ROCKAWAY - The Thomas Jefferson School girls basetball team won two of their last three games but unfortunately for the team, the loss came in the first round of the county tournament and ended the Lady Rams season.
The final game was a 27-15 loss to Morris Plains, a game in which the Lady Rams made only two field goals. The two teams had split their two regular-season games.
"The girls payed with great intensity, as usual, but unfortunately suffered through their worst shooting performance of the season," said Lady Ram head coach Bob Longo after the game. "Despite the loss, we congratulated the girls for a very successful 9-7 season. Their hard work and terrific attitude throughout the season was wonderful to see."
The Lady Rams closed out the regular season with a pair of victories, beating Rockaway Valley, 31-24, at Thomas Jefferson and topping Mount Arlington, 34-18, at Mount Arlington.
Against Rockaway Valley, Melanie Marotta led all scorers with 10 points; Denieka Ellis and Kayla Fleming each added eight points; and Jamie Swenty contributed five points.
Nine players scored points for the Lady Rams in their win over Mount Arlington. Swenty led all scorers with seven points and Fleming and Ellis each added six points. Bonnie Smith, Grace Hartwig, Anne Marie Ciallella and Frankie Perna all came off the bench to contribute to the scoring.
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Lady Rams defeat Morris Plains, 25-23
ROCKAWAY - The Thomas Jefferson School girls travel basketball team rallied to hand Morris Plains a 25-23 defeat in a Morris County Middle School Girls Basketball League game played at Thomas Jefferson on Tuesday, Jan. 19.
The victory was a payback of sorts since Morris Plains had handed Thomas Jefferson a 25-22 loss in a game at Morris Plains on Tuesday, Jan. 5.
Thomas Jefferson trailed, 10-5, at the halftime break as both teams had trouble scoring in the first two periods of play. But an aggressive defense helped turn the tide in the second half as the Lady Rams outscored the visitors 20-13 in the final two periods to escape with the two-point victory, a victory that put the Lady Rams a game better than .500 at 7-6.
Denieka Ellis finished with a team-high nine points and 14 rebounds as she led Thomas Jefferson on both ends of the court. Jamie Swenty scored five points, Melanie Marotta had four; Kayla Fleming finished with three; and Stephanie Medina and Frankie Perna each chipped in with two points to complete the Lady Rams scoring.
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TJ comes close in falling to unbeaten Riverdale
ROCKAWAY - Thomas Jefferson School came close to handing Riverdale its first defeat of the season, but a flurry of last-seconds shots failed to fall and Riverdale scored the last two points of the game to emerge with a 29-25 victory over the Lady Rams in a Morris County Middle School Girls Basketball League game game played at Riverdale on Saturday, Jan. 16.
TJ (6-6) fell behind, 8-2, after one period of play but rallied to take a 12-11 lead at the halftime break. The game stayed close throughout the second half until Riverdale (12-0) moved out to a five-point lead late in the game.
Jamie Swenty, who scored all seven of her points in the second half, hit a three-point field goal with less than a minute to play to cut Riverdale�s lead to two points at 27-25. The Lady Rams got back the ball but couldn�t convert and Riverdale regained possession and scored the last basket of the game with four second left to seal the victory.
Kayla Fleming led all Thomas Jefferson scorers with nine points while Swenty added seven - all in the second half. Stephanie Medina scored four points for TJ while Denieka Ellis added three points and Melissa Townsend scored two points.
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Medina, Ellis, Swenty, Fleming lead TJ past Mount Arlington
ROCKAWAY - Thomas Jefferson School jumped out to a 25-6 halftime lead and, led by the scoring of Stephanie Medina, Denieka Ellis and Kayla Fleming, moved on out to a 46-28 victory in a Morris County Middle School Girls Basketball League game played at Thomas Jefferson on Tuesday, Jan. 12.
Medina and Ellis each scored 10 points and Fleming and Swenty each added eight for the Lady Rams (6-5). Melanie Marotta added four points and Grace Hartwig, Regina Lyons and Ann Marie Ciallella each scored two points to complete the scoring for Thomas Jefferson.
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TJ reaches .500 mark with victory over Wharton
ROCKAWAY - The Lady Rams of Thomas Jefferson School squared away their 2009-2010 record at 5-5 with a 36-13 victory over Wharton in a Morris County Middle School Girls Basketball League game played at Thomas Jefferson on Saturday, Jan. 9.
The Lady Rams, who enjoyed a 13-0 second quarter that gave them a 22-4 halftime lead, were led by the scoring of Kayla Fleming, who finished with 14 points.
Denieka Ellis added 10 points and sixth graders Shaye Clark, Frankie Perna, Cassie Plaistowe, Emily Chan and Courtney Isgett each scored two points to round out the scoring for the Lady Rams.
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TJ's Lady Rams lose a close one, 25-22
ROCKAWAY - The Thomas Jefferson School girls basketball team knows how to keep things close as the four losses for the 4-4 team have been by margins of five points or less.
The fourth such loss came in the form of a 25-22 loss to Morris Plains at Morris Plains on Tuesday, Jan. 5.
Trailing 23-22 with the ball with less than 30 seconds showing on the game clock, TJ had four shots hit the rim and bounce away before Morris Plains gained control and scored on a last-seconds shot to seal TJ�s three-point loss.
Three players accounted for all the scoring for Thomas Jefferson as Denieka Ellis finished with a game-high nine points, Kayla Fleming had seven points and Melanie Marotta finished with six points.
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TJ gets some revenge with a win over Harding
ROCKAWAY - The Thomas Jefferson School girls basketball team gained revenge for an early-season defeat when it rallied for a 33-30 victory over Harding Township in a game played at Thomas Jefferson on Monday, Jan. 4.
The game was close throughout with neither team even holding more than a three-point lead. Harding took a 21-20 lead into the fourth period where TJ closed out the game with a 13-9 run to earn the victory to improve its record to 4-3.
Denieka Ellis scored seven straight points in the final period to send Thomas Jefferson into the lead for good.
Melanie Marotta scored seven points for TJ while Stephanie Medina added six and Kayla Fleming scored four. Sixth-grader Ann Marie Ciallella hit a key field goal during TJ�s run in the final period.
Kayla Fleming contributed to the win with several key rebounds against a taller Harding frontline.
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Ellis lead way as TJ rallies for win over Rockaway Valley
ROCKAWAY - Denieka Ellis scored seven points in a decisive fourth-quarter rally as the Thomas Jefferson School girls basketball team defeated Rockaway Valley, 30-25, in a game played at Rockaway Valley School on Monday, Dec. 21.
Thomas Jefferson came back from a six-point deficit with a third-period run that was led by Melanie Marotta�s six points. Kayla Fleming scored four points and Jamie Swenty and Taylor Johnson each finished with two for TJ.
Thomas Jefferson improved its season record to 3-3 with the win.
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TJ loses to Villa Walsh on basket with :05 left
ROCKAWAY - For the second consecutive game, the Thomas Jefferson School girls basketball team lost a close decision - this one by a 33-31 score to Villa Walsh in a game played in Morristown on Wednesday, Dec. 16.
Villa Walsh won the game by scoring the winning basket with only five seconds left in regulation, completing a rally that saw it erase a six-point Thomas Jefferson lead in the final quarter of play.
The loss left Thomas Jefferson with a record of 2-3.
Thomas Jefferson's Denieka Ellis led all scorers with 10 points while teammate Kayla Fleming finished with eight points and, according to Thomas Jefferson coach Bob Longo "... Kayla played her finest game of the year as she out-hustled everyone on the court for loose balls and rebounds."
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Thomas Jefferson rally falls short in loss to Riverdale
ROCKAWAY - Thomas Jefferson School's girls basketball team's late-game rally fell short as it lost a 28-24 decision to Riverdale in a junior high school game played at Thomas Jefferson on Monday, Dec. 14.
Thomas Jefferson (2-2) trailed 17-8 at the half before going on a rally that saw them pull to within two points at 26-24 on Melanie Marotta's three-point field goal with 19 seconds left in the game.
Taylor Johnson and Marotta led Thomas Jefferson in scoring as each scored six points.
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Defense is the key in victory over Wharton
ROCKAWAY - An aggressive defense shut out Wharton for the entire first half and the Thomas Jefferson School girls basketball team went on to record a 41-14 victory in a junior high school game played at Wharton on Thursday, Dec. 12.
Thomas Jefferson (2-1) broke out to a 23-0 lead at the break as Wharton's offense struggled against TJ's defensive strategies.
Taylor Johnson led the way for TJ with 11 points while Denieka Ellis added eight and Ann Marie Ciallella finished with six points.
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TJ opens season with 2nd-place finish in tournament
ROCKAWAY - The Thomas Jefferson School girls basketball team opened its 2009-2010 season with a second-place finish in the Harding Township Middle School Holiday Basketball Tournament, beating The Peck School, 23-12, in the opening round on Thursday, Dec. 3, before bowing to host Harding, 36-31, in the championship game on Friday, Dec. 3-4.
Denieka Ellis and Melanie Marotta of Thomas Jefferson were named to the All-Tournament team at the conclusion of the tournament.
In the opener, TJ broke open a close game against Peck by scoring 12 straight fourth-quarter points to seal the victory. Taylor Johnson was the high scorer with seven points and Melanie Marotta added six points for Thomas Jefferson.
In the championship game, TJ trailed Harding by 14 at the half (26-12) but used a full-court press to help pull to within four points in the final period before Harding started to convert its free throws to stay ahead.
Ellis led all scorers with 15 points while Taylor Johnson finished with eight.
