SOL Girls' Basketball District Preview (Second Round)

02/22/17 4:09am Posted by editor

Ten SOL girls’ basketball teams will be in action in Wednesday’s second round of the District One 6A Tournament. Check out the preview capsules.

Sixteen teams will be in action in Wednesday’s second round of the District One 6A Tournament. Ten are from the SOL. Seven of the eight games being played will feature at least one SOL team. Three are all-SOL games – Upper Dublin at Central Bucks West, Neshaminy at Central Bucks South and Abington at Souderton.

Eleven state berths are at stake this year – at least three will be clinched by SOL teams on Wednesday. A loss Wednesday does not mean the end of the season as the eight losing teams will battle it out for the three remaining state berths.

Top-seeded North Penn will look to avenge a district quarterfinal loss to Spring-Ford (41-35) on Feb. 23, 2015. Interestingly, the Rams were the 16th seed that year as well, but the Knights were the eighth seed. Third-seeded Plymouth Whitemarsh will look to continue its magic carpet ride against a Coatesville team that rallied from a double-digit deficit to escape with an opening round win.

The Upper Dublin/Central Bucks West contest is a rematch of last year’s SOL Tournament semifinal that saw the Bucks eke out a 28-25 win. It once again figures to be a battle of contrasting styles.

Neshaminy and Central Bucks South did battle in the season opener for both squads on Dec. 9. The game was a coming out party for sophomore point guard Alexa Brodie, whose 20-point performance led the Titans to a 51-34 win over the young Redskins. A lot has happened since that early-season meeting.

The eight-nine game featuring Abington at Souderton is one of the most intriguing of the night. Souderton is hosting a district playoff game for the first time since they were the 11th seed and defeated Central Bucks South 51-37 on Feb. 15, 2013. The young Indians – who are back in districts after a two-year absence - do not have a senior in their starting lineup, and their turnaround from last year’s eight-win season has been dramatic. Abington, meanwhile, is a regular in the postseason.

Council Rock North will be on the road at Conestoga. The Indians are battle tested after playing top-seeded North Penn twice and a schedule that is loaded with district teams. Central Bucks East at Boyertown is a rematch of a district opening round game on Feb. 13, 2015, that saw the top-seeded Bears defeat the then 32nd-seeded Patriots 53-38. The Patriots proved with last year’s 45-33 win over ninth-seeded Springfield-Delco that they are not uncomfortable in the role of underdog. They were the 24th seed last year.

It promises to an interesting night of basketball. Check back for recaps of all the games featuring SOL teams.

#16 SPRING-FORD at #1 NORTH PENN
North Penn

  • 20-3 overall
  • 10-2 SOL Continental Conference champion
  • Fell to CB West 43-35 in SOL Tournament title game, snapping a 14-game winning streak.
  • Led by senior captains Sam Carangi (Villanova), Jess Huber (University of the Sciences) and Irisa Ye (University of the Sciences). All three were part of the Knights’ district title run when they were freshmen.
  • Huber (14.7) is second only to PW senior Taylor O’Brien in scoring in the SOL. Ye (11.4), Bri Hewlett (11.1) and Carangi (8.1) also are dangerous offensive weapons
  • Regular season wins over #8 Souderton (45-27 & 44-33), #11 Council Rock North (45-40 & 41-27), #12 Upper Dublin (50-32), #15 Central Bucks East (43-29 & 55-49) and #18 Perk Valley (57-39)
  • Split regular season series with #7 Central Bucks South (34-48 & 51-50) and #5 Central Bucks West (43-46 & 59-40).

Spring-Ford

  • 17-8 overall
  • 6-4 Pioneer Athletic Conference Liberty Division third place behind Boyertown and Methacton
  • Fell to #2 Boyertown in PAC Tournament semifinals (57-51)
  • Led by senior guard Sydney Wagner (15.3 ppg, 34 threes) as well as senior Maddie Haney (8.4 ppg) and senior guard Juliana Alessandroni (6.7 ppg, 27 threes)
  • Swept #18 Perk Valley in three meetings (56-53, 65-43 & 58-46)

How they got here:  Maddie Haney sank a pair of free throws with less than 10 seconds remaining to break a 35-35 tie, propelling Spring-Ford to a 38-35 win over #17 Oxford in the opening round. The Rams – who were without leading scorer Sydney Wagner for most of the game because of an injury – were led by Alyssa Conway (nine points) and Juliana Alessandroni (eight points).

#14 COATESVILLE at #3 PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH
Plymouth Whitemarsh

  • 22-1 overall
  • 14-0 SOL American Conference champion
  • First sole championship for program since 1983
  • Won 22 straight before falling to #5 Central Bucks West in SOL Tournament semifinals (73-63)
  • Junior Taylor O’Brien, who surpassed the 1,000-point milestone, is the SOL’s top scorer, averaging 21.6 points a game.
  • Junior Lauren Fortescue (10.5 ppg), junior Ali Diamond (8.0 ppg) and senior Lauren Coscia (7.3) add to a dangerous attack.
  • Regular season wins over #12 Upper Dublin (50-37 & 35-30), #22 Cheltenham (58-24 & 44-30) and #23 Council Rock South (54-33).

Coatesville

  • 19-6 overall
  • 10-2 Ches-Mont National Division champions
  • Fell to Bishop Shanahan 47-39 in Ches-Mont League title game.
  • Led by senior guard Dee Dee Irwin and 6-0 senior forward Brianna White
  • Regular season wins over #19 Unionville (54-48) and #24 Kennett (62-35)
  • Split season series with #17 Oxford (51-42 & 50-59)

How they got here:  Coatesville found itself in an early 17-3 hole in Saturday’s district opener against #19 Unionville but trimmed that deficit to eight by halftime (28-20) and rallied for a 59-56 come-from-behind win. Freshman Amaya Douglas led the Raiders with 17 points and seven rebounds while Dee Dee Irwin and Brianna White both added 12 points. White also had seven boards.

#12 UPPER DUBLIN at #5 CENTRAL BUCKS WEST
Central Bucks West

  • 19-4 overall
  • 9-3 SOL Continental Conference second place
  • Defeated #1 North Penn 43-35 to capture SOL Tournament title after downing #3 Plymouth Whitemarsh 73-63 in the tournament semifinals.
  • Balanced attack led by freshman Maddie Burke (9.8 ppg), senior Maggie Rakowsky (9.7 ppg), sophomore Tori Abelson (9.4 ppg) and sophomore Diane Nicholson (8.3 ppg)
  • Regular season wins over #4 Garnet Valley (67-50), #10 Neshaminy (53-41), #15 Central Bucks East (52-49 & 60-49), #18 Perk Valley (61-53)
  • Split regular season series with #1 North Penn (46-43 & 40-59), #7 Central Bucks South (43-44 & 37-34) and #8 Souderton (56-44, & 38-43).

Upper Dublin

  • 18-5 overall
  • 12-2 SOL American Conference second place behind Plymouth Whitemarsh
  • Saw its string of four consecutive conference titles snapped by PW
  • Led by junior Nicole Kaiser (14.0 ppg) and senior Josie Barrett (9.3 ppg)
  • Regular season wins over #15 Central Bucks East (34-26) and #22 Cheltenham (48-30 & 42-26).
  • Winners of 12 of last 13 games

How they got here:  Upper Dublin defeated #21 Harry S Truman 49-39, erasing a 22-16 halftime deficit with a 20-4 third quarter burst. Senior Nicole Kaiser led the Cardinals with 18 points while Josie Barrett added 16 – which included 11 straight points in the third quarter. Jackie Vargas led the Cards under the basket with 10 rebounds.

#10 NESHAMINY at #7 CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH
Central Bucks South

  • 17-5 overall
  • 7-5 SOL Continental Conference fourth place behind North Penn, Central Bucks West and Souderton
  • Led by junior Haley Meinel (11.8 ppg) and sophomore point guard Alexa Brodie (10.1 ppg)
  • Regular season wins over #10 Neshaminy (51-34), #11 Council Rock North (57-33), #12 Upper Dublin (35-29) and #18 Perk Valley (50-31)
  • Split regular season series with #1 North Penn (48-34 & 50-51), #5 Central Bucks West (44-43 & 37-34) and #8 Souderton (29-35 & 48-39)

Neshaminy

  • 17-5 overall
  • 9-3 SOL National Conference third place behind Council Rock North and Abington
  • Young team led by the team’s two seniors - Emily Alexis and Devon Storms
  • Regular season wins over #15 Central Bucks East (55-42), #18 Perk Valley (47-20), #21 Harry S Truman (49-36 & 58-49) and #23 Council Rock South (46-29 & 57-32)
  • Split regular season series with #9 Abington (43-38 & 65-73)

How they got here: Neshaminy defeated conference rival Council Rock South 47-34. The Redskins jumped out to a 16-2 lead over the 23rd-seeded Golden Hawks, sparked by the hot hand of Allison Harvey, who had eight points in the first quarter. Harvey led the ‘Skins with 16 while Devon Storms added eight. Freshman point guard Kristin Curley had seven assists and seven rebounds to go along with five points.

#9 ABINGTON at #8 SOUDERTON
Souderton

  • 17-5 overall
  • 8-4 SOL Continental Conference third place behind North Penn and Central Bucks West.
  • Balanced attack led by junior Kate Connolly (10.4 ppg), junior Alana Cardona (9.4 ppg) and sophomore Megan Walbrandt (8.6 ppg).
  • Regular season wins over #13 Methacton (55-47), #15 Central Bucks East (44-40 & 41-28) and Council Rock South (39-32).
  • Split regular season series with #5 Central Bucks West (44-56 & 43-38) and #7 Central Bucks South (35-29 & 39-49).

Abington

  • 18-5 overall
  • 10-2 SOL National Conference second place behind Council Rock North
  • Led by University of Delaware-bound Lizzie O’Leary (13.7 ppg), junior Sam Brusha (11.4 ppg) and sophomore Kassondra Brown (11.1 ppg)
  • Regular season wins over #12 Upper Dublin (36-24), #18 Perkiomen Valley (64-39), #21 Harry S Truman (67-29 & 80-36), #23 Council Rock South (51-38 & 46-45),
  • Split regular season series with #10 Neshaminy (38-43 & 73-65) and #11 Council Rock North (54-61 & 42-41).
  • Ghosts have won 12 of 13 games with only loss to #2 Boyertown (49-54).

How they got here:  Abington raced to a 45-9 halftime lead on its way to a 66-23 rout of #24 Kennett. Lizzie O’Leary (16 points), Sam Brusha (13) and Kassondra Brown (10) all finished in double figures while Britney James (7), Tamia Wessels (6) and Camryn Lexow (6) also contributed.

#11 COUNCIL ROCK NORTH at #6 CONESTOGA
Council Rock North

  • 16-7 overall
  • 11-1 SOL National Conference champions
  • First conference title since 2011
  • Led by junior point guard Becca Margolis (12.0 ppg) and sophomore Dana Bandurick (11.7 ppg)
  • Regular season wins over #10 Neshaminy (50-49 & 38-34), #21 Harry S Truman (60-46 & 66-42) and #23 Council Rock South (44-32 & 53-29)
  • Split regular season series with #9 Abington (61-54 & 42-41)

How they got here: In an opening round game, Council Rock North defeated #22 Cheltenham 55-22. The Indians took a 27-15 lead into halftime and then blew the game wide open with a 17-2 third quarter surge. Becca Margolis (13 points, 6 steals) and Dana Bandurick (13 points, 5 steals, 5 rebounds, 3 blocked shots) led the Indians. Mackenzie Tinner (7 points, 6 rebounds, 2 blocks) and Hannah Weiler (7 points, 5 rebounds) controlled the paint.

Conestoga

  • 19-4 overall
  • 13-4 Central League third place behind Garnet Valley and Springfield Delco
  • Lost to Garnet Valley in Central League title game (41-36). Three of Pioneers’ four losses are at the hands of #4 Garnet Valley (20-37 & 46-49)
  • Conestoga opened season with 14 straight wins and won 19 of first 20 games with only loss to Garnet Valley.
  • Led by junior center Katie Mayock (14 ppg, 10 rpg) and senior forward Liz Scott (8 ppg, 5 rpg) in the absence of all-league junior guard Maria Koblish, who is out for the season with an injury.
  • Lost three straight heading into the postseason.

#15 CENTRAL BUCKS EAST at #2 BOYERTOWN
Central Bucks East

  • 14-8 overall
  • 6-6 SOL Continental Conference fifth place behind North Penn, Central Bucks West, Souderton and Central Bucks South
  • 12-4 after a 1-4 start to open the season
  • Led by seniors Bridget Birkhead (11.8 ppg) and Bri Talbot (10.6 ppg)
  • Regular season wins over #7 Central Bucks South (43-30 & 33-28), #9 Abington (50-44) and #11 Council Rock North (47-40).

How they got here: Central Bucks East defeated #18 Perkiomen Valley 53-30. Junior point guard Bailey McManus scored 10 first-half points to propel the Patriots to a 28-20 halftime lead. McManus finished with 15 while senior Bri Talbot led all scorers with 17. Bridget Birkhead added six.

Boyertown

  • 21-3 overall
  • 9-1 Pioneer Athletic Conference Liberty Division champion
  • Captured Pioneer Athletic Conference title with 47-44 win over Methacton after defeating Spring-Ford in semifinals
  • Led by senior Bucknell commit Abby Kapp, who averages 15.5 points a game and has 30 three-pointers. Also receive contributions from Katie Armstrong (9.4 ppg, 23 threes), and senior point guard Alli Marcus (7.5 ppg). Marcus is an Albright commit.
  • Swept regular season series against #16 Spring-Ford (50-31 & 38-34) and #18 Perk Valley (61-39 & 55-34). Regular season win over #9 Abington (54-49) and District 12 #2 Parkland (49-40).
  • Split regular season series with #13 Methacton (48-30 & 27-44)
  • Winners of 12 straight with last loss on Jan. 15 to Bonner Prendergast (43-47).
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