Check out Saturday’s SOL results, including all the results from the SOL Coaches vs. Cancer Challenge. To view photos of the Bensalem/Upper Dublin, Neshaminy/Souderton and Wissahickon/CR South games, please visit the Photo Gallery.
CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 40, COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 31
A lengthy postgame meeting after Saturday’s win afforded East’s players an opportunity to review the New Year’s resolutions they had made at their final practice in 2012.
If results mean anything, it would seem to be a safe bet that they are individually and collectively keeping their resolutions as they won for the ninth time in 10 games on Saturday after a 3-3 start and upped their winning streak to seven.
“We had them put in an envelope what they wanted to do better,” coach Tom Lonergan said. “We just went through it, and almost every single one of them talked about 24-7 intensity in practice and playing every possession for 32 minutes in games, and that’s what they’ve done.
“That’s been the big difference. You see it at practice on a daily basis, and you’re seeing it on almost every possession during games. They’ve collectively come together as a unit. They’ve learned their roles. They’re now conditioned to play.”
Courtney Webster played all 32 minutes of Saturday’s game, and the senior center was unstoppable, scoring a game-high 22 points.
“In the beginning of the season, it’s kind of tough to be in condition to go 32 minutes,” Lonergan said. “Now they’re in condition to do that, and they’re supported for it by the bench.
“The bench is tremendous support and pushes them at practice. Collectively, they’re starting to put it all together.”
Webster scored 12 points in a first half that saw the Patriots go on top 21-12, and she added 10 more in the second half, reeling off six points in a row to put the Patriots on top 40-20.
“I thought we worked so well together,” Webster said. “You could just tell we started working as a team, and that helped us get it inside.”
It also didn’t hurt that Morgan Kelly buried a pair of three’s late in the third quarter.
“That’s huge because they go out on her because she’s a dominant player, and it opens it up inside,” Webster said.
Kelly finished with seven points, and Lindsey Nier added five, and the Patriots, according to Lonergan, are getting contributions up and down the lineup during their recent surge.
“What a big difference from back in December when teams might have been marking Morgan (Kelly),” Lonergan said. “Now Katelyn (Miller) is coming with eight to 10 points a game, shooting four-for-five from the floor, and Karoline (White) has picked up her perimeter shot on off-the-ball screens and is now knocking down the jump shots, so it elevates her game that much more.”
The Indians were led by the 12-point effort of Jessica Gerber while Michaela Finneyfrock had six points and Madison Attanasio added five points. Coach Lou Palkovics was pleased with his team’s defensive effort in a fourth quarter that saw the Patriots go on top 40-20 early only to watch the Indians close it out with an 11-0 run.
“We ran that one-three-one, which gave them headaches,” the Indians’ coach said. “I don’t think they scored the last five minutes of the game.”
Palkovics referenced an unusual play that saw the Indians go into halftime trailing 21-14 only to come out and find themselves behind by nine.
“It was 21-12 with .2 seconds left in the first half,” the Indians’ coach said. “I realize you can’t get a shot off, so we ran a screen for Michaela (Finneyfrock) to get a tip, and she tipped it in.
“It’s 21-14, and that’s a lot different than 21-12. We’re in the locker room, and one of the referees walked in and said, ‘We just want to let you know we took those two points off the board.’ I don’t think you can do that. Until they use instant replay in high school basketball – if all three of them say it’s good when they walk off the court, it’s good.”
It wasn’t good on this day, and while the Indians fell to 8-8 overall, the Patriots upped their record to 12-4.
“I think we’re starting to believe in ourselves and working more as a team, which is a huge difference,” Webster said. “You can tell on and off the court – we’re encouraging each other. It’s just comfortable.”
CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 67, PENNSBURY 44
The Bucks had too many weapons for the Falcons in Saturday’s showdown of conference leaders. The Falcons led 9-8 late in the first quarter after a three-point play by sophomore Taylor Ferguson, but the remainder of the half – and game - belonged to the Bucks, who closed out the half with a 25-6 scoring tear.
“We didn’t hit a lot of shots early,” West coach Terry Rakowsky said. “We’re a pretty good outside shooting team. That has been pretty consistent all year, and we started lighting it up a little bit.
“Pennsbury played well early. They played that 2-3 zone, packed it in a little bit. They were sort of giving us those shots, and when we started making them, that made it a little bit easier.”
The Bucks received scoring from 10 players. Sophomore point guard Nicole Munger led the way with 15 points, and Maggie Gratz added 12. Mackenzie Carroll had eight points and Cait Maut had six.
“We have so much depth on our team,” Carroll said. “We can put anyone out there at anytime, and that really helps during games.
“Everyone wants to have a good game every game, but you know if you’re not, there will always be someone there. When we come off the court, even if we have a bad game, everyone is clapping for us, giving us high fives.”
The Bucks connected on nine three’s – three by Munger and two by both Carroll and Cait Mautz.
“We practice them a lot,” Carroll said. “We do shooting at practice, and we practice like it’s a game, so we’re always up tempo, and that helps a lot during games.”
The Falcons were led by the 19-point effort of junior Kaitlin Kelly, who connected on four three’s. Ferguson added nine points and Sajanna Bethea, six points.
The Bucks improved to 12-3 on the season while the Falcons fell to 10-4.
PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 49, HATBORO-HORSHAM 36
The Colonials rolled to their third consecutive win on Saturday at Harry S Truman High School as part of the SOL Coaches vs. Cancer Challenge Tournament. The Hatters took a 10-8 lead at the end of one quarter, but the Colonials rallied to go on top 17-14 by halftime. They blew the game wide open with a 19-2 third quarter tear.
“It was a very physical game,” coach Daniel Dougherty said. “In the third quarter, (we) opened the game up by consistently breaking the Hatboro press while at the same time effectively executing a fullcourt press of our own.”
Alynna Williams carried PW through a tough first half, scoring six of her 10 points in the half and dishing out three of her six assists. She did not have any turnovers against the fullcourt press.
Senior forward Kayla Wisniewski led PW with 16 points and nine rebounds while senior center Nikki Casey added eight points, six rebounds and four blocks, and senior guard Maya Thomas had 10 points, four steals and three rebounds.
Heather Lutz led the Hatters with 14 points while Amanda Brett and Cassidy Quattro both had seven points. Lauren Jester had six points.
The Hatters saw their record drop to 2-12 while the Colonials improved to 6-8.
COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 47, WISSAHICKON 34
Courtney Brown had the hot hand for the Golden Hawks. The East Stroudsburg-bound senior connected on four three-pointers and scored 15 of her game-high 23 points in the fourth quarter to seal the win for Rock South.
“It was nice to see Courtney – who was in a little bit of a shooting slump – come to life,” coach Monica Stolic said. “She’s a streak shooter, and she was really on fire.”
Brown’s fourth quarter tear loomed large after the Trojans trimmed Rock South’s 21-12 halftime lead to 25-20 heading into the final frame.
“We were a little lethargic in the third quarter,” Stolic said.
While Brown stole the spotlight in the second half, it was Alexis Hofstaedter who had the hot hand in the first half. The senior point guard connected on 15 of her 20 points in the first half. Included in her torrid first half were four three-pointers. The Golden Hawks connected on nine three’s on the day.
“We need to get more balanced scoring,” said Stolic, whose team received 43 of its 47 points from two players and saw just three players get into the scoring column.
Taylor Dillon accounted for the remaining four points.
The Trojans were led by Kian Wright (12 points), Rachel Stone (10 points) and Dominique Earland (seven points).
While the Trojans fell to 7-8 on the season, the Golden Hawks, winners of three straight, improved to 7-6 overall.
UPPER DUBLIN 63, BENSALEM 37
The Flying Cardinals remain the hottest team in the SOL, opening up a 16-8 lead at the end of one quarter and going into halftime with a 33-19 advantage. For good measure, the Cards outscored the Owls 30-18 in the second half. The Cardinals connected on eight three-pointers, including six in the first half.
Curtrena Goff had another big day for the Cardinals, scoring 18 points to go along with eight rebounds, five assists and three steals. Brianna Spector had 10 points and eight rebounds, and Regan Gallagher had eight points, 13 rebounds, four blocks and four steals. Lauren Rothfeld chipped in with eight points while Kayla McAneney added six points.
The Owls were led by Ashida Cooper with 10 points while Stephanie Unger added nine and Tyra Roberts, six points.
“They are a good team and well coached,” Bensalem coach Don Bogan said. “My girls played hard and never gave up.”
While the Owls fell to 7-7, the Flying Cardinals improved to 14-1.
QUAKERTOWN 61, SPRINGFIELD (MONTCO) 47
Senior Kathryne Vetter scored 24 points and teammate Ashlee Ruzicka added 11 points and 15 rebounds to lead the Panthers to the big win.
“The girls came out, and they moved the ball around on offense – looked for the open man and made Springfield play defense,” coach Greg Swavely said. “I was proud of the way they worked the ball around and didn’t settle for the first shot they got but took the best shot they could get, and we put a lot of points on the board.”
The Panthers’ coach lauded the performances of veterans Vetter and Ruzicka.
“They’re our leaders,” Swavely said. “They just stepped up to the plate today. They knew we needed a win, and they did whatever it took. They refused to lose. They stayed within themselves and just led by example on the court.
“Kathryne was driving to the basket, and she hit a couple of three’s. She was great handling their pressure. They were doing a lot of trapping, and Kathryne would split the trap and take it strong to the basket and either got the basket or the foul. I was proud of her aggressiveness on offense.”
While the Spartans fell to 2-12, the Panthers upped their record to 4-10.
HARRY S TRUMAN 57, UPPER MORELAND 47
Less than 24 hours after the Tigers – minus three starters - lost to Neshaminy 60-18, they took the court to do battle with the Golden Bears. This time Khristaijah Jackson (sprained foot) and Taylor Gasperi (illness) were back in the lineup, and what a difference the duo made, combining for 35 points in the win. Jackson led all scorers with 22 points while Gasperi added 13, and Shappelle Brewton had eight points.
“They played as a team,” coach Collette Munford said. “They don’t know how to win yet, but I think it’s gradually coming because today they played very well as a team despite some of the mistakes.
“In the first half, we had eight turnovers, and I told them, ‘That’s low, so keep it up.’ In two minutes in the second half, they had eight more turnovers, but they pulled through, so I’m proud of them.”
The Tigers, who led 17-10 at the end of one quarter, took a 24-19 lead into halftime. They still led 36-30 heading into a final quarter that saw the Tigers outscore the Golden Bears 21-17.
For the Golden Bears, Lindsay Walder scored 15 points and Karli Lynch added 12.
Munford has not had her starting lineup in place since Dec. 19 when she lost Kaijah Willis.
“I think our second half will be a little better than our first,” Munford said. “I’m still trying to figure out which five to have out there because I still have Kaijah Willis out.
“She’s my rebounder, she’s my scrappy girl – she’ll go after loose balls, and she is a big plus for us.”
While the Golden Bears fell to 2-12, the Tigers improved to 4-11.
CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 50, NORRISTOWN 38
The Titans brought an end to the Eagles’ six-game winning streak, opening up a 16-6 lead at the end of one quarter and never looking back.
“We played with a little mojo again,” coach Beth Mattern said. “Norristown has a nice team.
“We were patient and worked the ball, and we finished. We prevented them from getting their transition offense going, and we played nice man-to-man defense.”
Sparked by the hot hand of Amanda Schneider, the Titans took a 25-12 lead into halftime. The senior point guard, who scored 12 of her game-high 15 points in the first half, connected on four three’s in the first half.
Senior center Lauren Mosher also had a huge game for the Titans, finishing with a double-double that included 12 points and 13 rebounds. Senior Rachel Falkowski added eight points.
“This was huge,” Mattern said. “We were struggling to win, and to get a win against a team that has been very hot and scoring a lot of points is definitely a confidence boost.”
While the Eagles saw their record drop to 10-4, the Titans improved to 10-6 overall.
SOUDERTON 38, NESHAMINY 31
Sarah Derstein had a breakout performance for the Indians, contributing eight points, 15 rebounds, seven steals, two assists and three blocked shots.
“Sarah just had a huge, huge game,” coach Lynn Carroll said. “She was four-for-four from the foul line in the fourth quarter, and two of them were late where we were up five with a few minutes to go. She’s at the foul line for a one-and-one and makes both of them, and it gave us a little bit of breathing room.”
Souderton appeared to be in command of Saturday’s game against the Redskins, who were without junior point guard Megan Schafer. The Indians outscored the ‘Skins 15-11 in the first quarter and took a 26-18 lead into halftime.
Then came a third quarter that saw the Indians manage just two points while the Redskins weren’t doing a whole lot better, scoring just three to make it a 28-21 game after three quarters. Both teams scored 10 points in the final quarter with Derstein accounting for four of those while Allison Gallagher scored six of her team-high 13 points in the frame.
“Obviously, they are a much different team, different pace, different everything without Schafer,” Carroll said. “For us, the most impressive thing was getting out of the third quarter and finding a way to win after scoring two points in the third. It was like there was a lid on the basket.
“Luckily, we held them to three in that same quarter, and we still had a lead going into the fourth, but it was very similar to other games we have had that did not end well.
“For our girls to hang in there and keep working to get a good shot off and get some offensive rebounds was important and not getting down on ourselves, which we’ve done in the past. It was great, and it shows growth. The girls are growing individually and as a team. There was definitely some adversity, but we made some plays in the end.”
Bianca Picard added nine points for the Indians while Libby Wetzler had 11 rebounds to go along with four points.
“We did a nice job of bothering their shots and not bailing them out and fouling them and limiting their second-chance opportunities,” said Carroll, who admits she is concerned about her team’s third quarter doldrums. “After the game in the locker room, I said to the girls that I’m trying to find ways to help them score and feel better about it.
“I said to them – give some thought this weekend about what we can do as a team in that situation and what can I do to help them individually and as a team.”
McKenna Mullin led the Redskins with eight points while Sarah Oliveira had seven and Stephanie Donahue, six points.
While the Redskins saw their record fall to 11-3, the Indians improved to 8-4.
ABINGTON 45, CHELTENHAM 36
The score of Saturday’s game between the neighboring rivals was deadlocked 11-11 after one quarter and still knotted at the intermission (20-20). The Ghosts took a 28-27 lead into the final frame when they outscored the Lady Panthers 17-9.
Gabby Nolan led the Ghosts with 12 points while Deja Rawls added eight. Michael Harris had eight points and Sammy Lochner, seven points. For the Lady Panthers, sophomore point guard Amarri Trueheart scored a game-high 16 points, and senior Sabrina Casseus added 11 points.
The Ghosts are 10-6 on the season while the Lady Panthers fall to 5-10.
WILLIAM TENNENT 47, PENNRIDGE 32
UPPER MERION 48, WEST CHESTER HENDERSON 40
Senior Kristina O’Sullivan turned in a monster performance for the Vikings, scoring a game-high 26 points to go along with 15 rebounds and five assists. The game’s unsung hero was senior Dominique Gambone, who finished with 10 points, which included a crucial four-for-four effort from the foul line down the stretch to seal the win. She also had 10 rebounds.
“She also played tenacious defense and did a really nice job,” coach Tom Schurtz said of Gambone. “She made the free throws down the stretch, and she put the icing on the cake today.”
The Vikings led 14-13 at the end of one quarter and 28-23 at halftime. Henderson outscored the Vikings 9-6 in the third quarter to make it a 34-32 game. Upper Merion won it with a 14-8 fourth quarter.
With the win, the Vikings improved to 10-4 on the season.
NORTH PENN 51, DANIEL BOONE 48
It wasn’t easy, and it wasn’t pretty, but the Maidens - who trailed 25-20 at halftime and still trailed 30-25 heading into the final quarter - used a 26-18 fourth quarter scoring burst to eke out the non-league win.
“In the second quarter, we just kept turning the ball over,” coach Maggie deMarteleire said. “But in the third quarter, we didn’t turn the ball over, and we got a lot of good shots, but it was like there was a lid on the basket. We could not hit a layup, we couldn’t hit a foul shot. We couldn’t hit anything. It got to the point where it was like, ‘It’s just one of those days.’
“I feel partially responsible because I don’t think I put enough emphasis on this game, and their team played really hard. I’m hoping that we learn from this and play a lot better tomorrow.”
Vicky Tumasz scored 10 of her 14 points in the fourth quarter. The junior guard connected on 9-of-10 from the foul line for the game, which included a 7-of-8 showing in the fourth quarter. Senior Lauren Crisler scored seven of her team-high 16 points in the fourth quarter. She also had 10 rebounds. Jackie Bilotti connected on a pair of three-pointers in the fourth quarter.
The Maidens, who improved to 14-1, return to action Sunday will they will face Shipley at Lower Merion.
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