NJSIAA South Jersey Non-Public Finals Big-Time Performers

While the North Jersey Non-Public finals were pushed back to Thursday, on Wednesday, the South Jersey Non-Public finals were held. Two fantastic matchups between four of the best teams in New Jersey took place and not surprisingly, the top seeds for the A and B brackets, St. John Vianney and Rutgers Prep, both took home sectional titles. Here are some of the standouts from those two sectional finals. <strong>Mikayla Young (Jr.) - 6-2 PF, Paul VI</strong> Young had one of the best games of her Paul VI career thus far, scoring 10 points and hauling in six rebounds in the sectional final against St. John Vianney. With Sara McShea neutralized in the paint, Young came up big for the Eagles and played well against a very tough opponent. She picked her spots well on offense to shoot and handled the ball well. This was Young’s breakout season and there’s a lot of positives to build off of for the coming months. <strong>Ashley O’Connor (Sr.) - 5-9 PG/SG, St. John Vianney</strong> O’Connor has played well toward the end of the season, especially in tournament play. In the sectional final, she knocked down a three, scoring nine points along with five rebounds, two assists and a block. She’s been shooting well from three recently and has been focusing more on her passing. With [player_tooltip player_id="134626" first="Madison" last="St. Rose"] and [player_tooltip player_id="134644" first="Zoe" last="Brooks"] running the show, O’Connor has found her niche as a facilitator and perimeter shooter. <strong>Ashley Sofilkanich (Jr.) - 6-3 PF/C, St. John Vianney</strong> Sofilkanich greatly improved her game this season and saw the floor much more often. It’s allowed her to utilize her height to her advantage, which has greatly benefitted SJV this season and will benefit them next season. The junior forward scored six points and recorded a block in the sectional final, receiving passes well and playing a more physical style of basketball. That seems to suit her more as she gets her feet under herself. <strong>Carly Murphy (Jr.) - 5-10 SF, Wildwood Catholic</strong> Murphy had her breakout year this season and has been a great spot-up shooter for Wildwood Catholic. That included the sectional final against Rutgers Prep, where she knocked down two three-pointers, scoring eight points in the game. Her perimeter mobility looked really smooth and she wasn’t forcing up shots. Murphy is an effortless shooter and finds space well to operate on the floor. The hope is she can continue this hot shooting through the AAU season into the fall. <strong>Leyla Castro (Sr.) - 5-5 PG, Rutgers Prep</strong> Castro’s senior season was the best of her career and we saw a significant uptick in assists, steals and three-pointers. In the B bracket sectional final, the senior guard knocked down two threes on her way to a career-high 10 points. It was her second game with multiple three-pointers made this season. She ran the point well against a strong Wildwood Catholic team and had herself an offensive explosion that gave the Argonauts an extra boost of energy. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="319013" first="Antonia" last="Bates"] (Sr.) - 6-2 PF/C, Rutgers Prep</strong> Bates is the leader of the front court for Rutgers Prep and her sectional final performance against the Crusaders was spectacular. While she didn’t have the offensive output of games previous, just seven points, Bates turned into a facilitator, recording eight assists along with five rebounds, three blocks and two steals. Those kinds of balanced numbers is the reason why she’s such a fearsome presence as a forward.