Preseason rankings. Top 30 teams for 2023-24
It's the season of giving.
And since the girls high school basketball season is here, the Asbury Park Press is giving you a Top 30 Shore teams ranking. With all of the list of individual stats, accolades and everything else, it's almost that time where the team goals mean the most. Some teams have returning stars, some are looking to win their division, and others are hoping to rebuild.
Nonetheless, here's a list of the top 30 teams on the Shore.
(Note: The rankings originally omitted Red Bank Regional and have been updated.)
1. Red Bank Catholic (Last season record: 26-3)
After a state semifinals loss to St. John Vianney last year, Red Bank Catholic is ready to get some vengeance. They have a slew of key returners: Raquelle Mcmullin, Addy Nyemchek, Katie Liggio, Tessa Liggio, Daniella Maletsky, Sophie Smith, Lola Giordano, and Ella Inacio.“Hardest schedule in my tenure will hopefully prepare us for conference and state tournaments,” said head coach Joe Montano. Mix in the number of talented hoopers coming back, the amount of experience, plus times they've faced the best and you've got yourself one of the top teams in the state.
2. St. John Vianney (31-1)
With only one returning varsity starter on the roster, St. John Vianney is still projected to reload instead of rebuild. Despite the departure of Zoe Brooks who's now at NC State, it's time for senior Julia Karpell to make a big impact, she was our preseason second team AllShore. Karpell finished last season with 239 points, 56 rebounds, and 72 assists as their starting guard. Head coach Michael Lazur said they'll look to repeat as division champs, compete for a state title, and crack the top 20 state rankings.
3. Manasquan (22-7)
Last season Manasquan had a relatively young roster and still managed to win games. Now, they'll lean toward junior Olivia Shaughnessy to step up from being a role player to a big piece in their offense. Over the course of her first two seasons, Shaughnessy played in 53 games and finished with 220 points, 46 assists, 88 rebounds, plus 44 steals. This team already knew how to win games, now that their older, it's only up from here.
4. St. Rose (21-7)
With most of their players back on the roster, expect some superstars to hit the headlines from this squad. Sophomore Jada Lynch may become one of the top scorers on the shore this season. Last year Lynch put up 355 points and finished second on the team in 3-points made. Senior guard Tanaiyah Decker sat out the first half of last year so not everyone got to see her true talent. Expect this duo plus more to make a big impact on another winning season for St. Rose.
5. Trinity Hall (22-6)
Senior and Harvard commit Nina Emnace is already a 1,000-point career scorer and averaged nearly 20 points a game last season. Last season her team dominated the Shore going 8-0 in the conference. Now with a good number of returning players and fellow seniors Siobhan Stapleton and Emma Lonardo, Trinity Hall can make a deep run despite the tough schedule.
6. Ocean Township (23-6)
Ocean Township has the power to easily end up in the top five by the end of the year by the amount of their experienced and talented players. Seniors Eli Clark, Gamila Betton, Jineen Ayyash, and Sofia Chebookjian all are returning after committing a large part to the teams success last year. Junior Kayden Clark has been held in high regard and considered to be one of the best in her class. Maybe a year away from being a powerhouse, but still one of the best.
7. Rumson-Fair Haven (17-11)
Senior Raquel Guidetti is returning after dropping 309 points and was one of Rumson-Fair Haven's leading scorers. She'll be accompanied by a list of seniors such as Audrey Winters, Abby Boyle, and Ella Mason to name a few. With marquee games on the schedule such as St. Rose, Trinity Hall, and Red Bank Catholic, RFH will be battle-tested come postseason.
8. Holmdel (20-9)
Senior and New Jersey Institute of Technology commit Allison Cannon goes into the season 689 total points and is expected to hit 1,000 points at the end of the season. She'll lead the way alongside her fellow key returners in senior Jamie DeCicco, juniors Mackenzie Teevan and Michelle Steele. Keep an eye out for freshman Kaitlyn NG who's expected to play a key role on defense according to head coach Jessica Venturelli.
9. Wall (12-13)
Wall is getting their returning senior guard Emily Tvrdik who's less than 150 points away from being an 1,000-point scorer. Senior Shayne Eldridge also returns after being one of the top scorers from last season. With their leading stars, Wall is an additional playmaker shy from making some noise come late in the season.
10. Toms River North (21-5)
They went 10-0 in the conference and will look to repeat that this season. They lost their key seniors who were a big part of their offense. Fortunately, they will still have senior Megan Sias who stands at 6-foot-2 and has playoff experience. Their roster this season only contains one sophomore with the rest being upperclassmen, Toms River North can be a viable threat to the teams above them.
11. Red Bank Regional (18-11)
Last year's team leader in scoring average Josie Munson is a freshman at
13. Howell (20-8)
With key returning seniors like Madison Smith, Gabby Bambo, and Gabby Carpenter, Howell will look to to compete for the SCT and state playoffs this year.
14. Toms River East (16-10)
Two all division players returning in Yana Shupak and Sydney Murphy, plus their six other key returners could make them a tough out come postseason.
15. Shore Regional (24-7)
Junior Reese Fiore and senior Conley Smolokoff are still on the team after being one of the top scorers of last years team. Shore is expected to continue its strong run.
16. Colts Neck (11-15)
Last season, Senior Savannah Butz averaged nearly a double-double with 10 points and eight rebounds. Fellow senior Julianna Kowaleski will also play big for the Cougars, those two alone deserve to be middle of the pack.
17. Jackson Memorial (21-10)
Jackson Memorial lost all three of their top scorers after last season, they'll be looking for a new scorer.
18. Neptune (5-17)
Junior Christa Ramos was the leading scorer last year for the team. Neptune will lean on her heavily for their success.
19. Manchester Township (17-11)
Not the once powerhouse they used to be, but having senior Devyn Quigley who's a consistent 30-point scorer puts them in the mix. She's 910 points away from topping Kelly Hughes (2588) Shore Conference scoring record set in 2013.
20. Barnegat (12-14) 25. Freehold Township (7-16)
After staying relatively competitive last season with a team mostly filled with underclassmen, Freehold Township has the chance to surprise a lot of squads.
26. Middletown North (3-22)
With only two seniors on the team and a lot of returning players, expect Middletown North to be a tougher team than last season.
27. Freehold Borough (9-14)
May struggle playing a tough league, coach Taryn Scinto will lean on her three returners: senior Breanna Cies, and juniors Christina Sikaras and Sayuri Penaranda.
28. Toms River South (6-18)
Toms River South went 0-10 in the Shore Conference last season, they'll hope to change that this winter.
29. Keyport (11-13)
Last season Keyport lost in the state quarterfinals to Point Pleasant beach and finished just above .500. They'll try to stay competitive with the better teams this season.
30. Central Regional (15-12)
With only two senior returning players in Makenna Leszczynski and Beth Doderer, Central Regional holds the power to climb up the ranks as the season progresses.
31. Lacey (4-22)
After losing their leading scorer Riley Mahan from last year, Lacey still has some younger girls returning in the system.