Tag: North Plainfield

by Mike Pavlichko

It’s still Rutgers Prep at top of Bellamy & Son Paving Girls’ Basketball Top Ten, while Colonia’s hot streak has Patriots on the move

While Rutgers Prep extended its record streak to 33 weeks at the top of the Bellamy & Son Paving Girls’ Basketball rankings – the only team ever to hold that spot in its more than three years in existence – there was some movement in the middle, as Colonia moved up with a win over Monroe.

Rutgers Prep (8-2) holds the top spot yet again after a 3-0 week, which started Thursday with a 71-46 home win over No. 3 Gill St. Bernards, as heard on Central Jersey Sports Radio. They also won at Ewing on Saturday and on Sunday against St. John’s College HS out of Washington, D.C., at the Blue Star Invitational.

St. Thomas Aquinas (8-3) holds at No. 2 after a 3-1 week, with Red Division wins over East Brunswick, Monroe and Piscataway, while they lost Sunday in the Hoop Group Boardwalk Showcase to Trinity Hall, 49-35.

Holding at third is Gill St. Bernard’s (8-2), despite an 0-2 week, with losses to Prep, as well as to Manasquan – the top-ranked public school in the state – Sunday in the Hoop Group Boardwalk Classic, 41-38.

In fourth, North Plainfield (8-2) continues its stellar year, going 3-0 with wins at Woodbridge, and home against South Brunswick and South Plainfield.

Moving up from No. 8 to No. 5 is Colonia (9-2), which has more wins than anyone in the rankings, and has picked up six straight victories, since starting 3-2. This week, they were 3-0 with Red Division wins at Old Bridge and Monroe, sandwiched around a home defeat of East Brunswick.

Hillsborough (5-3) moves up a spot top sixth – after a 1-1 week with a win over Franklin and a loss to out-of-area Madison – while South Brunswick (5-4) drops from six to seven with a win over North Brunswick and a loss to No. 4 North Plainfield.

Monroe (6-3) falls to No. 8 after a 1-2 week, which began with a win over Piscataway, but then saw losses – albeit to a pair of ranked clubs – in Colonia and St. Thomas Aquinas.

Checking in at No. 9 and 10 are Somerville (7-1) and Bound Brook (6-1), who will square off Tuesday night at 7 on Central Jersey Sports Radio. The Pioneers went 1-2 this past week, beginning with a loss to New Providence, but then followed it up with wins over Manville and Watchung Hills. The Crusaders lost their only game of the past week, a 42-25 decision to Delaware Valley out in Alexandria on Thursday.

Below are the full Week 4 Bellamy & Son Paving Girls’ Basketball Rankings:

by Mike Pavlichko

Rutgers Prep girls continue long streak atop Bellamy & Son Paving Top Ten; division-mates Somerville, Bound Brook join rankings

There wasn’t much change in the Bellamy & Son Paving Girls’ Basketball Top Ten for Week 3, other than two bottom-half teams dropping out, and two new ones taking their place.

Rutgers Prep (5-2) – coming off a 1-2 trip down to North Carolina and the John Wall Invitational against stellar national competition – remains at No. 1 for a 32nd straight week, and will come home to play its first game of the New Year Thursday on its home court, against No. 3 and unbeaten Gill St. Bernard’s (8-0, which held in third place this week on the strength of a 3-0 trip to the KSA Tournament in Kissimmee, Florida. That Prep-Gill game can be heard on Central Jersey Sports Radio, with tip-off set for 6 pm. Click here to listen.

St. Thomas Aquinas (5-2) – which won the Holmdel Holiday showcase with victories over Ranney and the host team – holds in second.

Despite two losses in the West Orange Holiday Showcase to Teaneck and Paterson Eastside, North Plainfield (5-2) remains in fourth, ahead of Monroe (5-1) in fifth, with the Lady Canucks having beaten the Falcons the week before Christmas. Monroe swept its own holiday tournament, with wins over Marlboro and Westfield.

South Brunswick (4-3) won the Ridge Holiday Classic, going 2-1 in the event, beating the hosts Friday, 61-50, following loss to Bayonne and a win over Hunterdon Central, while Hillsborough (4-2) remains at No. 7. The Lady Raiders swept the John Molinelli Tournament at Hopewell Valley, with wins over their host, then Pennington in the finale.

The No. 8 and No. 9 teams from last week – Woodbridge and Spotswood, respectively – both fell from the ranks of the unbeaten with three losses apiece this past week at Piscataway’s Lady Chiefs Holiday Showcase. The Lady Barrons (3-3) were swept by host Piscataway, Old Bridge and Colonia, while the Lady Chargers (3-3) were swept by Colonia, Piscataway and Old Bridge, all much larger schools than Spotswood.

Colonia (6-2) is finding its groove, as they swept the Chiefs’ tournament, with victories over Spotswood, Edison and Woodbridge. The victories snapped a two-game skid for the Patriots, and moved them up to No. 8 this week.

Debuting in the nine-hole is Somerville (5-0). The Pioneers swept and won the West Windsor-Plainsboro North Tournament, taking out Matawan, Princeton and a solid Neptune squad in the process. Bound Brook (6-0) takes its place at No. 10, with a bit of a weaker schedule, one one less Mountain Division win (2-0 vs. 3-0) than The ‘Ville. The Lady Crusaders beat Koinonia and Oak Knoll in their own Crusader Classic, and will host Somerville in a big division clash on Tuesday, January 9th at 7 pm in a game that can be heard on Central Jersey Sports Radio.

Below is the full Bellamy & Son Paving Week Three Girls’ Basketball Top Ten:

by Mike Pavlichko

North Plainfield – now ranked – getting it done with balanced offense, aggressive defense

With more wins than any other girls’ basketball team in the Middlesex or Somerset Counties heading into the Christmas break – other than Gill St. Bernard’s, which is also 5-0 – North Plainfield is having a banner start to 2023.

It’s easily their best in well over a decade, although last season, their second under Derrick Eatman – who’s also the football coach – they did manage to start 2-0 and win five of their first six games.

This year, though, feels a little different.

For one, they have been solid defensively, allowing the opposition only single digit scoring in 14 of the 16 quarters for which box scores are publicly available, and likely not many more in that fifth game.

They’ve also piled up 93 steals in five games. You read that right: 93. That’s 18.6 steals per game!

They just knocked off the last unbeaten from the Red Division, too. That’s Monroe, and a win that will look very good come GMC Tournament seeding time on the Lady Canucks’ resume. Playing tougher out-of-conference foes was a point of emphasis in 2023-24 for Eatman.

And while there’s no one close to leading the county on the team in scoring at 18 or 20 points a game, they are balanced. 

Sophomore Layla Gutierrez is averaging 11.8 a contest to lead North Plainfield, followed by seniors Saionni Patrick (9.2) and Avani Jones (9), then another sophomore, Kaelyn Hester, with 7.4 points per game.

With all that, they’re ranked No. 4 this week in the Bellamy & Son Paving Week 2 Girls’ Basketball Top Ten. They head into the West Orange Holiday Showcase on Wednesday afternoon at 3:00 against Teaneck, then will play either Paterson Eastside or host West Orange Friday, with the consolation game is at 1 pm, the title game at 3 pm.

Click below to hear Central Jersey Sports Radio’s Mike Pavlichko talk with North Plainfield girls’ basketball coach Derrick Eatman:

by Mike Pavlichko

Undefeated North Plainfield joins Bellamy & Son Paving Girls’ Basketball Top Ten; Rutgers Prep holds on to No. 1, again

The record streak continues, with Rutgers Prep now No. 1 for a 31st straight week in the Bellamy & Son Paving Girls’ Basketball Top Ten, the only school to hold that spot in the rankings, now in its fourth full season.

Meanwhile, North Plainfield’s win over Monroe shot them into the rankings for the first time, ahead of the Falcons.

Rutgers Prep (4-0) only played one game this week, but got a 69-47 win over Hillsborough in Delaware Division play, while the top GMC team, St. Thomas Aquinas, remained in second with a 3-2 record. They beat South Brunswick and Old Bridge in GMC Red play, but lost a non-conference game back on Saturday at Teaneck.

In third is Gill St. Bernard’s (5-0). The Knights held court with a 3-0 week, beating Watchung Hills and Hillsborough, as well as Newark Central out of area on Saturday.

North Plainfield debuted at No. 4, after knocking off previous No. 4 Monroe in a GMC crossover matchup, 50-36 on Saturday, with a stellar defensive fourth quarter, allowing just two points while pulling ahead to secure the win.

Monroe fell to fifth at 3-1, that loss to the Canucks their first of the season. They beat East Brunswick on Tuesday to go 1-1 this week.

Hillsborough (2-2) is seventh after a 1-2 week. They got a win at Westfield Saturday to snap a two-game skid against the top two teams in the county, both on the road, at Rutgers Prep and Gill St. Bernard’s.

Woodbridge (3-0) edged up to eighth with a win over Sayreville, 45-19, in its only game this week, while Spotswood (3-0) edged up to ninth with a 2-0 week, including wins against South River and at Metuchen in the GMC Blue.

Colonia (3-2) went 1-2 this week, and dropped to tenth place. The Patriots won their third straight by beating Howell Tuesday, but then dropped two in a row, to South Brunswick Thursday and Madison Saturday.

Below are the full Week 2 Bellamy & Son Paving Girls’ Basketball Rankings:

by Mike Pavlichko

Usual suspects Rutgers Prep, Gill St. Bernard’s among some different faces who are undefeated in girls’ hoops heading into holiday tourneys

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.

by Mike Pavlichko

Eatman looks to increase numbers to bring winning culture back to North Plainfield

For the North Plainfield football team, it isn’t all about the wins and losses. Not yet.

Of course, they want to win football games, so eventually it will be. But the goal for second-year head coach Derrick Eatman is to increase the number of kids in his program. That will lead to more talent, a deeper team, and – eventually, the hope is – more wins.

Coming off a 1-9 season in his first year with the Canucks, Derrick Eatman will be relying on this year’s team to be the second building block in the house that is North Plainfield football.

Tyrell King and Anthony Penaranda are both wide receivers/d-backs and, more importantly, both juniors, who will be there this year and next to help build the program. Senior Kellan Aurielen will be their mentor, and so on, and so on.

Despite a 34-6 loss at Manchester Township to open the season, there’s still reason to be optimistic for North Plainfield. Voorhees and Governor Livingston are on the schedule before a visit to archrivak South Plainfield on September 15th.

Click below to hear Mike Pavlichko with North Plainfield head coach Derrick Eatman and junior Anthony Penaranda

by Mike Pavlichko

2023 Big Central Preview: United Silver Division

Can South Plainfield repeat again as division champions? The Tigers won their first-ever division title in football in 2022, but should get a game challenge from a veteran Carteret team led by third-year head coach and Rambler alum Kevin Freeman, along with several D1 recruits, such as Sir Hezekiah Ragland.

The question here is what other teams will step up and challenge those two?

Newer coaches abound. Behind Carteret and South Plainfield last year were Governor Livingston and North Plainfield, both of whom have second-year coaches who were hired late in the previous off-season, so the Highlanders’ Pete Ramiccio and the Canucks’ Derrick Eatman actually got full summers this year with their squads.

The newest coach to the mix is Jason Goerge, son of the legendary Joe Goerge, who is in his first head coaching job at JP Stevens. The Hawks will look to snap the state’s second-longest active losing streak – 31 games, behind only Highland Park at 42.

Click below to listen to Mike Pavlichko’s preview of the United Silver Division from the Big Central Conference’s inaugural Media Days:

by Mike Pavlichko

NJSIAA State Tournament opening round sees half-dozen girls teams advance on opening night

Colonia, Dunellen, Highland Park, Middlesex, North Plainfield and Somerville all picked up wins on the opening night of the 2023 state girls’ basketball tournament, while seven area teams were knocked out in the first round.

Dunellen’s win was especially satisfying for the third-seeded Destroyers, who beat 14th-seed Henry Hudson 56-29 at home to snap a three-game losing streak, part of a five-game regular season stretch they had since getting knocked out of the GMC Tournament in the preliminary round. It sets up the only all-are matchup in the sectional quarterfinals, as they will take on 6th-seed Highland Park Wednesday. The Owls got by 11th-seed Woodbridge Magnet 53-33.

Dunellen lost at Highland Park a week ago, 44-29, their only meeting this season.

Follow Sportsplex at Metuchen on Instagram for the latest on open gym sessions on their courts and turf!

Now it’s on to the sectional semifinals for Group 1 and 3 schools on Wednesday. Groups 2 and 4 begin play tomorrow, with non-publics starting play on Wednesday.

Below are the opening night results in all sections with CJSR-area teams still alive in the state tournament. Scroll further down for the upcoming schedule, including the next matchups for tonight’s winners:

Central Group 3
#1 Ewing def. #16 Middletown North, 66-34
#8 Colts Neck def. #9 Hamilton West, 56-14
#5 Somerville def. #12 Jackson Liberty, 44-37
#4 Allentown def #13 Carteret, 59-17
#3 Red Bank Regional def. #14 Hopewell Valley, 58-24
#11 Brick Memorial def. #6 Steinert, 39-23
#7 Robbinsville def. #10 South Plainfield, 31-29
#2 Ocean Twp. def. #15 JFK, 69-17

Central Group 1
#8 South Hunterdon def. #9 Manville, 46-24
#5 Pt. Pleasant Beach def. #12 Somerset Tech, 53-32
#13 Keyport def. #4 Perth Amboy Magnet, 35-21
#3 Dunellen def. #14 Henry Hudson, 56-29
#6 Highland Park def. #11 Woodbridge Magnet, 53-33
#7 New Egypt def. #10 Keansburg, 38-17
#2 Middlesex def. #15 Florence, 63-33
(#1 seed Shore had a bye)

North 2 Group 3
#1 Randolph def. #16 Rahway, 60-16
#8 North Plainfield def. #9 Governor Livingston, 42-37
#5 Colonia def. #12 Nutley, 56-27
#4 Fort Lee def. #13 North Hunterdon
#3 Millburn def. #14 Belleville, 46-18
#11 Mendham def. #6 West Morris, 50-42
#7 Warren Hills def. #10 Cranford, 57-48
#2 Chatham def. #15 Orange, 68-34

Here’s the remainder of the upcoming schedule, including matchups from Monday’s results:

TUESDAY

Central Group 4
#16 North Brunswick at #1 Hightstown
#9 Marlboro at #8 Old Bridge
#13 West Windsor-Plainsboro North at #4 East Brunswick
#14 Northern Burlington at #3 Monroe
#15 Freehold Township at #2 South Brunswick

Central Group 2
#11 Bound Brook at #6 Spotswood
#10 South River at #7 Metuchen

North 2 Group 4
#9 Woodbridge at #8 Hillsborough
#12 Union at #5 Edison
#11 Franklin at #6 Watchung Hills
#10 Ridge at #7 Scotch Plains-Fanwood

North 2 Group 2
#13 Bernards at #4 Dayton

WEDNESDAY

Central Group 3 Quarterfinals
#8 Colts Neck at #1 Ewing
#5 Somerville at #4 Allentown
#11 Brick Memorial at #3 Red Bank Regional
#7 Robbinsville at #2 Ocean Twp.

Central Group 1 Quarterfinals
#8 South Hunterdon at #1 Shore
#13 Keyport at #5 Pt. Pleasant Beach
#6 Highland Park at #3 Dunellen
#7 New Egypt at #2 Middlesex

North 2 Group 3 Quarterfinals
#8 North Plainfield at #1 Randolph
#5 Colonia at #4 Fort Lee
#11 Mendham at #3 Millburn
#7 Warren Hills at #2 Chatham

Non-Public South A First Round

#9 Our Lady of Mercy at #8 Pingry
#12 Union Catholic at #5 St. Thomas Aquinas
#11 Immaculata at #6 Camden Catholic

Non-Public South B First Round
#14 Moorestown Prep at #3 Rutgers Prep
#11 Timothy Christian at #6 Trenton Catholic
#10 Calvary Christian at #7 Bishop Eustace

FRIDAY

Non-Public North B Quarterfinals
#5 Gill St. Bernard’s at #4 Montclair-Immaculate
#7 Wardlaw-Hartridge at #2 Morris Catholic

by Mike Pavlichko

Rutgers Prep girls hold court in final Bellamy & Son Paving Top Ten before season’s end

In the last Bellamy & Son Paving Girls’ Basketball rankings before the end of the season, Rutgers Prep held onto the top position, making it 26 weeks out of 26 the Lady Argonauts have been No. 1 in the three-year history of the rankings.

Prep is 15-3, with wins last week over Blair and Rumson-Fair Haven, the latter coming in the Coaches’ Choice USA Shore Conference Challenge.

Holding on at No. 2 is St. Thomas Aquinas (17-5) which went 2-1 last week, including a loss to two-point loss to state-ranked Saddle River Dayy, a win over Colonia, and a victory over Wall in the Coaches’ Choice showcase.

Gill St. Bernard’s (14-5) holds at No. 3 after a 2-1 week, with the only area game a 74-45 win over Pingry.

South Brunswick (15-6) and Edison (18-4) flip-flopped on the strength of a 2-1 week that included a Vikings’ win over the Eagles on Friday, 61-34.

Bernards (14-5 held in sixth with two non-league wins over Johnson and Parsippany Hills, while Watchung Hills (15-4) remained in seventh, having not played last week.

Middlesex (15-5) moved up two spots to No., 8, with a 2-1 week that included wins over North and South Plainfield, and a loss playing up to the Red Division and East Brunswick.

Hillsborough (12-9) split four games last week to hold in ninth place, beating Monroe and Pemberton, falling to Pennginton and Ewing, while Monroe joined the Top Ten at No. 10. The Falcons were 2-1 with win at North Brunswick, home over Mount St. Mary, and a loss at Marlboro in non-conference play.

Previous No. 8 North Plainfield (14-6) dropped out.

Below are the full Bellamy & Son Paving Girls’ Basketball Rankings for Week 8:

by Mike Pavlichko

INSTANT REPLAY: No. 10 Middlesex 60, No. 8 North Plainfield 56 (Girls)

No. 10 Middlesex got career highs of 34 points and seven three-point baskets from senior guard Neysa Aguilar on Senior Night to power the Blue Jays past No. 8 North Plainfield, 60-56 in GMC White Division action.

The win clinched second place in the GMC White for Middlesex, while North Plainfield sophomore Nyla Felton also had a career night, scoring 30 points in defeat.

Click below to hear Mike Pavlichko call all the play-by-play from Middlesex High School on January 31, 2023: