Shore Conference Girls Basketball SCT Preview Round 2
By Nicholas Lowe & Doug Brustman SSN Contributor
Shore Conference Preview Round 2
Thursday 2/9/23
#17 Toms River East at #1 SJV 4:30
Toms River East was able to come back from a 15-point deficit in the 4th quarter in the opening round to advance. They were led by juniors Yana Shupak, who scored 14 points, and Sydney Murphy with 11 points. TRE is always well prepared on the defensive side of the ball and it stepped up in the opening round.
SJV is led by NC State commit Zoe Brooks (23 ppg) and Bucknell commit Ashley Sofilkanich (10.95 ppg). The Lady Lancers wear teams down and always come out of halftime with big runs which starts with the turnovers they create. SJV has the size advantage and it will cause problems for TRE on the boards.
Picks - Nick SJV
Doug SJV
#9 Holmdel at #8 Toms River North 4:00
Holmdel is led by junior Allison Cannon (14.6 ppg) and senior Alexandra Loucopoulos (12.7 ppg). Sophomore Mackenzie Teevan could be the difference maker for Holmdel. She missed last week's game against TRN, which Holmdel lost 46-42. Her height will help Holmdel with rebounding and covering Megan Sias.
TRN is led by junior Megan Sias (15 ppg + 10 rpg) and senior Arliana Torres (11.6 ppg). TRN can attack you in different ways on offense with the height of Sias and Torres ability to get to the basket. Senior Julia Grodzicki can hurt you from behind the arc with her 3-point shooting. TRN plays good defense all over with each starter averaging over a steal a game. Torres is averaging 5 steals a game and Sias and Grodzicki averaging over 3 steals a game.
Picks - Nick TRN
Doug Holmdel
#12 Howell at #5 Trinity Hall 4:30
Howell had a convincing win in the opening round over Central Regional. Five players scored 10 points or more for Howell led by sophomore Kiera McKown’s 13 points. Senior Kerry DeStefano had 7 assists in that game and will look to continue to get all her teammates involved.
Trinity Hall is led by Harvard commit Nina Emnace (20 ppg) and freshman Teagan Drennan (7.5 ppg). Emnace not only leads the team in scoring, she is one of the best defenders in the Shore Conference averaging just under 4 steals a game. Trinity Hall scores a lot of points off the turnovers they create.
Pick - Nick Trinity Hall
Doug Trinity Hall
#13 Jackson Memorial at #4 St. Rose 5:00
Jackson Memorial advanced to the second round behind senior Zoie Maffei’s career high 33 points. Maffei has averaged 21 points a game over the last 7 games and is back to last year's form after missing the first part of the season to injury. Senior Chloe Messer, who is the team's leading scorer this season, only had three points in the opening round and will need to have a bigger game in round 2.
St. Rose is led by freshman Jada Lynch (12.7 ppg) and Bucknell commit Rosie Scognamiglio (9.6 ppg). Lynch has stepped up in big ways her freshman year in some of St. Rose’s biggest games of the season. The Roses are one of the most prepared teams on the defensive end in every game they play. Even though they lack size, they play physical and force turnovers. When senior Julia Whesper is able to drive to the basket, it opens up open shots for Scognamiglio and sophomore Cassidy Kruisi.
Picks - Nick St. Rose
Doug St. Rose
#14 Manchester at #3 Manasquan 5:00
Junior Devyn Quigley had her 15th double-double of the season, leading Manchester with 32 points and 11 rebounds in their first round victory over Point Beach. Manchester has seen every defense this season with teams trying to figure out how to slow Quigley down, so they will be prepared for whatever Manasquan decides to throw at them. Manchester will need to prevent the ball from getting inside on the defensive end to limit Manasquans height advantage.
Manasquan is led by juniors Hope Masonius (13.8 ppg) and Katie Collins (9.6 ppg). Manasquan has one of the deepest teams in the Shore and will look to use their bench to keep Manachester off balanced on defense. Collins and junior Carlie Lapinski can cause problems for Manchester with their height advantage. Junior McKenna Karlson leads the team in steals and will look to slow Quigley down.
Picks - Nick Manasquan
Doug Manasquan
#11 Shore Regional at #6 Rumson-Fair Haven 5:00
Shore Regional had a big 4th quarter on both ends of the court to secure a first round win in the SCT. Senior Rylee Drahos scored 26 points and sophomore Reese Fiore finished with 11 points, but her three pointers in the 4th quarter helped secure the win. Shore’s zone defense creates a lot of tipped and loose balls and will look to apply more pressure to take Rumson out of their offense.
Rumson is led by Marist commit Julia Corsentino (16.4 ppg) and junior Raquel Guidetti (11.8 ppg). Corsentino is one of the toughest players to guard in the Shore, she can shoot the ball from outside the arc and goes to the basket with no fear. Guidetti keeps getting better and better as the season goes on which makes it hard for opposing teams to cover both players. Freshman Erin Reid has had a good rookie season and provides Rumson along with junior Abby Boyle with options underneath.
Picks - Nick Rumson
Doug Rumson
#10 Red Bank Regional at #7 Ocean Township 5:00
Sophomore Caroline Polloway will look to duplicate her opening round double-double in the second round. The Lady Bucs will need her to use her height to counter Ocean Township's height inside. Senior Josie Munson is averaging 17 points a game and will look to match or beat that for RBR to advance. A difference maker in this game can be the freshmen Zoe Gulley, Riley Wheeler
Ocean is led by junior Eli Clark (13 ppg) and her sister sophomore Kayden Clark (8.8 ppg). Ocean is one of the most unselfish teams in the Shore and everyone touches the ball in their offense. The Clark sisters and junior Jineen Ayyash can shoot the ball from the outside and take it to the rim. Junior Gamila Betton will have a battle underneath with Polloway and the key to victory could be who gets more rebounds.
Pick - Nick Ocean Township
Doug Ocean Township
#15 Ranney at #2 RBC 5:30
Ranney won an exciting first round game against Long Branch 45-40. Sophomore Haley Poser scored 16 points and showed why she is such a great shooter from the outside. Senior Sarah Hughes scored 10 points and Ranney will rely on her leadership on both ends of the court in the next round. Sophomore Morgan Kotka knocked down three 3-pointers in the first round and Ranney will need her to shoot that well in the next round.
RBC is led by freshmen Addy Nyemchek (9.6 ppg) and Katie Liggio (7.7 ppg). RBC might have the deepest team in the state and they use every player. They rotate players all game until they find the matchups that give them the edge. RBC has leadership with seniors Emma Carman, Molly Kelly and Casey Prior and six freshmen that all see minutes. Sophomores Christina Liggio and Tessa Carman were the top two freshmen last year in the Shore and round out the starting lineup for RBC. Ranney will need to figure out how to keep the younger Carman off the boards and slow her down going to the basket to stay in this game.
Pick - Nick RBC
Doug RBC
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