Back in 1996 at Egg Harbor Township High School, the Prime Events Girls Shootout set the stage for showcase events in girls basketball.

This weekend The Shootout will take place for the 27th time at Ocean City High School. Through the years some great teams and talented players have participated. You can see photos of some of the great players – from Sue Bird through Kylee Watson – plus the history of the event, HERE.

This weekend there are some special stories. The 2024 Shootout includes the only undefeated team in South Jersey, the leading scorer in the state and a team that set a state three-point record just this week.

The opening game at noon tomorrow features two legendary coaches – Lisa Gedaka of Gloucester Catholic and John Truhan of Red Bank Regional – and two highly-ranked teams. That game will be followed by Atlantic Tech, in Coach Larry DiGiovanni’s comeback season, against Cedar Creek.

In Saturday’s 3:30 game, Wildwood will take on Atlantic City. Earlier this week, Teresa Cunniff’s Warriors made 21 three-pointers which, according to the National Federation of High School Sports, is a New Jersey single-game record.

The final two games Saturday, starting at 5:15, features two of the best Cape-Atlantic League teams against two challenging opponents. First, Wildwood Catholic, ranked No. 5 in South Jersey, will tangle with Notre Dame, ranked No. 9.

Then, in Saturday’s finale, Holy Spirit, ranked No. 23, will play No. 16 Manchester Township. In that game, Tim Whitworth’s Spartans will try to control Manchester’s 5-11 senior Devyn Quigley, the state’s leading scorer who is committed to North Carolina State. Quigley averages 34.5 points per game with a high game of 58 points two weeks ago. She enters the game with 2,197 career points.

Sunday starts at noon with a crossover game between Lower Cape May and Bridgeton, two Cape-Atlantic League teams from different conferences.

The second game on Sunday pairs two strong CAL teams – No. 20 Egg Harbor Township against Absegami. EHT is led by center Averie Harding and Absegami by guard Reese Downey, both among the top CAL scorers and both juniors.

The final game in this year’s Shootout is between undefeated Mainland, the highest ranked public school in South Jersey, and rival Ocean City. The Mustangs have won 37 of their last 38 games over the last two seasons – the only loss coming to Ocean City in last year’s South Jersey final. The Mustangs feature seniors Kasey Bretones (a UMass recruit), Ava and Bella Mazur (West Chester) and Sydney Stokes (Fairleigh Dickinson). The Raiders are very young with a junior, two sophomores and a freshman among its starting five.

The 2024 Shootout Schedule

Saturday
Noon —– Gloucester Catholic vs Red Bank
1:45pm —– Cedar Creek vs Atlantic Tech
3:30pm —– Atlantic City vs Wildwood
5:15pm —— Wildwood Catholic vs Notre Dame
7:00pm —– Holy Spirit vs Manchester Township

Sunday
Noon ——- Bridgeton vs Lower Cape May
1:45pm —– Absegami vs Egg Harbor Township
3:30pm —– Ocean City vs Mainland