Thomas Campbell attempts a free throw as Alex Szczepanski, No. 32, and Flynn Larson, No. 5, prepare for the rebound for the Fourth Grade Celtics.
MAPLEWOOD, NJ – The St. Joseph’s Celtics Basketball teams enjoyed fine action recently.
The JV Girls White Division Fifth Grade team moved to 6-0 for the season with a 22-2 win over Koinonia Academy. Summer Lonning led the way with a double-double, scoring 12 points and collecting 10 rebounds. Hannah Straub scored her first field goal of the season and had six rebounds. Talia Baptiste scored four points and had four rebounds, and Catherine Holt played a well-rounded game, collecting two assists, two steals and four rebounds while scoring two points. Peyton Hollis and Amelia Lisco led the defensive effort with eight steals between them. Holt and Hollis also finished with two assists apiece and Hollis closed out the scoring with two points.
The JV blue boys Meola team had a fun weekend with two road wins. Saturday found them in Clark against perennially tough opponent St. Agnes. The first quarter ended with St. Joe’s up 4-0 and they never relinquished the lead with a final score 16-11. John Pirone led the scoring with 10, and also contributed an even dozen rebounds. Henry Aaron, Liam Haley, and Declan Cavanaugh each contributed a bucket, with 5, 3 and 4 rebounds, respectively. Aaron Budd, Conor Cavanaugh and Justin DeVomevourt were tenacious on defense and caused multiple turnovers. Cian O’Connor set amazing picks throughout the game which opened up multiple scoring opportunities for his teammates. Lukas Alexander was tireless at both ends of the court and pulled down 4 rebounds. The play of the game was in the fourth quarter when Aaron passed to Pirone at the top of the key. Pirone pivoted and executed a perfect bounce pass to D. Cavanaugh who laid in a perfect layup.
Sunday found the team in Cranford with a 35-21 victory against St. Michael’s. The team pulled down a season-high 58 rebounds. Pirone scored 21 points, including 5 from the line, and grabbing 21 rebounds. Henry Aaron scored 8 points, including going 2-for-2 from the foul line and grabbing 6 rebounds. Alexander had 4 points and D. Cavanaugh had 2 with 7 rebounds. Haley and DeVomecourt each had 7 rebounds with C. Cavanaugh and Budd adding 6 and 3, respectively. The team executed a strong full-court press in the second half, which held the St. Michaels tough offense to 8 points.
The Fourth Grade Celtics picked up two victories this weekend, taking sole possession of first place and improving their record to 7-0. On Saturday, the Celtics defeated Our Lady of Peace, 21-12. Will Walsh scored on an offensive rebound early in the game to keep the game close. The game was tied at 9 heading into the fourth quarter. In the final period, the Celtics used their aggressive, trapping defense to frustrate the opponent and close the game on a 12-3 run. Kieran Dawkins led the Celtics in scoring with 10 points and Jerry Browne had 7 points and 8 rebounds. Luke Davenport added 2 points and 6 rebounds. Thomas Campbell, Harrison Zabik and Flynn Larson split time at point guard and ran the Celtics offense efficiently.
On Sunday, the Celtics defeated Holy Trinity, 23-12. Kieran Dawkins hit a buzzer-beater at the end of the third quarter and the Celtics closed the game out by outscoring Holy Trinity, 12-0. Thomas Campbell handled the ball well and sunk a free throw, and Harrison Zabik converted a steal into a fast-break basket in the third quarter. In the fourth quarter, Flynn Larson had 3 of his 4 steals and scored all 3 of his points, including an offensive rebound basket. Will Walsh contributed a key steal and layup in the decisive Celtics run. Tim Van de North added 3 rebounds and Alex Szczepanski had a steal and an assist.
The Sixth Grade boys Green team picked up a key league win on Sunday, downing St. Michael’s in Cranford, 39-27. The Celtics held a 25-10 lead at halftime. Seven Celtics scored as a result of their excellent ball movement and unselfish play. The Celtics’ press put relentless pressure on their opponent, and guards Brendan Dawkins and Patrick Campbell helped the Celtics handle full-court pressure flawlessly. Mike Pirone led the way with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Patrick Campbell had 12 points and Brendan Dawkins added 5 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists. Max Larson sunk a basket on a back-door cut and also found William Walsman for a fast-break basket. Nicholas Franklin drained a gorgeous deep jumper and Danny Guarnieri had 2 points to go along with 6 rebounds. Liam Laskowski had 2 assists and 2 steals and Owen Holt and Nicholas Alexander combined for 7 rebounds.
The Sixth Grade Boys White team, coached by Keith Meyer, played two home games this weekend, losing on Saturday, 22-17, to Holy Trinity, and beating St. Helen’s, 17-9, on Sunday. The defense was led by Charlie Giannone, who had 5 steals in Sunday’s game, as well as solid play from Derek Mingmongkol. Scoring was accomplished by Callan Bauer, who had 6 in the first game, and 4 on Sunday. Declan O’Connell scored 5 on Saturday, and 4 on Sunday and Malachy Meyer had 4 on Saturday and 2 on Sunday. Jerimiah Cook scored 2 in each game. Chibuikem Onyemaechi connected for 2 on Sunday, the result of a good pass from Giannone, while Sebastian Pappas swished a free throw. St. Joe’s White team’s record now stands at 5-3.
The Third Grade team played valiantly in a 19-15 loss to St. Helen’s on Saturday in Maplewood. Six different players scored for the Celtics in a game against one of the top teams in the Pee Wee Blue Division. Hugh Weldon and Nicholas Giannone led the scoring and Patrick Naughton and Hans Archer contributed key baskets.
The Second Grade team delivered an excellent all-around performance against Holy Trinity in a Sunday home game. Dyson Smith, Gavin Lubomski and Eric Farrell provided lights-out shooting. Al Agnis and Jake Wilkes provided strong defensive efforts and helped get the offense moving.
The Third Grade boys came up short against St. Helen’s Saturday, losing 14-4. The Celtics actually held St. Helen’s to only 6 points over the final three quarters, as St. Helen’s took advantage of an 8-point first quarter to carry them to victory. While Ryan Fay scored all Celtic points, defense was the name of the game with Fay, Eric DeVomecourt and Aidan Heindl notching steals, and Fay, DeVomecourt, Josh Pieroni and Evan Straub all corralling multiple rebounds.
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