Greyhounds

An unheralded freshman and a well-known senior propelled the Pleasantville boys' basketball team to its first sectional title in 14 years. Senior Robert Scott hit a shot with three seconds left to give the Greyhounds a 70-68 win over defending state champion Burlington Township in last night's South Jersey Group 1 final at Cherry Hill East. Pleasantville, 20-6 and No. 14 in The Inquirer's Top 15, will face Central Jersey champion Perth Amboy Tech tomorrow in a state Group 1 semifinal game at Brick Memorial.

Pleasantville boys' basketball coach Ken Leary saved his secret weapon for the most opportune time yesterday. Leary unleashed a fourth-quarter press that proved to be the difference in a 57-50 nonleague victory over Shawnee in The Battle by the Bay Showcase at Atlantic City High. The win avenged the Greyhounds' only loss of last season, a 60-40 decision to the Renegades in the Tournament of Champions semifinals. Shawnee, The Inquirer's No. 1 team in South Jersey entering the game, dropped to 15-3 and had its 13-game winning streak snapped.

With Northern Burlington trailing host Rancocas Valley by six points in the fourth quarter yesterday, coach Joe Washington decided it was time for a poll. "I said to them, 'What do you want to do?' " Washington recalled. The Greyhounds' focus group elected to feed the ball to running back Scott Silva, and then it went out and displayed its collective sagacity. On Northern's next 15 plays from scrimmage, Silva got the ball on handoffs 14 times. The plays produced two touchdowns and a 21-13 upset of fifth-ranked Rancocas Valley.

Senior running back Scott Parks wasn't sure if his Northern Burlington teammates would be in the right frame of mind for their season-ending football game against Willingboro, especially because Ellis Smith, the Greyhounds' leading rusher, had quit the team after a playoff loss two weeks ago. But Parks was there to send Northern in the right direction yesterday. He rushed for 196 yards and a touchdown on 26 carries to lead the visiting Greyhounds to a 19-7 victory in a Burlco/Olympic League interdivision game.

In last night's South Jersey Group 2 boys' basketball championship game, coach Ken Leary waited patiently for his Pleasantville team to make its customary run. The first quarter went by, and Moorestown held a slim lead. When the second quarter ended, Pleasantville owned the most slim of advantages. The third quarter was almost finished, and with a minute remaining, the teams were tied, 50-50. Leary's patience was wearing thin. Finally, though, the Greyhounds got untracked.

Ashley Otting isn't used to the spotlight; however, the Rancocas Valley sophomore found herself in it Thursday in an important Burlington County League Liberty Division game at Northern Burlington. Otting, a designated player, slammed a two-out double into windy center field in the top of the third inning to drive in three runs and break open the game. The Red Devils had been trailing by 3-2 when Otting hit her second double in three innings to give her team a 5-3 lead. Rancocas Valley scored twice more in the fifth and once in the seventh to win, 8-3, and remain alone atop the division.

It took 10 innings, 29 strikeouts, and a home run from the bottom of the Northern Burlington lineup to end the game between the top ranked softball teams in South Jersey. Northern Burlington, ranked No. 1 by The Inquirer, defeated second-ranked Rancocas Valley, 3-1, thanks to a homer hit by Lyndsay Mouse in the bottom of the 10th inning. The shot drove in Kelly Lukacis from third base. The victory was the first in three years for Northern Burlington over Rancocas Valley. Last year, the Red Raiders beat the Greyhounds four times.

Pleasantville's boys' basketball team has routinely romped past opponents this season, and even in a state championship setting, not much was different. With Clifton Jones scoring 20 points and grabbing seven rebounds, the Greyhounds routed Boonton, 86-38, yesterday in the Group 2 state final at Rutgers University's Louis Brown Athletic Center. Jones was named the game's most valuable player. Pleasantville, 29-0 and ranked second in South Jersey by The Inquirer, took a 7-6 lead on Noel Gonzalez's jumper with 1 minute, 15 seconds left in the first quarter and never looked back.

The pace was purely Pleasantville, which meant it was frantic, frenzied, and 32 minutes of fatigue. The ability to control and sustain a rapid tempo enabled the Pleasantville boys' basketball team to sprint to the South Jersey Group 2 title with last night's 72-64 win over Haddonfield. Second-seeded Pleasantville (19-5) won its first sectional title since 1996 and advanced to the state semifinals, which are tentatively scheduled to be played tomorrow. Defending champion and top-seeded Haddonfield finished 24-4.

There wasn't too much more that LaMarr Greer could have done last night in Middle Township's 102-65 romp over previously undefeated Pleasantville. The 6-foot-5 junior guard had a triple-double with 33 points, 25 rebounds and 10 assists as the host Panthers (5-1), No. 8 in The Inquirer Top 15, took control of the intra-divisional Cape-Atlantic League National Conference game late in the first period. Greer reached his game-high point total by making 15 of 21 shots and both of his free throws.