Westfield PAL Girl's Basketball Team Ride 3-Month Winning Streak To Championship

WESTFIELD, NJ — The Westfield PAL fourth grade girls’ Travel A basketball team’s season included one of the longest win streaks this winter in North Jersey youth basketball.

They had an approximate three month period during which the Blue Devils went undefeated against fourth grade A-level travel teams on the road to winning the 2016-17 Garden State League Championship.

The team was led in scoring by Catie Carayannopoulos (12 points against each of Montgomery, Morristown and Tewksbury and 14 points against Long Valley), Priscilla Dayon (13 points against Randolph, 15 points against Chester and 10 points against each of Randolph and Long Valley) and Anna Kylish (12 points against Ridge, 14 points against each of Chester and Ridge and 10 points against Long Valley).

Natalie Debowski and Laura Oliveira were fierce defenders as the Blue Devils’ key defensive stoppers, and Mila Talati was chairperson of the boards as the team’s leading rebounder. Natalie Horne was automatic from the foul line as the Blue Devils’ leader in free throw percentage, and Sophia Gandhi also had superb shooting form as the team’s field goal percentage leader. Nicole Gerckens and Anabel Wheatley were excellent all-around players for the Blue Devils.

“I’d like to thank our outstanding coaches George Handza, Todd Kylish and David Oliveira for their dedication, as well as George, Ron Allen, John Dugan and the other members of the Westfield PAL’s Board for making our academy girls’ basketball program possible," said one of the PAL’s coaches. "We are very proud of the girls.”

(Photo provided: 2016-17 Garden State League Travel A Champions: Pictured, left to right, are kneeling: Priscilla Dayon, Anabel Wheatley, Sophia Gandhi and Natalie Horne; standing: Anna Kylish, Mila Talati, Catie Carayannopoulos, Nicole Gerckens and Laura Oliveira. Missing from picture: Natalie Debowski.)

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