Three higher seeds sweep GMC Tournament semifinals, as St. Thomas Aquinas, Colonia, Piscataway advance; East Brunswick underway against Monroe

Three of the four GMC Tournament semifinal teams are set on the girls’ side, as top-seed St. Thomas Aquinas, fourth-seed Colonia, and third-seed Piscataway all won early quarterfinal home games Saturday afternoon.

Second-seed East Brunswick and seventh-seed Monroe tipped off at 2 pm, and we’ll have a recap on that one when it’s finished.

In Tuesday’s semifinals – which can be heard live on Central Jersey Sports Radio from Monroe Township High School – it’ll be St. Thomas and Colonia in the nightcap at 7 pm. Piscataway will face the winner of Monroe/East Brunswick in the opener at 5 pm.

Pregame coverage starts at 5:45 pm with Mike Pavlichko and Dylan Allen on the call. Click here to listen.

Scroll down for recaps of Saturday’s action:

(1) St. Thomas Aquinas 79, (8) Middlesex 41: Three players scored in double digits for the Trojans (20-5), who became the first 20-win team in the GMC this season. St. Thomas stepped on the gas right out of the box, blitzing the Blue Jays (14-10) to the tune of a 26-8 lead at the end of one quarter; it was 45-24 at the half. Jordan Barnes scored 20, and Trista Whitney had 16, 12 of which came on four from beyond the arc. Kayla Navarro added 11. Middlesex was led by 11 from Avery Iskra, and 10 from Taylor Lawrence, as STA held Kaylee Devine to just three points.

(4) Colonia 58, (5) Spotswood 45: The Patriots (19-2) jumped out to a 17-3 lead after one and never looked back, building a 22-point halftime lead that was enough to hold off a stronger second half from the Chargers (14-10). Sophomore Ariana Sosa matched a career high she set in her freshman debut last year in the opener against Piscatway with 23 points – including three treys – also grabbing 11 rebounds to finish with her second double-double of the season. Samantha Howell added ten and had two threes. Spotswood was led by Gabrielle Hill with 14, including a pair of treys, while Alex Nault added 12 and 11 rebounds, her second double-double of the season.

(3) Piscataway 79, (6) Woodbridge 49: The Chiefs (15-7) led by 13 at the half, then pulled away on the strength of a 29-13 third quarter. Violet Azcona was the game’s high scorer with 26 points, five treys, six rebounds and five assists, while Alyssa Iduh had a double-double of 13 points and 15 rebounds in the win.

(2) East Brunswick vs. (7) Monroe, 2 pm

GMC TOURNAMENT SEMIFINALS
TUESDAY, FEB. 17 at MONROE TWP. H.S.

5 pm: (3) Piscataway vs. (2) East Brunswick or (7) Monroe, 5 pm
7 pm: (1) St. Thomas Aquinas vs. (4) Colonia, 7 pm