Thursday,
June 26, 2014
By Richie 'Ballgame' Barton
Male Athlete of the Year:
Jabrill Peppers, Paramus Catholic
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JABRILL PEPPERS |
There has been no single athlete in recent memory or maybe ever in New Jersey who was as hyped as Peppers was going into his senior season. All the fanfare was for good reason too as Peppers led his team to a state title in football and won both the 100 and 200-meter titles at the NJSIAA Meet of Champions as a junior. Repeating those accomplishments would be no easy task, but Peppers seized the opportunity to cement his legacy as one of the best scholastic athletes to ever come out of the state
Although plagued by nagging injuries and issues with leg cramps throughout the football season, he was still able to police an entire side of the field as a true shutdown cornerback. He made 64 tackles, defended 12 passes and had four interceptions even though teams did not often throw the ball in his direction.
Offensively, Peppers was not as dynamic as he was as a junior but still a threat every time he touched the ball. He finished with 1,381 all-purpose yards and found the end zone 19 times. His presence on the field was a big reason why the Paladins became the first in school history to win back-to-back state championships with a 10-2 record in repeating as Non-Public Group 4 champs.
While football is where he will continue to play at the University of Michigan, Peppers was a defensive stopper on the Paladins' basketball team and it was on the track where he was equally as competitive and as dominant. Peppers cruised past the competition in blistering fashion. He saved his best for last in the New Jersey state Meet of Champions when matched up against Ridgefield Park standout Chris Estrella among a slew of other top sprinters.
Peppers blew past the field in the 100 in a time of 10.55 and won the 200 with the exact time he won it as a junior, 21.13, to become only the second athlete ever to have undefeated seasons and win the Meet of Champions in both the 100 and 200 in consecutive years.
Put that on top of the fact he was a part of four state championship teams (two at Don Bosco Prep and two at Paramus Catholic) and Peppers is not just the best athlete in North Jersey, he is squarely in the conversation of the best athletes ever to come out of New Jersey.
Runner-Up:
Kevin Buron, Garfield
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KEVIN BURON |
Buron is the quintessential three-sport athlete who thrives on pressure situations and always finds a way to be in the middle of the action. What is unique about Buron is that he did not become a three-sport athlete until this, his junior year. Already a solid basketball and baseball player, he decided to go out for football and the Garfield coaching staff is glad he did. He immediately won starting spots both in the secondary and at wide receiver.
In his first year of varsity football, he remarkably led New Jersey in interceptions with nine and also hauled in seven TD passes on his way to being a first-team all-league selection and leading Garfield to its first state playoff berth in 14 years.
On the hardwood, Buron was a 6-foot-1 slasher who knew how to get to the basket and became more confident as the year went on. He scored in double-figures in 8 of his last 11 games, including a career-high 32 points in a win over Manchester and a 14-point effort in the Boilermakers' first-round upset over West Milford in the North 1, Group 3 state sectional playoffs. He followed that up with a team-high 17 in a loss to eventual section champ Teaneck.
His most polished sport is baseball where he is both a slick-fielding shortstop and a player who can hit to either gap, leading Garfield this year with a .450 batting average.
Honorable Mention:
Kurt Holuba, Bergen Catholic
Daiquan Kelly, Union City
Eric Lewis, Ridgewood
Kevin Wilkins, St. Joseph's Regional
Ryan Brown, Wayne Valley
Troy Henderson, Cresskill
Zach Chakonis, Don Bosco
Liam Connors, Wayne Valley
Erick Alonso, Bergen Catholic
Chris Aust, Hawthorne Christian
Danny Cordeiro, North Arlington
Tommy Dunphy, Passaic Valley
Female Athlete of the Year:
Isabel McMahon, Saddle River Day
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IZZY McMAHON |
After being known during her first two years of high school at Immaculate Heart Academy as strictly a solid point guard, she transferred to Saddle River Day for her junior year. In this her senior year she showed that she is not just a basketball player, but an incredibly versatile athlete who can be an impact player and make her team significantly better in any sport.
Nothing proved that more than in the fall where she switched from being a soccer player to playing varsity tennis for the first time. She not only cracked the varsity lineup but vaulted to the No. 1 singles and ended the season with just one loss as the Rebels finished a 15-1 record (best in school history) and with a second NJIC-Patriot Division title in the past three years.
On the hardwood, McMahon was a floor general who could light it up from long range and was always the quickest player on the floor. Before she arrived at Saddle River Day, the Rebels were typical a bottom feeder of whatever league they were in. Just her arrival turned them into a contender and they reached new heights this year.
The 5-foot-3 point guard had numerous scoring outbursts throughout the season as expected, but McMahon was at her best when she had her hand in every phase of the game on both ends. That was on display in a win over Northern Valley/Demarest in the Bergen County Tournament's Round of 16.. She netted just 12 points in the victory but also knew when to get the ball inside or to open shooters on her way to six assists and the school's first-ever county quarterfinal berth.
McMahon reached a milestone in the next to last game of her career by notching her 1,000th career point against Oak Knoll. She soon followed that up with eight points during a 19-0 run that lifted the Rebels to their first-ever Non-Public B North semifinal in school history. The first-team All-Bergen selection averaged 18 points, seven rebounds, six assists, and three steals per game and will continue playing basketball at Division 1 Army.
On the lacrosse pitch, McMahon used her sheer speed, quickness, and elusiveness to become one of the highest scoring attack players in New Jersey. She tallied a career-high in goals twice in wins over Dwight-Englewood and Ramapo. She was at her best come tournament time with six goals in the program's first-ever Bergen County Tournament win, 11-9, over Northern Valley/Old Tappan. Then in the state tournament, she found the back of the net five times and dished off two assists in the Rebels' first-ever state win, 18-12, over Morristown-Beard. She finished the season with 89 goals, good for second in Bergen County and tied for 17th in the state.
Runner-Up:
Julia McClure, Secaucus
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JULIA McCLURE |
McClure is the classic three-sport athlete who excels equally at all three sports she plays and always makes her presence felt on the court (volleyball and basketball) or on the softball diamond for the Group 1 power.
It started right from the first day of the scholastic sports year when she put down a career-high 24 kills in a win over a tough Union Catholic squad and carried straight through the Hudson County Tournament final where she led all players with 20 kills and 13 digs in a sweep of Union City to lead the Patriots to a fourth straight county title.
Her best overall performance came in the Group 1 state quarterfinals against Glen Rock. She matched her career-high with 24 kills to go with 19 digs and seven service points. Several of those kills came late in both the second and third games of a 18-25, 27-25, 25-23 triumph. She led both Secaucus and Hudson County in kills this season with 402.
On the basketball court, the 5-foot-8 junior guard often made herself a factor in multiple ways. While a capable scorer, she prided herself in helping the Patriots in every aspect of the game. She scored in double-figures in 21 of their 28 games this season to eclipse the 1,000-point barrier, along with several games where she filled the stat sheet in all ways.
She nearly notched a quadruple-double with 25 points, 13 rebounds, eight steals, and seven assists in a Hudson County quarterfinal round win over Marist. In the same round of the North 2, Group 1 state tournament against University (Newark), she recorded a triple-double with 13 points, 17 rebounds and 10 assists.
Softball was a different experience altogether as McClure often got the ball in the circle for the first time in her career, doing an admirable job with several standout games. It was at the plate where she made her mark though as one of North Jersey's top sluggers. She was among the state's leaders with 10 homers, that included a rare walkoff grand slam against Rutherford. McClure was named first-team all-Hudson in all three sports.
Honorable Mention:
Brianna Musco, Pascack Hills
Julie Rovito, Ridgefield Park
Katie Garbarino, Saddle Brook
Mallory Noordeloos, Hawthorne
Alex Mesropyan, IHA
Sam Fuehring, Immaculate Conception
Kendall Caruso, Secaucus
Grace Tomko, Lyndhurst
Madison Levine, Indian Hills
Daniella McMahon, Saddle River Day
Erin Bigger, New Milford
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