North Plainfield runs out the final 14 seconds of a GMC crossover game against Monroe, which they won 50-36 Saturday, December 23, 2023, to remain undefeated. (Source: @NP_Athletics on Twitter)
There are ten girls’ basketball teams from the Central Jersey Sports Radio coverage area who are undefeated heading into the short Christmas break, and then the holiday tournaments between December 25th and the New Year.
The Skyland Conference has five undefeated teams – with four in our coverage area, from Somerset County- while the Greater Middlesex Conference the other has five, and not all are the usual suspects. Scroll through for a closer look.
North Plainfield knocks off last GMC Red Division unbeaten…
It’s the first time in at least a decade no GMC Red Division team will go into Christmas unbeaten. Monroe was the last one, but got knocked off by White Division leader North Plainfield on Saturday. They’re one of three GMC White teams still without a loss, including 4-0 JP Stevens and 3-0 Woodbridge.
The Canucks trailed Monroe after a quarter, but led by three at halftime, and four going into the final quarter of a 50-36 win, in which the defense clamped down and allowed just two points over the final eight minutes. That may be their big key this year, with the average margin of victory of 27.4 points through five games; no one has scored more than 36 points, and in 20 quarters, they have held the opposition to single digit scoring in at least 14 of them, with a full box score not available for one of them. No one has scored a ton of points, but five have scored at least 30 through the first five games, so the Lady Canucks have some balance, too. North Plainfield is in the West Orange Holiday Showcase Wednesday against Teaneck at 3 pm, then will play either Paterson Eastside or host West Orange Friday; the consolation game is at 1 pm, the title game at 3 pm.
As for JP Stevens, they opened up with three straight road wins at South Plainfield, Middlesex and North Brunswick, before playing their first home game Thursday, topping JFK 53-29. Senior guard Katherine Bogutskyy is leading the way with an eye-popping 20.8 points per game, along with 13 steals, tied for the team lead with junior forward Chloe Chan. The Hawks have the next week off, and are back in action January second at Perth Amboy. They won’t meet North Plainfield until they travel there for a big January 11th showdown.
The third team that’s unbeaten is Woodbridge. The Lady Barrons claim road wins over Perth Amboy and Sayreville, as well as a home win over Edison sandwiched in between. It’s their best start since 2016-17, when they won their first six under Bobby Timinski, who’s still the head coach. The top scorer is Angel Smith, a sophomore averaging just under 20 points a game (62 points in three contests). Senior Aliyah Folarin is averaging 10.7 points, and leads the team in rebounding with 9.3 a contest. Woodbridge is in the Lady Chiefs Showcase at Piscataway, a three-day event with six teams. They play host P’way in the third game, at 1 pm, Tuesday. Then they get Old Bridge Wednesday in the 11:30 middle game, and play the opener Friday against Colonia at 10 am.
In the Blue Division, it’s Spotswood at 3-0. The Chargers had high expectations coming into the year and so far have not disappointed. Like North Plainfield, there are no astronomical scoring stats for any individual. It’s a young team, with one senior, and so far it’s junior Lizzie Calandruccio leading the way with 15 points and 5 rebounds per game. And freshman guard Gabby Hill has 15 steals already (five a game) to lead the Lady Chargers. There’s a good test ahead when they also go to the Lady Chiefs Holiday Showcase at Piscataway this week, where they’ll play three bigger schools: Colonia Tuesday at 11:30 am, host Piscataway at 10 am Thursday, and Old Bridge on Friday in the showcase finale at 1 pm.
Finally, Dunellen of the Gold Division also is unbeaten at 3-0. The Destroyers claim wins over Piscataway Magnet, South Amboy and Timothy Christian, the first and last of those being on the road. They held the first two to under 30 points defensively, and on the offensive side of the floor are lead by sophomore forward Wendy Woll with a 17 point per game average, while also averaging 8.7 boards. Freshman Brielle Villanueva-Jadotte is averaging 9.3 rebounds a game to lead the team. Dunellen will host its own event, the Clem Santy Holiday Tournament, at the Faber School in town, taking on Dunellen at 4 pm Wednesday after Middlesex and Highland Park square off in the 2:30 opener. Friday is the consolation at 2:30, final at 4:00.
Two pairs of rivals unblemished in Somerset County…
In the Delaware Division, it’s no surprise as Gill St. Bernard’s (5-0) and Rutgers Prep (4-0) remain unbeaten, while rivals Bound Brook (4-0) and Somerville (2-0) are undefeated in the Mountain Division.
The Knights have three division wins already, having beaten Franklin, Watchung Hills and Hillsborough, while also claiming a victory over Trinity Hall in the She Got Game Classic and Newark Central this past Saturday. Junior Gandy Malou-Mamel is the top scorer with 18.8 points per game, followed by a balanced supporting cast of senior Brooke Baisley (13.6), Tessa Lozner and Sidney Quinn. If those names sound familiar, they should; it’s a veteran group. Gill will play in the KSA Events Holiday Tournament down in Kissimmee, Florida this week. They’re in the “Red Bracket” and play Tuesday against Horizon (FL) at 7 pm, Thursday against Perkiomen Valley (PA) at 7, and Friday against Metropolitan Campus (NY) at 10 am to close it out.
As for Rutgers Prep – the only team that has been No. 1 in the Central Jersey Sports Radio/Bellamy & Son Paving Top Ten since its inception in 2021 – the Lady Argonauts are 4-0, 2-0 in divisional play with wins over Watchung Hills in their opener (by 45) and Hillsborough (by 22) last Thursday. They also have out-of-conference wins in the She Got Game Classic over St. Mary’s (NY) and West Orange. This may be one of the best teams veteran coach Mary Klinger has had in recent years, with only one senior graduating, all the returnees improving, and newcomers filtering in. Sophomore GiGi Battle is the leading scorer at 15.5 points per game, while senior Mikayla Blakes is at 13.8 points a game, and Aquinas transfer Leah Crosby is crashing the boards to the tune of 7.5 a contest. Senior Chloe Escanillas has hit ten triples already, and as a team, they have registered an average of nearly 16 steals per game, typical for a Klinger-coached squad. They go to the John Wall Invitational at William Peace University this week. In the Frances A. Pulley Bracket, they take on Terry Sanford (NC) at 1:30 Friday afternoon, followed by Grace Christian School (NC) and South Meck (NC) at 3 pm. Friday is the consolation at 3:00 and the final at 6 pm.
As for Gill and Rutgers Prep facing each other? They’re back in New Jersey to play Thursday, January 4th at 6 pm in Somerset, in a game you can hear on Central Jersey Sports Radio.
The other two unbeaten teams from Somerset County are in the Mountain Division together, and we’ll have their first matchup of the season when they square off on January 9th at 7 pm in the Brook as well.
The Lady Crusaders are 4-0 overall, and 3-0 in the division. Their games have been somewhat close, including back-to-back home wins to open the season against Belvidere and Middlesex, then a road win at Manville and a home victory against South Hunterdon back on Thursday last week. Coach Jen Derevjanik’s squad is led by senior Brooke Cooper and her 13.3 points and 7.5 rebounds a game, while senior Jamaiya McLeod already has 13 steals. Bound Brook hosts its very own Crusader Classic Wednesday and Thursday. The Brook hosts Koinonia at 1:00 Wednesday afternoon, followed by Oak Knoll and Union Catholic at 3 pm. The consolation is at 1:00 and the finals at 5 pm on Thursday.
Somerville is undefeated as well, but has played just two games. They’re coached by Matt Melesurgo, whose brother, Anthony, is the Bound Brook boys’ coach. The Pioneers cruised past South Hunterdon in their opener, 40-14, on December 14th, then won 37-29 at Del Val last Thursday. Junior Charlotte Taylor leads the team with 26 points in two games, including six threes, while senior Emily Kolodziej is the top rebounder with 19. The Pioneers play in the three-day West Windsor-Plainsboro North Tournament, starting Wednesday in Game D at 4:15 pm against Matawan. The rest of the matchups depend on the results, with four games each on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.
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