SPORTS WRAP
BY WILLIAM HATHAWAY, JR.
This past weekend saw the continuation of the state high school football semifinals, with a couple of local area teams in action. First, the squad from West Orange has been the road warriors during their playoff streak. However, their Section 2 Group 5 run has come to an end at the hands of Passaic Tech, who beat WOHS 21-7. Leading West Orange was Amir Stewart who rushed for 114 yards in the game, while Adonis White ran for 91 yards. Meanwhile, the town of West Orange’s other shot to win a state championship also fell short, with Seton Hall Prep getting bruised by Don Bosco 48-14.
Representing Newark, the Weequahic High football program played tough against Mountain Lakes, but feel short in their bid for the Sectional title, losing 29-23. Rashawn Marshall tallied 87 yards and reached the end zone a few times for Weequahic, but it was not enough. Mountain Lakes scored 14 unanswered points in the 2nd half of the Section 2 Group 1 semifinal to advance.
Despite the local teams falling short, the county still has a shot at title gold, as the 12-0 Caldwell Chiefs beat Westwood 13-7 to advance to the Section 2 Group 1 finals.
In college basketball, the Seton Hall men’s basketball program has started off 3-1, with a dominating 82-44 win over the Wagner Seahawks at the Prudential Center. Al-Mir Dawes gave The Hall 19 points on 7-10 shooting and 4 rebounds, while KC Ndefo chipped in 12 points and 5 rebounds and Tyrese Samuel added 10 points and 8 rebounds. Leading Wagner was Rahimir Moore with 15 points. The Pirates will be heading on the road this week to play Memphis on the road Thanksgiving Day.
This past Thursday, the Seton Hall women’s squad lost a tough game to a good Columbia university team 83-76. Azana Baines gave SHU 20 points and 10 rebounds, ShaLynn Hagans had 13 points, and Sidney Cooks tallied 15 points and five rebounds in the losing effort. The Lady Pirates are 2-2 on the season, and will also be heading on the road to play on Thanksgiving Day. Upcoming games including matchups with VCU, Wisconsin and Georgia.
In the National Football League, the New York Giants suffered a stunning upset at home to the Detroit Lions 31-18. Their next game will be on Thanksgiving at the Dallas Cowboys. At least they were able to get into the end zone, as the Jets and Patriots were so awful on offense the only TD came on a punt return in the closing moments to give New England the 10-3 win.
Finally, Yankees slugger Aaron Judge won the AL MVP award for his record breaking season. The question on the minds of baseball fans is where Judge will end up during his free agency run.
