St. Joseph High School of Metuchen’s Marques Townes, far left, is airborne as he grabs a rebound for the Falcons during their NJSIAA Tournament of Champions semifinals against Linden High School, which was played on March 20 at Monmouth University. The Falcons held on for a 63-59 victory, and they were scheduled to play Newark East Side High School on March 24 at the Sun National Bank Center in Trenton for the Tournament of Champions title. ST. JOSEPH
T hroughout this magical basketball season, and especially in meaningful contests, St. Joseph High School of Metuchen could always depend on breaking open tight games in the third quarter.
Thus, it was not surprising when the Falcons did exactly that by opening a 20-point lead over Linden High School in the Tournament of Champions semifinals on March 20 at Monmouth University, and they seemed on their way to another easy win.
It’s a good thing St. Joe’s had that cushion, because when the fourth quarter commenced, the game suddenly became anything but a runaway victory. The Tigers fought and clawed their way back, aided by the Falcons’ 7-foot Karl Towns fouling out with 5:20 left, and actually had two chances to take the lead with under a minute to go.
However, some timely foul shots, the most important by Wade Baldwin with only 7.4 seconds on the clock, extended St. Joe’s lead to two possessions, and clinched the hard-fought victory for the Falcons, 63-59.
The win earned topseed St. Joe’s (29-2) a return trip to the Tournament of Champions title contest against Newark East Side High School (third seed) on March 24 at the Sun National Bank Center in Trenton. The Red Raiders (30-1) squeezed into the championship game by battling back from a double-digit deficit to defeat defending champion Roselle Catholic High School, 46-45.
Although East Side (13th) is ranked one spot ahead of the Falcons in the USA national high school basketball poll, returning to the title game was St. Joe’s No. 1 goal. Even in victory, the players were subdued, partially because Linden was able to battle back to make it a close contest, but mostly because their mindset is one more game needs to be won before the celebrating can commence.
Baldwin dismissed the rankings regarding whether his team or East Side should be ranked higher, and he was eager to prove that the Falcons are New Jersey’s best.
“[One] poll has East Side ranked No. 1 in the state,” he said. “But now we have the opportunity to show we belong at the top.”
While St. Joe’s head coach Dave Turco maintained his team’s primary goal was to win the group championship (Non-Public A), which it did by defeating St. Peter’s Preparatory School, he acknowledged the Falcons were glad to be in the championship game.
“It’s now down to two teams playing, and we’re one of them,” he said. “We’re happy to be there.”
J.P. STEVENS
Steven Szemple left the practice facility in South Plainfield well after midnight, which means the J.P. Stevens High
School student would not arrive home until about 1 a.m.
Needing to be at school like everybody else, Szemple has sacrificed another night’s sound sleep, which, he admits, will affect his concentration during classes.
That’s the price Szemple is willing to pay because, after all, he said the sport he plays requires stamina, endurance and flexibility. No, Szemple has not returned from swimming practice, nor does he play ice hockey or another sport that often requires athletes to hone their skills at odd times of day or night. The Edison Township native participates in a sport that receives its most notoriety during the Winter Olympics every four years —curling.
Szemple is proof that practice, whatever time of day it is, makes almost perfect. He and fellow curlers, Scott Dunnam, Andrew Stoper and Andrew Dunnam captured the runner-up medal at the National Junior Curling Championships in Seattle, Wash., last month. That is one place better than the bronze medal the foursome earned in 2013.
“Curling, at the highest competitive level, requires a great deal of athleticism,” Szemple said. “At the same time, you have to maintain your focus, no matter who you’re facing. The times when [my team] lost, became involved in close matches or [went] against opponents we should have beaten is when we go out on the ice expecting to overpower them. In this sport, you always have to come on the ice and play like you need to make every shot to the best of your ability to win because you prepare for your opponent to do the same.”
Szemple has dedicated countless hours of practice at the Plainfield Curling Club’s facility, which was built in 1967. The club has been in operation since 1963 and currently has 230-plus members. His father, Mark, is president and has been an integral part of the club’s development, which, not surprisingly, was how his son became interested in the sport.
“My father has been a major reason why I’ve been successful,” Szemple said. “I started watching him when I was 10 years old, and shortly thereafter took curling up. My father is one of our coaches and accompanies [us] to every tournament. I also credit my teammates for what I’ve accomplished. This is not an individual sport, but requires four curlers working together.”
Another highlight of Szemple’s career was the opportunity to compete against the U.S. Olympic curling team, skipped by John Shuster.
“We lost by only a point,” Szemple said. “It was exciting to curl against them, but that’s just one of many tournaments we played in. The only way to improve is to practice, practice and practice more. You can never throw too many rocks.”