ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. – Maya Jenkins provided consistent scoring to help make the NEPA Elite 16U Rini team one of the best in the Hoop Group Showcase League this spring and summer.
Jenkins, an Old Forge resident who is preparing for her junior year at Scranton Prep, scored between eight and 12 points in all six games of The Hoop Group Championship Weekend July 21-24 at the Convention Center.
With Jenkins in the starting lineup, the Rini team from the club out of Riverfront Sports in Scranton went 23-12 on the season. NEPA Elite finished third out of dozens of teams in the Hoop Group Showcase League regular season and was fifth out of the 16 teams that qualified for the championship tournament in the season-ending event.
NEPA Elite split a pair of Showcase Division games early in the final weekend and won three out of four bracket games, losing only to the eventual second-place finisher.
Jenkins made nine 3-pointers and was 15-for-19 from the line in the six games.
The highest-scoring outing of the final weekend came when Jenkins made all six free throws and went 2-for-4 on 3-pointers while producing 12 points, six steals and five defensive rebounds in a 50-44 victory over New Jersey Soldiers 16U HGSL in the first losers’ bracket game.
Jenkins went 7-for-10 from the line in a 44-40 victory over the Mass Lady Rivals 16U HGSL team to begin bracket play. She had three 3-pointers and dished out three assists during a 40-38 showcase game loss to the New Jersey Gemz 16U HGSL teams.
At Scranton Prep, Jenkins was a second-team Class 4A all-state selection as a sophomore for her role in leading the Classics to the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association state semifinals. She helped the Classics win Lackawanna League Division 1 and District 2 Class 4A titles.
Daniella Ranieli, a Class 5A all-state player as a sophomore at Pittston Area, was a big part of the Rini team’s success early in the season. She missed the last two events because of an injury.
Jenkins scored in double figures twice when the Rini team went 5-1 and won its pool in the next-to-last event of the regular season, The Hoop Group’s Jersey Shore Live July 7-10 at Sportika in Manalapan, N.J.
