St. Joe's third grade boys play Holy Trinity on Sunday, Dec. 4. St. Joe's lost 9-8.
MAPLEWOOD, NJ – The St. Joseph Celtics basketball program recently began the season with impressive results.
The Celtics’ fourth grade boys team began its season with an impressive 25-12 victory over Holy Trinity in Westfield. A layup by Flynn Larson and a free throw from Harrison Zabik started the scoring early in the game. Kieran Dawkins led the Celtics with 15 points and 3 assists, with Zabik adding 2 assists. Zabik and Larson each tallied 3 points and Will Walsh and Jerry Browne each added a basket. Tim Van De North led rebounds with 6 boards.
The sixth grade St. Joe’s white team defeated Holy Trinity in Westfield by 28-20. The final score was deceptive as the game was tied much of the way. It was tenacious defense late in the fourth quarter that decided the contest. The action began with Derek Mingmongkol scoring after driving to the hoop with the opening tip. Charlie Giannone led the team in scoring with 8 points along with 12 rebounds. Malachy Meyer and Jerimiah Cook followed with 6 points each, with Cook snagging 9 boards. Sebastian Pappas scored 4, while Callan Bauer swished a jumper. Bauer also had a pair of blocked shots. Coach Jay O’Connell praised Chibuikem Onyemacchi for his solid play.
The St. Joe’s varsity girls began their season with a win over St. Aloysius from Caldwell. Lily Ramos lead the scoring effort with 11 points, followed by Molly Gray and Lila Price, who each hit a three-pointer and Annabel Callahan adding a basket as well for a final score of 19-13.
St. Joe’s played an excellent all-around game against a very strong team on Saturday. Will Iozzio, Riley Walsman, Andrew Randazza, Jack Clammer and Dara Corr dominated the boards and played excellent defense. Ryan Leibensperger, Harry Laskowski and Will Kostka anchored the backcourt with superb defense and great passing. The game eventually went into overtime and ended with a 22-22 tie. St. Joe’s also lost Sunday 8-7 to St. Agnes.
In the JV Girls fifth grade white division, St. Joe’s won against St. Helen 26-6. Summer Lonning and Talia Baptiste led the way for the Celtics. Lonning finished with 11 rebounds, 5 blocks, and 8 points, while Baptiste had 15 points and several assists. Peyton Hollis and Paloma Duvergne closed out the scoring with 3 points between them. Catherine Holt finished with 5 boards and a steal, and Hannah Straub contributed a rebound and a steal to the winning effort.
The St. Joe’s sixth grade white team turned in its second victory Saturday in two games, defeating St. Helen’s in Clark, by a score of 19-5. Head Coach Keith Meyer admitted to being concerned when his players committed three quick fouls to start the game, but once again the Celtics’ tenacious defense was the key to victory, holding St. Helen’s scoreless through the first three quarters of play.
Chibuikem Onyemaechi (2 points), Charlie Giannone, Jerimiah Cook, (each with three steals) and Derek Mingmongkol (with three tie-ups) led the defensive effort. Callan Bauer led the team in scoring with 10 points, followed by Declan O’Connell with 5 points- all in the first quarter. Malachy Meyer recorded 3 blocks and Sebastian Pappas had a pair of nifty assists.
St. Joe’s sixth grade green team kicked off the season with a 39-16 victory over St. Michael’s of Union. The Celtics used full-court pressure in the first half to build a 20-point halftime lead. Seven Celtics players scored led by Mike Pirone (14), Brendan Dawkins (9) and Patrick Campbell (8). Nicholas Alexander added 2 points on a gorgeous pass from Max Larson in transition. Larson, Owen Holt and William Walsman also added a basket each. Nicholas Franklin and Liam Laskowski combined for 5 steals and Danny Guarnieri led the Celtics with 6 rebounds.
St. Joe’s seventh grade boys won the home opener with a 32-28 victory over a spirited St. Genevieve team. The Celtics were down 17-10 early in the first half, but tenacious defense by Ale Lorenzo and Ryan Barrett led to the team’s comeback. Meanwhile, hustle plays by Alexander Werbaneth, Ryan Nnoli, Kye Haniph, and James Machado keyed numerous defensive stops and created offensive opportunities for the team. Nick Lorenzo successfully launched three treys to lead the Celtics’ offense with 13 points. There were also plenty of offensive support from Nico Reyes and Buchi Amobi, who scored 7 and 6 points, respectively.
The St. Joe’s JV boys blue won their season opener 22-13 against St. Helens. John Pirone scored a whopping 19 points and was a monster under the boards. Liam Haley had a bucket and Lukas Alexander nailed a foul shot for the balance. Aaron Budd and Cian O’Connor were tough on defense and caused multiple turnovers. Henry Aaron, at point guard, orchestrated some strong assists to Pirone and his strong ball-handling skills frustrated the St. Helens defense. Declan Cavanaugh and Justin DeVomecourt were relentless in setting traps and executing a strong full-court press.
St. Joe’s JV sixth grade girls red division opened the season with a victory over St. Michael’s of Union by a score of 33-4. Leah Connell scored 14 as Evelyn Calabrese and Katie O’Mara combine for 10. Sophia Franklin and Ruby Aylward grabbed a combined 10 steals.
Coming off an opening day loss the day before, St. Joe’s third grade boys came out with some intensity, holding Holy Trinity scoreless in the first quarter and taking the lead late into the fourth quarter. Eric DeVomecourt set the example from the opening tip by filling up the hustle stats and getting several rebounds and steals. Ryan Fay carried the team, scoring a game-high 6 points, and Nathaniel Wack chipped in with 2 points with a pretty bank shot. However, Holy Trinity made a run at the end, capped off with the game-winning free throw with less than a minute left. Holy Trinity won 9-8.
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Looks like a terrific start to the season for the St.Joe’s Celtic teams. Many thanks to Gerry O’Connor for spearheading this important program in our community. Go Celtics!