Although the Chiefs might still be a season away from their ultimate talent level, this season does appear to be one in which the team should be able to battle for top honors on both the county and Group 2 statewide scene.  

Speaking of University, the Phoenix have been known to add talent from around the city each season, plus coach Middy Baraka’s squad returns one of the county’s top power forwards in senior Brianna Holt, while Taylor LaRue is another strong inside force to watch.

How University does in replacing an all-time great in the now graduated 4-year starting point guard Paradise Fisher remains to be seen, but up-and-coming junior Shanaee Manning has shown promise as a backcourt performer to watch returning from last season’s 16-11 squad which fell to Glen Ridge, 50-44, in the N2G1 final.

The Ridgers are another team to watch as first-year head coach Grace Cannon, a former star at nearby Bloomfield High School, takes the reins of a still quite talented squad led by University of Rochester-bound senior forward Allison Snyder and other key returnees including junior forward Caitlin Hood and Annabel Koss-DeFrank.

How well Glen Ridge does in adjusting to life after center Riley O’Sullivan (now at MIT), who was the team's leading scorer and rebounder last winter, and heady point guard Katie Powers (now playing women's lacrosse at Bucknell) remains to be seen; plus Danella did a superb job in her one season at the helm before leaving last spring to pursue private coaching opportunities.

Verona, under the guidance of its excellent coach Patty Coyle, returns strong talent with senior Jada Bednar and juniors Eliana Marateo and Leah Haggerty, while West Essex, with former Cedar Grove standout Amber Tobia guiding the Knights, returns a top guard in Jordan Salisbury, but must look to make up for the loss of its leading scorer and rebounder Sasha Resnick.

Mount St. Dominic has its own array of youthful talent, including returning leading scorer Bella Iannitelli who was one of the stars of the school’s No. 1 ranked softball team last spring, plus productive sophomore guard Gia McArdle and promising freshman Hailey Root from a 12-15 team that looks to improve mightily under the guidance of second-year coach Brian Dorf, who has done a solid job as either a head coach or assistant for a number of girls and boys basketball programs.

SUPER ESSEX CONFERENCE GIRLS BASKETBALL 2025-2026 DIVISION ALIGNMENT:

American Division: Wests Orange, Glen Ridge, University, Mount St. Dominic, Caldwell, West Essex

Liberty Division: Newark Academy, Columbia, Payne Tech, Montclair, Verona, Central

Colonial Division: Nutley, East Orange Campus, Bloomfield, North Star Academy, Livingston, Millburn

Independence Division: MKA, Newark Tech, Cedar Grove, East Side, Arts, Newark Lab

Freedom Division: Newark Collegiate, Weequahic, Barringer, Belleville, Science Park, St. Benedict’s, West Caldwell Tech, Bard

National Division: Irvington, Orange, West Side, St. Vincent’s, Golda Och, Technology, Shabazz           

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