South Basketball goes 1 for 2 in playoff double-header

There was a lot of basketball being played tonight at Middletown South and the South fans were treated to two Shore Conference Tournament games.

The boys team lost to Toms River East by a score of 68-42 because of a strong scoring effort by Senior Tyler Fox.

Fox knocked down 4 three pointers in the first quarter to help the Raiders on a 15-2 run to start the game. TR East led 22-6 at the end of the first, as the Eagles only scored one field goal and four free throws.

Middletown South gained some momentum in the second quarter, outscoring the Raiders 19-13 to go into the half by a score of only 35-25.

Toms River East took all of that momentum back when they scored 19 points to South's 10 to take a 54-34 advantage going into the final period.

The Raiders held South to only 7 points in the fourth to ice the game.

Fox led TR East with a game-high 22 points, knocking down threes all game long. Fellow senior Rob Urie netted 16. Junior Garret Thiel had a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds, also adding 4 assists. Junior Peter Clabby and Freshman Kyle Cancilleri both scored 7 and Brian Dudzinski scored 6 in what may have been the final home game of his career.


The girls team won a seesaw battle against Southern Regional in a game that did not look like it would come down to the final minutes.

Southern looked in control as it ended the first quarter with a 13-6 lead, but Middletown South cam roaring back with a 14-4 run to start the second quarter, which would lead to a 23-19 Eagle halftime advantage.

In the third quarter, Middletown fought for some breathing room, extending the lead to 10 points.

In the final quarter, things started to get interesting. With 1:40 left on the clock Southern had closed the gap to 43-39 Eagles. But Middletown South would not go down that easily. Jenna McFarland knocked down two free throws and Brittany Hoffman stole the ensuing inbounds pass and hit both free throws after she was fouled to give South an eight point cushion.

But with 30 seconds left, Southern had cut into the lead once again to make the score 49-46. Courtney Herring and Hoffman were both able to hit two free throws each to finish off the game with a 53-46 Eagle win.

Hoffman, who left the game for a short while in the third after being knocked down by an elbow to the face, led South with 14 points. Herring, Christina Longo and Danielle Pankey contributed with 11, 10 and 9 points, respectively. April Smith scored a game-high 17 points while teammate Olivia Tromm chipped in 14.