West Essex Spring Sports Outlook

How will the spring shape up in North Caldwell?

The West Essex Knights will look to continue their recent run of dominance on through the spring, where they are returning a couple of defending champions. Here is a look at some of the teams returning this spring. BASEBALL The Knights have turned into a Group 2 powerhouse over the last few seasons. Last spring, they claimed their third consecutive North II Group 2 state sectional championship, and reached the Group 2 final for the second season in a row. In 2010 West Essex won, but last season they fell in the final to Governor Livingston. With the graduation of several key players in both the lineup and pitching rotation, the boys will be very young and inexperienced this spring. They've also moved up to the ultra-competitive Super Essex…

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Top 10 Sports Moments of the Year: West Essex

See which teams and players made this year's list.

When you have a school that always seems to have athletics teams in contention for championships, it makes lists like this tough, because someone always gets left out. The football, girls basketball, lacrosse, field hockey, tennis and baseball teams all saw a lot of success over the past 12 months, winning multiple championships along the way. Here is a list of some of the top 10 sports moments on the courts, diamonds and fields for the West Essex Knights. Athlete of the Year: Natalie Cafone Anyone making a list of the best athletes at West Essex High School would probably have to put anyone not named Cafone on another sheet, because the West Essex star athlete is on a level of her own. Not only is she arguably the best field hockey player…

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A New Beginning in West Essex

Knights boys basketball returns with new coach in new division.

Following three consecutive losing seasons in which the West Essex boys basketball team has gone 23-50, the Knights will enter this season with a fresh start in a different division and with a new head coach. William Humes, practically born a coach, brings nearly 30 years of experience to West Essex this winter after serving as the girls basketball head coach in Caldwell for the last two seasons and coaching at multiple places previously. Humes spent seven years as head boys basketball coach at Passaic Valley, and six years as the head girls coach at PV beforehand. He has also been coaching boys and girls volleyball for 18 years. "To me the adjustment is on them initially. But as coaches, we have to learn our players very quickly," Humes …

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Knights Hockey Featured on MSG Varsity

Tune-in Friday night at 7 p.m. for West Essex vs. Nutley.

If you can’t make it to the West Essex hockey game Wednesday, you can tune in to watch it on MSG Varsity later this week. The Knights’ varsity game vs. the Nutley Raiders is scheduled for Wednesday, at 6:15 p.m., at Codey Arena in the South Mountain Recreation Complex in West Orange. The game will be filmed and televised on the Cable network on Friday, Dec. 16, at 7:30 p.m. MSG Varsity is available exclusively to Cablevision’s iO TV subscribers on channel 14. Once broadcast, all games are also available on-demand on iO channel 614. In addition to full game coverage, MSG Varsity’s New Jersey edition of “High School SportsDesk” airs nightly at 7 p.m.

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West Essex Falls to Eastern in Final Round of Tournament of Champions

Knights captured 15th state title this season, finish with 23-2 record.

West Essex Sports Wrap: Baseball Wins Section

Softball falls to Caldwell in semifinals

The West Essex baseball team is the sole squad left representing West Essex. The Knights won the North 2 Group 2 State Sectional Tournament for the third straight time on Friday, June 3 with a 9-1 victory over Hackettstown. West Essex did it without two starters. Junior left fielder Eddie George and pitcher/designated hitter P.J. Lawless both missed the championship game. George was out with an ankle injury and may miss a few more games. Meanwhile Lawless will likely miss the rest of the season due to "confidential student information" according to head coach Scott Illiano. Knights softball was unable to win the North 2 Group 2 State Section for the second year in a row, as they fell to rival Caldwell 9-5 on Tuesday, May 31. Despite a …

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Oyama Makes Group Finals and School History

Freshman runner wins state section in 800m and sets school record in 1600m.

It's an interesting thing when someone discovers they have a hidden talent. For West Essex freshman sprinter Carlysa Oyama, she had no idea how naturally running came to her. "I started running track in eighth grade," Oyama said, "however, it wasn't until this year I found a real passion for it." Passion is not the only thing Oyama found in track meets this past year, she has made some staggering accomplishments for a freshman. Oyama set the school record for the 1600m run with a time of 5:09 at the Essex County Championship meet. The record was previously set in 2000 by Anna Sherman with a time of 5:11. Oyama's running ability has gradually increased over the course of the season, culminating in winning the State Section in the 800m with …

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West Essex Sports Wrap: Baseball and Softball Remain in States

Both lacrosse squads and volleyball fall.

The State Tournament is the final accomplishment to be had in the long season. While West Essex's spring sports teams have had strong showings, not all of them remain on the field. The baseball team has continued their run this season. They defeated Fort Lee, 10-2, in the opening round, followed by a 4-1 victory over Hanover Park in the quarterfinals. The second-seeded Knights are set to face third-seeded Lyndhurst in the semifinals. Despite a rough season with a young roster, the softball squad has gotten hot at just the right time. The 12th-seeded Knights upset the fifth-seeded Hanover Park, 6-2, and scored four runs in the bottom of the sixth to propel them past Ridgefield Park, 8-6. A semifinal showdown against rival Caldwell is now …

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West Essex Falls in Essex County Quarters

Columbia's surge over second, third quarters end Knights' tournament run.

SOUTH ORANGE—The Columbia girls basketball team extended its winning streak to seven, while snapping the West Essex run of wins at six Saturday afternoon in the quarterfinals of the Essex County Tournament. The Cougars used a 31-13 second and third quarter run to come away with a 60-32 victory in South Orange Middle School. Columbia advances to next week's semifinals against sixth-seeded Mount Saint Dominic, which beat third-seeded East Orange 48-44 Saturday. The Caldwells Patch will have a full story on this game Sunday. To their credit, the seventh-seeded Knights (18-3) stood toe-to-toe with the second-seeded Cougars (20-2) through the first quarter and briefly took an early one-point lead. At the end of the opening period, Columbia was …

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West Essex Fencers Fall to Livingston

Lancers roll past Knights boys and girls squads.

LIVINGSTON—The Livingston boys and girls fencing teams rolled past West Essex Friday night, with the Lancer boys winning 23-4, while the girls came away with a 21-6 victory. The Lancer girls jumped ahead immediately and extended their lead to 8-1 after the first round, and sealed the match at 14-1, midway through the second round of bouts. The lopsided score allowed the Lancers to bring in some of their junior varsity fencers to gain some experience. "They're learning how to win and how to close them down when it's time," Livingston girls coach Margaret Weckstein said. "They practice very hard. They did everything they do in practice, on the strip." Both the sabre and foil squads for the girls went 8-1, but were unbeaten through the first …

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