two teams above them and the three teams directly below them all lost.
They can nail it down with a win Friday at Paulsboro, but they’ll have to do it without junior guard Luke Wood. The 1,000-point scorer turned his ankle in the first two and a half minutes of the game, hurridly hobbled off the floor to the training room and didn’t play the rest of the game.
He is not expected to play Friday. Of even greater concern is how the injury might affect him for the upcoming baseball season. A promising left-handed pitcher, the ankle he hurt is in his push-off leg on the mound.
With Wood out of the game, the Eagles turned their eyes to post Danny Saulin to either score down low or draw the defense in to get the ball to his teammates. The 6-7 senior took advantage of the mismatch and responded with a career-high 28 points and 11 rebounds for his fifth double-double this year and 10th over the last two seasons. He also blocked two shots.
“I had to take control to help us get back in the game, to help find my teammates and my teammates found me,” Saulin said. “We had them on the ropes. It was just that first quarter not getting used to that press without Luke, then we figured it out and we were moving the ball from there and we almost won the game.”
Saulin scored the first 11 points in a 14-6 run that got the Eagles to within two with 1:14 left in the third quarter.
But that’s where the game turned. Penns Grove’s Giomar Conrad made a driving layup and was fouled, but Pennsville coach Joe Mecholsky protested too loud and long that it was a foul on the floor and was rung up with a technical. Conrad made his and-one to complete the three-point play and then hit both two technical foul shots to put the Red Devils up by seven.
“That pretty much changed the game,” Ware said.
Conrad led Penns Grove with 19 points. He was 7-for-7 from the free throw line, 6-for-6 in the second half. Mekhi Ballard had 16 with three 3-pointers.
The Eagles made one more push. They got back within three on four more Saulin points, but then KaRon Ceaser hit two buckets to make it a seven-point game with 4:40 left and Penns Grove never led by fewer than five the rest of the game.
SALEM 89, CLAYTON 63: Jabez DeJesus led four Salem scorers in double figures with 24 points, 15 in the second quarter. Ramaji Bundy had his best game of the year with 13 points, highlighted by three 3-pointers. Paul Weathers had 13 points and Anthony Farmer added 10. The Rams (14-7) have won seven of their last eight and are currently a solid third in the South Jersey Group I power points standings.
CLAYTON (3-18) – Dillon Jones 7 2-4 16, Nazir Davis 4 3-6 11, John Carter 1 0-0 3, Demetris Williams 2 0-0 4, Jon Cox 3 0-0 6, Cristan Scott 2 0-0 5, Ashaud Hines-Pope 1 0-0 2, Nasir Carter 5 0-0 13, Fareed Mamah 0 0-0 0, Earl Townsend 0 0-0 0, Brian Marshall 0 0-0 0, Isaiah Aviles 0 0-0 0, Rodney Robinson 1 0-0 3. Totals 26 5-10 63. SALEM (14-7) – Anthony Farmer 3 4-4 10, Ramaji Bundy 5 0-0 13, Jabez DeJesus 10 2-2 24, Paul Weathers 6 1-2 13, Davonte Jackson 3 0-0 8, Tymear Lecator 3 0-0 8, Marshall Stephens 2 0-0 4, Xavier McGriff 2 0-0 5, Donovan Weathers 0 0-0 0, Antwone Rogers 1 0-0 2, Joe Tunis 0 0-0 0, Cole Sayers 1 0-0 2. Totals 36 7-8 89.
Clayton
12
15
15
21 –
63
Salem
20
25
19
25 –
89
3-point goals: Clayton 6 (J. Carter, Scott, N. Carter 3, Robinson); Salem 10 (Bundy 3, DeJesus 2, Jackson 2, Lecator 2, McGriff). Total fouls: Clayton 6, Salem 12.
PITMAN 76, SALEM TECH 42 SALEM TECH (2-17) – Haneef Frisby 3 0-0 6, Joseph Hayes 0 3-4 3, Josh Muntz 1 2-2 5 Tyler Zampino 2 0-0 6, Antoine Robinson 8 3-6 20, Gio Holmes 1 0-0 2. Totals 15 8-14 42 PITMAN (17-6) – Porter Kostiuk 2 3-5 7, Stephen Devanney 5 0-0 14, Colin Ambrosius 0 0-0 0, Chris Wyllie 3 0-1 6, Michael Fisicaro 2 0-0 6, Sonny Myers 3 4-6 11, Hudson Rue 1 1-2 4, Jake Epting 2 1-4 6, Elijah Crispin 7 3-3 19, Sean Powell 0 0-0 0, Trey Tinges 1 0-0 3. Totals 26 12-21 76.
Riverview Sports News 