Central Bucks West and Abington will do battle in an all-SOL District One AAAA final at Temple University on Friday (6 p.m.). Check back for photos and a complete game story.
Just moments after his Abington squad had fallen to Central Bucks West in the Suburban One League title game, coach Dan Marsh had a message for West coach Terry Rakowsky that turned out to be prophetic.
“When they beat us at Souderton, I told Terry, ‘We’ll see you at Temple,’ and he laughed,” Marsh said. “I said, ‘I’m not kidding.’
“Our kids said the same thing – they wanted to get to Temple, and we want to play the best team in the state, CB West. We want another chance at them, and we’re going to get it now. We’re very happy, and we’re very proud. It’s great when you set goals and you accomplish them.”
When the dust had settled on Wednesday’s District One AAAA semifinals at Council Rock South, only second-seeded Central Bucks West and fifth-seeded Abington were still standing. The two teams will meet in an all-Suburban One League district title game Friday at Temple University (6 p.m.).
“This was definitely a goal all the way around, and we got here just through our teamwork and just being unselfish and working hard for each other, just knowing if we played hard for each other it could get us far,” senior Gabby Nolan said.
The Ghosts will have an opportunity to avenge their 51-38 loss to the Bucks on the big stage.
“I’m really excited,” junior Sammy Lochner said. “I can’t wait to play with them again and compete with them because they’re always a great team to play and really competitive.”
By the time the final seconds ticked off the clock in Abington’s 66-43 semifinal win over Spring-Ford, the starters had long since taken a seat on the bench.
“It was so exciting,” Nolan said. “If you saw the bench, we were freaking out. I knew we could get here, but I guess we never thought of being in the moment and it’s actually happening.”
“It’s exciting,” senior Deja Rawls said. “I’m just proud of my teammates, my school, everybody that supported us - our coaches, my parents, my family and everyone that supported us the whole way through.
“Our key this season was playing as a team, and team bonding really helped us get closer and closer together. I think it was important for us playing as a team.”
According to senior Bre Bermel, the players have embraced the team concept.
“We all have starters on the team – there’s only five, but that doesn’t hinder us,” she said. “We come off the bench hard.
“As a team, we know our roles. If you start or if you don’t, you come out and come out on fire or you don’t help the team.”
The Ghosts, according to Bermel, are a family.
“We’re like sisters,” she said. “We hate each other one second and absolutely love each other the next. We fight, we tackle, we play around, but we get the job done on the court.
“I feel like being a family definitely (allows) us to criticize each other but not be offended, so we take that to heart, and we help. A family helps and supports each other, and when one part is weak, the family tries to lift them up, and we go win the next games.”
The next game for the Ghosts is on Friday night at Temple, and it could well have the look and feel of a home game for the Ghosts since their boys’ team will be playing Plymouth Whitemarsh in the nightcap, giving Abington the rare opportunity to capture both crowns.
“In this atmosphere with our boys winning, it’s just going to be unbelievable,” said Marsh, who led the Ghosts to a district title in 2010. “I just want these kids to enjoy it, take it all in.
“This is a once in lifetime thing.”
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Central Bucks West entered the postseason a team on a mission.
Friday’s trip to the district title game is redemption of sorts, helping to erase memories of last year’s heartbreaking 53-52 loss to Spring-Ford in the district quarterfinals. One year earlier, the Bucks also fell to Spring-Ford in the quarterfinals.
“We’ve had two losses to Spring-Ford, and as seniors, being to that spot where we lost, we wanted to go further,” senior captain Corrinne Godshall said. “We have been pushing ourselves, and we just tell ourselves every game – we didn’t run hills for this, we didn’t run bleachers for this. Let’s go further.”
This year, there weren’t any road blocks or even speed bumps on the way to Temple.
“It’s amazing,” senior captain Peyton Traina said. “We had hoped we would get this far, but it’s crazy to actually be here.
“We’ve been working so hard to get to this place. We couldn’t have done it without each other and without our coaches, and it’s an unbelievable feeling.”
For those who thought Downingtown East might provide a challenge in the district semifinals, the Bucks put that notion to rest early, jumping out to a 20-10 lead after one quarter and never looking back on their way to a 69-44 win.
“They’re a very good team,” Traina said. “To be honest, I looked up at the scoreboard in the third quarter. I had no idea what the score was. I thought it was a five-point game the whole time.
“They were a very, very good team. We’ve been preparing weeks and weeks and weeks, and we just executed very well.”
Mackenzie Carroll was a key defender on West’s state championship soccer team last fall. This playoff run, according to the senior captain, has a different feel about it.
“For soccer, we were always coming in the underdog,” Carroll said. “Now I almost have that opposite feeling.
“For soccer, we played (and defeated) Pennsbury who was undefeated, and we’re not undefeated, but I always think – I saw what happened to Pennsbury. We beat them, so I just try and remember that. Anything can happen, no matter what your record. You just have to take one game at a time.”
Only one game remains in the district playoffs, and it’s for gold. It is West’s first trip to the title game since 1985.
“This means a lot,” senior captain Nicole Munger said. “I’ve been going to the (district title) game at Villanova the past three years.
“Watching North Penn win last year was really cool, and it’s really exciting to play (at Temple) this year. It’s just going to be a lot of fun.”
#2 CENTRAL BUCKS WEST vs. #5 ABINGTON (at Temple University, Friday, 6 p.m.)
Central Bucks West
- 14-0 SOL, 27-1 overall
- SOL Continental Conference champions
- Captured first ever SOL Tournament title with 51-38 win over fifth-seeded Abington
- Led by first team all-state senior Nicole Munger (17.5 ppg) and a supporting cast that includes Mackenzie Carroll (11.0), Corrinne Godshall (10.6) and Mackenzie Mason (8.7)
- Regular season wins over #7 Upper Dublin (63-41), #8 North Penn (60-50 & 56-44), #12 CB South (59-35, 73-29), #23 Neshaminy (61-25), #26 Pennridge (71-50, 71-39) & #32 CB East (64-38, 67-37)
- Only loss came at the hands of Lake Taylor (Va.) in the Boo Williams Holiday Classic (68-57)
How they got here: Nicole Munger scored 19 first-half points, propelling the Bucks to a 34-23 halftime lead on their way to a convincing 69-44 win over 11th-seeded Downingtown East. Munger finished with a game-high 23 points while Corrinne Godshall (12 points) and Mackenzie Carroll (10 points) also finished in double figures.
In a quarterfinal game featuring a pair of SOL conference champs, Corrinne Godshall had a big night, contributing 19 points, 10 rebounds and four assists in the Bucks’ 55-40 win over Upper Dublin. Nicole Munger added 13 points, eight rebounds and four steals.
In second round action, the Bucks defeated #15 Council Rock North 55-38. Nicole Munger (16 points, 12 rebounds), Corrinne Godshall (15 points, nine rebounds) and Makenzie Mason (10 points, nine rebounds) led a balanced West attack.
In the opening round, the Bucks defeated #32 Owen J Roberts 75-31, opening up an 18-8 lead after one quarter and taking a 35-15 lead into halftime. Mackenzie Carroll (19 points), Corrinne Godshall (15 points) and Nicole Munger (15 points) led the Bucks.
Abington
- 14-0 SOL, 24-4 overall
- SOL National Conference champion
- Fell to second-seeded CB West 51-38 in SOL Tournament title game, a loss that snapped a 10-game winning streak.
- Regular season wins over #7 Upper Dublin (39-38), #8 North Penn (51-25), #13 Cheltenham (58-52), #15 CR North (44-32, 64-51), #23 Neshaminy (61-25, 32-23), #24 William Tennent (59-31, 74-39) and #27 CR South (50-30, 50-29)
- Led by senior point guard Deja Rawls (12.0 ppg), sophomore Lizzie O’Leary (11.7 ppg), junior Leah Simmons (7.7 ppg) and junior Sammy Lochner (8.2 ppg)
How they got here: In Wednesday’s semifinal game, Abington trailed 12-6 early but rallied to go on top 34-23 by halftime on their way to a 66-43 win over 16th-seeded Spring-Ford. Sammy Lochner led the way with 20 points while Deja Rawls (16 points) and Bre Bermel (10 points) also finished in double figures.
In a quarterfinal game, Abington led from wire to wire in a 51-39 win over fourth-seeded Garnet Valley, outscoring the Jaguars 22-15 in the fourth quarter to blow open a close game. Sophomore Lizzie Lear had a big night in the paint, contributing 16 points and 13 rebounds. Deja Rawls had 14 points, seven rebounds and five steals.
The Ghosts used a 13-4 third quarter burst to put some distance between themselves and the Titans, earning a 48-34 win over #12 Central Bucks South in a second round game. Lizzie O’Leary led the Ghosts with 14 while Gabby Nolan had 13 and Bre Bermel, seven points.
Abington rolled to a 56-29 win over #28 Conestoga in an opening round game. Deja Rawls led the way with 16 points while Sammy Lochner had 12 and Lizzie O’Leary, 11.
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