Here are the qualifiers for the regional wrestling tournament from districts involving Salem County Teams; top 3 finishers in each weight class advance
106 1st Place Match Adam Froehlich (Delsea) dec. Geno DiJoseph (Cumberland), 10-4 3rd Place Match Brett Land (Pennsville) pinned Alex Alicea (Buena), 1:39
113 1st Place Match Jayson Garcia (Egg Harbor) maj. dec. DeAnthony Harden (Cumberland), 8-0 3rd Place Match John Sutton (Buena) pinned Jadon Middlemiss (Woodstown), 5:48
120 1st Place Match Carson Bradway (Woodstown) maj. dec. Maruf Reza (Egg Harbor), 8-0 3rd Place Match Caleb Jenkins (Schalick) pinned Reid Lightfoot (Delsea), 2:32
126 1st Place Match Dante DePaul (Delsea) pinned Kolton Sheppard (Cumberland), 3:10 3rd Place Match Ruben Cruz (Millville) pinned Hector Villarrubia-Torres (Cedar Creek), 7:29
132 1st Place Match Greyson Pettit (Delsea) pinned Chase Baker (Pennsville), 1:02 3rd Place Match Brian Tennant (Egg Harbor) over Chase Bordley (Vineland), forfeit
138 1st Place Match Amari Vann (Delsea) pinned Nathaniel Mason (Pennsville), 1:10 3rd Place Match Colin Bittle (Schalick) pinned Jayden Cinkowski (Vineland), 3:30
144 1st Place Match Anthony Depaul (Delsea) pinned Gabriel Supernavage (Pennsville), 0:33 3rd Place Match Graham Schlemo (Egg Harbor) pinned Michael Baisch (Schalick), 4:30
150 1st Place Match Ayden Jenkins (Schalick) maj. dec. Patrick Tull (Millville), 12-4 3rd Place Match Lionel Lertora (Egg Harbor) dec. Lucas Coesfeld (Delsea), 13-9
157 1st Place Match Jamison Devlin (Delsea) maj. dec. Chase Williams (Cumberland), 12-3 3rd Place Match Travis Hagan (Pennsville) pinned Jake Hardiman (Cedar Creek), 3:35
165 1st Place Match Cameron Pote (Delsea) pinned Robert McDade (Pennsville), 0:24 3rd Place Match Jared Hoffman (Millville) pinned Marcos Concepcion (Egg Harbor), 6:43
175 1st Place Match Greyson Hyland (Woodstown) dec. Christian Solano (Egg Harbor), 6-1 3rd Place Match Eric Sulik (Schalick) dec. David Seeger (Cumberland), 8-4
190 1st Place Match Greg Sawyer (Delsea) pinned Evan Elliott (Schalick), 1:07 3rd Place Match Ralph Hitchner (Cumberland) dec. Asher Fitzpatrick (Woodstown), 7-1
215 1st Place Match Salvatore Marchese (Delsea) pinned James Cook (Schalick), 0:19 3rd Place Match Anthony Trainor (Buena) dec. Tyshawn English (Millville), 3-0
285 1st Place Match Mateo Vinciguerra (Woodstown) pinned Jacob Hand (Pennsville), 0:53 3rd Place Match Slayton D`Amico (Cedar Creek) pinned Andrew Pinnock (Millville), 1:46
DISTRICT 32 (Qualifiers from Penns Grove, Salem) Team scores: 1. Lower Cape May 231, 2. Red Bank Catholic 225.8, 3. Clearview 159, 4. Deptford 122, 5. Paulsboro 81.5, 6. Clayton/Glassboro 60, 7. Pitman 31, 8. Salem 18, 9. Penns Grove 10
285 1st Place Match John Hearon (Lower Cape May) dec. Abdullah Jenkins (Salem), 1-0 3rd Place Match Daniel Maguire (Deptford) dec. Philip Bertole (Red Bank Catholic), 3-2
Woodstown boys win 4×400 relay to clinch indoor track title, their first state title in track program’s history
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
TOMS RIVER – When Josh Crawford hit the finish line in the final even of the day, he not only brought the Woodstown boys a 4×400 relay title, he delivered a state championship.
The Wolverines won the Group I indoor track championship Saturday – their first track title in school history – with a strong showing in the running events. Their first-place win in the relay gave them 35 points, seven ahead of a Ramsey team that had them by three entering the final race of the meet.
“We didn’t need to win the 4×400 to win the meet, but it was a great cap to a great season,” Wolverines coach Alex Dominy said. “Overall this season has been hard with snow days, difficult in terms of flu and colds and Arctic blasts, but these boys continue to improve despite barriers to a more typical season. I couldn’t be happier.
“Going into states with only six boys in events and not being the favorite was very daunting, but everyone performed amazingly and did their job to the fullest,” senior Karson Chew said.
“It was a big accomplishment in general for six guys to beat schools that have tons of people to choose from,” added Crawford.
The relay team of Jacob Marino, Chew, Anthony Costello and Crawford came home in 3:31.03, 22-hundreths of a second ahead of race runner-up New Providence.
Marino was subbing in the 4×4 for Kyle Reitz, another casualty of the postponement, and was a late scratch in the 3200 to focus on the relay and helped bring them through.
He got the Wolverines off and running while not exactly a 400 specialist. Chew got them back up to second and Costello kept them there, maybe even closing the gap. Crawford still had “a hefty gap” (about two seconds) to make up when he took the baton, but when he passed the New Providence runner who jammed him up in the 400 right before the finish he knew they had it won.
“With the meet being moved we weren’t able to run our usual 4×400 with Kyle Reitz,” Dominy said. “Being that Jacob was doing the two mile, we opted to have him scratch and focus on holding it down in the 4×400. Seeing that we won with less than a second it was a great choice.”
Marino also finished second in the 1600 (4:28.65). Crawford also won the 800 (1:57.52) with Chew finishing third (1:58.87) and got points in the 400.
The Woodstown boys track team enjoys a victory lap in The Bubble after clinching their first ever state championship after winning the Group I indoor track title. (Submitted photo)
From the time they clinched, their phones were blowing up with congratulatory messages from Woodstown track alums from various generations. They got to take a victory lap around the track and they were welcomed back into town by an escort of fire engines.
“That was just a great feeling,” Costello said of the victory lap. “We saw other teams do it before after they snuck it out in front of us so we said all right it’s our time now, we’re going to do it and we’re going to take it all in while we can.”
Schalick’s Sal Longo finished second in the boys pole vault, topping out at 12-6. He was beaten out for gold by Ramsey’s Luciano Zizza in a jump off at 13 feet.
Four jumpers made it to 12-6 and Longo and Zizza cleared that bar on their first attempts. Haddon Twp.’s Bobby McIlvaine joined them on his final attempt while Bound Brook’s Jake Markey fell out. All three missed three shots at 13-0, but Longo and Zizza advanced to the jump off with fewer misses and Zizza got it on the first extra attempt.
“It means a lot to me,” Longo said. “To get second place at the group championship meet today, it was very relieving to know that the hard work I put in this season is finally paying off.
“Going for the gold was very exciting. I was so close to getting that height on my last jump, I just need to tweak my technique. Overall, it was probably one of the funnest competitions I’ve been involved in.”
Ramsey’s 1-5 finish in the pole vault set the stage for the drama in the relay. The 12 points vaulted the Rams into the lead, but they didn’t have an entry in the relay. The Wolverines had to finish second to pass them and not be caught by third-place Glen Rock.
“Every 5-10 minutes (we were) checking scores, just trying to feel it out,” Costello said. “We knew it was going to come down to the wire, so were like all right we need to do this and we’re not going to worry about the scores anymore. It just got to that point where we’re just going to go out and win the thing.”
The top two finishers in each event and the top wildcards all advance to next week’s Meet of Champions.
GROUP I INDOOR TRACK CHAMPIONSHIP (Event winners and Salem County point-scorers) BOYS Team scores (top 15): Woodstown 35, Ramsey 28, Glen Rock 28, Haddon Twp. 20, Camden 20, New Providence 18, Glassboro 18, Manville 17, Hasbrouck Heights 10, New Milford 8, Pascack Hills 8, Wood-Ridge 8, Dayton 8, Shore 8, Buena 8, Schalick 8. Also, Penns Grove 2, Salem 1. 400: 1. Giorgio Bruttini, Ramsey 50.67; 6. Josh Crawford, Woodstown 51.83 1600: 1. Shaun Maloney, Haddon Twp. 4:27.28; 2. Jacob Marino, Woodstown 4:28.65 55 Hurdles: 1. Jaleel Dickerson-Dempsey, Camden 7.73 800: 1. Josh Crawford, Woodstown 1:57.62; 3. Karson Chew, Woodstown 1:58.87 55 Dash: 1. Michael Napolitano, Hasbrouck Heights 6.49 3200: 1. Jayran Rodriguez, Manville 9:31.74 4×400: 1. Woodstown (Jacob Marino, Karson Chew, Anthony Costello, Josh Crawford) 3:31.03 High Jump: 1. Moses Robles, Glassboro 6-4 Pole Vault: 1. Luciano Zizza, Ramsey 13-0; 2. Sal Longo, Schalick 12-6 Shot Put: 1. Evan Yuzon, Glen Rock 58-7.75; 5. JaKai Ingram, Penns Grove 46-7; 6. Jailon Fletcher-Wilson, Salem 45-6
Woodstown girls come up with late steal and layup, last-second free throws to complete comeback against Pennsville; Schalick, Salem both fall in the South Jersey Group I opening round
SJ GROUP I GIRLS TOURNAMENT Friday’s games Woodbury 48, Burlington City 10 Palmyra 40, New Egypt 23 Glassboro 60, Cape May Tech 15 Audubon 54, Salem 35 Woodstown 51, Pennsville 47 Gateway 43, Schalick 21 Monday’s games Woodbury at Haddon Twp. Palmyra at Glassboro Woodstown at Audubon Gateway at Wildwood
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
PENNSVILLE — There’s a power in sports even stronger than the will to keep a rival from beating you three times in the same season. It’s the will to keep a legacy alive.
That’s the power that drove the Woodstown girls team Friday night.
The Wolverines have made deep playoffs runs so regularly in recent years it’s almost an expectation. They haven’t lost a first-round playoff game since 2019, and if they had any say in it weren’t about to start in what many would consider a rebuilding year. They did face their biggest challenge to that legacy Friday and found a way to keep it alive.
Emma Perry’s dramatic steal and layup with 13 seconds left snapped a 47-all tie and Lauren Hengel hit two free throws in the final second to send the Wolverines past sixth-seeded Pennsville 51-47 in the opening round of the South Jersey Group I playoffs.
“It was big for us because our team the past four years we’ve had a very good program,” senior forward Lauren Hengel said. “It’s not even about losing about them the past two games but keeping the tradition alive of a good, solid Woodstown girls basketball team. For the players who went before us and the older girls that we played with the past four years and the younger girls who are coming up, showing them what it means to play for Woodstown.
“No one’s really brought it up with us because they didn’t want to stress us out, but we knew. We knew this is Woodstown basketball. Show up for your school, for the tradition, for the girls before you and keep it going.”
The 11th-seeded Wolverines (12-15) lost to the Eagles (16-8) twice during the regular season and were in danger of being the first Woodstown team in a long time to lose to the same team three times in one season trailing by seven with 3:39 to play.
It was at that point Pennsville star Marley Wood picked up her fifth foul and her departure changed so much of what the Eagles could do on both ends of the floor.
The Wolverines chipped away and finally got it tied at 45 on Hengel’s 3-pointer from the right corner right after Kyia Leyman kept the possession alive by banging a loose ball off a Pennsville defender out of bounds.
“I didn’t have time to think, “ Hengel said. “That that was just me doing what I love and playing basketball, not even thinking and just taking the shot. I was practicing in our gym before we left trying to fix my shot and get it just right before the game. It was a big deal to me.”
The game was tied again at 47 and stayed that way until 13 seconds remained when Pennsville set up for a routine inbounds play at midcourt opposite of the benches.
The Eagles wanted to get the ball into Taylor Bass and give her a chance to push to the basket and either get a shot or, depending on how the Wolverines played it, kick out for a 3-pointer, but Perry threw a wrench into all that. She ran up on Bass to knock the inbounds pass away (and Bass along with it) and after a frozen few seconds to realize there was no foul, Perry scooped up the loose ball and drove in alone for the go-ahead layup.
“I knew she was coming right to the ball so I kind of cheated out a little bit and was able to get there and took it out of her hands,” Perry said, admitting there was contact on the turnover. “The play was supposed to be for me to stay back but I just remember cheating out a little bit. I knew there wasn’t that much time left and anything I could do to get my hand on the ball I was trying to do it. I try to pop out and get steals as much as I can, but that was definitely a highlight.”
“She’s insane,” Hengel said of Perry. “She has some crazy footwork and she’s a pest on defense. I just think that was just huge and nobody deserved that play more than her.”
“It was a big play by her, but there were big plays made by everybody all game and that’s what I’m so proud of,” coach Matt Smart said. “For the most part the girls played extremely hard. That’s kind of what we preach in practice all week and that’s what they preach to each. They knew what they had to do win this game and then we went out and accomplished it.”
There was still time on the clock to get an equalizer or maybe a game-winner, but the Eagles lost the ball out of bounds attacking the basket with 2.8 seconds left. When the Wolverines put the ball back in play Hengel was fouled immediately and went to the line for her game-sealing free throws.
Hengel got Woodstown going early while the Eagles were still settling into the game and led the Wolverines with 15 points. Kendall Young had 14, Leyman 12 and Perry 10.
Pennsville’s Wood led all scorers with 20 points and finished her high school career as the Eagles’ second all-time leading girls scorer with 1352 points and 12th all-time in Salem County. Bass had 11 points and finished with 1237, tied for 19th on the all-time county girls list.
The Wolverines now play at third-seeded Audubon in the quarterfinals Monday.
“It just feels nice to not be done playing basketball,” Smart said.
Top photo: Woodstown’s Emma Perry (13) knocks away an inbounds pass intended for Pennsville’s Taylor Bass leading to her tie-breaking layup late in the fourth quarter that sent the Wolverines to playoff victory.
GATEWAY 43, SCHALICK 21: Down 12 with 90 seconds left in the third quarter, Schalick coach John Whelan figured it was time to roll the dice. He rolled out something the Cougars hadn’t practiced – a full-court man defense – with the aim of getting his team back in the game.
It worked for a while. The Cougars cut the deficit in half with about six and a half minutes left, but the Gators regrouped and made the plays to open it back up.
The Cougars were without Ava Scurry, the county’s leading shot-blocker by a wide margin, and guard Emmalyn Weir was excused in the third quarter for a school event. The Gators also clamped down on leading scorer Neveah Robinson, holding her without a field goal and to only two points.
“But our girls battled to the end and I am extremely proud of all they accomplished this season,” Whelan said.
Indeed. The Cougars made an 11-win turnaround from the season before and enjoyed their winningest season since 209. They won their first three games of the season and were never below .500 at any point.
Sophomore guard Liv VanAcker had three assists in the game set the Cougars’ single-season record with 91.
AUDUBON 54, SALEM 35: Emma Speyerer scored 22 points and two of her Green Wave teammates also scored in double figures. Dyaira Anderson had a double-double for the Rams (12 points and 12 rebounds).
The loss brought a close to Kemp Carr’s first season as the Rams’ coach. His team produced the program’s winningest season since 2022-23, made a six-win improvement over the year before and was .500 as late as Feb. 17.
All three Salem County teams in South Jersey Group I boys playoffs won opening round games, two to collide in quarterfinals, Penns Grove gets second home game; upsets abound
SJ GROUP I BOYS TOURNAMENT Friday’s games Salem 67, Riverside 42 Woodstown 67, Paulsboro 49 Glassboro 64, Burlington City 61 (OT) KIPP 46, Wildwood 41 New Egypt 42, Haddon Twp. 36 Penns Grove 43, Pitman 33 Audubon 45, Woodbury 41 Palmyra 66, Gateway 53 Monday’s games No. 8 Woodstown at No. 1 Salem No. 12 Glassboro at No. 4 KIPP No. 14 New Egypt at No. 6 Penns Grove No. 10 Audubon at No. 2 Palmyra
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
WOODSTOWN — Alejandro Vazquez was watching the Salem Community College playoff game with his Woodstown teammates Thursday night when the conversation turned to the Wolverines’ road in their own playoffs.
The Woodstown senior said he planned to give more than 100 percent in the Wolverines’ playoff opener against Paulsboro and even more in an anticipated second-round matchup with rival Salem.
Vazquez delivered on his first promise Friday, hitting four 3-pointers and scoring a career-high 22 points in leading the Wolverines to a 67-49 win. The stage is at least set for him to fulfill the second promise as his team now draws top-seeded Salem Monday night.
“He just hit shots; he played big tonight,” Woodstown coach Ramon Roots said. “Andro was the first person in the gym. I told them come in at 3:30 and he was there at 3:15 getting his shots up. He was the first one in the gym, took the basketballs out. He was locked in right from the beginning.”
The Red Raiders clamped down on Woodstown gunner Blake Bialecki, but the Wolverines found offense elsewhere. In addition to Vazquez’ big game, freshman Frankie Hoerst had a career-high 16 points and Elijah Caesar had 11.
“In their zone they keyed on Blake,” Roots said. “They were in the 1-3-1, 1-2-2, they were physical with Blake. Blake made the right read and Andro just came and hit shots. Frankie played well, rebounded the ball, kicking it out. It was just a group effort.
“And we played at good pace. We took our time. We didn’t get sped up. We just played a good brand of basketball.”
Vazquez was really big in the third quarter when the Wolverines pulled away. He had 11 points in the quarter and Woodstown outscored its visitors 17-6 to carry a 46-29 lead into the fourth quarter. Paulsboro made a push and got within 10 in the fourth quarter but then Woodstown “made the right plays at the right time and made it difficult for them” to get any closer.
The next round promises to be even more intriguing. Roots was Salem coach Anthony Farmer’s assistant before taking the Woodstown job and every game between the teams since except the first one, which was Roots’ first game as head coach, has been a battle. Earlier this year the Wolverines had the ball down by three with five seconds left, but lost the possession to a curious carry call.
“I think we’re at a good space right now,” Roots said. “I think that Clearview game kind of helped us get back on track. You know, we went on that three-game skid, so that game got us back on track. We feel Paulsboro and Salem play similar styles, and I think Paulsboro did a good job preparing us for Salem, but Salem in the No. 1 team, they’re the favorite as they should (be), but I like our chances. If we play the right way and just control the ball, not get sped up and just play our pace I think we have a good chance.”
PENNS GROVE 43, PITMAN 33: The Red Devils followed a road map that will a team a lot of games. They put together a balanced offense and played tight defense.
The Red Devils, enjoying their winningest season since 2019-20 following this plan, didn’t have a player score more than nine points, but they spread the wealth among eight scorers. Haneef Frisby and Roman Gipson headed the effort with nine points apiece.
“We followed the gameplay to a T,” coach Damian Ware said. “We knew they had good shooters and we could not let them get open looks. Guys did their job and only allowed three 3-pointers to a team that can hit 10 to 15 if you’re not locked in.”
With New Egypt’s upset of third-seeded Haddon Twp., the Red Devils (17-11) get another home game and will host 14th-seeded Warriors (12-14) Monday night.
PITMAN (11-16): Lucas Razze 1-0-3, Parker DeChristopher 3-3-9, Joey Zubert 5-1-12, Jay Craig 1-0-2, Jake Bowen-Ashwin 3-0-7. Totals 13-4-33. PENNS GROVE (17-11): Roman Gipson 4-1-9, Geonni Conrad 3-0-7, Will Roy 2-3-7, Haneef Frisby 3-3-9, Mishawn Brantley 1-0-2, Jameel Horace 2-1-5, Carson Pearsall 1-0-2, Luis Colon 1-0-2. Totals 17-8-43.
SALEM 67, RIVERSIDE 42: The top-seeded Rams settled into the tournament with an expected win over a 16-seed, but considering some of the other results in the bracket they likely feel fortunate to have avoided the upset.
Three Rams scored in double figures and three others had 10 rebounds to lead the attack. Neziah Spence led the offense with 16 points, while Fatah Paige had 13 and 1,000-point scorer Tymear Lecator had 11. Deshaan Williams, Cole Sayers and Marshall Stephens grabbed 10 rebounds apiece.
The win earned Salem coach Anthony Farmer his second 20-win season with the Rams (21-8) and his first since the debut campaign.
Here is the Salem County sports schedule for the week of Fev. 23-28; all events subject to the weather; first-round South Jersey Group I basketball tournament games now on Friday
WEDNESDAY, FEB. 25 COLLEGE BASKETBALL Region XIX/North Atlantic District A Tournament Ocean at Salem CC
THURSDAY, FEB. 26 BOWLING NJSIAA Top 100, Lucky Strikes, North Brunswick
FRIDAY, FEB. 27 BOYS BASKETBALL South Jersey Group I Tournament Riverside at Salem, 5 p.m. Paulsboro at Woodstown, 5 p.m. Glassboro at Burlington City, 6:30 p.m. Wildwood at KIPP, 6 p.m. New Egypt at Haddon Twp., 7:30 p.m. Pitman at Penns Grove, 4 p.m. Audubon at Woodbury, 5:30 p.m. Gateway at Palmyra, 6 p.m. GIRLS BASKETBALL South Jersey Group I Tournament Paulsboro at Haddon Twp. Burlington City at Woodbury New Egypt at Palmyra Cape May Tech at Glassboro Salem at Audubon, 5 p.m. Woodstown at Pennsville, 5 p.m. Schalick at Gateway, 5 p.m. Clayton at Wildwood BOWLING Group I Championship At Lucky Strikes, North Brunswick Salem vs. Kinnelon, 9 a.m. Middlesex vs. Rutherford, 9 a.m. Title match to follow COLLEGE BASEBALL Ocean at Salem CC, 3 p.m.
SATURDAY, FEB. 28 INDOOR TRACK NJSIAA Group I Championship, Toms River WRESTLING NJSIAA District Tournament COLLEGE BASKETBALL Region XIX/North Atlantic District A&B finals, Northampton CC COLLEGE BASEBALL Salem CC at Ocean (2), noon
Here are the Salem County boys and girls basketball stats leaders for the 2025-26 season; minimum 50 percent of team games, stats contingent on accuracy of reports to state service
Schalick girls earn a spot in the TCC Postseason Bracket title game, host Deptford Saturday morning; includes TCC Tournament scores and Salem County consolation games
PITTSGROVE — John Whelan held his breath a little bit when the Tri-County Conference officials were seeding their annual tournament and he let out a small sigh of relief when they finished their business.
Whelan’s Schalick girls basketball team was having one of their best seasons in a while, but its power points on Super Bowl Sunday left it on the bubble of making the TCC Championship Bracket reserved for the the league’s 12 heaviest hitters or the Postseason Bracket with what was left.
A power point here or there or a team jump-seeding its neighbor in the standings and a lot of things could change. When it all shook out, the Cougars fell on the Postseason Bracket side of the line — the No. 1 seed, if fact — and now, instead of facing an upper seed in the first round of the upper bracket with the expected consequences, they have a chance to win a championship.
The Cougars earned a spot in the Postseason Bracket championship game Thursday night when they dumped Salem 47-33. They now host Deptford (12-14) for the title Saturday at 10 a.m.
“It’s exciting,” Whelan said. “The girls deserve it. They’ve earned it. They put the work in all season, in the offseason in here, every practice, in the weight room, so it’s kind of come full circle for us. It’s exciting times to have this opportunity.”
In the past, the TCC split its tournament into three divisions – the top 8 (A), the eight in the middle of pack (B) and the also-rans (C),. This year they decided to expand the upper bracket to reward the league’s four division winners that sometimes didn’t make the A Bracket with first-round byes
They seeded it straight on the power points among the conference’s 23 teams – with the exception of the division winners who earned the top four seeds – and went to a 12-team upper and 11-team lower bracket.
The Cougars came in at No. 13, despite having as many or more wins than seven teams in the Championship Bracket at the time of the seeding, meaning they were the first team out and the whole Postseason Bracket went through them. They were the winningest team in the bracket by five wins.
“You always want to strive to play for that higher competition, but we fell where we fell,” Whelan said. “The 1 seed, that would be extra home games for us. We approach it the same way we would any other bracket or championship or any other game. This is just as important to us as it would be if we were in the other bracket.
“It definitely gave us an opportunity to be where we are, for sure. Some of the upper-tier teams is something we’re striving to work towards and we’re making good strides. This is definitely a bracket with good competition, as seen in the past two games, and we’ll see again Saturday. This is the start of our post-season.”
Nevaeh Robinson led Schalick with 14 points and nine rebounds. Cali Fisler had a career-high 13 points, including 7-of-8 from the free throw line. She was 5-for-6 in the fourth quarter, undermining the Rams’ strategy for getting back in the game.
The Cougars were 18-of-27 from the line for the game, while the Rams were 13-of-29.
“We talked about the importance of free throws, especially in a playoff game,” Whelan said. “We knew it was going to be physical and we prepared for that mentally and physically. We spent a lot of time with free throws (in practice) and to their credit they knocked them down.”
“I just was really confident this game,” Fisler said. “I knew what I could do at line. I knew my percentages overall have not been very good this season, but I knew what I could do, so I stayed calm despite the noise they were trying to make and I just did what I do.”
Point guard Liv VanAcker got the Cougars through some of the more chaotic moments of the fast-paced game and dished seven assists to move within four of Abby Chomo’s single-season school record (89). Ava Scurry blocked four more shots, leaving her four shy of her single-season record (85).
“It was chaotic, yes, but our team is very good with chaos,” VanAcker said. “At first we start off a little shaky, but we get our groove after a while.”
DyAira Anderson led Salem with 14 points and 20 rebounds. Carlysia Pierce had 11 points and 12 rebounds. The Rams forced Schalick into numerous turnovers early and led 5-4 after a turnover-filled first quarter, but they were negatively impacted throughout by missing too many shots in close and struggling at the free throw line.
“You’ve gotta have the ball go through the circle.,” Salem coach Kemp Carr said. “You can’t get four and five shots at the basket, two feet, and you don’t make it. It’s not so much what they did more than what we didn’t do. We just didn’t execute what we needed to execute. You’ve gotta make shots.”
SCHALICK 47, SALEM 33 SALEM (9-10): Madison Dixon 3 0-2 6, DyAira Anderson 3 8-13 14, Carlysia Pierce 3 5-14 11, Jaryn Weathers 0 0-0 0, Tricia Wilson 1 0-0 2, Kaliyah Taylor 0 0-0 0, Samiyah Moore 0 0-0 0, Zanyah Frieson 0 0-0 0, Timmiyah Simmons 0 0-0 0. Totals 10 13-29 33 SCHALICK (17-6): Cali Fisler 3 7-8 13, Ava Scurry 4 0-0 8, Willow Davis 1 2-2 5, Nevaeh Robinson 5 2-5 14, Liv VanAcker 0 5-8 5, Vicky Basich 0 0-0 0, Emmalyn Weir 0 2-2 2, Jaelynn Jarmon 0 0-0 0, Emma O’Neil 0 0-2 0. Totals 13 18-27 47.
Salem
5
7
10
11-
33
Schalick
4
16
12
15-
47
3-point goals: Schalick 3 (Davis, Robinson 2). Rebounds: Salem 55 (Pierce 12, Anderson 20); Schalick 26 (Scurry 5, Robinson 9, VanAcker 6). Technical fouls: Fisler. Fouled out: Pierce, Scurry. Total fouls: Salem 22, Schalick 20.
PENNSVILLE 57, CUMBERLAND 36: Marley Wood scored 10 of her game-high 24 points in the second quarter as the Eagles pulled away from this TCC Championship Bracket consolation game. Jaiden Wilson added a career-high 12 points Next up for the Eagles is a Wednesday date with Woodstown in the South Jersey Group I tournament.
WASHINGTON TWP. 44, WOODSTOWN 20 WOODSTOWN (11-15): Kendall Young 2, Emma Perry 10, Lauren Hengel 4, Kyia Leyman 2, Talia Guardascione 2. WASHINGTON TWP. (16-9): Frankie Begley 1 2-2 4, Shyla McLean 3 0-0 9, Julianna Cassidy 1 0-0 2, Elena Dabrowski 2 0-0 6, Aubrey Mack 6 1-2 13, Jade Mazzuca 1 0-0 2, Tessa Reilley 2 0-0 4, Lena Giannini 2 0-0 4. Totals 18 3-4 44.
Woodstown
2
4
10
4-
20
Washington Twp.
7
17
8
12-
44
3-point goals: Washington Twp. 5 (McLean 3, Dabrowski 2).
Schalick’s Ava Scurry (C) denies Salem’s Kaliyah Taylor entry into the lane during their TCC Postseason Bracket semifinal game Thursday night.
Boys game
WOODSTOWN 77, CLEARVIEW 50: Blake Bialecki led a balanced scoring attack with 18 points that featured five 3-pointers, as the Wolverines snapped a three-game losing streak that tied the longest in coach Ramon Roots’ two-year tenure. Bialecki had 11 points in the first quarter fueled by three 3s. Andrew White had 15 points, 13 in the third quarter, and Alejandro Vazquez had 10.
CLEAVIEW (10-17): Jonah Turner 3 1-2 7, Georgia Kritikson 3 1-1 8, Mike Pellecchia 3 1-2 8, Darren Riddick 4 0-0 9, Alex Whitwork 2 0-0 6, TJ McGovern 1 0-0 3, Logan Poletti 1 0-0 3, David Carter 2 0-0 6, Ethan Munch 0 0-0 0, Patrick Furfari 0 0-0 0, Jake Bernstein 0 0-0 0. Totals 19 3-5 50. WOODSTOWN (16-11): Elijah Caesar 4 0-2 8, Jalen Markward 0 0-0 0, Andrew White 7 1-2 15, Trey Markward 1 0-0 2, Lucas Fulmer 1 0-0 2, Blake Bialecki 6 1-2 18, Bryce Ayars 0 0-0 0, Frank Hoerst 4 0-2 8, Connor Miller 2 2-2 6, Alejandro Vazquez 3 3-3 10, Brian Booker 1 0-0 2, John Hood-McGinley 0 0-0 0, Josh King 3 0-0 6. Totals 32 7-13 77.
Schalick girls have goal to win their TCC Tournament bracket, take first step with win over Pitman, get Salem next in semifinal showdown, includes South Jersey Group I girls tournament pairings
GIRLS BASKETBALL TCC Tournament Championship Bracket Delsea at Gloucester Catholic Clearview 54, Timber Creek 28 Glassboro 44, Kingsway 30 Wildwood 44, Washington Twp. 38 Consolation game Woodstown 45, Triton 36 Postseason Bracket Schalick 43, Pitman 32 Salem 34, Williamstown 27 Clayton 52, GCIT 50 Deptford 61, Penns Grove 25
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
PITTSGROVE — If there’s a bracket to be played there’s a bracket to be won, doesn’t matter if it’s Championship, Postseason or the 3-on-3 tournament down at the local rec.
Knowing there’s a title to claim at the end of the week, Schalick played what coach John Whelan called one of its better overall games of the year, jumped on Pitman early and rolled to a 43-32 win in the quarterfinals of the Tri-County Conference Tournament Postseason Bracket. The bracket’s No. 1 seed now hosts Salam in Thursday’s semifinals.
“We definitely have our goal set on winning,” Whelam said. “We played probably, I would say, the best team ball that we’ve played all year. We moved the basketball really well, we made the extra passes, (got) better quality shots.
“It’s starting to click a little more. You’ve seen it the last handful of games where we’ve been moving the ball better. Our offense has looked so much better, and then we continue to stay tough on the defensive end.”
The Cougars held their visitors to single digits points in every quarter, while opening quarter leads of 17-6, 27-15 and 37-24. leads of 17-6 and 27-15 in the first half.
Nevaeh Robinson “had a rhythm going” early for the Cougars and scored all 17 of her points in the first half. When the Panthers recognized the havoc she was causing and switched to a box-and-one on her, Willow Davis kept the offense clicking. Davis scored eight points in the third quarter and 11 of her 14 in the second half.
“We were moving the ball well enough to where we didn’t feel like we needed to really change our offense regardless of the box-and-one,” Whelan said. “Willow stepped up in the second half and hit a lot of shots.”
Robinson also had 11 rebounds, Cali Fisler and Ava Scurry each had 10, and Liv Vanacker had nine. Vanacker also had five assists and Scurry blocked four shots.
SALEM 34, WILLIAMSTOWN 27: The Rams stretched an eight-point halftime lead to double digits, withstood a second-half rally by the Braves that got it to a one-point game and then pulled away to set up a semifinal showdown with Schalick.
“That’s a big win,” Salem coach Kemp Carr said. “It’s a Group 4 school, it’s a big team and it’s a postseason bracket, so we see it as a big deal for us. We’re excited for tonight.”
The Rams (9-9) played bang-up defense in the first half, holding the Braves (5-17) to only one field goal and five points in the first half. They stretched their halftime lead to 10 in the third quarter, but the Braves went on a run that cut it to one, 28-27, with about three minutes left before the Rams changed defenses and retook control.
“We showed some resiliency, something that we’ve really been working on, to not let that bother us, to keep playing through the clock,” Carr said. “We used a timeout to settle the girls down and we came out and got a basket that next possession.”
Dyaira Anderson led the Rams with a game-high 17 points and 18 rebounds. Carlysia Pierce had eight points, six rebounds and nine steals.
Salem and Schalick played once during the regular season with the Cougars taking a 37-33 win on the road.
3-point goals: Williamstown 1 (Waters). Total fouls: Salem 14, Williamstown 17.
DEPTFORD 61, PENNS GROVE 25: The Spartans brought the Red Devils back to earth behind double-doubles from Chaylin Marine and Kendall Evans. Marine had 21 points and 12 rebounds (plus five steals), while Evans had 16 points and 14 rebounds. The Red Devils reached the quarterfinals of the Postseason Bracket with a victory over Overbrook in the opening round.
CONSOLATION GAME WOODSTOWN 45, TRITON 36: Kyia Leyman and Kendall Young both enjoyed double-doubles as the Wolverines bounced back from their Championship Bracket opening-round loss to Kingsway. Leyman scored a career-high 18 points to lead all scorers and grabbed 10 rebounds and blocked three shots. Young had 10 points and 12 rebounds with three assists and five steals.
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I TOURNAMENT Feb. 25 Games Paulsboro at Haddon Twp. Burlington City at Woodbury New Egypt at Palmyra Cape May Tech at Glassboro Salem at Audubon Woodstown at Pennsville Schalick at Gateway Clayton at Wildwood Feb. 27 Games (Game at higher seed) Paulsboro-Haddon Twp. vs. Burlington City-Woodbury New Egypt-Palmyra vs. Cape May Tech-Glassboro Salem-Audubon vs. Woodstown-Pennsville Schalick-Gateway vs. Clayton-Wildwood
Salem loses a 16-point early third-quarter lead, falls to Group 4 Williamstown in TCC Championship Bracket quarterfinals; no county teams left in main draw of either boys bracket; includes the South Jersey Group I boys tournament pairings BOYS BASKETBALL TCC Tournament Championship Bracket Kingsway 66, Timber Creek 57 Overbrook 66, Deptford 55 Cumberland 52, Delsea 47 Williamstown 50, Salem 40 Consolation game Penns Grove 67, Woodstown 55 Postseason Bracket GCIT 85, Clayton 76 Pitman 56, Wildwood 52 Washington Twp. 63, Highland 44
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
SALEM – Anthony Farmer has seen this movie before. He didn’t want to see it – or have to see it – again on this particular night.
There have been times when Farmer’s Salem basketball team have been sharp start to finish. There also have been times they’ve built a seemingly safe lead against a strong opponent early in the game only to have it ripped out from under it at the final horn.
It happened again Tuesday when the Rams lost a 16-point third-quarter lead and wound up losing to Group 4 Williamstown 50-40 in the quarterfinals of the Tri-County Conference Championship Bracket.
The Rams (19-5), the No. 2 seed, led 30-14 a minute into the third quarter and 32-21 with 3:50 left in the quarter when it all went south. They didn’t make another field goal the rest of the game, going 0-for-9 from the floor and committing 10 turnovers.
“They played 16 minutes of basketball, you know you’ve got to play a full 32,” Farmer said. “We played a half of basketball and now that’s the result.
“We played a really good 16 the first half and scored 11 points I think in the second half with 10 turnovers, so you almost had as many turnovers as you had points in the second half. Obviously, that’s an issue.
“We just have to have a feel for the game. Slow down, move the basketball, get reversals, make plays and play a good brand of basketball, which we just didn’t do. It was just a horrible second half.”
While all the misses hurt, especially with the Braves connecting on the other end, the most gut-wrenching may have been Marshall Stephens’ in-and-out after a nice spin move in the lane that Jameer Gordon turned into a 3-pointer at the other end to give the Braves (16-9) the lead for good.
While the Rams were having their troubles, the Braves were picking up the tempo and coming back. From the time they were down 16 in the third quarter to the end of the game the Braves were 8-of-19 from the field and 16-of-19 from the free throw line. They had only seven field goals in the first 17 minutes.
Gordon, a transfer from St. Joe (Hammonton), hit two 3-pointers in the third quarter and the Braves finally got Clinton Suggs into the flow. The Rams held Suggs scoreless in the first half, but the Paul VI transfer scored 14 points in the second 10 in the third quarter. The Braves are 14-2 since Gordon and Suggs became eligible.
Suggs scored five straight points as the Braves trimmed the 16-point deficit to nine with 4:04 left in the third quarter. It was 10 with 3:15 left and the Rams scored only six more free throws the rest of the way. The Braves, meanwhile, scored nine free throws in the last 2:10 of the game alone to slam the door.
“These kids, since I’ve taken over, two years, have just shown fight and grit and fight and grit, so for us there was no panic on our end — at all,” Williamstown coach Adam Dandrea said as his players celebrated loudly in the locker room behind him. “I knew the kids would respond. That was all them right there. That was all them.”
The Braves now travel to Cumberland for Thursday’s semifinals. The Rams can play Delsea in a consolation game if they’re so inclined.
3-point goals: Williamstown 4 (Gordon, Suggs, Forman 2); Salem 5 (McGriff, Spence, Lecator). Rebounds: Salem 30 (Williams 6, Marshall 5). Fouled out: Stephens. Total fouls: Williamstown 14, Salem 23.
PENNS GROVE 67, WOODSTOWN 55: The Red Devils ran out to an 11-point lead in the first quarter and held onto it to win the rubber game between rivals created by a TCC Championship Bracket consolation game.
Roman Gipson and Geonni Conrad led Penns Grove with 18 points apiece. Four other players scored at least six.
“Just a total team effort like always,” Red Devils coach Damian Ware said of the start. “Guys made shots and the defense was stellar.”
The Wolverines put four scorers in double figures, with Elijah Caesar, Blake Bialecki and Alejandro Vazquez scored 12 points apiece. Andrew White added 10. Bialecki hit three 3-pointers, giving him 202 for his career.
They took advantage of Penns Grove’s second-quarter foul trouble to climb back into it, but the Red Devils stemmed the tide.
WOODSTOWN (15-11): Elijah Caesar 5-2-12, Blake Bialecki 4-1-12, Alejandro Vazquez 5-0-12, Josh King 2-3-7, Andrew White 4-2-10, Frank Hoerst 0-2-2. Totals 20-10-55. PENNS GROVE (16-10): Roman Gipson 6-5-18, Geonni Conrad 8-0-18, Haneef Frisby 3-1-7, Will Roy 2-0-6, Mishawn Brantley 0-0-0, Luis Colon 2-3-7, Carson Pearsall 3-0-7, Jameel Horace 2-0-4, Ahkeen Edwards 0-0-0. Totals 26-9-67.
Woodstown
11
17
14
13-
55
Penns Grove
22
10
17
18-
67
3-point goals: Woodstown 5 (Bialecki 3, Vazquez 2); Penns Grove 6 (Gipson, Gonrad 2, Roy 2, Pearsall).
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I TOURNAMENT Feb. 25 Games Riverside at Salem Paulsboro at Woodstown Glassboro at Burlington City Wildwood at KIPP New Egypt at Haddon Twp. Pitman at Penns Grove Audubon at Woodbury Gateway at Palmyra Feb. 27 Games (Games at higher seed) Riverside-Salem vs. Paulsboro-Woodstown Glassboro-Burlington City vs. Wildwood-KIPP New Egypt-Haddon Twp. vs. Pitman-Penns Grove Audubon-Woodbury vs. Gateway-Palmyra
Woodstown boys win 4×400 relay in record time, but it left them one point short of winning the South Jersey Group I indoor sectionals; the difference was Glassboro’s third-place finish by 0.10 seconds
By Al Muskewitz Riverview Sports News
TOMS RIVER – Blink your eyes. That’s how close it was to determining the South Jersey Group I boys indoor track sectionals champion Sunday.
As these meets always seem to do lately, it came down to the final race between Woodstown and Glassboro in the 4×400 relay.
Woodstown had to win it and have Glassboro finish fourth or worse – or some other combination of a six-point swing – to win it all at the Bubble.
The Wolverines did what they needed to do, winning the race in a PR meet record (3:30.30), but Glassboro raced to third (3:37.78), a scant 0.10 seconds ahead of fourth-place Gateway, to grab just enough points to win the team title by one point.
Glassboro scored 54.60 points overall to Woodstown’s 53.60.
The Wolverines relay team of Karson Chew, Anthony Costello, Kyle Reitz and Josh Crawford obliterated the old 4×400 record of 3:32.09, set by Woodbury last year. Salem finished second in the race.
“We knew going into the 4×4 that we needed two things to happen,” Chew said. “We needed to win and Glassboro couldn’t get third or better. Unfortunately, only one of those things was in the cards for us.
“Everyone ran a great race and we all did the best we could with what we could control. Now it just comes down to regaining our confidence and going into states with a good mentality.”
Through five events both teams were lagging behind leader Haddon Twp., but after the completion of the high jump and 800, the Wolverines had pulled in front, bringing Glassboro with them. The margin was seven points..
Glassboro made a big move in the 3200, the next-to-last event in the meet. Top-seeded Bulldog Joseph Saicic won the race and Jaeden Wesley, the 18th-seeded runner, finished fourth. Jacob Marino gave Woodstown its only points in the race, finishing sixth.
Salem County produced three individual champions. Crawford won the 400 (51.13) and 800 (1:59.87, going 1-2 with Chew), and Woodstown’s Kami Casiano won the girls high jump (5-0). In addition, there were four other runner-ups — Penns Grove’s Kylee Goodson (400), Woodstown’s Aiden Taulane (shot put), Woodstown’s Lia Covely (girls 55 hurdles) and Pennsville Kallie Morrison (girls high jump).
In all, Salem County qualified 28 individuals and three relays to the state group championships back here on Feb. 22.
This is the second major win for Casiano this year. She won the Tri-County Showcase with a jump of 5-2. She started the new year with a third-place finish in Penn’s Ott Center on Jan. 3 (4-10) and finished fourth in a batch meet here on Jan. 10 (5-0).
“I’m so happy about winning sectionals today,” Casiano said. “A big goal I had for myself this season was consistency. I’m getting past my nerves and giving it my all.”
Here are the event winners and Salem County qualifiers to the state group championships. The top six in each event score points and qualify for state.
This story will be updated.
SOUTH JERSEY GROUP I SECTIONALS BOYS TEAM SCORES: Glassboro 54.60, WOODSTOWN 53.60, Haddon Twp. 36, Camden 32.60; SALEM 29.60, Gateway 22, PENNS GROVE 20, Audubon 17, Woodbury 14, Burlington City 12, Palmyra 8.60, SCHALICK 6, West Deptford 2, Buena 2. 400: 1. Josh Crawford, Woodstown 51.13; 2. Kylee Goodson, Penns Grove 52.07; 4. Timothy Gregory, Salem 52.41. 1600: 1. Joseph Saicic, Glassboro 4:33.47; 4. Jacob Marino, Woodstown 4:36.50; 6. David Farrell, Woodstown 4:42.96 55 Hurdles: 1. Jaleel Dickerson-Dempsey, Camden 7.83; 4. Timothy Gregory, Salem 8.42; 5. Gradin Buzby, Salem 8.64 55 Dash: 1. Donte Davis, Burlington City 6.55; 3. Jelani Beverly, Salem 6.70; 6. Kyle Reitz, Woodstown 6.81 800: 1. Josh Crawford, Woodstown 1:59.87; 2. Karson Chew, Woodstown 2:00.56 3200: 1. Joseph Saicic, Glassboro 9:52.30; 6. Jacob Marino, Woodstown 10:14.36 4×400: 1. Woodstown (Kyle Reitz, Karson Chew, Anthony Costello, Josh Crawford) 3:30.30 (meet record, old record 3:32.09, Woodbury 2025); 2. Salem (Quimere Bergen, Gradin Buzby, RaShar Stevenson, Jerry Seals) 3:37.61 High Jump: 1. Moses Robles, Glassboro 6-2; 3. Tommy White, Penns Grove 5-6; T5. Jerry Seals, Salem 5-2; T5. Anthony Costello, Woodstown 5-2 Pole Vault: 1. Bobby McIlvaine, Haddon Twp. 12-0; 3. Salvatore Longo, Schalick 11-0; 4. Gradin Buzby, Salem 11-0 Shot Put: 1. Kyle Stephens, Haddon Twp. 47-9; 2. Aiden Taulane, Woodstown 46-2.5; 3. JaKai Ingram, Penns Grove 45-7; 6. Jailon Fletcher-Wilson, Salem 43-2
GIRLS TEAM SCORES: Audubon 90, Glassboro 47, Haddon Twp. 46, West Deptford 32, WOODSTOWN 31, Buena 20, Woodbury 12, PENNSVILLE 8, Lower Cape May 8, SALEM 5, PENNS GROVE 4, Palmyra 2, Burlington City 2, Gateway 2 400: 1. Kayla Romanoski, West Deptford 1:00.72 1600: 1. Riley Fayer, Audubon 5:08.61; 4. Abby Marino, Woodstown 5:29.58 55 Hurdles: 1. Casey Birdwell, Haddon Twp. 8.83; 2. Lia Covely, Woodstown 9.40 55 Dash: 1. Kathryn McGuire, Audubon 7.60 800: 1. Kayla Romanoski, West Deptford 2:19.05 3200: 1. Riley Fayer, Audubon 11:20.98; 3. Abby Marino, Woodstown 11:58.23 4×400: 1. Audubon 4:18.72; 4. Salem (Dynastie Tucker, Brooklynn Jackson, Amaia Massengill, Alysha Williams) 4:24.47; 6. Woodstown (Maria Holmes, Angelina Lindenmuth, Abby Marino, Lia Covely) 4:38.23 High Jump: 1. Kami Casiano, Woodstown 5-0; 2. Kallie Morrison, Pennsville 4-10 Pole Vault: 1. Morganna Makuszewski, Audubon 9-0 Shot Put: 1. Sunny Moore, Glassboro 37-6.75; 4. Zoey Caesar, Penns Grove 30-11.25; 5. Sara Lodge, Woodstown 30-5.75; 6. Ava Rodgers, Salem 29-10.5
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