CHATHAM, NJ - The Chatham Hight Paddle team swept the first-ever NJ High School Paddle Team State Championships Sunday, winning both the Boys and Girls Divisions in the tournament played at Noe Pond and the Fairmount Country Club.
The Chatham boys defeated Delbarton, 3-1, to win the Boys Division State Championship. Chatham won the Girls Division State Championship, 3-1, over Montclair Kimberly Academy/Mount St. Dominic.

There were 100 players from 8 high schools participating in the event, including Bergen Catholic, Chatham, Delbarton, Montclair Kimberly Academy/Mount St. Dominic, Ramapo HS, Ridgewood HS Seton Hall Prep and Summit High School.   Noe Pond Club and Fairmount Country Club in Chatham hosted the boys division of the tournament, and Essex Fells Country Club paddle pro Mikk Irdoja hosted the event, and also played host to the girls teams' tournament play.
Chatham High entered two teams in each division. The CHS Boys first team played in a very competitive bracket against the experienced team of Bergen Catholic and players from new paddle programs at Ramapo and Seton Hall Prep.
All the teams had some terrific paddle and tennis players, and many of the matches were extremely close, with the quarter-final match between Bergen Catholic and Ramapo determined by a special tiebreaker it was so tight.  In the end, the Chatham team pulled out the victory in the bracket to move on to the finals.
The same can be said for the other boys bracket, with the CHS Boys second team playing Delbarton, Summit High and Ridgewood High. In this bracket, Delbarton emerged victorious and went on to play the CHS Boys first team in the finals. These teams have played each other before in league play, and the finals were a great match with Chatham defeating Delbarton, 3-1, in some very hard fought battles to win the Boys Division of the NJ High School Paddle Team State Championship.
The CHS Boys first team saw great play from all its members - Aidan Buckley, John Shehadi, DJ Carini, Matt Barnes, Jackson Singer, Mike Huth, Max Eckles, Max Schaefer and James Lapus, as did the CHS Boys second team of Connor McLean, Luke Cecere, Max Berkson, Michael Vintzel, Nick Peter, JP Allen, Owen Donohoe, Kevin Scott and Kevin Mahoney.  The Boys teams were coached by CHS paddle coaches/pros Jill Feher and Blake Anderson.
Chatham's two girls teams also had a great day of competition against the combined team from two high schools that just started their paddle programs this season, Montclair Kimberly Academy/Mount St. Dominic and Ridgewood HS.  The Chatham teams placed first and third after the round robin play, and in the semis, the CHS Girls second team lost 1-3 to MKA/MSD, while the CHS Girls forst team defeated Ridgewood to move on to the finals.  In the finals, the Chatham girls played some great matches against the team from MKA/MSD, and also went on to a 3-1 victory to win the first-ever NJ High School Paddle Team State Championship Girls Division crown.

The CHS Girls first team included team co-captain Heather Ivans, as well as Elana Tognola, Zoe Paris, Katie Eveleth, Ella Walmsley, Aerin Zucchi, Bridget Eveleth, Peyton McGarry, Sidney Berkson and Quinn Bogue.  The CHS Girls second team players were Ellie Pyper, Maddie Brashear, Kate McManus, Ella Romeo, Celia Reddington, Addison Hill, Anna Suter, Emma Goodheart, Grace Kneebone, Emma Parker, Kirsten Molinaro, and the CHS Girls were coached by paddle professional and team coach Cindy Ross.