The Record from Hackensack, New Jersey • 134

iirniiiMtTiiEirTir-j---' S-16 THE SUNDAY RECORD i HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL MARCH 15. 1992 'ascack Valley feeing the ultimate halleiige BASKETBALL lected his 400th career win this season. "I think it's pretty neat that we're still playing at this point in the year." Much of the credit has to go to senior forward Heather Miles and junior guard Kim Beezer, who' have carried the bulk of the offensive load. Senior forward Maria Mekjian also has had some high-scoring games, including 13 in the 47-40 State semifinal win over West Side. Amy Adrion, who is battling a knee injury, will go as long as she can on the forward line with Miles, fourth State title in the 7 p.m.

contest at Monmouth College. "That won't be easy because from what I've heard, Egg Harbor is a team with good athletes who love to run, press, and play uptempo." Leading the break for Egg Harbor is 5-foot-9 junior Shea Matlock, considered by many to be the best player in South Jersey. Matlock was the only player to score in double figures a year ago when the Eagles lost in the State final to Clifford Scott, 59-47. Including Matlock, Egg Harbor returns six of the top seven players By John Mayer Correspondent WEST LONG BRANCH Jeff Jasper had a shamrock dropped off at his house Friday 'night for good luck in tonight's State Group 3 girls basketball fi-- nal, but the longtime Pascack Valley coach says it'll take a lot more that to beat Egg Harbor Township. "We're going to have to be extremely efficient with each possession and that means taking care of the ball and taking good shots," said Jasper, who'll be seeking his NJSIAA GIRLS from last year's 29-1 team.

There are four juniors with size Danielle Castalidi (6-0), Amy Nichols (5-10), Stephanie DeFeo (5-10), and Michele McGowan (5-10). This group has carried the Eagles to a 26-4 season and the Cape Atlantic League American Division title under second-year coach Sam Botta. Losses have come against nationally ranked Christ The King and Altoona as well as Gloucester Catholic, which advanced to the Parochial A State vertime goal Marist not ready to celebrate yet beats St. Joseph By Paul Schwartz Correspondent LAWRENCEVILLE If Mar-1 ist wins the New Jersey State Boys Basketball Tournament of Cham- 'pions next Sunday, maybe a smile -will light up coach Mike Leonardo's face. And maybe that smile will spread to the faces of his three stars, Roscoe Harris, John Gir-aldo, and Donnell Williams.

But after Saturday's 67-44 Pa-h rochial victory over Bishop Eus-. tace at Rider College, which earned Marist its first State cham-jrionship, they reacted as if the Royal Knights had just finished a jiot particularly difficult midweek January practice. "We didn't come here just to get to the State final or win the Parochial title, although as a Marist graduate, I'm especially proud that 1 this is our first State title," said Leonardo. "We want to win the rwhole thing." And with players like Harris, "Giraldo, and Williams, plus a stifling man-to-man defense that raded St. Anthony's nine-year Pa- rochial run and handed Bishop its second straight Paro-Vthial final loss, it seems likely Jhat the TOC title will stay in Hudson County for the third time jn four years.

St. Anthony won in 1989 and 1991. Elizabeth won in "990. The Villanova-bound Harris scored 26 points (for a career total of 2,018) and earned Most Valuable Player honors, while Giraldo, By Thomas Simone Jr. Correspondent MORRIS TOWNSHIP Senior goalie Dave Lehanski just shook his head and smiled after St.

Joseph saw its chances to repeat as State hockey champions end with 1:13 left in overtime. "We played as well as you can play," said Lehanski, who made 40 saves in the Knights' 3-2 final-round loss to Delbarton Saturday. "This was not the way I would've liked to end my high school career, but we have nothing to be ashamed of." Center Matt Durney was initially given credit for scoring the game-winner in overtime, but once the confusion had settled, John Sullivan got the goal that gave Delbarton its first outright State championship. With the win, the Green Wave ended the Green Knights' chance to repeat in the final of the New Jersey State In terscholastic Athletic Association hockey tournament in the Mennen Arena. Delbarton also was co-champion with St.

Joseph in 1989. "It's a shame that someone had to lose this game," said St. Joseph coach Ron Skibin. "My players played their hearts out, and you couldn't ask them for any more. "David Lehanski put on a spectacular show out there and he deserves better.

We came in as defending champions and Delbarton had to earn this one." St. Joseph had beaten Delbarton in last year's State final, 3-2, with a goal with 1:16 left in overtime. "I guess you can call it payback for last year," said Delbarton coach Jim Brady. "But you have to love what we watched tonight. A great game played by two teams with no quit." Delbarton (23-3-2) had a chance to win in regulation when Sullivan had a breakaway with eight sec STEVE HOCKSTEtNTHE RECORD Donnell Williams of Marist, right, battles for a rebound with Bill Harvey of Bishop Eustace In Marist's Parochial title victory.

while Anna Lee plays alongside Beezer in the backcourt and does the majority of the ball handling. Senior Ali Hirschman is the first player off the Indians' bench. The Pascack Valley-Egg Harbor game will end a full slate of action at Monmouth. The day starts with the Group 2 title game at noon matching Jefferson (27-3) against Middle Township (30-0). At 1:30 p.m., the Group 1 crown will be contested between Whippany Park (24-5) and South Hunterdon (25-1).

The Group 4 final at 5:30 p.m. matches Linden (24-2) and Piscataway (25-3). onds remaining, but Lehanski, who was brilliant throughout, made a kick save as both players went crashing into the goal. "I thought that that play would give us the momentum going into overtime," Lehanski said. "But Delbarton continued to pressure us." In overtime, Lehanski continued his stellar play, stopping consecutive shots by Sullivan, Durney, and Greg Pendy, but the Green Wave finally was able to put one past him when it mattered most.

Lehanski stopped two initial shots by Durney before Sullivan's shot found its way through a crowd of players into the net. "We had a great season," Skibin said. "We played well down the stretch winning the division and Gordon Cup and we reached the final. There's nothing more to say." Both teams started out tentatively in the first period, with neither able to sustain pressure. St.

Joseph (23-5-1) had to kill off a penalty 1:10 into the game when defenseman Keith Bland was sent off for elbowing. During that span, Lehanski came up with several good saves. St. Joseph finally got on the board with a power-play goal 5:02 of the second period. Pendy was sent off for hooking at 11:54, and with four seconds left on the power play, Ryan McKenna scored off a pass from Pat Moran from behind the net for a 1-0 lead.

The Green Knights upped their lead to 2-0 at 8:27 of the period, when McKenna's point shot was stopped by goalie Dan Whelan, but Whelan misplayed the rebound and Peter Hurry stuffed the puck between his legs for a 2-0 advantage. Summaries on S-17 PAR. GIRLS the 16-0 streak that covered nearly eight minutes. Lasalandra acknowledged Somogyi's talent, but spent more time praising St. Peter's forward Amber Sincak, who held DePaul star Kara McGoldrick to six points before exiting with two minutes left.

McGoldrick, Passaic County's leading scorer who had averaged 26 points in three previous State wins, finished with J2 points. "Number 50 Sincak did a real good job on Kara," said Lasalandra, who has won three Softball and a field hockey State title in her career at DePaul. "They did a fine defensive job on us all game and she was the real hero." "She got in my face and never got out of it the whole game," said McGoldrick, who made six of 19 shots overall. "She's so quick and has such long arms, I couldn't get open all day." After the early run, DePaul stayed close until early in the second quarter, when Somogyi ran off 11 straight points to turn a 30-21 game into a 20-point lead. The Spartans outrebounded St.

Peter's, 40-33, led by Jen Vander-Brink's 13 and Alicia Charles' 11. But DePaul hit just 14 of 55 shots. Lasalandra is optimistic about a return trip next year, as she loses only Clifford and reserve Sheila Fraser. "I'm thrilled to make the final, although I'm not happy with how we played today," she said. "The first thing about getting back is that we have to know it's not going to be a free ride.

But I think we can get back next year." Box scores on S-17 Coach beams with pride despite QP loss semfinals, and Middle Township, which will play today for the Group 2 crown. Pascack Valley (30-1) had its record blemished only by Northern Valley at Old Tappan in the Northern Bergen Interscholastic League. The Indians captured the NBIL Division 2 crown as well as the Bergen County tournament in a season Jasper says he never expected. "This has been kind of a little dream," said Jasper, who also col- Joseph's of Metuchen in the Parochial A boys basketball final at Rider College. The victory gave the Pirates their second straight championship.

"And this time we're going to win the Tournament of Champions," said Knight. Wardell Strickland led the winners with 15 points and nine rebounds while Knight scored 13 and handed out six assists. experience. Sophomore Christine Green-halgh, who, along with Villanueva scored a team-high seven points Saturday, has a knack for scoring from three-point range, as she showed Tuesday in the North Parochial A title game against Paramus Catholic. No matter what happens next season, one thing is assured.

QP will return players who have learned how to win through hustle and determination. And they have this year's seniors to thank. "This team has come real far," Mullins said. "We've been fighting and scrapping for every win with effort and hustle. They're big-hearted kids." for grabs second straight year, is defending its crown and is the only vocational school to even win a group title.

Timothy Williams is an outstanding rebounder for Tech, and he also provides solid offense with Frank White. This could be a track meet because both teams are fast and like to run. Burlington has a one-two scoring punch in Anthony Smith and Frank Burg, who combined for 48 points in an easy semifinal win over Keyport. i Girls STATE FINALS Group 1 Sunday Whippany Park vs. South Hunterdon at Monmouth College, 1:30 p.m.

Group 2 Sunday Jefferson Township vs. Middle Township at Monmouth College, noon Group 3 Sunday Pascack Valley vs. Egg Harbor at Monmouth College, 7 p.m. Group 4 Sunday Linden vs. Piscataway at Monmouth College, 5:30 p.m.

SCORES GIRLS BASKETBALL State finals Parochial A St. John Via. 61 Q. of Peace 31 Parochial St. Peter (N.8.) 51 DePaul 32 i By Danny Cafaro Record Staff Writer LAWRENCEVILLE Queen of Peace girls basketball coach Bill Mullins pulled his underclassmen aside Saturday and gave them fair warning.

"You have very big shoes to fill," 1 Mullins told them in the Rider College locker room, following his team's 61-31 loss to St. John in the girls basketball A State championship. The shoes or more aptly, I sneakers to which Mullins alluded to belong to seniors Sue Jill Sereika, Mabel Villanueva, and Kara Keszkowski. In the last two seasons, the But despite Eustace coach Bill Lange's claim that the Crusaders were never out of the game until late, in truth the Crusaders were never in it after the first quarter. Seton Hall is A champ LAWRENCEVILLE Brevin Knight captured his second straight Most Valuable Player award Saturday night in leading Seton Hall to a 50-43 win over St.

underclassmen and that's exactly what they did. They made it easy for me." Queen of Peace had its share of skeptics after graduating three starters from last season's team. Even Mullins had his moments of doubt. "These kids surpassed everybody's expectations," Mullins said. "They took me for a nice ride." QP has a fine nucleus of underclassmen that can make it a force to be reckoned with for years.

Sophomores Erika Jarmolowich and Melissa Sereika, Jill's sister, proved to be capable varsity starters and should only improve with BASKETBALL Still, this is Hillside's second straight appearance in the final and the experience should give it an edge. Group 1 NEWARK TECH (23-4) vs. BURLINGTON (29-1), 7 p.m. Newark Tech, which knocked off Cresskill in the semifinal for the PAR. BOYS headed for Monmouth, had a brilliant triple double with 15 points, 10 assists, and 10 rebounds.

And Williams, the junior who was so brilliant in Wednesday's 63-45 dismantling of St. Anthony, scored seven of his nine points during a 23-3 run that all but ended the game in the first 11 minutes as Marist raced to a 25-7 lead. "I was worried a little about an offensive letdown after Wednesday, but we never have a defensive letdown," said Leonardo. "Our offense is 50 percent created by our defense, and today I thought we did well in transition." The Royal Knights took advantage of their rebounding and defensive edges over the slower Crusaders during the long first-half run. Giraldo had five points and five assists in the run, including dishes to Harris for two three-pointers and to Williams for another.

Randy Encarncion and Giraldo also added first-quarter threes for Marist, which did not score or need another, long-range shot after the first quarter. "We wanted to get the ball inside in the second half, and John did a good job of getting it to Roscoe in the second half," Leonardo said after Harris scored 16 points after intermission. Eustace crept back within 27-17 just before halftime, and trailed by only 13 with six minutes to play. Golden Griffins have posted a 45-5 record and have won back-to-back Bergen County Scholastic League American Division titles. Szalkiewicz and Sereika played pivotal roles on last year's 21-3 team.

This year Szalkiewicz led the team in steals and assists and Sereika led the team in scoring. Villanueva, a 5-foot-ll center, came from out of nowhere this season, according to coach Mullins, and topped the team in rebounds. Keszkowski, a first-year player, provided depth and inspiration. "They set the leadership pattern," Mullins said. "It's very important that seniors play a posi-tive influence on the NJSIAA BOYS team that is extremely quick, Cleo Hill, whose father, Cleo, is the highly successful coach at Essex Community College, is the top scorer known for his accuracy from the perimeter.

Backcourt mate Tariq Green likes to take the three-pointer. Allen Mcintosh, a 6-3 center, and Terrell Willis gives Orange four double-figure scorers. Rounding out the starters is 6-4 sophomore Robert Skipper, who was moved up from the junior varsity at midseason. Ewing's offense rests with guards Jesse Glover and Ravi Norman. Glover scored 23 points and dished out five assists to lead the semifinal upset over Woodrow Wilson of Camden.

The key man up front is 6-3 Delmar Glanton. Group 2 HILLSIDE (22-6) VS. MIDDLE TOWNSHIP (28-2), 5:30 p.m. Hillside, with no starter taller than 6-2, showed Leonia in the semifinal that it could handle taller teams by virtue of its quickness. Dwayne Arrington leads a balanced scoring attack and is probably the team's best rebounder and defensive player.

Middle Township is a bit of an unknown quantity, as it plays in Cape May. But it was impressive in trouncing Manasquan, 58-42, in the semifinals. And it's hard to overlook the Panthers' record. DePaul unravels during title shot Group championships up NJSIAA BASKETBALL SCHEDULE By Paul Schwartz Correspondent LAWRENCEVILLE DePaul was handling the pressure of its first appearance in a State girls basketball final until late in the first period, when a thunderbolt struck at Rider College Saturday afternoon. After missing her first six shots, many of them badly, St.

Peter's guard Kristin Somogyi, New Jersey's all-time leading scorer, hit a 25-foot three-pointer with 1:13 left in the period. Although DePaul still led 10-9, Somogyi's bomb signified the end for the Spartans, who self-destructed in a 51-32 loss in the Parochial final. "When she hit an NBA three, it sort of took the wind out of our sails," said DePaul coach Paula Lasalandra, who starts one senior. "I think a lot of the kids were overwhelmed by being in the final for the first time." After grabbing an early 10-4 lead, making five of 11 shots, the Spartans missed nine straight shots and turned over the ball four times as St. Peter's ran off 16 straight points to take the lead for good.

"I'm not sure why we reacted like we did," Lasalandra said. "But some of our kids just didn't react well." "I know we could have beaten them," said senior Justine Clifford, the 1990 transfer from Paul VI who became the heart of the Spartans. "But we couldn't shoot and some of the kids got scared." Somogyi, the Virginia-bound guard who scored 35 points and earned Most Valuable Player honors despite an horrendous 10-for-33 shooting performance, scored 10 points during the run. But she was far more impressive on three passes to junior teammate Tyika Harper that led to layups during By Bob Kurland Record Staff Writer I -PISCATAWAY Irvington takes on Shawnee in the noon Group 4 final to open the public schools boys basketball champion- ships at Rutgers. And the 7 p.m.

i Group 1 meeting between Newark Tech and Burlington will provide the. final team for this week's Tournament of Champions. The first contest could be the I most exciting as it features two high-scoring teams. Irvington (24-i 3) is coming off a 105-90 overtime win over Eastside, while Shawnee (29-1) handed Bridgewater-Rari-' tan its first loss, 75-61. Irvington features high-scoring Kenya Capers, who poured in 37 points against Eastside.

Team-' mate Donald Moxley had 22 in I that game. i (25-1) is led by point guard Dan Earl, who fired in 42 points to upset top-seeded Atlan- I tic City, 82-80, and he came back to hand out 11 assists in the win over Bridgewater. He likes to feed 6-foot-10 Kirk Luchman and forward Bryan Bensel. Shawnee, which hit 28 of 55 shots against Bridgewater, has to be considered the favorite based on strength of schedule. 3 ORANGE (22-5) vs.

EWING (20-8), 1:30 p.m. Orange outre-bounded taller Ramapo in the semifinals and demonstrated an lability to block shots. Orange pach Al Thomppn has a young Boys STATE FINALS Group 1 Sunday Essex Tech Market vs. Burlington Township at Rutgers, 7 p.m. Group 2 Sunday Hillside vs.

Princeton at Rutgers, 5:30 p.m. Group 3 Sunday Orange vs. Ewing at Rutgers, 1:30 p.m. Group 4 Sunday Irvington vs. Shawnee at Rutgers, noon NJGIAA BOYS BASKETBALL State finals Parochial A Seton Hall 50 St.

Joseph 43 Parochial Marist 67 Bishop Eustace 44.