7th, 8th Grade Girls Rec Basketball Teams Open Season

On Saturday, just a few days after the Fort Lee Girls Recreation Basketball League held opening ceremonies last week at , marking the start of what league president Michael Klein called the “biggest year for Fort Lee girls rec basketball,” the league's seventh and eighth grade teams played their opening games.

There were no opening ceremonies Saturday and little of the fanfare that characterized last Tuesday, when Fort Lee Mayor Mark Sokolich said youth sports in Fort Lee are "thriving," and that the community is "setting the pace"—just four games of good, old-fashioned basketball played by the league’s most advanced players.

"It was a great atmosphere in the gym on Saturday," Klein said. "The stands were packed, and it was loud, especially in the final game of the day, where Silly Rabbits beat Aversa Dental, 24-23, in a see-saw battle from buzzer to buzzer. All these kids play in their own games then stay for the other games and root for their friends. Even the parents were getting into the games. There is lots of talent at the 7th and 8th grade level, both the players and also the coaches."

The league has four more games scheduled for Tuesday night starting at 7 p.m. at the middle school.

Patch photographer Christopher Costa was on hand Saturday to capture some of the action.