Members of the West Orange girls basketball team gather for a celebration pose after winning the North Jersey, Section 1, Group 4 state sectional title on Saturday, March 8, at West Orange. West Orange head coach Caniece Williams holds the trophy.
WEST ORANGE, NJ — For the West Orange High School girls basketball team, this has truly been an amazing season.
After winning the Essex County Tournament championship, the Mountaineers captured the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association’s North Jersey, Section 1, Group 4 state tournament title after an emphatic 61-39 home win over defending champion Morristown in the final on Saturday, March 8, at WOHS.
As has been the case all season, sophomore guard Rhyan Watt, senior center Anaya Karriem and senior guard Kyley Gary-Grayson sparked the top-seeded Mountaineers. Watt had 25 points, 10 rebounds, three rebounds and three assists; senior center Anaya Karriem had 13 points, 13 rebounds, 11 blocks, three assists and two steals; and Gary-Grayson had eight points, 10 rebounds and four assists and two steals.
The Mountaineers, under 12th-year head coach Caniece Williams, won their first state sectional title since 2018, when they also won North 1, Group 4.
West Orange improved to 25-7 on the season, while Morristown ended at 20-9. It was the Mountaineers’ second win over Morristown this season. The first was on Jan. 24, as WOHS won, 55-32, at home. WOHS also avenged last year’s 60-54 loss to Morristown in the North 1, Group 4 semifinals.
Also for WOHS in the sectional final on Saturday, freshman guard Taraji Muhammad had five points, two rebounds, one block and one steal; junior guard Jordyn Batts had seven points, two rebounds, two assists and one steal; sophomore Kennedy Curry had three points, four rebounds, two steals and two blocks; and sophomore guard Elianna Dennis had two rebounds and one block.
Williams was ecstatic for her team on winning the sectional championship.
“I am just very proud of the team for playing together and executing our game plan extremely well. At this time of the season, we have found a way to come together and really play as a team. I always knew how dangerous we can be if we played together and on one accord. Everyone is stepping up and embracing their roles and because of that we have had tremendous success .
The Mountaineers were scheduled to face North Jersey, Section 2 champion Westfield (24-6 record) in the Group 4 state semifinals on Wednesday, March 12, at the Dunn Center in Elizabeth, after press time. The other Group 4 semifinal pitted Central Jersey champion Hillsborough (24-6) against South Jersey champion Cherokee (20-8). The Group 4
state final will take place at Rutgers University’s Jersey Mike’s Arena in Piscataway, on Sunday, March 16, at 4 p.m.
The Mountaineers defeated fourth-seeded Ridgewood, 57-50, in the semifinals on Wednesday, March 5, at WOHS. After trailing 16-14 at the end of the first quarter, the Mountaineers went on a 14-11 second-quarter run to take a 28-27 halftime lead. The Mountaineers continued the momentum with a 16-5 third-quarter run to extend it to 44-32 lead.
Karriem had 17 points, 10 rebounds, three steals, one block and one assist; Watt had 16 points, eight steals, three assists and two rebounds; Gary-Grayson had 11 points, five rebounds, five assists, two steals and one block; Muhammad posted five points with two steals and one rebound; Curry recorded four points, three assists, one rebound and one steal; Batts had two points, three rebounds, two assists and
one steal; and Dennis added two points, three rebounds, one assist and one steal. Ridgewood finished 18-8 on the season.
The Mountaineers defeated Montclair Immaculate Conception, 43-41, in the ECT final on Feb. 22 at Essex County College in Newark.
Photo Courtesy of Caniece Williams
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