Colonia girls are already the best in program history, and soon they’ll have a banner to prove it

The 2021-22 Colonia girls’ basketball team (submitted photo)

In just her third season in Colonia – though her ties go deeper than that – Sandi Chiera has transformed Patriots girls’ basketball.

At 18-2, with their only coming losses out of conference, Colonia is on the verge of sweeping the White Division, earning a title that has eluded the program since its inception.

The stellar season – which continues tonight when they face JFK, but likely will go deep into the Greater Middlesex Conference and state tournaments – was made possible by Chiera, a core group of seniors, and two younger players who lead the team in scoring and get a lot of attention, even if there should be plenty to go around.

Sophomore Taylor Derkack leads the team in scoring with 17.4 per game, nearly nine rebounds, and four-plus assists per game, not to mention a team-leading and whopping 88 steals. Junior Mattison Chiera – yes, the coach’s daughter – is averaging 16.4 points per game, and nearly seven rebounds, also leading the team with 42 treys.

Colonia’s Taylor Derkack (l) and Mattison Chiera (submitted photo)

All that has combined with great “D” – and seniors Kennedy Goncalves, Anaissa Ruiz and Francesca Rosario – to make Colonia the basketball program it is today: 18-2 with more greatness to come.

Click below for an audio story on Colonia’s 2021-22 season, and prospects for the future:

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