Check out the results for SOL girls’ basketball teams in action Saturday. To view photos of the CB West/Norristown and North Penn/CR South games, please visit the Photo Gallery.
#3 NORTH PENN 83, #30 COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 51
(Check back for a feature article about NP senior Vicky Tumasz reaching the 1,000-point plateau.)
The Lady Knights have a new philosophy – push the ball and score points in transition. They put on an advertisement for their new high octane offense in Saturday’s district opener.
“It’s literally a track meet out here,” said senior Vicky Tumasz, who reached the 1,000-point milestone in the third quarter. “Even at our practices - we were dying yesterday, but it’s so much better than just calling a play and waiting for that one wide open shot. It’s a lot more exciting.”
It looked as though a gutsy Golden Hawk squad might be able to keep things interesting when Cara Barlow’s three-point play knotted the score 12-12 with just over a minute remaining in the opening quarter.
Three fast break baskets in the final minute of the quarter all but dispelled that notion. The fun began when Tumasz finished off a fast break against the press. A Sam Carangi layup off a Rock South turnover was followed by a Bri Cullen layup at the buzzer, this fast break coming after a Rock South miss.
The Lady Knights led 18-12 heading in the second quarter, and they were just getting started. By the time they were finished, they had reeled off 15 straight points, a tear that was capped when freshman Irisa Ye scored on a fastbreak at the 5:12 mark of the second quarter.
By halftime, the Lady Knights led 39-20 on their way to the impressive win.
“Ever since we lost to CB South, offensively, we’ve been playing better,” coach Maggie deMarteleire said of her team’s Jan. 27 loss to the Titans. “We changed a couple of things before the CB West game (a 58-43 win).
“We want to take a little more advantage of our athleticism. We do have kids that have worked on their skills and are skilled basketball players. We want them to play a little more and not be so regimented.”
So far, the Lady Knights’ new style appears to be a perfect fit. In their six wins since falling to South, they have averaged more than 66 points a game. In Saturday’s track meet, they not only pushed the ball up the court, they protected it as well, turning the ball over a season low six times.
“We’ve definitely come together since that (South) game,” Tumasz said. “We got together and had a little meeting to talk about things – what we needed to work on. At each practice, everyone is going 150 percent, pushing each other, working hard and thinking about what we need to do, and every time we step on the court we get it done.”
On Saturday, the Lady Knights put on a clinic. Five players finished the game in double figures, led by Tumasz’s 21 points. She scored her historical basket at the 3:05 mark of the third period when she buried a pair from the foul line.
Erin Maher has made double-doubles a regular occurrence recently, and she had another on Saturday, contributing 14 points and 12 rebounds. The freshman trio of Sam Carangi, Ye and Jess Huber combined to score 34 points with Lee and Huber contributing 12 each off the bench. Sophomore Mikaela Giuliani had seven rebounds.
The Golden Hawks put up 51 points of their own – enough to win on most days, but Saturday wasn’t most days. Still, earning a spot in districts was quite an accomplishment for this year’s squad.
“We were 3-11 at one point,” coach Monica Stolic said. “They didn’t pack it in, and that’s why I’m proud of them.”
Rock South suffered a setback before the game started when junior Allison Taub turned her ankle during warm-ups. After getting it taped, Taub, who has been a major contributor for the Hawks, tried to gut it out. She went down three minutes into the opening quarter and was helped off the court.
Taub spent the remainder of the game watching from the bench, an ice pack taped to her ankle.
“Obviously, we had an uphill battle against a very good team,” Stolic said. “We came out and played well the first quarter without Allison – she’s been (averaging) a double-double, but they’re a very good team. Every time we play them they shoot the ball.
“I’m proud of them. They played to the end. “
The Golden Hawks closed out their season with a 10-13 record (8-6 SOL). The Maidens (20-3, 12-2) will host conference rival Central Bucks South in Wednesday’s second round game.
Council Rock South 12 10 14 15-51
North Penn 18 21 16 28-83
#5 CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 76, #28 NORRISTOWN 48
The game started off on a bit of a shaky note for the Bucks, and before two minutes had elapsed, they found themselves staring at a 12-4 hole.
Unfazed, they answered with a 20-5 tear on their way to the big win.
Helping to spark the Bucks’ run was sophomore Makenzie Mason, who contributed six quick points off the bench. More importantly, she was a presence under the backboards, pulling down a game-high 12 rebounds.
“For us, when we get rebounds, we go on transition, and we make big plays,” Mason said. “When we make big plays, we get more pumped up, and it results in scoring and excitement.
“Coming into the game, we were nervous, but we wanted to come out strong.”
Mason finished the game with 14 points to complete her impressive double-double.
“Makenzie Mason was awesome intensity-wise,” coach Terry Rakowsky said. “She was making that little eight-foot jump shot, that little corner shot. She must have had three or four of those that they were giving us. She did a really good job with that.
“Meghan (Tilger) gave us some good minutes, and Maggie (Rakowsky) gave us some good minutes. I thought our bench did a really good job.”
Peyton Traina capped the Bucks’ 20-5 run with a three-pointer to open the second second quarter, and when Mackenzie Carroll hit nothing but net on a three-pointer late in the frame, the Bucks lead had grown to 14. A bucket by senior Taylor Moylan in the closing minute of the half sent the Bucks into the intermission with a 45-27 lead.
“We came out man-to-man on them, pressed them fullcourt, and obviously, that’s when you’re going to have your best get-go,” Norristown coach Vince Catanzaro said. “The kids were ready.
“The whole thing was – they were warming up while we were wearing down.”
The Bucks added to their lead with a 19-6 third quarter burst that featured six points from Nicole Munger and propelled West to a 64-33 lead.
Munger led the Bucks with 17 points, and Carroll had 15 on a night that saw 10 players contribute scoring. The Eagles were led by the 17-point effort of Briana Hedgepath. Pattie Fortescue added 11 points. Keifona Ferguson added eight points.
“I tried to tell the kids – ‘If you want to get to that level, you have to learn how to do it,” Catanzaro said. “You can’t just step on the floor and do it. Those kids play AAU during the summer, and you don’t.’ Our kids recognize that.
“We kept the younger kids and talked to them separately about that – putting a little more into it. We have a lot of things that need to change. It’s going to take time, but I figure that’s why I was put here. I don’t mind. I like that kind of stuff. It’s going to be a struggle a little bit, but it’s going to pay off in the end.”
The Eagles closed out their season with an 11-12 record overall (8-6 SOL). The Bucks upped their record to 18-5 (10-4 SOL), and they will host 12th-seeded Methacton in a second round game on Wednesday.
Norristown 17 10 6 15-76
Central Bucks West 21 24 19 12-76
#6 UPPER DUBLIN 31, #27 UPPER MERION 23
The Flying Cardinals were in desperate need of a hero. Trailing 18-9 at halftime, they had just endured a scoreless second quarter.
That’s when Taylor Linus answered the call.
The senior point guard took just four shots in the second half but buried all four of them. All four were three-pointers. Three of those came in a third quarter that saw the Cardinals outscore the Vikings 13-3. She finished with a game-high 13 points.
“After that first half, we needed a hero, and we got one,” coach Morgan Funsten said. “She’s had the best season but hasn’t really gotten recognized.
“She was voted captain, and the girls recognized the value she has as a leader and also as a basketball player, but most importantly as a leader.”
With the win, the Flying Cardinals have extended their season at least two more games, and according to Funsten, Linus is on track to finish the season with more assists than standout point guard Curtrena Goff had last year.
“If you want to talk about somebody who’s having a great season that you don’t hear about – when someone has five assists in a game but zero points, they don’t usually get mentioned,” Funsten said. “She’s been averaging over five assists a game, and she’s what has allowed us to execute what we execute.”
Linus was an unlikely hero for more reasons than the fact she typically doesn’t look to score. On Monday, the senior point guard was sent to the hospital for chest x-rays that determined she had bronchitis.
“I haven’t been able to practice much,” Linus said. “I’ve been on meds for a while, so I could get back for the game today.”
The Flying Cardinals trailed 10-9 after one quarter but then were outscored 8-0 in the second quarter.
“Nothing was really falling for us,” Linus said. “We needed to step up our defense a little bit more.
“We were a little down on ourselves, but we all knew that we’d find a way to win. We had to stick together, focus and get our game together. We do a pretty good job of getting our heads in the right place and pulling it together.
“I had no idea it would be me. I just distribute the ball where it needs to be distributed. It just happened.”
The realization that her team’s season hung in the balance gave Linus an added sense of urgency.
“Going into the game, I was talking to Regan (Gallagher), our other captain, and we were like, ‘We’re not losing because we have so much to prove,’” Linus said. “Everyone thought we couldn’t do it, but our team has a ton of potential.
“Honestly, I don’t even know what it was. I’m never going to completely not shoot in a game. I always look to get a couple shots, but I think the fact that no one’s shot was falling – I was not giving up. I knew we had to do something.”
If her confidence needed a boost, she got it during a brief halftime shoot-around.
“My shots were falling, and I hit that first shot, and it was just a total confidence booster,” Linus said. “I haven’t been hitting much this season. Then we started running plays for me, the crowd was into it, and I know my teammates will always support me, no matter what.
“It’s a great feeling knowing my teammates are so passionate about everything and we always are sticking together.”
Funsten was impressed to see Linus deliver in a big way on a day when she was less than 100 percent.
“Whatever medicine she got, I want some of that,” he said. “There was a timeout late in the game where she needed to be picked up off the ground. She had nothing left. I didn’t think she was going to be able to finish the game, but she did.”
Linus was feeling no pain after the big win.
“I’m on a nebulator,” she said. “The main problem is my lungs weren’t expanding, and that was why I had to sit out all week,” she said. “I don’t know. I just had to pull through. He kept asking me if I was okay, and I was like, ‘I can’t come off the floor. This just means way too much.’”
Julie Cross added 10 points, seven rebounds and four blocks.
“She played well,” Funsten said. “She stepped up and made two big foul shots. We were up three with about two minutes to go, and she got fouled in a one-and-one situation and made both.”
Regan Gallagher was limited to just three points and five rebounds.
“If you asked Regan, she would probably say she had a bad game, but she does so many little things well,” Funsten said. “She’s always strong with the ball, and you need to be strong with the ball against Upper Merion.
“She does so many little things that keep us in games. Whether it’s boxing someone out, getting a steal or getting her hands on a pass, she’s a calming influence, and we’re going to need her to produce a little more for us moving forward, but she doesn’t realize how important she is to our success.”
While the Cardinals’ offense struggled, their defense didn’t.
“To hold Upper Merion to five points in the second half was just incredible,” Funsten said. “It was a weird game, but I think everyone could have predicted it would be a weird game today.”
Upper Merion coach Tom Schurtz als was pleased with his team’s defensive performance.
“We held the number six seed scoreless in the second quarter,” he said. “What else are you going to say?
“We had just played them two weeks ago and (Allison) Chernow and Gallagher really hurt us. Our plan was to take them out of the game. We held Chernow to one and Gallagher to (three).
“Linus made three three’s in the third, and she banked a three in the fourth. When a player gets hot, you have her shoot until she misses one. She was 4-for-4, and we absorbed all of that, and we were still only down one heading into the fourth quarter.”
The Vikings trailed 22-21 but managed just two points in the final frame.
“With 4:04 to go, it was a three-point game,” Schurtz said. “We’ve been there before. When we beat them at our place, we were down eight with 4:10 left, so we thought we had a chance.
“We missed on three consecutive trips. We missed a couple of putbacks, and we just couldn’t get the ball in the basket for most of the second half. They made a couple of defensive adjustments. They ran a quarter court trap which got us out of sync, but I thought we could have handled it had they not been making three-pointers on top of it.”
And it was the performance of Linus that may have been the difference between winning and losing for a Cardinal squad that continues to gut out wins despite the loss of high-scoring senior Kayla McAneney.
“After Kayla went down, it was a total shock to our systems,” Linus said. “We knew that everyone else had to step up. We’ve had to keep proving everyone wrong.
“I got so sick of reading articles – oh, they play a crappy schedule. We didn’t get no love, and it means so much because we put so much time and effort into everything.”
The Vikings closed out the season with a 13-10 record (8-6 SOL).
“You can’t be pleased with a loss,” Schurtz said. “I know they were the much better seed, and they certainly had the more consistent season, but over the last month, I felt as though we played as good basketball as anyone we came up against.
“We went into the game with a lot of confidence even though they just beat us by double figures, and I thought that really showed early. We executed our game plan, but they just made some shots and we didn’t.”
Regie Robinson led the Vikings with 11 points and, according to Schurtz, became the program’s first 400-point scorer in a season in over a decade. She accomplished that feat in just 23 games.
Shekema Gentles added six points – all in the first half.
The Flying Cardinals (19-4, 12-2 SOL) have earned a rematch with a Central Bucks East squad that handed them 29-24 loss in the regular season finale for both teams.
Upper Merion 10 8 3 2-23
Upper Dublin 9 0 13 9-31
#10 NESHAMINY 52, #23 STRATH HAVEN 37
Sparked by their defense, the ‘Skins jumped out to a 17-7 lead at the end of one quarter and took a 27-14 lead into halftime. They never looked back.
“We just came out with a lot of defensive energy, and that feeds our offense,” said senior McKenna Mullin, who led the Redskins with 15 points. “Our press creates a lot of turnovers for us, and we just make things happen off of that.”
“We pretty much knew they were a solid team,” coach Joe Lally added. “We spoke about winning quarters.
“We did get out to a good start. We showed a couple of different looks on our press, and it was very productive early. To their credit, they made some adjustments early, but to our girls’ credit, they stayed with it. Basically, it was to speed them up and not let them get set. It worked pretty well.”
Megan Schafer had an unusual double with 10 points and 12 assists. She also had seven steals and six rebounds.
“Megan had a terrific game,” Lally said. “She’s just got an unbelievable heart, and she’s such a competitor.
“We had a balanced scoring effort from all the kids, which was nice to see, and we know we’re as good as we are if we play five strong. We know we can’t go individual and play any game, but Megan is definitely the engine.”
Junior Maddie Murray had seven rebounds and helped the ‘Skins contain Strath Haven’s two inside players.
“They were pretty good – they hit the boards,” Lally said. “I watched them against Ridley, and between the two of them they had 28 rebounds and 14 offensive boards.
“Sarah (Oliveira) and Maddie did a great job of bodying them out today.”
With the win, the Redskins upped their record to 18-3 overall (13-1 SOL) They will take on the winner of Sunday’s Rustin/West Chester East game in a second round game Wednesday.
“This was a big win,” Mullins said. “It puts us in a situation where we want to be. We have a lot of experience in playoffs, so I think we’ll be fine.”
For Mullin – who will be playing soccer at the collegiate level, the reality that she’s on the home stretch of her final high school season is starting to hit home.
“As soon as our season is over – I don’t play any more sports for school, so I won’t be a student-athlete any more,” she said. “It’s kind of scary to think about it.
“It’s there in the back of your mind. I don’t think about it during games, but you have to keep it there as a little bit of incentive, a fire in your stomach.”
Strath Haven 7 7 11 12-37
Neshaminy 17 10 14 11-52
#14 CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 46, #19 PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 30
The Titans used a 22-2 second quarter tear to blow open a close game on their way to the big win.
“They got in some foul trouble, and we were just able to push the tempo and execute in transition,” South coach Beth Mattern said. “We finished well in the second quarter.
“From our end, it was just a solid defensive effort throughout the game that really helped us. We really held Plymouth Whitemarsh in check in the first half, and that’s what we needed to kind of pull us through.”
The Colonials, who trailed 8-5 after one quarter, suffered a setback when Asia Baker was whistled for her third foul early in the second quarter. The Titans – behind six points from Jordan Vitelli – took advantage of Baker’s absence and had a huge quarter. They took a 30-7 lead into halftime.
“The whole second quarter was just basically execution and working together as a team, working at what we do best and just going all out,” South senior Alysha Lofton said. “They were struggling offensively and defensively, and we used that to push the ball.”
The Colonials outscored the Titans 23-16 in the second half, but they couldn’t dig themselves out of their first half hole.
Alynna Williams (15 points) and Baker (11 points) led the Colonials’ offensively.
“We showed a lot of character not giving up, battling in the second half,” PW coach Daniel Dougherty said. “But the game was never close. It was a disappointing end to a very successful season for the girls.”
While the Colonials closed out the year with a 17-6 record overall (11-3 SOL), the Titans improved to 17-5 (10-4 SOL).
“It was just the starter, like our coach says, of the new season,” Lofton said of Saturday’s win. “The new season is the playoffs, and this is the first game of many to come.”
Lofton and senior Lauren Mosher led a balanced Titan attack with 12 points each. Vitelli added nine.
The Titans (18-5, 10-4 SOL) will face a familiar opponent when they travel to North Penn for a second round game on Wednesday. The two teams split their regular season meetings.
“We haven’t had a home playoff game since my first year, and that was something we really wanted,” Mattern said. “Finishing 17-5, we thought we had done a lot to help ourselves there, so that was something we really wanted.
“Just to know we have a couple of games left in our season, we can go out there and play hard, leave it all on the court and see what happens.”
Plymouth Whitemarsh 5 2 12 11-30
Central Bucks South 8 22 8 8-46
#22 CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 49, #11 HARRITON 36
The Patriots played the role of giant killer on Saturday night, pulling off the tournament’s biggest upset with their convincing win over the Rams. While that outcome may have surprised some in the basketball community, East coach Liz Potash was not in the number.
“We talked about it all week,” the Patriots’ coach said. “A 22 seed – we didn’t know if that was justified for us. We get the way the system works, but we had some big wins.
“Obviously, we could have won some more games, but I told the girls all week – our schedule prepared us to play in the playoffs, and I don’t know if every other team can say that. We play in a tough league, and obviously, our conference is really tough, so any of the top five can say that.
“I went to see Harriton play a couple of times, and I thought they were a nice team, but I also know they haven’t played the schedule we have. We don’t really care what they’re seeded at this point. We know we have to do our part, and we’re prepared for big games.”
Potash noted that Harriton was without high-scoring point guard Katie Melvin (concussion), who surpassed the 1,000-point mark and has accepted a lacrosse scholarship to the University of Michigan.
“That’s all we prepared for,” the Patriots’ coach said. “She’s a nice player.
“With Melvin out, it really changed their game plan, but I know they’re a team that really likes to press. They throw three different presses at you, and we worked on all three. We were able to break the press.”
The Rams dropped their press in a hurry after the Patriots sprinted to a 13-3 lead at the end of one quarter.
“I think we played really well together,” senior Courtney Webster said. “Having five seniors, I think we realized – if we lose this, we’re done.
“It was something that sparked each and every one of us. Each person that went in the game gave it their all. Everyone contributed.”
The Patriots took a 21-13 lead into halftime and then put some distance between themselves and the Rams with an 18-8 third quarter to go on top 39-21.
“We switched up a couple of our looks at halftime, and Courtney hit some shots in the third quarter that extended our lead,” Potash said. “She was hitting from the foul line, which is big when she can step out and hit from the outside.
“We struggled defending them in the fourth quarter, and they started hitting some shots, but we did what we needed to do down the stretch.”
The Patriots connected on 10-of-15 from the foul line in the fourth quarter, and they were 17-for-24 overall.
“Coach was saying we were not shooting well (from the foul line),” Webster said. “We were shooting something like 60 percent, and it was nice to go to the line and finish our shots, especially in the second half.”
Webster led a balanced Patriot attack with 14 points while Katelyn Miller and Karoline White each added nine. White also had five steals and six assists. Lindsay Neir had eight points, and Emily Sebesky, seven.
“I was really happy with our balanced scoring,” Potash said. “We haven’t always gotten that all season. A lot of times we’ve relied on Courtney a lot and whoever is hitting a shot here and there.
“We were able to do a better job at the foul line, especially in the fourth quarter, and that was big.”
The Patriots (15-7, 8-6 SOL) will travel to Upper Dublin for a second round game on Wednesday. It is a rematch of the regular season finale for both teams that saw the Patriots eke out a win on their home court.
“Going into the tournament as a 22 seed and we’re playing an 11 – anything can happen,” Webster said. “Just moving forward, this gave us some confidence.
“We played Upper Dublin before. They’re a great team, and I’m sure they’re going to come out strong. We just have to do what we’re good at and what we can execute really well. We’re going to take it game by game.”
East made it a clean sweep for the Continental Conference as all four of its teams in action came away with wins.
“I think being in the Continental Conference really helps because we’re playing some of the top teams in the district,” Webster said. “It prepares you, and when you play the top teams even if you sometimes lose, it does make you better.”
Central Bucks East 13 8 18 10-49
Harriton 3 10 8 16-36
#12 METHACTON 54, #25 CHELTENHAM 46
The Lady Panthers undoubtedly wish they could replay the first quarter of Saturday’s district opener that saw the Warriors open up a 14-2 lead. They outscored the Warriors 44-40 the rest of the way, including a 19-9 fourth quarter burst, but they never could make up the early ground they lost.
“I was very disappointed with the way we began the game,” coach Brendan Nolan said. “I expected us to be a little nervous or maybe a little rattled, but we got so out of our game early.
“I certainly give them a ton of credit. They were in a triangle-and-two on (Amarri) Trueheart and (Ashley) Jones, and that’s not the first time we saw that this year, but it was the most effective. They packed the triangle in, and those girls would not leave the lane. Even though Trueheart and Jones were able to get by the girls that were guarding them, they were met with a lot of resistance.
“I was shuffling a lot of players in just trying to find someone who could hit a shot from the outside to make them pay for the triangle. Kelly Graham hit two threes’s at one point, but other than that, we couldn’t throw it in the ocean.”
Jones led the Lady Panthers with 19 points while Trueheart had 10, but the Panthers never found their offensive stride, connecting on just 16-of-71 shots from the floor (23 percent).
The Lady Panthers closed out their season with a 10-4 mark in SOL play (15-8 overall).
“I was hoping we would gain a little more experience this year,” Nolan said. “I really believed going into the season that we could sneak into states somehow as the nine or 10 seed.
“This draw certainly didn’t lend itself to that. We knew we had a tough task at Methacton. We had some losses early in the season that – if we had those games – we would have put ourselves in a better position.
“We need to have a good offseason together. We need to focus a little more on the Lady Panthers and a little less on AAU. That’s what is going to benefit us as a team. I’m hoping that happens this year.”
Cheltenham 2 16 9 19-46
Methacton 14 15 19 9-54
#18 ABINGTON at #15 DOWNINGTOWN EAST (Ppd. to Monday, Feb. 17, 7 p.m.)
#31 COUNCIL ROCK NORTH at #2 GARNET VALLEY (Ppd. to Monday, Feb. 17, 7 p.m.)
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