The Verona High School girls basketball team is headed to the finals for the NJSIAA North 1 Group 1 championship after sailing through its game against Saddle Brook on Friday night.
Playing at Verona, the Hillbillies clipped the wings of the Falcons and scored a 49-35 victory. The Hillbillies were in command of the court from the get-go, dominating every period of the game. Junior Sarah O’Neil controlled the back court and pacing, often seeming to pause and meditate before deciding where the next play would be. O’Neil had 11 points and 4 rebounds, and threw the Falcons off their flight path with 5 steals.
Senior Brielle Cummings had her best game all season, scoring 19 points and grabbing seven rebounds. On more than one occasion she simply muscled her way through the navy and yellow defenders to get where she needed to be. Verona’s defense, meanwhile, largely shut down the Falcon’s offense: They held Taylor Harmon, the top scorer for Saddle Brook this season, to just 12 points.
Led by starters O’Neil, Cummings, Julie Rosenberg, Caroline Kirnan, Claire Fitzpatrick and Remy Sullivan–the Verona Sports Boosters Senior Athlete of the Week this week–Verona has moved in a straight line toward the finals, staying focused through a tough schedule that had been made tougher by the threat of snow Monday. They defeated Waldwick High School 58-29 in the opener on Tuesday, and were back in top form on Wednesday, pushing aside Emerson Boro 43-35.
Verona, which went into the tournament as the number two seed, now faces top-ranked Midland Park, which rolled over Belvidere 61-27 in its semifinal last night. The final will take place on Tuesday, March 11 at 7 p.m. at the Bergen County school.
