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Summer hoops off and running PAGE 2
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JULY 17-23, 2019
Greene-lit for success Burlington Township’s June Greene is a rising tennis prodigy: the 12-year-old collected two tournament titles over rising high school seniors this month By RYAN LAWRENCE Sports Editor
She’s soft spoken and polite, stands just over 5-foot-2, and looks like just about any preteen at a bus stop sans parents: old enough be out of grade school but nowhere near old enough to drive. Her matching outfit — pink Adidas and a pink tank top — show off a girlish charm. She’s easy with a smile. But don’t let June Greene fool you. She’s a killer on the court. Greene is still two years and two months away from high school and she only turned 12 in
(RYAN LAWRENCE, South Jersey Sports Weekly)
June Greene is only a month removed from sixth grade but she’s had little trouble taking on older foes: she’s beaten rising high school seniors from Ocean City and Haddonfield to win tournament titles twice in three days last week.
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FREE December, but she plays bigger, older, and wiser on the tennis court. She’s not a teenager yet, but she can hang with them and (usually) beat girls five years her senior. “She’s got 53 trophies at home,” said her father, Victor Greene, during a break in play at the Haddon Field Club Junior Classic last week. “She gets away with a lot because of that.” Greene chuckled. Life is good when you’re on top. A few hours later, June Greene, who will start seventh grade at Burlington Township Middle School at Springside come September, defeated Haddonfield rising senior Molly Parks 6-4, 6-3, in the championship match of the Girls’ 16 Singles bracket on July 9. It was Greene’s second championship victory over a high school senior in three days. She defeated Ocean City High School’s Jordan Moyer, 6-2, 6-3, in the final round of the Arrowhead Classic in Medford the previous weekend. The only difference: in the Arrowhead Tournament, Greene, who once again is just 12 years old, competed in the Girls’ 18 bracket. How do you explain a pintsized girl one month removed from sixth grade beating up on girls who are on the brink of college? “Lots of hard work,” Greene please see GREENE, page 4
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SOUTH JERSEY SPORTS WEEKLY — JULY 17-23, 2019
BASKETBALL
Summer league thriving The Haddon Heights Summer Basketball League has nearly tripled in size since its inception in 2008, with 28 South Jersey varsity teams in action this month
In your hands, every week.
By RYAN LAWRENCE Sports Editor
The weather outside was delightful on a late July afternoon in Haddon Heights, but a healthy crowd of South Jersey athletes and coaches gathered inside the George A. Maier Jr. Memorial Gym at the high school. While other folks were likely firing up the grill at dinner time, Williamstown High School basketball coach Grant Sporny spoke confidently with his seven players during a break in action. There were only a few minutes remaining in the Haddon Heights Summer League game and Sporny wanted to make sure his Braves were prepared. “I want them to figure out varsity-level basketball,” Sporny said, “because a lot of them haven’t played (at that level yet).” Williamstown responded well to the pep talk. They lost the game to Moorestown, 44-41, but a three-point defeat to a program that won a state championship four months ago was a rewarding learning experience. “That’s what I love, you play all the best teams in the area,” Sporny said. “All quality teams, so you’re not going to hide from anyone. You can play the state champs from last year, obvious-
Your Towns. Your Teams.
(RYAN LAWRENCE, South Jersey Sports Weekly)
Williamstown senior Jon Platt drives toward the lane against Moorestown’s Shane Knobloch as fellow Braves senior Justin Garrett keeps watch. ly it’s not the same team (some players have graduated), but they’re still great.” Most area coaches agree, and it’s part of the reason the Heights Summer League is thriving. When Haddon Heights coach Mike Ricci started the league in 2008, there were 16 teams and 75 percent of the entrants were junior varsity teams. This summer, 28 varsity teams and 14 JV teams from across four counties (Camden, Burlington, Gloucester, Salem) take part in the 4 ½ week-long league. “It’s amazing,” said Ricci, who, with help from assistant Pete Villa, took the league over from a previous iteration housed at Audubon High School. “When we first started out, we didn’t know how many teams we were going to get. We were going to kind of leave it like it was with the younger kids, but as we started to get interest from other teams it got
the word out, more and more teams wanted to play. And they come from everywhere, Pennsville, Westampton Tech, Lenape. … They all come to play here.” The formula is simple: an affordable summer basketball league for everyone where you’re guaranteed a lot of playing time and competitive opponents. The league fee (currently $675 per team) has only gone up $50 since the league began 11 years ago. The 28 varsity teams in the league are split into four divisions, with the 14 teams in the first division playing in games held on Mondays and Wednesdays and the 14 others in the second division playing on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The top four teams advance to the playoffs, with the championship game set for Monday, July 29 – exactly five weeks after Opening Day. “I think for every team (the
goals) are different,” Ricci said. “For teams with a lot of guys coming back like we do, or West Deptford, they’re trying to get their team chemistry together and prepare themselves for the season coming up. For other teams, they know their go-to guys; they’re trying to find those fifth, sixth, seventh, or eighth guys that can help them out next season. That’s what the summer league has done for a lot of coaches.” Whether it’s learning how to handle the pressure of playing against tougher opponents at a higher level or just getting your players to begin to gel, the monthlong league appears to be invaluable for all 28 teams. “It’s good to get your guys the experience,” Sporny said. “We have a lot of young guys that are learning, so it’s good to get them playing in a competitive environment.” ■
Whether you're in Haddonfield or Mullica Hill, Deptford or Medford, or any of the other towns with Sun Newspapers in South Jersey, a scope that includes more than two dozen high schools, South Jersey Sports Weekly has you covered. Feature stories, full-page photo spreads and program power rankings; Players of the Week, Athletes of the Year, insight from coaches, and games to watch. Baseball, softball, and football; basketball, golf, and lacrosse; swimming, field hockey, wrestling, tennis and every other varsity sport. It's everything you'd want in a local newspaper sports section. Free with The Sun each week and online every day at South JerseySportsWeekly.com and @SJSportsWeekly (Twitter).
JULY 17-23, 2019 – SOUTH JERSEY SPORTS WEEKLY
Moorestown High School rising senior Grace Leese shows off her trophy after winning the Girls’ 18 championship match, 6-0, 6-2, over Ocean City High School’s Jordan Moyer.
Haddonfield Memorial rising senior Molly Parks (left) poses with Burlington Township seventh grader June Greene. Greene defeated Parks, 6-4, 6-3, in the Girls’ 16 championship match.
Moorestown’s Sahil Tilak eyes up Moorestown’s Grace Leese a forehand shot in the Boys’ 18 in action during the Girls’ 18 championship match. championship match. Haddonfield’s Molly Parks prepares to serve.
Burlington Township’s June Greene lets loose on a serve in the Girls’ 16 championship match.
Moorestown’s Paige O’Neil watches a backhand during a Girls’ 16 semifinal match.
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Moorestown High School’s Sahil Tilak (left) and Cherry Hill East’s Brett Schuster show off their hardware. Tilak defeated Schuster, 6-7(1); 7-5; 1-0(7), in the Boys’ 18 championship match.
Seventy-one of the area’s best tennis players were in action at the Haddon Field Club Junior Classic last week, a tournament that’s been held at the club for more than 60 years. The Junior Classic was scheduled to run from July 8 to July 11, with players competing in singles and doubles draws. ■ All Photos: RYAN LAWRENCE/South Jersey Sports Weekly
Cherry Hill East’s Marinel Kimenker watches a forehand during a Girls’ 16 semifinal match.
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SOUTH JERSEY SPORTS WEEKLY — JULY 17-23, 2019 RYAN LAWRENCE, South Jersey Sports Weekly
Burlington Township’s June Greene, 12, shows off her new hardware: the Girls’ 16 Singles first place trophy from the Haddon Field Club Junior Classic.
GREENE
continued from page 1 said, drawing out the word “lots” for emphasis. It also helps that Greene doesn’t pay attention to ages or heights. She just plays. “It’s the same as if I’m playing someone my age,” she said. “I’m just playing (against them); I don’t think about their age. I just think about how they play and what I should do to win.” The Burlington Township tennis prodigy with the powerful forehand and blistering serve first began playing competitively at age 7 (competing in the Girls’ 12 division) and first had a racket in her hand around the same time she learned to walk, before she turned 2. “Like 1 ½,” her father said. “She wasn’t hitting the ball over the net, but she’d hold it and hold the ball there (in the center) and try to keep it steady. Then I’d try to throw the ball to her, not even trying to hit it over the net, just making contact. When she turned 3, I had her in this program in Willingboro called the Muchkins, and she hit all 10 balls over (the net). They were hand
fed to her, but at 3, she was the only child to hit all 10 balls over. So you could kind of see that you’ve got something.” When asked if her talent comes from within or from one of her parents, Greene, an honor student who excels at math and also practices jujitsu, smiled and offered, “Natural born.” “It’s called genetics,” her dad chimed in with a laugh. “We don’t have to play, but the genes are there. I played handball. I’m from Brooklyn and played handball in high school, I was a very good player. I was on the tennis team also. I was never very good so I’m back with her, with a vengeance.” With more reps, naturally, the younger Greene has only gotten better in every aspect of the game. She was recently featured in the United States Tennis Association’s Middle States quarterly magazine, “Net Play.” Since the beginning of July, Greene owns victories over four South Jersey high school seniors – Parks, Moyer, Rancocas Valley’s Jana Zollner, Cherry Hill East’s Michaela Kennedy – and at least one junior, too. As you watch Greene almost dominate older competition – letting loose on shots that both pack a punch and land on the court with precision – you can’t help think of the young tennis phenom on the world stage, Cori “Coco” Gauff. Gauff, three years and three months older than Greene, upset Venus Williams during her spirited run at Wimbledon earlier this month. “It inspires me to be better,” said Greene, who also has the goal of becoming a professional tennis player at some point during her teen years. “Go to sectionals, nationals – 16-and-under nationals and sectionals – and like Coco Gauff did, get a wild card.” Greene, who also looks up to Rafael Nadal’s natural power and the humble approach of both Venus Williams and Roger Federer, has plenty of time to pave her own path to becoming a possible tennis pro. For now, she can continue to dream and enjoy taking on foes of all ages. “It’s fun,” she said. “I like it because I win, which is good, but it also helps me have respect for the game.” ■