Grace Cannon. Photos by Jerry Simon.
BLOOMFIELD, NJ (updated Tuesday March 28, 9:55 p.m.) – The Bloomfield High School girls’ varsity basketball team featured five players who earned All-Super Essex Conference-Liberty Division honors.
Senior guards Grace Cannon and Genesis Collins made First Team; junior guard Aicha Naouai made Second Team; and sophomore forward Sarah Edmonds and senior forward Kasey Coury made Honorable Mention.
Cannon was one of the top players in the state. She finished her brilliant career with 1,520 points.
The Bengals, under head coach Dana Morton, finished with a stellar 19-5 record this season.
Cannon and Collins showed tremendous leadership.
“Grace and Genesis (are) two players that are going to be sorely missed,” said Morton. “Genesis is our floor general who had a tremendous senior season. She scored 200 points, had 68 rebounds, 68 assists, and 40 steals. Her quickness and her ball-handling skills made it difficult to guard her in the open floor. She was the team’s second-leading scorer.
“Grace eclipsed over 1,500 points in her four-year career as a four-year Varsity starter,” Morton added. “In her senior year, she had 453 points, 121 rebounds, 50 assists and 59 steals. The combination of Grace and Genesis was an honor to coach. Players like them don’t come along every day.”
Morton also praised the other BHS All-SEC honorees.
“Kasey Coury, I cannot say enough about this kid,” Morton said. “She just gives you everything that she has. Great leader and a great role model. Every team needs a Kasey Coury.
“Sarah, just a sophomore, provided the team with instant energy,” added Morton. “Her effort was always a 150 percent. No matter who we played, Sarah always played her game. Not intimated by size or statue, she has a very bright future in front of her.
“Aicha just keeps getting better and better each year,” continued Morton. “A great competitor who learned how to utilize her skills to be successful at this level.”
Morton was also proud of her team’s season. The Bengals lost to a solid East Orange Campus HS team in both the Essex County Tournament and NJSIAA North Jersey Section 1, Group 4 state tournament, each in the quarterfinal round by scores of 61-48 and 53-49 respectively.
BHS also lost to East Orange Campus in the regular season. The other losses were to West Orange, which finished 23-4 and was runner-up in the ECT, and to Columbia.
“I couldn’t be prouder of this team and the season that they had,” Morton said of her team. “Nineteen-5 is a great accomplishment, and of course, we would have loved to went further both in the sate and the counties. But I believe that the seniors that are leaving, Genesis, Grace, Kasey, Jalia (Santos) and Anna (Perotta) have left a foundation for the underclassmen to thrive and succeed.”
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