Rebels Go Down Swinging: Howell Falls to Lenape in South Jersey Group 4 Title

MEDFORD TOWNSHIP – When a team goes on the road as an underdog, they can either lose the mental game early or go down with every ounce of fight in them. The Howell girls’ basketball team chose to do the latter  and hung in with top-seeded Lenape before faltering down the stretch, losing 59-40 in the South Jersey Group 4 Championship Game.

“We knew coming into the game we were the underdog,” said Howell coach Joe Santopietro.  “Not many people gave us a chance, and although the final score may not show it, we hung in there for the better part of the game. We matched their physicality, especially with #21 [El-Anita Joe-Samuel], who is extremely talented, but I could not be any prouder of my girls tonight.”

The Rebels fought off early nerves, and two early fouls on Kylee Beam, their leading scorer. With Beam on the bench, Lenape went on an 8-2 run to jump out to a 14-6 lead after the first quarter. Howell’s 3-2 zone was methodically picked apart by the ball movement and outside shooting of Lenape, as the Indians hit on four three-pointers in the opening stanza. Howell switched to a man-to-man defense, and after 8 straight points by Lenape, the Rebels settled down, ending the half on a 7-1 run to cut the lead to 23-16. The story of the first half was the defensive job senior guard BellaRose Marino did on Joe-Samuel, holding the high major prospect to just two first-half points.

“We did a good job of containing them, but I was surprised by the rest of their team’s ability to hit shots from the outside,” said Marino. “We tried hard all night, but they are a very good team, and they eventually wore us down.”

Marino’s defensive excellence extended into the third quarter, frustrating Joe-Samuel into bad shot selections. Joe-Samuel’s athleticism allowed her to get to the foul line, where she scored six of her eight third-quarter points.  Beam also started to get into the flow of the game after early foul trouble, scoring five straight points to keep Howell within reach. Unfortunately for the Rebels, Lenape ran off thirteen straight points between the end of the third and beginning of the fourth and extended a three-point lead to sixteen with just over 6 minutes left in the game. After a Howell timeout, Joe-Samuel hit back-to-back triples, effectively ending Howell’s upset bid.

“We won twenty-four games this season, most in school history,” said Santopietro. “Our senior class won a combined 88 games, the most in a four-year span in school history. BellaRose has become such a great leader, and Kylee will step into that role next year. This senior class has left a huge legacy for the next classes to follow. I’m not mad about this loss. Of course I want to win every game, but I am so proud of the fight these kids showed tonight and all year.”

Marino, beaming with pride while also fighting back tears, talked about what she expects from future Rebels.  “I just hope they continue to love each other. I love this team; I loved our chemistry. We get along so well on and off the court. I just want them to continue to help each other and be competitive. I want them to continue this winning tradition, and I want them to fight to make it this far in states every year.”