Carino Basketball Club to honor Class of 2024 for South Jersey Basketball Hall of Fame

The Albert Carino Basketball Clubs of South Jersey will hold its South Jersey Basketball Hall of Fame induction ceremony on Sunday, Feb. 4.

The event will be held at the Holiday Inn on Route 70 starting at 5:30 p.m.

Tickets are $40 each and are available for the vent from Bob Byatt, Treasurer of the Carino Boys Basketball Club, or by sending payment to 41 Emery Way, Delanco, NJ, 08075. Tickets will not be sold the night of the event.

Bios were provided by the Carino Basketball Clubs of South Jersey.

Eugene “Gene” Allen – Atlantic City

Led the Vikings from 2003-2022 and compiled a career record of 377-136. He is the winningest coach in Atlantic City history.

Allen garnered three NJSIAA Championships in five appearances to the state finals. Victorious in 2005, 2012 and 2013.

Under his leadership, the Vikings amassed South Jersey Championships in 2005, 2006, 2008, 2012, 2013, 2016 and 2020.

His collection also includes Cape-Atlantic League Championships in 2005, 2007, 2012 and 2013 with the 2013 team finishing the year with 31-2 record.

Allen won Coach of the Year award in 2013 and 2020 by the Courier-Post and also by the Atlantic City Press in 2013 and 2020.

Allen is a graduate of Morgan State University and holds a Masters degree from Rowan University in Education Administration.

Married to Tracey Singer-Allen, they are the parents of Jackson Monroe Allen.

Coach Allen has been a Special Education Teacher at Atlantic City High School since 2000.

Sean Collins – Paulsboro High School

Following a stint as Coach at Schalick (2002-2007) where he had a record of 111-44), Collins moved to Paulsboro.

Collins took over the varsity team in 2010. He led the Red Raiders to six Colonial Conference titles with a record of 179-39 in seven seasons (2010-2017). His teams won Four South Jersey Group 1 titles and appeared in the NJSIAA State Group 1 Championship game twice. In 2015, Paulsboro won the Group 1 championship. He was Coach of the Year four times in his tenure at at Schalick and Paulsboro.

In 2015, he led the Raiders to their second state title in school history, defeating University High School of Newark by 30 points.

Paulsboro was ranked in the top five of South Jersey by the Courier-Post five times and was named the No. 1 team in 2011 and 2015. Paulsboro was the only Group 1 team to receive the Courier-Post Cup.

Collins is a teacher at Schalick High School and has coached football, basketball and baseball at his alma mater.

As an athlete, he earned 11 varsity letters at Schalick and earned an athletic scholarship to play basketball at Monmouth University and is a 2021 inductee of the Paulsboro High School Sports Hall of Fame.

Donna Marie Costa – Washington Twp. High School

A 1972 graduate of Washington Township High School, she coached several sports at her alma mater from 1979-2006, having started as an assistant before taking over the leadership of the basketball program in 1985.

Donna was named Coach of the Year by the Courier-Post in 1992 and again by the Gloucester County Times in 2003.

Her teams were state finalists in 1993 and 1994 along with South Jersey Champions in 1992, 1993 and 1994.

Her Girls Tennis Teams were Gloucester County Champions in 2002 and 2003.

Not to be outdone, Donna’s track and field teams won Championships in 1988, 1989 and 1990.

Donna is a 1999 Gloucester County Hall of Fame inductee, The Washington Township Hall of Fame (1996) and the recipient of the Scholar-Athlete Award at Washington Township (1972),

Costa graduated from Slippery Rock State College and captained the tennis team where she was a No. 1 singles player.

She holds Masters Degrees in Administration and also in Student Services Counseling.

Dennis Horner – Holy Spirit High School

Horner graduated from Holy Spirit High School in 2006 after leading the Spartans to the championship of the Cape-Atlantic Tournament.

The 6-foot-9 forward was a star at Holy Spirit from 2002-2006 averaging 17.4 points per game during his senior season in which the Spartans went 24-3 and won the CAL title game over Atlantic City 45-43, all memories he says he will never forget.

Holy Spirit was 58-19 with Horner in the lineup.

During his career, Horner scored 1,277 points and steadily improved his scoring average each year under Coach Jamie Gilliespie.

Following his stellar career with the Spartans, Horner attended North Carolina State University.

He scored over 1,000 points in his final season and over 2,600 points with NC State.

Horner played professionally with the New Jersey Nets and later in Europe for Belgium and in South America.

Annette Angelotti Reiter – Gloucester Catholic High School

This Gloucester Catholic graduate lit up scholastic basketball in the late 1970’s. She was a starter on the NJSIAA State Championship teams in 1976, 1977, 1978 and 1979.

She played for the Widener University basketball program from 1979-83. Again, she was a four-year starter and amassed three MAC (Mid Athletic Conference) Championships during the 1981, 1982 and 1983 seasons. She is the fourth all-time leading scorer in Widener history with 1,568 points.

Angelotti, was selected the MAC Player of the Year in 1983 as well as MAC First  Team in 1981, 1982 and 1983.As a fitting completion of her college experience, Annette was inducted to the Widener University Hall of Fame in 2022.

After her college days, she became an assistant coach at her alma mater, Gloucester Catholic, from

1991-1997 and head coach at Glassboro High School from 1997-2000.

Later stops among the coaching ranks were to Bishop Eustace Prep (2000-2005) where she won a State Championship in 2002 before moving to the college tier with stops at Rowan, Penn State (Abington), and Rutgers University-Camden.

While at Rutgers, Reiter was named Rutgers Coach of the Year in 2016 and 2018, led Rutgers to the NJAC playoffs in 2016, 2019 and 2021 after the team had gone 14-years of not qualifying for the playoffs.

Annette is married to David Reiter and has three children (Brad, Alyssa & Kristina) and five grandchildren (Avery, Ben, Sophia, Logan and Natalie. She is a Case Manager and Home Care Nurse with Holy Redeemer Health Care.

Jason Thompson – Lenape High School

In the world of basketball, few stories are as inspiring as that of Jason Thompson, a retired eight-year NBA veteran turned Division I coach. From dazzling fans with his on-court prowess to guiding the next generation of athletes from the sidelines, Jason has left an indelible mark on the sport he loves.

Born and raised in Mount Laurel to Chuck and Sharyn Thompson, Jason showed promise from the very beginning. His passion for basketball was ignited, at a young age, nurtured by his parents, his younger brother Ryan, and dedicated coaches who recognized his innate talent and unyielding determination.

The foundations of greatness were laid early in Jason’s life at Lenape Regional High School, where he averaged 15 points and 12 rebounds. He was named second team All-South Jersey and first team All-State Group 4, selected to play in the New Jersey North-South All-Star game, and led Lenape to its first State Title and undefeated regular season. He was inducted into the Lenape High School Hall of Fame in 2022. Jason’s standout high school career earned him a full basketball scholarship to Rider University.

While at Rider, Jason was an Associated Press Honorable Mention All-American, US Basketball Writers’ Association District II Player of the Year, the National Association of Basketball Coaches All-District 3 selection, MAAC Player of the Year, a two-time First Team All-MAAC, and a two-time MAAC Defensive Player of the Year. He compiled 2,040 points (third-most ever at Rider) and a Rider record of 1,171 rebounds, including a Broncs’ single-season-best of 412 in 2007-08. His 235 career blocks and 91 rejections are also Rider records. This remarkable career earned him a first ballot induction into the 2016 Rider Athletics Hall of Fame. Jason’s No. 1 jersey also hangs from the rafters of Alumni Gymnasium as one of only two Rider men’s basketball players of all-time to have their numbers retired.

Upon his graduation in 2008 with a Bachelor of Arts in Communications, Jason was drafted by the Sacramento Kings as a lottery selection with the 12th overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft. He went on to play 541 games for the Kings, which is the most ever for the franchise. He compiled over 5,000 points and 3,750 rebounds in seven seasons, before splitting his eighth season in 2015-16 with the Golden State Warriors and the Toronto Raptors.

From 2016 through 2021, Jason’s basketball journey went international, including the Chinese Basketball Association and the Euro league. Remarkably, he won a championship title in both leagues.

Following an illustrious playing career, Jason made a seamless transition to the next chapter of his basketball journey when he returned to his alma mater, Rider University, this time as an assistant coach. In his first season on the coaching staff, Rider

finished second in the MAAC regular season standings, including a win at eventual MAAC champion Iona, snapping the Gaels’ 21-game home winning streak. This season Rider is projected to finish as the number one seed within the conference.

Beyond his contributions to the game of basketball, Jason has made a significant impact through his philanthropic endeavors.

In 2010, he founded The Jason Thompson Foundation after the tragic loss of his cousin, Tiffany Carroll, to heart disease. This harsh reality lit a fire in Jason where he has devoted himself to raising awareness about heart disease, promoting healthy eating and lifestyles within athletes, children, and young adults, and giving a voice to the voiceless. His commitment to giving back through his foundation’s community initiative, L.I.V.E. Like JT, exemplifies his character both on and off the court.

Jason’s legacy, built on a foundation of excellence and compassion, will continue to inspire athletes, coaches, and communities for generations to come.

Ashley Durham Cornwall – Sacred Heart High School

This 2009 graduate of Sacred Heart High School was the school’s all-time leading scorer as well as Cumberland County.

As a senior, Ashley led South Jersey in scoring for the second consecutive year and named to the First Team All-South Jersey and All-Parochial by the Albert Carino Basketball Club, The Press of Atlantic City, the Courier-Post and the Daily Journal. She was also selected to the Cape-Atlantic League All-Star Game.

Following her fantastic career at Sacred Heart, Durham attended Canisius College. She finished with 2,200 points, becoming the 20th player in Canisius history to join the 1,000 Point Club and had a remarkable statistic of making 83.7% of her free-throw attempts. During her career, she converted 319 free throws.

During the 2012-13 season, she was the first Canisius player ever to be named to the 1 st Team All MAAC team.

Durham holds a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice and is a detective with the Cumberland County Prosecutor’s Office.

She is married to Dowon Cornwall and has three children Aaliyah, Dominic, and Ny’Asia.

Rashidat Junaid – Camden Catholic High School

Junaid, a 2006 graduate of Camden Catholic High School, played for Coach Chris Paladino at Camden Catholic and was an All-South Jersey player. She remains the school’s leading scorer — boys and girls — with 2,085 points.

She went on to have a standout career at Rutgers University for C. Vivian Stringer and was on the 2006-07 team that played Tennessee for the NCAA title., then played professionally overseas.

She was taken in the 2010 WNBA Draft by the Los Angeles Sparks but was released from the team.

Junaid played one season in Russia and one in China. She returned home and began to coach at her alma mater.

This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: Carino Club's to induct next class South Jersey Basketball Hall of Fame