West Orange head coach Caniece Williams
WEST ORANGE, NJ — Coming off a magnificent season this past winter, the West Orange High School girls basketball team has continued its winning ways this summer.
The Mountaineers recently won the Mount St. Dominic Summer League championship, defeating Caldwell, 44-30, in the semifinals and Mount St. Dominic, 40-32, in the final.
WOHS welcomed 5-foot-7 rising senior London Caldwell, a transfer from powerhouse Immaculate Conception of Montclair, which closed at the end of the school year after 100 years.
Caldwell, who helped Immaculate Conception to the Non-Public B state title this past winter, was a spark this summer for the Mountaineers, who were missing rising junior guard Rhyan Watt as she is recovering from a sprained ankle suffered while playing for her AAU team.
Interestingly, WOHS defeated Immaculate Conception, 43-41, to win the Essex County Tournament title on Feb. 22, at Essex County College in Newark. Caldwell had five points and five rebounds for IC in the county final.
The Mountaineers also won New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Athletic Association’s North Jersey, Section 1, Group 4 state tournament title, beating Morristown, 61-39, on March 8, before reaching the ultimate game, the Group 4 state championship at Rutgers University, falling to Hillsborough, 55-52, on March 16, to finish with a stellar 26-8 record.
In addition to Watt, the Mountaineers were sparked by recent graduates Kyle Gary-Grayson and Anaya Karriem during the season.
Williams, who completed her 12th season at the WOHS helm, was ecstatic for her team in winning the summer league title.
“We are really starting to jell and we are happy to add London Caldwell to our roster after losing Kyley this past season,” Williams said in an email to the West Orange Chronicle. “Our big girls are coming together to fill the big shoes of Anaya Karieem and that’s been fun to watch. Overall, it’s just been fun watching the team adjust and new players emerging into key players on our team. I am excited for the upcoming season.”
Watt, Gary-Grayson and Karriem were First Team selections in the All–Super Essex Conference–American Division, as voted by the divisional coaches.
Gary-Grayson will continue her career at Division 1 Coppin State University, while Karriem, a 6-foot-2 center, will play at Division I North Carolina A&T State University.
Other key returning players for the Mountaineers are rising senior guard Jordyn Batts, rising junior center Kennedy Curry and rising sophomore guard Taraji Muhammad.
Photo by Steve Ellmore
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