After a tough loss on Saturday, the Highlanders came back in full force today, dominating for most of the game, with the final score being 47-34. Shayna Ericksen made a presence underneath the hoop whether it was rebounds or layups, helping West Morris move ahead to 3-1 on the season. For the Rams, Leah Papalia was a driving force on defense as well as offense and had four points on the day before fouling out early in the fourth quarter.
Randolph’s first and only lead of the day came in the early seconds of the first quarter when Papalia drove to the hoop for a layup. From then on, it was all West Morris with layups from Julia Scanlon and Ericksen and a three point field goal by Alisa Greco. After a Scanlon block and layup, the Highlanders had a lead of 12 to 2 before the Rams came storming back to make it a 5 point game before the end of the first quarter.
The Rams went a short run for the beginning of the second quarter, carrying the momentum from earlier. Layups by Marvina Miniovich and Christine Meizoso helped to get the Rams back into the game. With the score tied at 16, it was fouling that helped West Morris get some more points on the board. Fouls on Michelle McGinniss allowed the Highlanders to bank a couple of foul shots, along with an Ericksen layup and a Jess Poole three pointer, and to stay on top for the rest of the game. At the end of the half, the score was 22-17.
Randolph came out strong, once again, in the third quarter with a quick block and a layup by Ali MacKay, but was silenced when Greco hit a long three pointer. After an offensive foul by Papalia, the Highlanders drove down the court, ran time off the clock by playing possession, and then kicked the ball out to Poole who drained another three pointer. The Highlanders really pulled ahead in the third quarter, outscoring the Rams 11-2. A couple of Randolph fouls and Ericksen layups helped West Morris get even more points, before closing out the third quarter at 31-19.
Fouling played a big part in this game for both teams throughout the duration of the game and both teams had double bonuses at one point in the game. With just about two minutes elapsed in the fourth quarter, Papalia fouled Scanlon to receive her fifth and final foul. The rest of the quarter was controlled by the Highlanders, with the Rams pushing to get the game close again, but never reaching their mark. The final score was 47-34 in favor of the Highlanders.
This game was pivotal for West Morris to win after coming off a bad loss against North Hunterdon. Many improvements were made to get the Highlanders back on track. “We had a lot less turnovers and we hustled more on defense,” Poole says, “This game was a stepping stone. We played like we wanted to win.”