SJ Sports: Summer Triumphs

Sometimes the results in summer league play can be deceiving, but in many instances it’s at least a good indication of what can be expected in the high school season. Over recent years, the Cherry Hill Recreation boys’ basketball league has been a barometer to measure many of the top teams that will compete during the high school season.

Shawnee won the title each of the previous two years and in both instances, the Renegades went on to have successful high school seasons, winning the state Group 4 title in 2000-2001 and the South Jersey Group 4 championship this past season.

This year a couple of upstarts battled for the championship of the Cherry Hill Rec League. Winslow Township beat Rancocas Valley, 70-54, to win this year’s championship.

One reason why the Cherry Hill League is a good barometer is because it’s among the best in the state. There are 40 teams in the league, including many of the expected Top 10 contenders such as Shawnee, Camden Catholic, Lenape and Holy Spirit, just to name a few.

Now Winslow Township can be added to that group.

"I think we will have a strong basketball team," said Winslow Township point guard Anthony Miles. "We have had a really good summer."

Anthony Miles scored 13 points and his twin brother Antraye added 24 in the championship win over Rancocas Valley.

It’s not as if Winslow Township came from nowhere to win. This past high school season, the Eagles went 17-9 and clinched the championship of the Olympic Conference Patriot Divison. The Eagles won a playoff game over Toms River North before falling to Eastern, 65-57 in a second-round Group 4 game.

Winlsow Township has shown steady progression, going from five wins to 10 to last year’s 17. Under second-year coach Chris Martin, the improvement should continue.

Last year four of Winslow Township’s losses were by four points or fewer. This year, the Eagles probably won’t allow those close games to slip away.

Still, the Eagles realize that winning in the summer only proves that you were the best for five weeks. The summer is a more relaxed time. The players play hard, but it just isn’t the same, without the atmosphere of screaming crowds.

Not all teams that fare poorly in the summer will do the same in the winter. Camden Catholic for instance, traditionally never fares well in the summer. That’s because many of the players are in other leagues or with AAU teams.

Still, it’s nice to have success in the summer. West Deptford’s football team completed a successful summer by winning the championship of its own 7-on-7 passing league. The Eagles went 10-0 and culminated their season with an 18-14 win over Washington Township in the championship.

"You don’t want to put too much stock in a 7-on-7 league, but our guys worked hard and it was a good experience for them," West Deptford coach Clyde Folsom said.

It’s also a good way to enter training camp on the heels of a championship, even though it’s nowhere close to the intensity faced in a regular football game.

During the high school football or basketball season, very little is mentioned about what happened in the summer. The off-season is a time to develop, but as Winslow Township and West Deptford showed, there’s nothing wrong with winning as long as a team doesn’t become overconfident by summer success.

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Author: Marc Narducci