Silva places eighth at Group 2 meet

Samuel Silva placed eighth in the high jump with an effort of 6-0 to pace Vernon High at the NJSIAA Group 2 championships on Saturday afternoon at the Bennett Center in Toms River.

For the Vernon girls, the 4x400 meter relay team of Samantha Janus, Jaliann Castillo, Nevina Clifton and Sophia Haw placed 22nd in 4:33.65. Janus also clocked a time of 7.65 in the prelims of the 55-meter dash but didn’t qualify for the finals.

High Point Wrestling

High Point, the top seed, did well to reach NJSIAA North Jersey, Section 1, Group 2 tournament final for the 17th consecutive season but lost to second-seeded Pascack Valley in the sectional final on Feb. 18 at home.

The Wildcats were seeking their 32nd sectional crown and second straight after defeating Pascack Valley, 33-31, last year.

On Wednesday, the match was knotted, 17-17, with five bouts remaining. Pascack Valley then won the next three bouts to clinch the title.

Winners for High Point (13-12) included Gavin Mericle (sudden victory at 285), Tommy Bansemer (pin at 106), Carter Drouin (tech fall at 120), Logan Takach (decision at 126) and Luke Tompkins (major decision at 150).

Vernon Bowling

The Vikings capped a highly successful 2025-26 campaign with a berth in the quarterfinal round of the NJSIAA North Jersey, Section 1, Group 2 tournament.

And while fifth-seeded Vernon was defeated by fourth-seeded Old Tappan, 2-0, the Vikings finished with a 15-5 mark, which included a 14-2 record and second place finish in the North Division of the Northwest Jersey Athletic Conference under head coach Scott Schiller.

Against Old Tappan, Vernon was led by Johnny Pecca (393 series; 225 high game), Justin Passaro (380 series; 191 high game), Joe Mancini (378 series; 199 high game), Zachary Stevens (374 series; 201 high game) and Sara Loeffler (350 series; 185 high game).

High Point Boys Basketball

Freshman Matthew Shepherd scored a season-high 22 points and Aiden Hamilton added 16 points as High Point ran its winning streak to a season-high four games with a 55-39 victory over Mountain Lakes on Saturday afternoon in Sussex.

High Point, now 8-15, earned the 16th seed for the NJSIAA North Jersey, Section 1, Group 2 tournament and was scheduled to play at top-seeded Ramsey on Tuesday, Feb. 24 at 5:30 p.m.

Hamilton, a senior guard, has totaled 74 points in the Wildcats’ current winning streak, including a career-high 31-point outburst in a 69-49 home win against Kinnelon.