Scott Huff previews Tuesday’s District One AAAA second round games featuring SOL teams and recaps last week’s action.
By Scott Huff
The movie Friday the 13th was a classic horror movie – and last week’s Friday the 13th was a horror show for the Suburban One League in the opening round of the PIAA Quad-A District One playoffs. There were 12 SOL teams that began the district playoffs, but before midnight struck on the 13th, there were only four SOL teams that survived the night.
Pennridge, Plymouth Whitemarsh, Abington, and Pennsburywill advance to the Sweet 16 – while the district playoff exit door was shown to Central Bucks West, Souderton, Council Rock North, Hatboro-Horsham, Upper Dublin, Central Bucks South, North Penn, and Wissahickon.
A victory in the second round of districts secures a ticket to the eight winners for the state tournament – as District One will send 10 teams to the Quad-A state championship tournament. A loss throws the losers into a brutal eight-team ‘playback’ playoff tournament to determine the final two teams.
And the beat goes on…
PIAA Quad-A District One Playoffs
Tuesday (2/17/15) @ 7 pm
# 14 Coatesville Red Raiders (15-7) @ # 3 Pennridge Rams (21-3)
Season Resume:
Coatesville: The Red Raiders finished the regular season as the second place finisher in the Ches-Mont National Conference. The signature wins for the year came against Downingtown West (56-48), Spring-Ford (76-61), and West Chester Henderson (57-43).
Pennridge: The Rams finished the regular season as the champion of the Suburban One League Continental Conference. The signature wins for the year came against Central Bucks West (69-59), Boyertown (68-52), and Souderton (58-56).
Playoff Resume:
Coatesville: The Red Raiders opened PIAA Quad-A District One play with a 57-45 victory over # 19 seed Boyertown. Juan Rodriguez scored a game-high 15 points for Coatesville, while Kevin Crutchfield scored in twin digits with 13 points. Justus Martinez scored seven points and collected a game-high 10 rebounds.
Boyertown Bears 14 13 6 12 * 45
Coatesville Red Raiders 14 14 12 17 * 57
Pennridge: The Rams opened the PIAA Quad-A District One playoffs with a 78-54 victory over # 30 Spring-Ford. Danny Long scored a game-high 25 points to fuel the Pennridge offense, while fellow guard Zach Muredda was his proficient scoring partner with 23 points. Joey Molettiere was an inside force with seven points and 12 rebounds.
Spring-Ford Rams 11 15 6 22 * 54
Pennridge Rams 25 17 24 12 * 78
Pennridge Head Coach Dean Behrens says: “This is an opportunity (to do something) no team in the history of Pennridge basketball has ever done – get to the state playoffs. We were in district playoff games in 2004 and 2011, but we really didn’t have a good chance of getting to states – this year I think we do have that chance. Coatesville is very athletic and is going to present a huge challenge to us. They have a lot of team speed, and a key to the game is going to be to limit them to one shot offensively – we can’t afford to give them second chances. Being a # 3 seed has its advantages – like playing a second home game in the playoffs.”
The Winner Gets: The winner of this game will play the winner of the game between # 6 Abington and # 11 Chester in a PIAA Quad-A District One quarterfinal game.
The Loser Gets: The loser of this game will play the loser of the Abington-Chester game in a ‘playback’ playoff game.
# 11 Chester Clippers (14-9) @ # 6 Abington Ghosts (22-3)
Season Resume:
Chester: The Clippers finished the regular season as the third place finisher in the Delaware-Valley League. The signature wins for the year came against Penn Wood (65-45), Academy Park (51-44), and Harrisburg (59-57).
Abington: The Ghosts finished the regular season as the champion of the Suburban One League National Conference. The signature wins for the year came against Pennsbury (58-57, 52-50 & 63-50) and Central Bucks West (58-49).
Playoff Resume:
Chester: The Clippers opened the PIAA Quad-A District One playoffs with a 56-35 victory over # 22 Hatboro-Horsham. Jamar Sudan scored a game-high 22 points to fuel the Chester offense, while Marquis Collins (12) and Keyonte Watkins (11) each scored in twin digits for the winners.
Hatboro-Horsham Hatters 13 6 4 12 * 35
Chester Clippers 14 16 13 13 * 56
Abington: The Ghosts opened the PIAA Quad-A District One playoffs with a razor thin 59-58 victory over # 27 North Penn. Amir Hinton scored a game-high 19 points to lead Abington, while Matt Penecale also scored in double digits with 17 points. Brendan Gallagher added eight points for the Ghosts and Robbie Heath scored seven points.
North Penn Knights 11 19 9 19 * 58
Abington Ghosts 16 11 16 16 * 59
Abington Head Coach Charles Grasty says: “People keep telling me that this isn’t the Chester teams of old, but I can’t really see too many flaws. They have a lot of size and length – they play the game hard – they play the game fast. They might not have the big names that they had in the past – but they are very, very good. We’re glad that we don’t have to take that long bus ride down the Blue Route to play at their place. Both Amir (Hinton) and Matt (Penecale) have been talking with the younger kids explaining the dynamics of the districts and the states. Their leadership this entire season has been a big part of our success. We know how important this game is.”
The Winner Gets: The winner of this game will play the winner of the game between # 3 Pennridge and # 14 Coatesville in a PIAA Quad-A District One quarterfinal game.
The Loser Gets: The loser of this game will play the loser of the Pennridge-Coatesville game in a ‘playback’ playoff game.
# 20 Springfield (Delco) Cougars (14-9) @ # 4 Plymouth Whitemarsh Colonials (21-2)
Season Resume:
Springfield (D): The Cougars finished the regular season as the fourth place finisher in the Central League. The signature wins for the year came against Lower Merion (52-51), Penncrest (53-48), and Ridley (54-53).
Plymouth Whitemarsh: The Colonials finished the regular season as the champions of the Suburban One League American Conference. The signature wins for the year came against Chester (72-70), Washington (67-54), and Friends Central (58-55).
Playoff Resume:
Springfield (D): The Cougars opened the PIAA Quad-A District One playoffs with a 45-42 victory over # 13 West Chester Henderson. Kevin McCormick led Springfield (D) in scoring with a game-high 15 points, while Jordan Collins (12) and Brian McCloskey (10) each scored in twin digits.
Springfield (D) Cougars 8 17 5 15 * 45
West Chester Henderson 4 7 7 24 * 42
Plymouth Whitemarsh: The Colonials opened the PIAA Quad-A District One playoffs with a 73-33 victory over # 29 Cheltenham. Andre Mitchell fueled the PW offense with 29 points, while Jimmy Murray and Xzavier Malone each scored 12 points for the Colonials.
Cheltenham Panthers 9 6 8 10 * 33
West Chester Henderson 16 14 18 25 * 73
Plymouth Whitemarsh Head Coach Jim Donofrio says: “Springfield has been playing well recently (winners of nine of its last 10 games). They play in the Central League which is known for its smart team basketball. They will most likely play a zone and try to run a patterned offense. The key to the game will be pace – they want to control the pace and we want to crank it up. A year ago we had a huge opportunity with a second round home game to get into states – and we lost to Central Bucks West. Andre Mitchell, Jimmy Murray, and Cameron Johnson all remember that game – and so does the coaching staff. It took 365 days to get back to where we are now – and we want to take advantage of that second chance.”
The Winner Gets: The winner of this game will play the winner of the game between # 12 Lower Merion and # 28 Penncrest in a PIAA Quad-A District One quarterfinal game.
The Loser Gets: The loser of this game will play the loser of the Lower Merion-Penncrest game in a ‘playback’ playoff game.
# 10 Downingtown West Whippets (21-4) @ # 7 Pennsbury Falcons (20-5)
Season Resume:
Downingtown West: The Whippets finished the regular season as the champion of the Ches-Mont National Conference. The signature wins for the year came against West Chester Henderson (68-60), Coatesville (58-52), and Oxford (66-29).
Pennsbury: The Falcons finished the regular season as the second place finisher in the Suburban One League National Conference. The signature wins for the year came against Lower Merion (53-47), Math Civics, & Sciences (63-61), and Pennridge (78-67).
Playoff Resume:
Downingtown West: The Whippets opened the PIAA Quad-A District One playoffs with a 58-41 victory over # 23 Upper Dublin. George Gordon scored a game-high 16 points to pace DW, while Dom Guerrera (13) and Ryan Betley (12) each scored in double figures.
Upper Dublin Cardinals 9 13 5 14 * 41
Downingtown West Whippets 15 9 19 13 * 58
Pennsbury: The Falcons opened the PIAA Quad-A District One playoffs with a 70-53 victory over # 26 Central Bucks South. Derrick Woods had a monster game for Pennsbury with 36 points, while Cameron Jones scored in double digits with 15 points. Mekhi Bryant added eight points for the winners.
Central Bucks South Titans 13 6 13 21 * 53
Pennsbury Falcons 18 15 17 20 * 70
Pennsbury Head Coach Bill Coleman says: “Derrick (Woods), Cameron (Jones) and Mekhi (Bryant) have all been here before (second round of districts) and know what is at stake. A win gets you into the state tournament – and our goal is simply to advance to Friday. Derrick is coming off a very impressive game against CB South (36 points – 16 rebounds) and now he is going to have to show that he can string some good games together. Downingtown West is a very good – very big – very physical team that does almost everything well. They have shown the ability to score points – and we are going to have to figure out a way to stop them. A big key to the game is going to be whether or not we can rebound and eliminate second chances. We should have a nice crowd at home – and we worked hard all year to get that second (district) home game.”
The Winner Gets: The winner of this game will play the winner of the game between # 2 Methacton and # 15 Phoenixville in a PIAA Quad-A District One quarterfinal game.
The Loser Gets: The loser of this game will play the loser of the Methacton-Phoenixville game in a ‘playback’ playoff game.
PIAA Quad-A District One Playoff Exit Door
Central Bucks West (17-7) was shown the exit door as the # 8 seeded Bucks were upset by # 25 seed Great Valley – 56-49. CB West was led in scoring by Cal Reichwein with 14 points, while Owen Cooney also scored in twin digits with 12 points.
Souderton (13-10) was shown the exit door as the # 18 seeded Big Red was defeated by # 15 Phoenixville – 64-56. The Indians were led in scoring by Evan Slone with 17 points, while Austin Eberhart (14) and Tracy Simsick (13) also scored in double figures.
Council Rock North (14-9) was shown the exit door as the # 21 seeded Indians almost upset # 12 Lower Merion – 38-37. Matt Margolis scored a team-high 12 points for Rock North.
Hatboro-Horsham (11-12) was shown the exit door as the # 22 seeded Hatters were topped by # 11 Chester – 56-35. Walter Kimble scored a team-high 12 points for the Black & White.
Upper Dublin (14-9) was shown the exit door as the # 23 Flying Cardinals were gunned down by # 10 Downingtown West – 58-41. John Barrett scored a team-high 18 points, while Ryan Stover scored in double digits with 11 points.
Central Bucks South (12-11) was shown the exit door as the # 26 seeded Titans fell to # 7 Pennsbury – 70-53. CB South was led in scoring by Sean Gallagher with 13 points, while Josh Brodie scored in twin digits with 12 points.
North Penn (11-12) was shown the exit door as the # 27 seeded Knights almost upset # 6 Abington – 59-58. North Penn was led in scoring by Joey Richards with 18 points, while JJ Melchoir (17) and Derek Hesierman (10) also scored in double figures.
Wissahickon (13-10) was shown the exit door as the # 32 seeded Trojans were defeated by # 1 seed Conestoga – 39-30. Wissahickon was led in scoring by Todd Bentley who scored a team-high 10 points.
Suburban one sports.com
Top Ten
1. Plymouth Whitemarsh Colonials
2. Abington Ghosts
3. Pennsbury Falcons
4. Pennridge Rams
5. Central Bucks West Bucks
6. Souderton Indians
7. Council Rock North Indians
8. Upper Dublin Cardinals
9. Central Bucks South Titans
10. Hatboro-Horsham Hatters
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