Old Tappan round one victory over Dwight-Morrow

Photo Credits: Tom Horak for NJ Advance Media

Old Tappan started its state title run with authority, defeating Dwight-Morrow 6–0 in the first round of the NJSIAA tournament on Wednesday afternoon.

First Half Explosion
The Golden Knights wasted no time setting the tone. Senior forward Mia Colon opened the scoring off a setup from Emilia Sanchez, sparking a first-half surge. Moments later, Caroline Ognibene doubled the lead with help from Isabella Zingarelli. Old Tappan continued to dominate possession, turning crisp passing into production. Leah Ramos, Zingarelli, and Elena Pothos each added goals to make it 5–0 before halftime.

Second Half Control
With the game in hand, Old Tappan rotated its lineup but kept the pressure on. Kaylin Kim capped the scoring in the second half off a feed from Sydney Farrington. Goalkeeper Lea Savino made one save to preserve the shutout.

Balanced Attack
Eight different players registered points. Colon, Zingarelli, Ognibene, and Ramos each finished with a goal and an assist, while Pothos and Kim added goals of their own. Sanchez and Farrington each chipped in an assist.

Next Up
Old Tappan (16–3) advances to the sectional quarterfinals, carrying momentum from one of its most balanced offensive performances of the season.

Source Link: https://highschoolsports.nj.com/game/1061091

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UNDEFEATED Sectional Winners: Old Tappan

Nov 14, 2025

Old Tappan overpowered Wayne Hills 42 to 14 in the North Jersey Section 1 Group 3 final. The win gave Old Tappan its third sectional title in four years and pushed its winning streak to sixteen games. Devyn Radoian set the tone on the ground with 17 carries for 87 yards and a touchdown. His production controlled the pace from the opening quarter. The game broke open fast. On the first play from scrimmage, Christakis Nicolaou jumped a route and scored on a 31 yard pick six. Zach Miceli then found Leo Etter on fourth and goal to make the lead 14 to 0. Wayne Hills answered with an 84 yard kickoff return by Chernoh St. Paul, but Old Tappan controlled the rest of the night. Old Tappan leaned on long drives and physical runs. A first down penalty pushed the offense to its own 16. The Knights responded with a 13 play march built on nine straight runs. Radoian finished the drive with a one yard score. The defense then stopped a Wayne Hills red zone trip. With 1:22 left in the half, Miceli led an 85 yard scoring drive in sixty seconds that ended with a Shane Small touchdown for a 35 to 7 halftime lead. Small delivered a strong night across the board. He caught 4 passes for 56 yards. He scored once and helped extend key drives late in the first half. The Knights opened the second half with another long drive. Two carries from Radoian set the tempo. Damian Du Toit then handled 11 straight runs and scored from the 1 to start the running clock. Miceli completed 14 of 17 passes for 152 yards and three touchdowns. Etter scored twice. Du Toit added 61 rushing yards and one score. Matteo Morrissey remained steady with his kicking. He went a perfect six for six on extra points. Old Tappan will host West Morris in the Group 3 semifinal. Both teams enter undefeated. They have split playoff meetings in 2022 and 2023. Wayne Hills finished 9 and 3.

Back to Back

Nov 02, 2025

OLD TAPPAN - "Back-to-back - it's very exciting," said Golden Knights senior outside hitter Julia Whaley after Old Tappan defended its Bergen County Volleyball title with a 3-1 victory over Immaculate Heart Academy Nov. 1. "It was a really good game, very competitive."Whaley was instrumental in the third set when she tallied 6 of her game-high 18 kills to bring the Knights back from a 21-16 deficit to a 26-24 victory, which turned the momentum squarely back in Old Tappan's favor.Junior setter Joley Giordano broke a 23-23 tie with one of her 4 kills to give OT a set point. She also had 2 blocks to go along with the 40 assists she distributed and the 9 digs she scooped."We've been working on it in practice," Giordano said of her scoring prowess. "On offense I can jump high and get points like that."An errant serve by the Knights knotted the score 24-24 but sophomore middle blocker Nadine Whaley and junior outside hitter Bianca Benasillo blasted back-to-back kills to give Old Tappan a 2-1 advantage in sets."When we were down it's really easy to get sucked into negative emotions," senior opposite hitter Eva Curko said in a published report. "But as a team we did a really good job of staying positive on the court, keeping our energy up … and playing for each other. That's ultimately what helped us succeed."In the fourth and final set Old Tappan shook off an early 3-0 Immaculate Heart Academy advantage to grab its largest lead of the set, 19-11, on a kill by Nadine Whaley, who finished with 8 kills and 3 blocks in the match.A block by Julia Whaley gave Old Tappan a match point, 24-16, but an errant serve and 2 attack errors closed the gap, giving IHA some life at 24-19. But a thunderous kill by senior middle blocker Gaby Paltag ended the set and the match, 25-19."It was very tough," Julia Whaley said. "Going in we knew it wasn't going to be easy even though there was a difference between No. 2 and No. 9 [seeds]. But we didn't let that affect what we thought was going to happen in the game. Both teams have had on-and-off seasons - no one is undefeated - but we had confidence. We knew all we could do was control what we could do on our side. Our motivation was to get to every ball."The two teams split the first two sets with Old Tappan leading for the entire first set in a 25-17 win.The Golden Knights led 16-10 in the second set when the Blue Eagles caught fire. An errant serve by Old Tappan was followed by a pair of service aces by junior Emma Fowler. After an attack error by the Knights, Fowler tallied another ace and freshman Anabelle Albano blocked a shot to tie the set 16-all. Sophomore Adrielle Crump gave IHA a 17-16 lead, but a kill by Benasillo and service ace by Giordano put Old Tappan up, 18-17.From there the lead changed hands back and forth and the score was tied at 19 and 20. Kills by Paltag and Julia Whaley sandwiched around an IHA attack error gave the Knights a 23-20 lead, but 2 OT attack errors trimmed that lead to 23-22. Then IHA committed an attack error to give Old Tappan a set point at 24-22.But an errant Knights serve, a block by Eagles sophomore Sophia Mahon, followed by 2 more OT attack errors gave IHA the second set, 26-24.Julia Whaley, in addition to having the most kills in the match, also contributed a game-high 23 digs and added 3 service aces. Benasillo blasted 14 kills and had a block. Senior libero Adriana Bryan scooped 19 digs and Curko had 7 kills, a block, 7 digs and 4 assists.Crump (14 kills, 3 service aces) and Mahon (7 kills, 4 blocks) led Immaculate Heart Academy scorers.Last year Old Tappan finished 25-0, with county and state tournament titles. Although at 17-4 they are not undefeated this year, they are again county champs and have a good shot of earning a state title too."We started the year without three starters, and at one point, we were down four starters," Old Tappan coach Melissa Landeck said in a published report. "So we had a lot of work to do to compete in September with younger kids doing an outstanding job pitching in. Then, we had to work on jelling as kids came back, so this has not been an easy road, by any means."

Giordano's 40 assists sets a new Old Tappan record

Nov 02, 2025

Joley Giordano Sets School Record as Old Tappan Captures Seventh Bergen County Volleyball TitleOLD TAPPAN – In one of the most dominant performances in program history, junior setter Joley Giordano made Old Tappan history by recording 40 assists in the Bergen County championship win over Immaculate Heart Academy, the most ever by a Golden Knights player in a single match.The 3–1 victory (25–17, 24–26, 26–24, 25–19) secured Old Tappan’s seventh county title and marked the program’s second straight championship. Giordano’s record-setting effort powered an offense that hit rhythm early and never lost control of momentum.Superstars DeliveredGiordano’s 40 assists broke the previous single-game mark and set the standard for future setters at Old Tappan. Each rally seemed to run through Giordano’s hands, as she distributed the ball with precision and kept IHA’s defense guessing. Julia Whaley led the attack with 18 kills, 23 digs, and 3 aces. Bianca Benasillo added 14 kills and steady play at the net, while Nadine Whaley powered the defense with 7 blocks and 8 kills. Adriana Bryan kept the back row steady with 19 digs and 2 aces, and Eva Curko filled multiple roles with 7 kills, 9 digs, and 5 assists.Desi Malafis added 8 digs in key defensive rotations, Gabriela Paltag chipped in 3 kills and 4 blocks, and Kate Finn provided depth in the rotation with 2 aces. The team’s chemistry was clear on every rally, with each player contributing to the flow that allowed Joley Giordano to run a record-setting offense.IHA fought hard behind Adrielle Crump’s 15 kills and Kristen Lee’s 26 assists, but the Golden Knights’ depth proved too much.