Colonia’s Taylor Derkack drives against Middlesex in the GMC Tournament semifinals at Spotswood High School on February 14, 2024. (Photo: Alec Crouthamel)
In the last of the quarterfinal rounds of the NJSIAA state tournament, Colonia and Middlesex advanced to sectional semifinals with wins Tuesday night, while five others – Carteret, Somerville, Manville, Highland Park and Dunellen were eliminated.
That leaves just six Central Jersey Sports Radio-area teams alive in the state playoffs.
In North Jersey, Section 2, Group 3 action, second-seed Colonia played solid defense from the jump, and it fueled the offense, and a 16-3 lead after one quarter against seven-seed Payne Tech (17-8). The Patriots looked like a well-oiled machine, just as they did in their opener over Belleville. Nashaelah Hooker led Colonia (21-8) with a double-double of 16 points and 14 rebounds, while Taylor Derkack added 15 and Hailey Conklin chipped in a dozen. Colonia will host 3rd-seed Mendham (19-8) on Thursday night in the sectional semifinals. They beat 6th-seed Warren Hills Tuesday night, 62-48.
In Central Jersey Group 1, top-seed Middlesex picked up a 58-40 win over 8th-seed South Hunterdon, to improve to 16-13 on the season, and move on to the semifinals Thursday at home against Point Pleasant Beach (14-13) out of the Shore Conference. You can hear that game on Central Jersey Sports Radio with Mike Pavlichko calling all the action; tip off is set for 5:30 pm, with a 5:15 pregame. Click here to listen. Junior Jess Devine – already a 1,000-point scorer – went off for 30 points, while also adding eight rebounds, seven assists and ten steals. Jaclyn Deshields tallied 18 points in the win. Point Beach – the Jays’ semifinal opponent – was a 42-28 winner over 5th-seed Manville Monday night.
Scroll down to see all of Monday’s results in sections with teams from the CJSR-area, as well as the upcoming schedule of games.
TUESDAY’S RESULTS
Central Jersey Group 3
(4) Red Bank Regional def. (12) Carteret, 73-28
(6) Neptune def. (3) Somerville, 37-35
No more CJSR-area teams remain in this section.
Central Jersey Group 1
(1) Middlesex def. (8) South Hunterdon, 58-40
(4) Point Pleasant Beach def. (5) Manville, 42-28
(3) Shore def. (6) Highland Park, 80-54
(7) New Egypt def. (2) Dunellen, 41-28
North Jersey, Section 2 – Group 3
(1) Chatham, def. (8) Summit, 45-24
(4) Cranford def. (12) West Morris, 53-44
(3) Mendham def. (6) Warren Hills, 62-48
(2) Colonia def. (7) Payne Tech, 63-39
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 28
Central Jersey Group 4 Semifinals
(4) Jackson Memorial at (1) Hightstown
(6) South Brunswick at (2) Howell, 5:30 pm
North Jersey, Section 2 – Group 4 Semifinals
(1) Plainfield winner vs. (5) Elizabeth
(3) Bayonne at (2) Hillsborough, 5 pm
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 29
Central Jersey Group 1 Semifinals
(4) Point Pleasant Beach at (1) Middlesex, 5:30 pm (LISTEN LIVE)
(7) New Egypt at (3) Shore
North Jersey, Section 2 – Group 3 Semifinals
(1) Chatham winner vs. (4) Cranford
(3) Mendham at (2) Colonia, 5 pm
Non-Public North B Semifinals
(1) Morris Catholic winner vs. (4) Saddle River Day
(3) Gill St. Bernard’s at (2) Montclair-Immaculate, 5:30 pm
Non-Public South B Semifinals
(4) Gloucester Catholic at (1) Rutgers Prep, 5 pm
(7) Ranney at (3) St. Rose-Belmar
Discover more from Central Jersey Sports Radio
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.