Check out the results for boys’ basketball team in Saturday’s SOL Challenge. Check back for Kathy Leister’s photos of the Bensalem/Upper Moreland and North Penn/CR South games, Keith Clemens’ photos of the Abington/CB South game and Karen Discavage’s photos of the CR North/Souderton game.
By Jarrad Saffren
What happened at the end? It was a recurring question Saturday as scores from the Suburban One League Basketball Challenge popped up across the Internet. All 24 SOL boys’ basketball teams played in the challenge. Only two, Springfield and Upper Merion, played a league game. The other 22 played non-league games against SOL teams. Many games were exciting throughout and heart-stopping in the final minutes. The results and recaps are below.
At Upper Merion
Upper Merion 52, Springfield 50 (3 OT)
On a day of exciting finishes, this one takes first-place. There were 11 seconds left in the third overtime when it happened.
Springfield led 50-49 and Upper Merion guard Chris Carita had just fouled out of the game. UM coach Jason Quenzer subbed in Anthony Capistrano, who had not played all game. The Vikings inbounded and Conner McDermott dribbled up the floor. He handed off to Ethan Miller at the top of the key and Miller zipped the ball to a wide-open Capistrano on the right wing.
Capistrano buried the three-pointer and the Vikings mobbed him on the court. A 16-second video shows a sea of white jerseys and shooting shirts descending on a leaping Capistrano.
“I’m just so happy for Capistrano,” said Quenzer. “He’s such a good kid and it’s been a tough year for him, but his work ethic is phenomenal. He deserves this moment.”
Capistrano has not gotten many minutes this season with Carita in front of him. He only played 11 seconds Saturday but made them count. Capistrano could not have played hero without teammate Matt Faw, who dropped 28 points to lead all scorers.
Miller was second on the Vikings with 11. Quentin Johnson (22) and Larry Clark (15) combined for 37 points for Springfield.
Here’s how evenly matched Upper Merion and Springfield were: They were tied after three quarters and they tied in each of the last three periods, the fourth quarter and the first two overtimes.
“Springfield played so well,” Quenzer said. “I was just glad to be on the other end.”
Upper Merion (9-5, 4-4 SOL) battles undefeated Plymouth Whitemarsh Tuesday night. Springfield (3-12, 0-8 SOL) plays Norristown on the same night.
Upper Merion 6-11-8-14-2-4-7 52
Springfield 8-7-10-14-2-4-5 50
At Plymouth Whitemarsh
Plymouth Whitemarsh 50, Pennridge 48
PW beat Pennridge 73-70 in the second round of the state playoffs last season. Saturday’s matchup was just as exciting.
“Pennridge and PW always seem to have exciting games,” said PW coach Jim Donofrio. “They are not an easy team to prepare for if you have two days, let alone no days.”
The Colonials had a game plan: Focus on Rams’ leading scorer Dan Long. So Long became a facilitator. Devon Balmer hit three three-pointers in the first half to stake Pennridge to a 10-point lead at the break (29-19).
“You can do a game plan on paper but when you see it live the way they drive and kick, Pennridge is one of best around at setting guys up for three-pointers,” said Donofrio. “Balmer wasn’t showing up on the boards as hitting a lot of threes. He was averaging 3.5 points in his last five or six games. Then he comes out and hits three because you’re favoring Dan Long.”
But PW stormed back in the second half with a relentless pressure defense, outscoring the visiting Rams 20-7 in the third quarter to go on top 39-36.
“In the third quarter the press started working and we had a 20-point quarter,” Donofrio said. “The fourth quarter was back and forth. “We seemed to be holding a three-point lead, then a four-point lead, but they ended up tying it.”
Pennridge made a three-pointer with 20 seconds left to go up one. Donofrio drew up a play. PW missed the first shot but Davon Burrell got the rebound and sank a six-foot jumper. Then Oakley Spencer stole the ball and made one free throw. The win was sealed.
PW stayed undefeated at 15-0, but Donofrio is not quite impressed.
“We don’t do anything really great yet, but we do know how to win basketball games,” he said. “Xzavier Malone and Oakley Spencer really raised their games. They played well together.
“The kids are raising their game when they need to. We weren’t great most of the night.”
Malone led the Colonials with 26 points. Mike Lotito added seven, and Burrell six. Max Wagner paced the Rams with 14. Balmer added 11 and Long scored nine.
PW (15-0, 8-0 SOL) takes on Upper Merion Tuesday at 7 p.m. Pennridge (13-3, 7-1 SOL) hosts Central Bucks West in a battle for first-place in the SOL Continental.
Pennridge 10-19-7-12 48
Plymouth Whitemarsh 7-12-20-11 50
Pennridge: Devon Balmer 11, Sean Yoder 2, Max Wagner 14, Stephen Lowry 8, Dan Long 9, Ryan Cuthbert 4.
Plymouth Whitemarsh: Kevin Ashenfelter 4, Davon Burrell 7, Mike Lotito 10, Xzavier Malone 26, Oakley Spencer 3.
Hatboro-Horsham 57, Upper Dublin 50
In the first half, Hatboro-Horsham made five three-pointers and raced to a 37-19 halftime lead.
“We shot the ball well in the first half,” said Hatboro-Horsham coach Ed Enoch.
“HH shot the lights out in the first half,” said Upper Dublin coach Josh Adelman. “We played okay in the first. They just hit everything they threw up.”
But, after the break, the Flying Cardinals went on a 23-6 run and cut Hatboro-Horsham’s lead to one.
“We picked up the intensity and showed a lot of heart. We just worked really hard and had them on the ropes,” said Adelman. “We started hitting our shots and just played up to our potential.”
With the score 43-42 Hatters, Clifton Moore “made a big three that gave us a little room,” said Enoch.
Then Hatboro-Horsham hit key foul shots to hold UD off.
“A call here, a missed shot there, the game is ours,” said Adelman, whose team saw its five-game winning streak snapped. “I’m proud of our guys.”
Clifton Moore led Hatboro-Horsham with 19 points and 14 rebounds. Brian McEachern had 18 points and eight boards. Ryan Stover paced Upper Dublin with 15 points.
Hatboro-Horsham (8-7, 5-3 SOL) plays Central Bucks South Tuesday at 7 p.m. Upper Dublin (6-8, 4-4 SOL) welcomes Cheltenham on the same night and time.
At Quakertown
Quakertown 55, Neshaminy 54
Almost every game, the Quakertown story has been the same. Griffin Schmidt comes out hot and the Panthers bolt to a first half lead. Then Schmidt – the focal point of opposing defenses – cools off to the median and the other team comes back.
Well, on Saturday, the Panthers reversed the script. Schmidt scored the last 14 Quakertown points and sank two foul shots with 2.3 seconds to go to clinch the win. Teammates mobbed Schmidt after a Neshaminy prayer fell way short.
“They’ve seen him do that before over the years, so they expect that from him and he loves the pressure,” said Quakertown coach Kevin Keeler.
After the game, the coach was so happy with his star that he greeted him in the simplest manner.
“I actually said to him in front of the team, ‘What’s your name?’ as I shook his hand,” Keeler said. “And he proudly said, ‘It’s Griffin Schmidt.’”
Schmidt was happy but did not say much after his electric performance.
“He just took it all in and enjoyed the moment,” said Keeler “He was exhausted.”
Schmidt scored 32 points in all.
As usual, JR Grimmage played Robin to Schmidt’s Batman. Grimmage scored 16 points and shot 7-10 from the field. The 6-foot-1 junior is averaging 11 points per game in his first year of varsity basketball.
Billy Warren (15), Zach Tredway (14), and Matt McGinty (13) combined for 42 points for Neshaminy. The Redskins have lost four straight games since their inspiring, post-incident win over Harry S. Truman on Jan. 8.
Quakertown (4-11, 0-8 SOL) takes on Souderton Tuesday night. Neshaminy (2-11, 1-7 SOL) battles Abington on the same night.
Neshaminy 8-20-9-17 54
Quakertown 16-12-13-14 55
Neshaminy: Matt McGinty 13, Billy Warren 15, Zach Tredway 14, Eric Rotteveel 6, Charles Dominic 6.
Quakertown: Ty Harrison 2, JR Grimmage 16, Ryan Howard 3, Dakota Suchanec 2, Griffin Schmidt 32.
Pennsbury 63, Norristown 46
Pennsbury bounced back after a 20-point loss to Abington Thursday night.
Three players—Addison Howard, Mark Flagg, and Mike Alley—led the Falcons to a decisive win over Norristown. Howard had 15 points, six assists, and six rebounds. Flagg had 12 points and nine boards. Alley came off the bench and pitched in 11 points and seven rebounds.
“It was a complete team effort,” said Pennsbury coach Bill Coleman. “Everyone contributed a lot.”
Coleman was especially pleased with his team’s defense.
“We played well defensively,” the Falcons’ coach said. “We kept Norristown off the boards, limited second-chance points, and forced them to take contested shots.
“We walked away from Quakertown with a good win.”
Darryl Carr led Norristown with 20 points. Amir Carter added 10. Norristown never recovered after falling behind by eight in the first quarter (17-9).
Pennsbury (10-5, 6-2 SOL) hosts Council Rock North Tuesday at 7 p.m. Norristown (5-10, 3-5 SOL) goes to Springfield for a 7 p.m. tip.
Pennsbury 17-25-14-7 63
Norristown 9-21-10-6 46
At Council Rock North
Souderton 63, Council Rock North 54 (2 OT)
Souderton, playing without leading scorer Tracy Simsick, who missed the game with a thumb injury, trailed North by nine at halftime (23-14).
Souderton coach Chuck Kornegay was irate with his players.
“They played maybe the worst first half ever…no effort,” the Indians’ first-year coach said. “I told them I’d give them until the five-minute mark to show me something or I would empty the bench.”
The players responded, outscoring North 19-9 in the third quarter and taking a 43-42 lead into the fourth. Kornegay praised one player in particular.
“Ian (Beardsley) played fearlessly,” said Kornegay. “He hit big shots and free throws down the stretch.”
North won the fourth quarter by one to send the game to overtime. After a 4-4 tie in the first overtime, Souderton dominated the second 12-3.
“We just controlled the pace, got stops, and rebounded,” Kornegay said. “Rebounding was our Achilles heel in the first half…and all season. We’re rebounding much better though.”
Four Souderton players—Ty Salone (15), Beardsley (12), Matt Cartwright (12), and Austin Eberhart (10)—scored in double figures. Eberhart scored six of his 10 points in overtime. Souderton also made all eight free throw attempts in the extra sessions.
Riley Thompson led North with 16 and Will Desautelle scored 14.
Souderton (6-9, 2-6 SOL) hosts Quakertown Tuesday night. CR North (7-8, 5-3 SOL) buses to Pennsbury on the same night.
Souderton 8-6-19-14-4-12 63
Council Rock North 9-14-9-15-4-3 54
Souderton: Ian Beardsley 15, Ty Salone 12, Matt Cartwright 12, Austin Eberhart 10, Mike Bealer 8, David Brush 2, Noah Horas 2.
Council Rock North: Riley Thompson 16, Will Desautelle 14, Tyler Nowmos 6, Matt McAlister 6, Noah Ehlin 4, Elliott Spicer 4, Matt Baniewicz 4.
Cheltenham 76, Harry S. Truman 61
Cheltenham won this game in the first quarter, outscoring Truman 18-10.
"We set the tone in the first quarter by holding them to 10 points," said Cheltenham coach John Timms. "We generally try to get up and set the tone in that first quarter, and I think they couldn't handle the pressure defense. We created a lot of turnovers. The fact that that we were able to create more possessions and turn them over in the first half, I think that was key.”
Cheltenham won the second quarter 25-18 and led by 15 at halftime. Truman never got close.
The usual suspects led the Panthers. Khalil White had 24 points, five assists, and four steals. Justin Sutton finished with 16 points, on 8-9 shooting, and 12 rebounds.
“He played really well today,” Timms said.
Trevonn Pitts added 12 points and 10 boards.
Danell Snelling dropped 18 points to lead Truman. Kelechi Ogbonna and Tyrone Willis had 12 and 10 points, respectively.
Cheltenham (12-3, 7-1 SOL) goes to Upper Dublin Tuesday for a 7 p.m. start. Truman (5-9, 4-4 SOL) plays William Tennent on the same night and time.
Cheltenham 18-25-19-14 76
Truman 10-18-16-17 61
Cheltenham: Khalil White 24, Ahmad Bickley 2, Jack Clark 5, Maurice Valentine 4, Blair Brown 4, Rodney Carson 5, Justin Sutton 16, Trevonn Pitts 12, Marcus Lee 2, Aidan Corrigan 2.
Truman: Kelechi Ogbonna 12, Danell Snelling 18, Justin Fant 5, Satchell Simpson 5, Mike Phillips 1, ZJ Jackson 8, Jeff Nixon 2, Tyrone Willis 10.
At Abington
Abington 57, Central Bucks South 52
Abington sprinted to a big first half lead and held on late by making clutch free throws.
The Ghosts shot 14-for-17 from the line in the fourth quarter.
“We took good shots and got to the line,” said Abington coach Charles Grasty. “We knocked down fouls when we needed to.”
“They are very good. We knew they were very good coming into the game. They made a monster run and cut it to one. Our guys kept their composure, didn’t turn it over, got a couple stops and that’s how we were able to end it.”
CB South played its customary one-three-one zone defense for most of the game. Grasty said his players were rushing shots when South first switched into the one-three-one.
“Against the one-three-one, you see open shots and want to take those quick ones,” said Grasty. “We have a lot of guys with not a whole lot of varsity experience. Right now they’ve been playing a whole lot.”
Two of them—Robbie Heath and Eric Dixon—led the Ghosts in scoring with 26 and 11, respectively. Dixon made a big layup at the end and then Rob Young grabbed a big rebound to seal the win for Abington.
“Robbie rushed a little bit. But then he settled down, got us going, and I thought that was huge for us,” Grasty said.
Abington was fresh off a 20-point win over Pennsbury Thursday that catapulted the Ghosts into first-place in the SOL National. Grasty was worried that CB South would be a letdown game.
“I told guys yesterday that this is a very good team,” said Grasty. “Our guys might look at record. I try to tell them not to look at that. CB South plays extremely hard and are well-coached.”
Abington (12-3, 7-1 SOL) goes to Neshaminy Tuesday for a 7 p.m. tipoff. CB South (9-7, 5-3 SOL) battles Hatboro-Horsham on the same night and time.
Central Bucks South 5-8-17-22 52
Abington 9-13-17-18 57
CB South: Alex Karras 2, Nate Robinson 7, Ian Vogt 5, Tim Waddington 20, Chris Hunes 9, tom Doyle 3, Ryan Joerger 6.
Abington: Robbie Heath 22, Lucas Monroe 4, Jack Steinman 6, Eric Dixon 11, Brian Close 3, Joe O'Brien 3, Eric Dougherty 2, Rob Young 3, BJ James 2, Donnell Wessels 1,
Central Bucks West 48, William Tennent 37
CB West built a nine-point lead after one quarter and held it for the rest of the game.
Bucks coach Adam Sherman was happy with his team’s effort.
“We were able to defend well enough,” he said. “And offensively we were able to get good looks.”
But Sherman did not think any individuals had standout games.
“Nobody really,” Sherman said. “We were dreadful from the free throw line (9-for-17). I guess Connor Lynch was probably our most consistent player.”
Lynch dropped 14 to lead the Bucks. Cal Reichwein added 10 and Luke Irons seven.
Sherman said his team did not fully wake up for the 11 a.m. tipoff.
“We didn’t play as well as we did the night before. Some it had to with the fact that we are talking about a 10-hour turnaround,” said Sherman.
CB West beat Quakertown 60-48 Friday in a game that started at 7 p.m. The Bucks players had an 8:30 a.m. walk-through Saturday morning and caught the bus to Abington at 9.
“You have good games, you have bad games,” said Sherman. “You have to defend better when not shooting the ball well and we did that.”
Pat McCauley (14) and John Ryan (13) combined for 27 of Tennent’s 37 points.
CB West (14-2, 8-0 SOL) plays Pennridge Tuesday night in the rematch of the year in the SOL Continental. William Tennent (5-10, 2-6 SOL) clashes with Truman on the same night.
Central Bucks West 18-10-10-10 48
William Tennent 9-10-7-11 37
Central Bucks West: Luke Irons 7, Cal Reichwein 10, Bill Bower 5, Erich Hohlenleitner 5, Connor Lynch 14, Ben Riegel 2, Jake Reichwein 5.
William Tennent: Anthony Woodard 5, Pat McCauley 14, John Ryan 13, George Alston 2, West 3.
At Bensalem
North Penn 59, Council Rock South 51
North Penn was down three starters. Derek Heiserman may have mono. Noah Kwortnik busted his eye open and got stitches. And Ricky Johns has a hand injury. 
“We started some young kids today and they played great,” said North Penn coach John Conrad.
Reece Udinski was the best scorer, finishing with 19.
“Reece is playing well. He sure is. He’s probably getting his basketball legs and feels more comfortable within the system we are trying to run,” said Conrad. “He’s just playing and not thinking so much. We’ve been moving him around. We tried him out at point. That doesn’t seem to be where he’s most comfortable.
“Today Justin Cueto started at point and we started Reece out on the wing. He got to the basket, got to the foul line, and rebounded exceptionally well.”
Junior varsity call-up Chris Coleman added seven but “really played great, rebounded well and did a lot of good things,” said Conrad.
Another JV call-up, Kishan Bavara, “played lot of minutes and really played well,” Conrad said. “He solidified us on the interior.”
Bavara broke his nose early in the season and played on JV when he first returned.
North Penn has struggled this season. But Conrad hopes this win is a springboard.
“We are running out of time here,” he said. “Our goal is to claw our way into districts and then it’s a brand new season if we can get in.”
North Penn (6-9, 2-6 SOL) plays Central Bucks East Tuesday at 7 p.m. Council Rock South (6-8, 4-4 SOL) welcomes Bensalem on the same night and time.
Bensalem 51, Upper Moreland 36
Upper Moreland jumped to an 11-0 lead.
“I didn’t think we had our legs under us,” said Bensalem coach Mike McCabe.
Bensalem clawed back after the poor start and trailed by two at halftime (20-18). Then point guard Brandon Vaughn took over.
“Brandon Vaughn sparked us in the second half,” said McCabe. “He played really well last night and really well today.”
Vaughn dished 11 assists in a 53-40 win over Neshaminy Friday night. He had eight more Saturday to go with 14 points.
“I put it to him last night and challenged him that we need his leadership to be successful. He stepped up last night and today,” said McCabe.
After halftime, McCabe switched his defense from man-to-man to full-court press. Bensalem won the third quarter 19-6 by playing fast.
“We got out and ran,” McCabe said. “We kept them off balance. They had shots they didn’t hit and we were able to get the rebound, get out, and go.”
Bensalem closed out on UM’s plethora of outside shooters.
Ward Roberts and Richard Dean complemented Vaughn with 12 and 10 points, respectively. Brendan O’Donnell and Brett Brossman each had eight for Upper Moreland.
Bensalem (7-7, 3-5 SOL) won three of four last week and faces a, “Huge week this week with CR South Tuesday and Pennsbury Thursday,” said McCabe. Upper Moreland (7-9, 3-5 SOL) plays Wissahickon Tuesday night.
Upper Moreland 11-9-6-10 36
Bensalem 7-11-19-14 51
Upper Moreland: Brendan O’Donnell 8, Brett Brossman 8, Tanner Herb 3, Damian Washington 6, Ryan Coyle 4, Shane Stone 2, Jake Villanueva 4.
Bensalem: Brandon Vaughn 14, Rich Dean 12, Anthony Greene 2, Ward Roberts 12, Taco Douglas 9, Jordan Vanish 2.
At Central Bucks East
Wissahickon 44, Central Bucks East 43
CB East led the entire game. Until Wissahickon outscored the Patriots 11-2 in the fourth quarter.
With the score tied at 43, Wissahickon’s Zach Gelman attacked the basket and was fouled with 3.7 seconds left. Gelman made the front end of a one-and-one and missed the second shot.
CB East threw up a prayer that landed way short.
Wissahickon coach Kyle Wilson said East sat on the lead.
“They started holding the ball with 4:31 to go and up eight points,” the Trojans’ coach siad. “We went offense-defense with a couple players but nothing special.”
The Patriots were 0-for-4 at the foul line down the stretch.
“That’s what hurt them the most,” said Wilson.
Max Rapoport and Alex Tappen each had 11 points for Wissahickon. Zach Reiner finished with nine and Gelman five.
Justin O’Neil (19) and Tommy Strasburger (13) combined for 32 points for the Patriots.
Wissahickon (7-8, 3-5 SOL) battles Upper Moreland Tuesday night. CB East (8-7, 3-5 SOL) goes to North Penn for a 7 p.m. tip.
Wissahickon 4-15-14-11 44
Central Bucks East 12-15-14-2 43
Wissahickon: Max Rapoport 11, Alex Tappen 11, Zach Reiner 9, Zach Gelman 5, Chaz Owens 4, Noah Curran 3, Matteo Atkins 1.
Central Bucks East: Matt Pattyson 3, Justin O’Neil 19, Tommy Strasburger 13, Chris Reilly 1, Eiljah Seger 5, Tiemo Fenner 2.
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