Category: WOODSTOWN

Tough way to start

Gloucester Catholic goes out fast against Woodstown to spoil Straughn’s coaching debut; Penns Grove pulls away from Clayton for county girls’ only win of the night

FRIDAY’S GIRLS SCORES
Glassboro 44, Salem 29
Gloucester Catholic 69, Woodstown 41
Penns Grove 47, Clayton 38
Pitman 52, Schalick 14
Wildwood 64, Pennsville 30
Overbrook at Salem Tech

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

GLOUCESTER CITY – The moment she saw it on the schedule Kara Straughn knew her first game as the Woodstown girls basketball coach was going to be a tough one.

Straughn made her head coaching debut Friday night and it didn’t go well as the Rams handed her and the Wolverines a 69-41 loss.

“I knew it was going to be a tough game even if it wasn’t my first game,” Straughn said. “I was still going to have the same amount of nerves just because of who they are. They’re a team, a program, a coach … you cannot not honor and respect them as a whole.

“I knew it was going to be a difficult game because of who they are and going up there adds a whole ‘nother level of anxiety. I knew off the bat it was going to be a difficult game and we just didn’t match up.”

The Rams took advantage of their size and placed four scorers in double figures. Jazhara Green led the way with 17 points. Talia Schumate had 15, Jalyn Moore 13 and Julianna DiFebbo 12.

Talia Battavio led Woodstown with five 3-pointers and 17 points, but their next two scorers – Megan Donelson and Shannon Pierman – had 12 apiece.

The Rams jumped out to a 21-11 lead in the first quarter and Woodstown just couldn’t put enough together to overcome the deficit. 

“Matchup-wise it wasn’t there tonight,” Straughn said. “My girls played their hearts out, but we just couldn’t piece things together. We would get a couple stops and then we would throw the ball away sometimes. We just couldn’t put it all together.”

GLOUCESTER CATHOLIC 69, WOODSTOWN 41
WOODSTOWN (0-1) – Talia Battavio 5 2-2 17, Megan Donelson 4 3-4 12, Alyssa Baber 0 0-0 0, Gianna Maiorini 0 0-0 0, Shannon Pierman 5 2-2 12, 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 14 7-8 41.
GLOUCESTER CATHOLIC (1-0) – Jahzara Green 7 3-3 17, Julianna DiFebbo 5 0-0 12, Talia Schumate 6 3-5 15, Katherine Lange 4 0-0 9, Jalyn Moore 5 2-2 13, Alyssa Elliott 1 0-0 3, Yazaniah Schumate 0 0-0 0, Maya Hutchinson 0 0-0 0. Totals 28 8-10 69.

Woodstown1114124 –41
Gloucester Cath.21171912 –69
3-point goals: Woodstown 6 (Battavio 5, Donelson); Gloucester Catholic 5 (DiFebbo 2, Lange, Moore, Elliott). Total points: Woodstown 8, Gloucester Catholic 10.

PENNS GROVE 47, CLAYTON 38: A veteran and a newcomer took over a close game in the fourth quarter and led the Red Devils to their opening-night victory

Jameelyonna Horace and transfer RaNiyah Wilson combined for 15 of their team’s 17 points in the fourth quarter as Penns Grove pulled away.

Horace knocked down two of her three 3-pointers and scored eight of her game-high 16 points in the fourth quarter. Wilson went 3-for-4 from the free throw line and scored seven of her 11 in the quarter.

The Red Devils held a 19-14 halftime lead, but the Clippers closed the margin to 30-29 entering the fourth quarter behind eight of Rainelle Blocker’s 13 points.

PENNS GROVE 47, CLAYTON 38
PENNS GROVE (1-0) – Jameelyonna Horace 6 1-2 16, Syanna Robbins 0 0-0 0, Brianna Robbins 5 0-0 10, Amani Taylor 0 0-7 0, Rolande Delva 0 0-0 0, RaNiyah Wilson 4 3-4 11, Arianna Dowe 1 0-0 3, Zoey Caesar 1 1-2 3, Semijah Hines 0 0-2 0, Jamira Lewis 0 0-0 0, JaNiyah Cummings 2 0-0 4. Totals 19 5-17 47.
CLAYTON (1-1) – Jordyn Jones 1 0-2 2, Rainelle Blocker 4 5-6 13, Rosalina Pereira 2 0-2 4, Janice Blair 0 0-0 0, Napria Loatman 0 0-0 0, Sophia Petsch 0 0-0 0, Deondria Simon 1 0-0 2, Ava Delaney 5 0-0 14, India Williams 0 0-0 0, LaNiya Carr-Archie 1 1-4 3. Totals 14 6-14 38.

Penns Grove8111117 – 47
Clayton113159 – 38
3-point goals: Penns Grove 4 (Horace 3, Dowe); Clayton 4 (Delaney 4). Total fouls: Penns Grove 3, Clayton 7.

WILDWOOD 64, PENNSVILLE 30: After enduring a 90-minute bus ride to the game, the Eagles had trouble getting on track and fell behind 46-14 at halftime.

The Warriors took advantage of the friendly confines to hit eight 3-pointers in the first half to open up their big lead. Leading scorer Macie McCracken (22) and Rebecca Benichou (13) both hit three 3s in the half.

Nora Ausland led Pennsville with nine points. She had the Eagles’ five points in the first quarter.

“They played in the South Jersey Group I championship last year (against Woodstown) for a reason; (coach Teresa Cunniff) has always had a solid program,” Pennsville coach Sam Trapp said. “They are a very good shooting team and executed man defense well, which we struggled against. We had several open looks, but could not finish at the basket.

“We are still figuring out who we are and what our strengths are as a team. Hoping to have a better showing and boost our confidence next week.”

WILDWOOD 64, PENNSVILLE 30
PENNSVILLE (0-1) – Calli Ausland 0 0-0 0, Nora Ausland 3 1-2 9, Taylor Bass 3 1-1 7, Sofia Belitsas 0 0-0 0, Kylie Harris 0 0-0 0, Anikka Macalino 1 0-0 2, Malani McGee 0 0-0 0, Isabelle Saulin 1 2-4 4, Avery Watson 0 0-0 0, Marley Wood 2 4-6 8. Totals 10 8-14 30.
WILDWOOD (1-0) – Sophia Wilber 2 4-6 8, Angela Wilber 4 0-0 11, Macie McCracken 9 1-1 22, Kaliah Sumlin 3 1-1 7, Rebecca Benichou 5 0-0 13, Cydnee Silian 0 0-0 0, Ashley Nagle 1 0-0 3, Janet Gonzalez 0 0-0 0. Totals 24 6-8 64.

Pennsville59124 – 30
Wildwood202617 1 – 64
3-point goals: Pennsville 2 (N. Ausland 2); Wildwood 10 (A. Wilber 3, McCracken 3, Benichou 3, Nagle).Total fouls: Pennsville 7, Wildwood 11.

GLASSBORO 44, SALEM 29: Tamia Smith (17) and Kezia Brackett (15) combined to outscore the Rams (0-1) themselves. Ava Rodgerss led Salem with 11 points.




This week’s schedule

Regular season for basketball, wrestling gets underway for teams in Salem County for the week of Dec. 11-16; x-indicates scrimmages

MONDAY
BASKETBALL
Girls
x-Palmyra at Pennsville, 4 p.m.
x-Penns Grove at Kingsway, 4 p.m.
Boys
x-Kingsway at Penns Grove, 4 p.m.
x-Maple Shade at Woodstown, 4 p.m.
x-Pennsville at Palmyra, 4 p.m.
x-Schalick at Bridgeton, 4 p.m.

TUESDAY
BASKETBALL
Girls
x-Burlington Tech at Salem, 3:45 p.m.
x-Penns Grove at Pleasantville, 4 p.m.
x-Woodstown at Kingsway, 4 p.m.
Boys
x-Gloucester Christian at Penns Grove, 4 p.m.

SWIMMING
Schalick vs. Millville at YMCA of Vineland, 3 p.m.

INDOOR TRACK
Pennsville, Salem in SJTCA Meet, Toms River

BOWLING
Salem vs. Salem Tech, Wood Lanes, 4 p.m.

WEDNESDAY
BOWLING
Salem Tech at Washington Twp., 4 p.m.

THURSDAY
WRESTLING
Palmyra at Pennsville, 5 p.m.

SWIMMING
Salem vs. Pitman at GCIT, 6 p.m.

BOWLING
Salem vs. Clayton, Bolero Lanes, 4 p.m.

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

WRESTLING
Pennsville in Howdy Duncan Invitational at William Penn, 4:15 p.m.
Woodstown at West Deptford, 5 p.m.

SWIMMING
Schalick at Camden Co. Tech, 3:30 p.m.

SATURDAY
BASKETBALL
Girls
Audubon at Pennsville, noon
Red Devil Classic
Bridgeton at Penns Grove, 4:30 p.m.

Boys
Pennsville at Deptford, noon
Red Devil Classic
At Penns Grove
Pitman vs. Burlington City, 11 a.m.
Woodbury vs. Salem, 1 p.m.
Lindenwold at Penns Grove, 6:30 p.m.

WRESTLING
Pennsville in Howdy Duncan Invitational at William Penn, 10 a.m.
Penns Grove in Schalick Tournament (with Haddon Heights, Mainland, Oakcrest, Pt. Pleasant Beach, WW-P North, WW-P South)
Woodstown in Delaware Valley (Pa.) Tournament

INDOOR TRACK
Woodstown at Bennett Center, Toms River

Feels like a win

Woodstown’s boys come up short on the scoreboard, but everything about the scrimmage left the feeling of a win

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

WOODSTOWN – It’s a good thing preseason scrimmages aren’t about winning or losing – they’re about getting better – or Woodstown coach Phil Campbell might not have been as upbeat when Saturday’s exercise was over.

The Wolverines lost to Brandywine (Del.) both ways – on the scoreboard (55-49) and in the scorebook (47-46) – but Campbell considered the day a win because of what his team got out of it.

The difference in the results reflects the way game was scored. The scoreboard reflected the scoring system used to award points on free throws to reduce delays at the line while the scorebook indicated the points that actually went through the basket.

Regardless how it was counted, the Wolverines got more out of it than not.

“I was just telling them this was a great learning experience for us,” Campbell said. “We’ll see some teams that are similar – they’re fast, they’re athletic, they have a really good point guard – so it’s a good learning experience.

“I thought our offensive execution at times was fantastic. To be able to do that against a team that’s fast defensively, has long arms, and be able to compete really well with teams that are so athletic I think is a really good learning experience for us. I feel like (it’s) a win as far as we’re learning how to play our game and how our execution can affect other teams.”

Brandywine big Shamar Samuel (R) making sure Woodstown’s Rocco String doesn’t get too far away.

Campbell was quite familiar with the team Woodstown played. He used to be the Bulldogs’ head coach and their current head coach, Lorenzo Gales, was his assistant. Gales bragged on his point guard, Dadrien Howell in their conversation and Campbell believed it when he saw him. 

Howell had 11 points in the scrimmage. Sincere Miller led all scorers with 16.

“He said No. 50 (Howell) had better court vision than anybody we ever had play for us (there), and now I agree after watching him,” Campbell said. “I was pretty amazed at some of the passing that he did. And he’s good getting to the rim.”

The Wolverines, meanwhile, came out with a hot hand and hit four 3-pointers among their first six baskets – two by Eli Caesar – and jumped out 16-5. Then Howell got involved and the Bulldogs rallied.

Alejandro Vazquez hit a couple 3s and the Wolverines went back up by nine, but the Bulldogs rallied again and wound up winning the first half.

Rocco String got the best of Brandywine big man Shamar Samuel and finished with eight points and 11 rebounds. Garrett Leyman gave the Wolverines seven points and seven boards and Blake Bialecki gave them his usual consistent effort at the point.

Defensively, they’re tweaking their approach and learning to be more aggressive in the half court. If there was any shortcoming it was handling the endgame, but if it were a regular-season game Campbell would have been a lot more strategic.

“I feel good about what we saw today,” Campbell said. “It was a good learning experience for us because our scrimmage against Gateway on Tuesday was a little sloppy.”

The Wolverines are back at it Monday against Maple Shade.

BRANDYWINE 47, WOODSTOWN 46
BRANDYWINE – Jahzier Penn 2 1-2 6, Crisdon Wright 1 2-2 4, Zion Charles 4 0-0 8, Sincere Miller  8 0-2 16, Mohamed Sankoh 0 0-0 0, Shamar Samuel 1 0-0 2, Dadrien Howell 5 1-3 11. Totals 21 4-9 47.
WOODSTOWN – Blake Bialecki 2 0-0 5, Alejandro Vazquez 3 0-0 8, M.J. Hall 1 0-0 3, Garrett Leyman 3 1-2 7, Max Webb 3 0-1 7, Rocco String 4 0-1 8, Zyaire Caesar 0 0-0 0, Eli Caesar 3 0-0 8, Anthony Bokolas 0 0-0 0. Totals 19 1-4 46.

Brandywine1115129 –47
Woodstown1812106 –  46
3-point goals: Brandywine (Penn); Woodstown 7 (Bialecki, Vazquez 2, Hall, Webb, E. Caesar 2).
Woodstown guard Max Webb drives to the basket in Saturday’s scrimmage against Brandywine. (Photo by Ellen Sickler)

Back and ready

Baber back in Wolverines’ backcourt after missing junior season, comfort level growing with each game

FRIDAY’S SCRIMMAGES
Girls
Woodstown 55, Camden Tech 12
West Deptford 43, Pennsville 32
Boys
Salem def. Bridgeton

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

WOODSTOWN – In the overall scheme of a 33-point blowout in a preseason scrimmage it was a rather insignificant basket, but it sure meant a lot to Alyssa Baber.

When the Woodstown senior guard broke in on a 2-on-1 with Talia Battavio off the tip and scored the layup to open the second half scoring against Camden Tech, it wasn’t just another basket.

It was the first basket she has scored against somebody not wearing a Woodstown uniform in 21  months.

“She needed that confidence,” Wolverines coach Kara Straughn said. “She hasn’t played a full game or a natural game in years. She’s a good shooter. I think she just kind of needs a little confidence and kick start herself again.”

Baber missed her entire junior season following twice-delayed surgery on the ACL she tore in her right knee in one of her team’s last AAU games the May of her sophomore year.

The layup Friday was her first points in a game since a 3-pointer against Pennsville on March 3, 2022. You can look it up. (We did in the gym, and the result surprised her).

“I don’t remember that,” she said. “I didn’t get to shoot a lot my sophomore year, now I can have that feeling of what it’s like to make a basket and I’ve been wanting that. Unfortunately, at Gateway I didn’t get to make anything, but I was just happy being out there and today I made my shot and I was really happy.” 

Baber was so excited to get back into it, she couldn’t wait to text Straughn to remind her she had been cleared by her doctors to start practicing. Straughn eased her back into the action in the first scrimmage at Gateway Tuesday playing her only two quarters, but she played all four quarters Friday against the Warriors.

She didn’t score in the first scrimmage or in the first half Friday. But she had two buckets in the third quarter against the Warriors, finished with four points, grabbed four rebounds, dealt three assists and collected five steals before retiring for the day with 2:56 left in the scrimmage.

“Recently I’ve been really anxious about the games so I have a lot of jitters,” she said. “But every time I play it just all comes back to me, even if I’d played two years ago. It just comes back to me and I just love being out here with all the girls again.”

Sitting out while her teammates played made for one of the hardest years of her life. She tried to put on a brave face, but admitted it was tough watching while others play while she couldn’t. Now that she’s back, she’s pushing hard to get back where she was before the injury as a facilitator.

Her return strengthens an already deep array of Woodstown guards and gives Straughn even more options on how to attack an opponent.

“It makes us that much harder to defend,” Straughn said. “Because now I have not just two phenomenal guards, I have three, and then I have two girls underneath who can score 8 to 10 to 12 points. You’re going to overplay Megan or Talia, I have Alyssa Baber who will score. You’re going to overplay my forwards, I have three girls over the top who can score. I have five who can play pretty much any position.”

But scoring isn’t Baber’s game. She’d rather do the things that gets her teammates involved.

The Wolverines won big (55-12) even without top returning scorer Megan Donelson, who didn’t play due to illness. Her absence gave sixth-man Lauren Hengel a chance to shine and she responded with 16 points, four rebounds and four steals.

Battavio led all scorers with 24 points, Shannon Pierman had nine points and eight rebounds, and Gia Maiorini grabbed 10 rebounds.

WOODSTOWN 55, CAMDEN TECH 12
CAMDEN TECH – Ryan Jones 1 1-1 3, Carlee Miller 0 0-0 0, Kiara Miller 1 0-0 3, Vianny Fernandez 2 0-0 4, Brena Stiles 0 0-0 0, Daniya Forrest 0 0-0 0, Erica Bennett 0 0-0 0, Jaelyn White 1 0-0 2. Totals 5 1-1 12.
WOODSTOWN – Talia Battavio 8 3-4 24, Alyssa Baber 2 0-0 4, Shannon Pierman 4 1-2 9, Gianna Maiorini 0 0-0 0, Lauren Hengel 6 3-4 16, Lizzy Daly 0 0-0 0, Brae DiGregorio 0 0-0 0, Jaia Thomas 0 0-0 0, Others 1 0-0 2. Totals 21 7-10 55.

Camden Tech6420 –12
Woodstown1616212 –55
3-point goals: Camden Tech 1 (K. Miller); Woodstown 6 (Battavio 5, Hengel). Total fouls: Camden Tech 9, Woodstown 6.

WEST DEPTFORD 43, PENNSVILLE 32: The teams were locked in a tight battle in the first half, but West Deptford held the Eagles to one field goal in the third quarter and pulled away. Reyanna Jamison (12) and Alivia Arena (10) combined for 15 points in the second half for West Deptford.

Taylor Bass led Pennsville with 10 points. Marley Wood and Nora Ausland had nine each.

“We lost, but everything came together a lot better and I’m excited for Monday (when they host Palmyra),” Pennsville coach Sam Trapp said. “We’ve got to keep improving on defense, finding ways to create opportunities to finish and knowing our personnel.”

WEST DEPTFORD 43, PENNSVILLE 32
PENNSVILLE – Celli Ausland 0 0-0 0, Nora Ausland 3 2-4 9, Taylor Bass 4 2-2 10, Sofia Belitsas 0 0-0 0, Bella Farina 1 0-4 2, Kylie Harris 0 0-0 0, Anikka Macalino 0 0-0 0, Malani McGee 0 0-0 0, Isabelle Saulin 1 0-0 2, Avery Watson 0 0-0 0, Marley Wood 3 2-4 9. Totals 12 6-14 32.
WEST DEPTFORD – Janie Cross 2 2-6 6, Alivia Arrera 5 0-0 10, Jesce Diaz 1 0-0 3, Reyanna Jamison 5 1-3 12, Ciara Moss 1 0-2 2, Olivia Smith 0 2-2 2, DeaOnna Lawrence 3 0-0 6, Kallie Christy 0 0-0 0, Alyssa Taylor 1 0-0 2. Totals 18 5-13 43.
Pennsville78512 –32
West Deptford981214 –43
3-point goals: Pennsville 2 (M. Ausland, Wood); West Deptford 2 (Jamison, Diaz). Total fouls: Pennsville 8, West Deptford 16.

Boys

Salem went to Bridgeton for its final preseason scrimmage and came back with a win.

The biggest takeaway was the Rams being able to pull it back together after losing the lead. They led by six to eight points most of the game, fell behind 45-44 in the third quarter and then went on a run to pull away.

“That was good,” Rams coach Anthony Farmer said. “We have upperclassmen, so that’s my expectation. You have to stay poised. They’ve been around. I’m not looking for those guys to get rattled. We were sloppy at times, but later in the game we got it back together.”

Freshman Tymier Lecator showed poise beyond his years, hitting two big 3-pointers and taking two charges.

The Rams now start working towards their opener next Saturday against Woodbury in Penns Grove’s Red Devil Classic.

Getting their wings

One of the perks playing in the Division II semifinals is the trip comes with a plane ride, it’ll be a new experience to many Kutztown players

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News 

There’s a lot about playing in the Division II national semifinals that is new to a lot of the players on the Kutztown football team, not the least of which is the way to get there.

HUSSER

Life in Division II athletics doesn’t usually come with flying around the country, but the Golden Bears are leaving on a jet plane Thursday for their biggest game in program history at top-seeded Colorado School of Mines.

It’s not another long ride on a bus. This time it’s a flight halfway across the country – and there’s a big group of players who have never flown before.

“That’s what I’m really looking forward to about this game, other than winning, which is No. 1,” Tyreek Husser, a senior tight end from Woodstown, said. “That’s been something we’ve been talking about all week. There’s a decent amount of guys who haven’t flown in a plane before, so I’m glad I’m not the only one and I can share that experience with some of the other guys. 

“Once we found out we were flying we’ve all been talking about it, trying to find little tips and tricks to get through it. I’m a little nervous, but I feel once you get up in the sky the nerves will go away. It’ll be more nerves for the game.” 

HARRIS

Justin Harris, a defensive back from Salem and the longest tenured of the four Salem County players on the team, is an experienced flyer and has advice to comfort the first-timers.

“I’d tell them to make sure you’re in a comfortable fit, you don’t want to be uncomfortable in an already uncomfortable situation,” he said. “Get some headphones, listen to your favorite music. Get a neck pillow, for sure, and just rock out with your music. The flight isn’t too long, maybe like four hours. We’re used to those six-hour bus rides.”

The Bears better get used to it. If they beat the Orediggers Saturday, there’s another plane ride in their future – to the national championship game in Texas.

Coming up: Kutztown veterans Harris and Husser have come through a lot to reach this weekend’s opportunity

Getting it started

Salem County basketball teams go into first scrimmages with high expectations; Woodstown girls win in new coach’s debut, Pennsville boys fall, but remain optimistic

TUESDAY SCRIMMAGES 
Girls
Schalick at Cumberland Christian
Woodstown 61, Gateway 33
Haddon Twp. at Penns Grove
Boys
Gateway at Woodstown
Triton 72, Pennsville 50

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

PENNSVILLE – The Golden Years have arrived in the Pennsville basketball program.

That’s what coach Joe Mecholsky calls these next two seasons, the next 50 games or so for his core group that has been together as freshmen and sophomores and now will be together as juniors and seniors going forward.

The start of the Golden Years didn’t start too well as the Eagles dropped their first scrimmage of the season Tuesday 72-50 to Group III Triton, but even with the results of the day they remain optimistic for the road ahead.

For the Eagles it’s all about those eight Diamond Division games they play later in the year. They won more games last season (10) than they won in the previous 2 1/2 seasons combined and made the Group I playoffs for the first time since their last 10-win season (2016), but that’s just the start of their progression. Next on their list of firsts is winning a division title, winning a playoff game and whatever comes after that.

“This is my golden generation,” Mecholsky said. “They were six sophomores last year, they were six juniors now and then we’re going to be six seniors next year, so we’re really focusing on these next 50 games rewriting the ledger and see if we can’t (make some history).

“Nothing less than a division champions, a division championship and making a deep run in South Jersey Group I. That’s our focus, anything less than that is … well, let the season play out and see what anything less than that is. If we make a run, that’d be great, but we’ve got to hang and division banner up in this gym. We’ve got the guys to do it.”

The Eagles looked good in spurts Tuesday. They opened a quick lead behind Cohen Petrutz’ hot 3-point shooting and then, after falling behind under the weight of their substitution patterns, climbed back to within seven early in the fourth quarter.

“It felt like a 50-50 game,” Mecholsky said. “The score didn’t indicate that but when you’re making subs in a scrimmage we throw the score out and we look at our defensive intensity and our rebounding. We had a lot of guys huffin’ and puffin’ out there so we gotta still work on our conditioning, but it’s coming together.”

The Eagles should look sharper when Luke Wood gets back on the floor. The junior point guard, who likely will reach the 1,000-point milestone before the calendar turns over, missed the scrimmage, but should return when the Eagles scrimmage Paulsboro Thursday.

“It’ll definitely make us better,” Petrutz said. “He’s a (big) part of our team. Missing him hurts us a lot. When he’s back it’ll make us even better.”

Petrutz hit three 3s in the first quarter, had six in the game and finished with a game-high 22 points. “I’ve been waiting all day for this,” he said.

Chase Birchfield, another junior, gives the Eagles another 3-point threat. Six-seven Daniel Saulin gives them size inside and Brooklyn-born transfer Jayden Thomas, who got a longer look with Wood unavailable, gives them a dimension they haven’t in a while.

“We’re on our way up,” Mecholsky said. “Everything is leading towards those eight big division games we have.”

TRITON 72, PENNSVILLE 50
TRITON (72) – Leo Impoliazzo 8 0-0 18, Talen Walsh 3 6-6 14, Jayon Sanders-Cash 2 1-3 7, Major Tomco 0 0-2 0, Richie Kosma 2 0-0 6, Mike Campbell 0 0-0 0, Justice Avery 4 0-0 7, Yandel Santos 2 2-2 6, Kasir Baker 2 0-0 4, Josiah Grant 1 0-0 2. Totals 24 9-13 72
PENNSVILLE (50) – Cohen Petrutz 8 0-0 22, Chase Birchfield 2 0-0 5, Daniel Saulin 3 2-2 8, Peyton O’Brien 0 0-0 0, Malik Rehmer 0 0-0 0, Jayden Thomas 4 1-5 10, Carlo Merendino 0 0-0 0, Tyree Young 0 0-0 0, Mason O’Brien 1 0-0 2, Logan Hitt 1 0-0 3. Totals 20 3-7 50.

Triton17221320 –72
Pennsville1511168 –50
3-point goals: Triton 9 (Impoliazzo 2, Walsh 2, Sanders-Cash 2, Kosma 2, Avery); Pennsville 9 (Petrutz 6, Birchfield, Thomas, Hitt). Total fouls: Triton 7, Pennsville 5.

Girls

Good start for Straughn

WOODBURY HEIGHTS – Sure, it didn’t count in the standings, but it was new Woodstown coach Kara Straughn’s first game under real conditions and she admittedly was nervous.

Straughn inherited a veteran team that has high expectations and they were still getting to know each other, and in that there were unknowns. She sent them on the floor for the first time Tuesday and it couldn’t have gone better for all concerned.

The Wolverines jumped out to a big first-quarter lead, held their hosts without a field goal into the second quarter and put their top three returning scorers in double figures while routing Gateway 61-33.

“I was nervous,” Straughn said. “Just kind of like that anticipation of all right we practiced and practiced and practiced, now let’s see if we can execute in a real situation.

“Me being a first-time head coach we’ve got all these ‘did we do enough, did we go over this enough,’ all the little things.”

Straughn changed the defense in the transition, putting Talia Battavio and Megan Donelson at the top so they can get out and run, and it produced 16 steals in the game and a 27-2 first-quarter lead. Battavio had 13 of her 20 points in the first with Donelson scoring 10 of her game-high 25. Donelson had five steals in the game, while three other players each had three.

Shannon Pierman had 10 points, 12 rebounds and a blocked shot, sixth-man Lauren Hengel had five points and eight rebounds, and Alyssa Baber, back after missing last season following ACL surgery, didn’t score but had four rebounds in two quarters of varsity action.

“It makes me feel a little better and kind of got the ball rolling for them that hey we can do this,” Straughn said. “It was a good first kind-of-like introduction to a real life situation.”

WOODSTOWN 61, GATEWAY 33
WOODSTOWN (61) – Talia Battavio 8 3-4 20, Alyssa Baber 0 0-0 0, Megan Donelson 11 0-0 25, Shannon Pierman 5 0-0 10, Gianna Maiorini 0 1-2 1, Lauren Hengel 2 1-4 5, Brae DiGregorio 0 0-0 0. Totals 26 5-10 61.
GATEWAY (33) – Angelina Zagone 8 3-3 21, Bella Fini 4 4-5 12, Gabby Gasis 0 0-0 0, Tabby Bay 0 0-0 0, Sydney Hughes 0 0-0 0, Rachael Summers 0 0-0 0, Maggie Eliasen 0 0-0 0. Totals 12 7-8 33.

Woodstown278917 –61
Gateway27168 –33
3-point goals: Woodstown 4 (Battavio, Donelson 3); Gateway 2 (Zagone 2). Total fouls: Woodstown 4, Gateway 3.

Tis the season

Salem County basketball teams hit the court with scrimmages this week; Salem gets it started at Cinnaminson Monday

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

SALEM – When Anthony Farmer answers the phone and right off the bat apologizes for the raspiness of his voice, you know exactly what time of year it is.

“That means basketball season is here and we still have work to do,” he said.

It’s the price a coach pays for trying to get the most out of a team he believes has the potential to be pretty good.

Salem’s boys lost a couple dynamic scorers and rebounders off last year’s 13-13 team and a 6-8 transfer starter who didn’t make it through the first semester, but Farmer is confident his Rams have the makings to be even better than the 21-8 team they put on the floor in his first season two years ago.

That team enjoyed a 15-game winning streak in the middle of the season and wound up losing in the South Jersey Group I finals. They started last year with equally high hopes and a pair of top 20 wins, but went through some early-season turmoil and never quite recovered.

This year hopes are high.

“I’m excited about this year’s team,” he said. “I think we can get back to where we were a few years ago and in fact go even further. Salem hasn’t had that level of success in quite some time.”

His optimism is rooted in a veteran team with size inside and guard play that’s expected to be the strength of the team. The backcourt is anchored by senior Anthony Farmer and will get a boost from Tymear Lecator, a 6-1 transfer who is expected to be one of the top freshmen in the state.

The Rams are the first in Salem County to get things started Monday in a scrimmage at Cinnaminson. Everyone else in the county hits the court start Tuesday.

“Just (looking) for the guys to compete, not hang their head,” Farmer said. “It’ll look ugly at times because you’re not there, but just do the little things, compete, share the ball, take the right shots; just go in there and do the things that people don’t write about, but things that win games.”

The Rams open the season for real against defending Group I state champion Woodbury in Penns Grove’s Red Devil Classic. Later this month they’ll travel to Bayonne for a holiday tournament in which they’ll face a Charlestown (Mass.) team that went 21-5 a year ago. They have set up a GoFundMe page to help defray expenses on their first overnight tournament trip.

Here is this week’s scrimmage schedule:

MONDAY
Boys
Salem at Cinnaminson, 3:45 p.m.

TUESDAY 
Girls
Schalick at Cumberland Christian, 4 p.m.
Woodstown at Gateway, 4 p.m.
Haddon Twp. at Penns Grove, 4:15 p.m.
Boys
Cumberland Christian at Schalick, 4 p.m.
Gateway at Woodstown, 4 p.m.
Triton at Pennsville, 4 p.m.

WEDNESDAY
Girls
Pennsville at Millville, 4 p.m.
Camden Academy at Salem Tech, 5:30 p.m.
Boys
Kipp at Penns Grove, 4 p.m.
Schalick at Clearview, 4 p.m.

THURSDAY
Girls
Paulsboro at Penns Grove, 4 p.m.
Salem at Bridgeton, 4 p.m.
West Deptford at Schalick, 4 p.m.
Camden Co. Tech at Salem Tech, 5:30 p.m.
Boys
Egg Harbor Twp. at Penns Grove, 4 p.m.
Paulsboro at Pennsville, 4 p.m.
Salem Tech at Camden Co. Tech, 5:30 p.m.

FRIDAY
Girls
Camden Tech at Woodstown, 4 p.m.
Boys
Salem at Bridgeton, 4 p.m.

SATURDAY
Boys
Brandywine at Woodstown, 10 a.m.




This week’s schedule

Here is the high school sports schedule for teams in Salem County for the week of Dec. 4-9; x-scrimmages

MONDAY
BASKETBALL
Boys
x-Salem at Cinnaminson, 3:45 p.m.

BOWLING
Salem vs. West Deptford, Wood Lanes, 4 p.m.
Salem Tech vs. Atlantic County Tech, 4 p.m.

TUESDAY 
BASKETBALL
Girls
x-Schalick at Cumberland Christian, 4 p.m.
x-Woodstown at Gateway, 4 p.m.
x-Haddon Twp. at Penns Grove, 4:15 p.m.
Boys
x-Cumberland Christian at Schalick, 4 p.m.
x-Gateway at Woodstown, 4 p.m.
x-Triton at Pennsville, 4 p.m.

WEDNESDAY
BASKETBALL
Girls
x-Pennsville at Millville, 4 p.m.
x-Camden Academy at Salem Tech, 5:30 p.m.
Boys
x-Kipp at Penns Grove, 4 p.m.
x-Schalick at Clearview, 4 p.m.

WRESTLING
x-Pennsville at Highland Regional, 3:30 p.m.

BOWLING
Salem vs. Gloucester City, Wood Lanes, 4 p.m.
Salem Tech at Clayton

THURSDAY
BASKETBALL
Girls
x-Paulsboro at Penns Grove, 4 p.m.
x-Salem at Bridgeton, 4 p.m.
x-West Deptford at Schalick, 4 p.m.
x-Camden Co. Tech at Salem Tech, 5:30 p.m.
Boys
x-Egg Harbor Twp. at Penns Grove, 4 p.m.
x-Paulsboro at Pennsville, 4 p.m.
x-Salem Tech at Camden Co. Tech, 5:30 p.m.

FRIDAY
BASKETBALL
Girls
x-Camden Tech at Woodstown, 4 p.m.
Boys
x-Salem at Bridgeton, 4 p.m.

SWIMMING
Salem vs. Gloucester Catholic at GCIT, 7:15 p.m.
Schalick vs Woodstown at GCIT, 8:15 p.m.

SATURDAY
BASKETBALL
Boys
x-Brandywine at Woodstown, 10 a.m.

Shuffling the deck

WJFL Diamond Division gets even tougher with 4 county teams, last two Group I state finalists, Pennsville out on its own, may appeal

WEST JERSEY FOOTBALL LEAGUE
2024-25 Salem County alignments
(2023 record in parenthesis)
Division 6: Glassboro (9-4), Penns Grove (6-6), Salem (2-8), Schalick (11-1), Woodbury (7-4), Woodstown (9-3).
Division 15: Buena (0-8), Clayton (5-5), Gateway (2-8), Gloucester Catholic (2-7), Lindenwold (1-9), Pennsville (6-4), Pitman (6-4).

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

Just when you thought it might not have been possible to make the West Jersey Football League’s Diamond Division any tougher, the league went ahead and did it.

Barring the approval of any appeals, Salem County’s five high school football teams will be scattered across two divisions for the next two years, with four of them assigned to what already was the most demanding Group I division in the state.

South Jersey Group I champion Woodstown, Central Jersey runner-up Schalick, Penns Grove and Salem will be aligned with 2022 state champion Woodbury and 2023 state runnerup Glassboro in what currently is called Division 6, basically the Diamond Division. All six teams were playoff teams this past season and had a combined record of 44-26.

“We’ve always been a loaded division; welcome to the party, Schalick and Glassboro,” Penns Grove coach John Emel said. “They kept the tradition of keeping all the best Group I schools together. I’ll make a prediction right now: The team that goes to the state finals comes out of that division.”

Schalick and Glassboro are new to the division, while Paulsboro was moved out in this round of WJFL reshuffling after going 1-7 this past season.

Schalick was promoted for its success the last two seasons. The Cougars, 0-7 in coach Mike Wilson’s first season in 2020, won the Horizon Division each of the last two years while posting overall records of 7-3 and 11-1. They lost to Glassboro in the Central Jersey championship game.

“With the amount of kids we have coming back, we’re ready for the jump,” Wilson said. “It’s playoffs in the regular season; it’s going to be fun. It absolutely is a top-heavy division, it’s going to be all good teams, but with the program we have coming back, I think we’ll be fine.”

The only negative for Wilson, a staunch traditionalist, is the possibility of his team playing three Saturday games within the division depending on how the schedule falls. Woodbury, Penns Grove and Salem traditionally play their home games on Saturdays.

“I’m more upset about that than anything else,” he said. “I grew up always playing Friday night. I’ve only played a handful of Saturday games. That’s the only thing I don’t like about the whole thing. Everything else is fine. We’ll play whoever you give us.”

Salem coach Danny Mendoza was less concerned about the stoutness of the division as the size of it. Five teams is comfortable, but six or more, he said, takes the flexibility of scheduling out of coaches’ hands.

“It’s not about it being tougher, it’s about it being to a point where you can’t balance your schedule,” he said. “They’ve pretty much made your schedule for you.

“We’re not scared of anybody, we’re not scared of competition. You look at our schedule last year, we ran from no one. we ran from zero people. This isn’t along the lines of ducking any smoke or competition. It’s along the lines of giving our guys a chance to go play other teams and test our waters. This is insane.”

Pennsville, meanwhile, is the county team on the outside. The Eagles went from 1-8 to 6-4 this past season and were the first team out of the South Jersey Group I playoff alignment, but they assigned one of the league’s seven-team divisions – Division 15 – with Lindenwold, Gloucester Catholic, Clayton, Pitman, Buena and Gateway. 

“I thought we’d be with more of the teams we were last year (in the Royal Division) still,” Eagles coach Mike Healy said. “It’s a completely new division. We hoped we’d be in a higher division, but that’s not how it turned out.”

Pitman and Gateway are the only teams they played last year in Royal Division. The teams in the new division were a combined 22-45 last season, with only the upward-trending Eagles (6-4) and Pitman (6-4) posting winning records. The Eagles may have a better chance to win a division, but harder to build a lot of power points.

“It’d definitely be exciting to have a chance to win the division, for sure,” Healy said.

Schools have a chance to appeal the alignment before Dec. 15. Pennsville is “definitely” considering it largely based on geography and competitive balance.

Salem County leaders

Here are the final 2023 statistical leaders for the high school football teams in Salem County

Rushing

(Based on yards)ATTYDSTDS
Bryce Belinfanti, Woodstown214174021
Bryce Wright, Penns Grove210127814
Pop Jackson, Salem17212459
KaRon Ceaser, Penns Grove15210858
Reggie Allen, Schalick14383612
Sky Eppes, Pennsville14380215
Robbie McDade, Pennsville1155767
Kenai Simmons, Schalick11254610
Max Webb, Woodstown1075068
Jared Pew, Salem1055014
Levi Feeney-Childers, Schalick663553
Ramaji Bundy, Salem553511
Alex Torres, Woodstown512864

Passing

(Based on yards)COMP-ATT-INTYDSTDS
Robbie McDade, Pennsville101-180-712828
Kenai Simmons, Schalick51-88-19168
Max Webb, Woodstown69-118-78839
Ramaji Bundy, Salem15-53-52361
Pop Jackson, Salem13-37-31961

Receiving

(Based on catches)ATTYDSTDS
Malik Rehmer, Pennsville507715
Anthony Ford Dale, Woodstown192011
Bryce Belinfanti, Woodstown181871
Ty Young, Pennsville161612
Hayden Sherman, Pennsville151450
Zach Bevis, Woodstown142113
Sky Eppes, Pennsville131450
Jake Siedlecki, Schalick133214
Terrence Smith, Salem111461
Ramaji Bundy, Salem91541
Levi Feeney-Childers, Schalick91401
Dylan Sheehan, Schalick91402
KaRon Ceaser, Penns Grove91090

Tackles

PLAYERTOT
Zach Bevis, Woodstown118
Bryce Wright, Penns Grove107
Pop Jackson, Salem83.5
Jack Knorr, Woodstown81
Riley Papiano, Schalick77
Sky Eppes, Pennsville74
Isaiah Upshur, Penns Grove68
Bryce Belinfanti, Woodstown67
Connor Ayers, Pennsville 67
Bobby Donahue, Woodstown66
Dameon Wilson, Penns Grove65
Levi Feeney-Childers, Schalick62
William Slocum, Penns Grove58
Jacob Hand, Pennsville58
Cole Campbell, Pennsville56
Jermaine Loney, Schalick54

SACKS
6.5 – Bobby Donahue, Woodstown
6.5 – Dameon Wilson, Penns Grove
3 – Mando Johnson, Salem
3 – Justin Martin, Penns Grove
3 – Cole Campbell, Pennsville
3 – Daniel Saulin, Pennsville
3 – Jermaine Loney, Schalick
3 – Aiden Torres, Schalick
2.5 – Zach Bevis, Woodstown

TACKLES FOR LOSS
22 – Bryce Wright, Penns Grove
16 – Nasir Stewart, Penns Grove
16 – Dameon Wilson, Penns Grove
14 – Justin Martin, Penns Grove
10 – William Slocum, Penns Grove
10 – Thomas Hymer, Schalick
9 – Zach Bevis, Woodstown
9 – Bobby Donahue, Woodstown
7.5 – Jack Knorr, Woodstown
7 – Eric Sulik, Schalick
6.5 – Bryce Belinfanti, Woodstown
6.5 – Walter Carter, Woodstown
6.5 – Pop Jackson, Salem
6 – Mando Johnson, Salem
6 – Jermaine Loney, Schalick
5 – Damien Eichler, Woodstown
5 – Max Webb, Woodstown
5 – Isaiah Upshur, Penns Grove
5 – Aiden Torres, Schalick

FUMBLE RECOVERIES
2 – Corbin Walz, Woodstown
2 – Tyler Taylor, Salem
2 – Connor Ayers, Pennsville
2 – Cole Campbell, Pennsville

FORCED FUMBLES
3 – Zach Bevis, Woodstown
3 – Dameon Wilson, Penns Grove
2 – Bobby Donahue, Woodstown

INTERCEPTIONS
6 – Garrett Leyman, Woodstown
5 – Jake Siedlecki, Schalick
3 – Malik Rehmer, Pennsville
3 – KaRon Ceaser, Penns Grove
2 – Bryce Belinfanti, Woodstown
2 – Carter Orlandini, Woodstown
2 – Ryan Timmons, Salem
2 – Bryce Wright, Penns Grove

Kicking

(Based on points)FGM-FGAXPM-XPAPTS
Jake Ware, Woodstown4-640-4252
Jack Leino, Pennsville4-727-3243
Hunter Dragotta, Schalick3-531-3340