Seven of 11 SOL teams in action in the District One AAAA Tournament were winners on Saturday. Photos of the Cheltenham/Penn Wood game were provided courtesy of Kathy Leister Photography. Check back to view a gallery of that game as well as Lisa Henderson’s photos of the CB South/Haverford and Kim Supko’s photos of the North Penn/Penncrest games.
Sixteen teams remain alive in the quest for a District One AAAA title. Half of those teams are from the Suburban One League in what might be the strongest showing by the league in quite some time.
The National Conference was a perfect three-for-three with #13 Neshaminy, #18 Abington and #28 Council Rock North all earning wins. Rock North played the role of giant killer, traveling to Boyertown for a Saturday night game and stymying the Bears at every turn.
Four of the five Continental Conference teams advanced with #1 North Penn, #8 Central Bucks South, #10 Central Bucks West and #24 Central Bucks East earning wins. CB East appeared destined to have the upset of the day with its win over ninth-seeded Springfield-Delco, but the Patriots were upstaged by Council Rock North later in the day.
Upper Dublin, the tournament’s sixth seed, was the lone survivor from the American Conference as #16 Cheltenham, #19 Plymouth Whitemarsh and #22 Norristown all saw their seasons end.
Still, not a bad weekend for the SOL.
#1 NORTH PENN 63, #32 PENNCREST 18
The Lady Knights controlled play from wire-to-wire in the mercy rule win, and while the outcome was never in doubt, the countdown for Mikaela Giuliani reaching the 1,000-point milestone kept fans riveted for the better part of one half.
For a while, it looked as though the senior forward might score the 14 points she needed to reach a thousand in the first quarter. The Lady Knights sprinted to a 10-0 lead after back-to-back baskets by Giuliani. When Giuliani scored as time was about to expire in the first quarter, she upped her total to 12 points, and the Lady Knights led 24-4.
Points didn’t come as easily for Giuliani in the second quarter as the Lions made a concerted effort to keep her from getting the ball. She sank one-of-two from the foul line early in the quarter and then reached the milestone with 4:25 remaining when Jess Huber found her rolling to the hoop for an easy two points.
“There wasn’t anything specific to get me the ball every time,” Giuliani said. “We knew if it was going to happen, it would happen today, and if not, we just had to pull out the win, and I’d be able to get it the next time.”
Giuliani is the 13th North Penn player to reach the milestone – the 10th female.
“My freshman year I watched Lauren Crisler get it, then my sophomore I saw Vicky (Tumasz), and I actually saw Steph Knauer (get it) when I was in eighth grade,” Giuliani said. “I know how important it is and how much it means.”
Giuliani scored a game-high 23 points in three quarters, and she made it look easy.
“The girls did a good job – we were like, ‘Don’t force it, don’t force it,’” coach Maggie deMarteleire said. “I was very excited.
“She deserves it. She works hard, she does all the dirty work. She runs 94 feet, and she runs the floor exceptionally well. We always tell the guards – reward Mikaela for running up and down the court. If you get her with one person on her back, get her the ball, and they do.”
With Giuliani’s 1,000-point basket history, the only question that remained was when the mercy rule would go into effect. That was answered when the Lady Knights, who led 41-7 at halftime, went on top 48-7 after a Giuliani basket just over two minutes into the third quarter.
Freshman Cayla Sharkey gave the fans reason to cheer when she scored her first varsity basket with three minutes remaining in the game.
“Overall, it was a really nice game for everyone,” deMarteleire said. “Everyone played well. They did everything we asked them to do.”
Ye contributed 11 points and a team high four steals. Huber added 10 points, and Bri Hewlett had seven.
North Penn (23-2, 14-0 SOL) will host 17th-seeded Penn Wood in a second round game on Wednesday.
North Penn 24-17-15-7 63
Penncrest 4-3-5-6 18
Penncrest: Katherine Mullaney 1, Megan Arndt 6, Kylie Chelo 2, Julia Eckels 2, Grace Harding 7,
North Penn: Cayla Sharkey 2, Irisa Ye 11, Mikaela Giuliani 23, Jess Huber 10, Bri Hewlett 7, Sam Carangi 5, Mia Melchior 5.
#28 COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 40, #5 BOYERTOWN 27
The Indians pulled off the biggest stunner of the opening round, making the trek to Boyertown on a frigid Saturday night and sending the Bears home for the season.
Defense was the name of the game for the Indians, who effectively silenced the Bears’ big gun, Abby Kapp. They limited the 6-0 forward to exactly half of her average – nine points.
“We definitely had a plan going in, and the plan was make someone else beat us,” coach Lou Palkovics said. “I pretty much stressed to the kids to keep a foot in the lane so we always knew where Kapp was.
“Our goal was to keep Kapp around 10 points, and she had nine. Sam Saifer and Dana Bandurick pretty much split time on her and just would not even let her catch the ball, and when she did, she was double and sometimes triple teamed. Defensively, the kids just played great.”
The Indians trailed 12-9 after a first half that didn’t feature a whole lot of offense. The Bears broke a 9-9 tie with a three-pointer at the buzzer heading into halftime.
“At halftime, I stressed to the girls – ‘Don’t let that three bother you. If you had told me we’d be down three at half, I’d be fine with that. If you had told me we would only give up 12 points, I’m fine with that,’” Palkovics said. “We just needed to fix some things up offensively because we were kind of shooting ourselves in the foot.
“We probably had about five or six really unforced turnovers where I just thought it was nerves. The kids really wanted to win, and when you’re trying really hard, sometimes you try too hard. They played a lot better in the second half.”
The Indians scored four straight points out of halftime to go on top 13-12, and then the outside shots began falling. The Bears had no answer as the Indians went on a 15-6 third quarter tear to go on top 24-15 heading into the final quarter.
“In the second half, it was always one point, and then Megan Haggerty caught fire and hit three threes – she couldn’t miss,” Palkovics said. “Becca Margolis hit the three to tie it, Kaelin Mealey hit a big three, and all of a sudden, we’re up 10.
“In a game where the score was 12-9 at halftime, we all of a sudden doubled our score on three shots.”
In the fourth quarter, Becca Margolis – who scored a team high 18 points – was a perfect 8-for-8 from the foul line to seal the Bears’ fate.
“We’ve had so many close big games that we’ve lost, and I think it was starting to really weigh on them,” Palkovics said. “I never blame losses on being young, but I can blame a win on being young.
“They didn’t know any better. They were just playing to play.”
Margolis led all scorers with 18 points – which included two threes. She also had seven rebounds, five assists and one steal. Haggerty added nine points on three three-pointers. Mackenzie Tinner had a team high eight rebounds to go along with six points, one block and one assist. Mealey had six rebounds, five points and one assist. Hannah Weiler added three rebounds, four steals, one block and one assist.
“I felt good going into the game,” Palkovics said. “When you have five days to prepare for a game and they only had two – they played Wednesday night, I just felt the kids were really buying into what we wanted to do.
“I can’t point to one kid. It was a team win. This was a big win, but they’re definitely not content. I think the girls feel like a monkey’s off their backs and we can win close games.”
Council Rock North (13-9, 10-4 SOL) will travel to Downingtown East for a battle with the 12th-seeded Cougars in Wednesday’s second round.
Council Rock North 7-2-15-16 40
Boyertown 3-9-6-9 27
Council Rock North: Becca Margolis 18, Camryn Polinsky 2, Megan Haggerty 9, Kaelin Mealey 5, Mackenzie Tinner 6.
Boyertown: Alli Marcus 2, Kylie Webb 8, Taylor Landis 2, Sam Brensinger 2, Maria Garafalo 2, Abby Kapp 9, Sarafina Valenti 2.
#24 CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 45, #9 SPRINGFIELD-DELCO 33
Liz Potash had a decidedly good feeling about her team’s chances against the favored Spartans in Saturday’s opening round game.
“I don’t want to take anything away from Delco – they had a great season, and I knew what they had,” the Patriots’ coach said. “But at the same time, it’s a broken record – I tell my girls all the time, ‘You play in the toughest conference in the district, if not in the state.’
“It’s like playing in the ACC. You talk about our seven league losses, but six of those losses are to three teams in the top 10 – 1, 8 and 10, so you’re being tested every single night you play. Only two times – the first time against North Penn and CB South, obviously, we didn’t give them our best effort, but we played everyone else close. The girls are used to being tested, and I did feel pretty good going into the game.”
Kyra Scaliti delivered the kind of performance that made Potash’s optimism turn out to be well-founded, finishing with a double-double that included a game-high 15 points and 11 rebounds.
“She had a huge game,” Potash said. “She played like a senior who was not ready for her playing career to be over yet.
“There was no doubt Kyra was not going to let us lose that game. She was on the offensive glass. She takes the ball out against the press, she’s getting the ball over halfcourt, and they’re fouling her in the fourth quarter. As soon as they started fouling her, I knew the game was over because she’s not going to miss in a close game in playoff time.”
The Patriots, who trailed 4-3 after one quarter, still trailed 6-5 when their offense came to life. They reeled off 10 straight points, a run that was capped with back-to-back three-pointers by Bridget Birkhead and Scaliti. The Spartans interrupted the Patriots’ tear with a basket, but the Patriots closed out the half with a 7-0 run – which included another Birkhead three – to go into halftime with a 22-9 lead.
Also keying the Patriots’ 19-point second quarter was junior Grace Stewart, who scored six points in the frame.
“They were pretty small, and we were able to get the ball inside and Grace was able to finish,” Potash said.
The second quarter offensive outburst was an especially welcome one for a Patriot squad that had not reached 40 points in four straight games to close out the regular season, which included three losses the final week.
“We shoot all the time at practice, and I have a lot of kids that can shoot really well,” Potash said. “We haven’t really been making a ton of shots.
“We came in early this morning. The girls wanted to do a shoot-around before we got on the bus. Everyone was really focused.”
The Patriots took a 31-20 lead into the fourth quarter and then withstood a Spartan rally that made it a 36-33 game with 2:55 remaining. The Patriots closed it out with a 9-0 run. They buried 10-of-11 four shots in the quarter with Scaliti connecting on 4-of-4 and Bri Talbot – who had five points in the quarter – burying 3-of-3.
“They’re an outside shooting team, and they weren’t making shots in the first half, but in the fourth quarter, they made a couple threes, and all of a sudden it’s 36-33 with three minutes to go,” Potash said.
The Patriots had just six turnovers in 32 minutes.
“We took care of the ball,” Potash said. “After the Penn Wood game (a 39-38 loss to end the regular season), it was like – things have to change. I give Kyra and Meg (Lapioli) a ton of credit. They got the team together and said, ‘Here’s what needs to be done…’ That is your senior captains stepping up for you and not wanting their season to end.”
The Patriots received nine-point efforts from Birkhead and Talbot (all in the second half) while Stewart finished with eight.
Central Bucks East (13-10, 7-7 SOL) will face a familiar foe in Wednesday’s second round when the Patriots will travel to Central Bucks South for the third meeting between the sister schools.
Central Bucks East 3-19-9-14 45
Springfield-Delco 4-5-11-13 33
Central Bucks East: Bridget Birkhead 9, Kyra Scaliti 15, Megan Brown 1, Bailey McManus 3, Bri Talbot 9, Grace Stewart 8.
Springfield-Delco: Maggie O’Connell 10, Jordan D’Ambrosio 3, Belle Mastropietro 5, Madison D’Ambrosio 15.
#18 ABINGTON 51, #15 GREAT VALLEY 25
This was an upset by seed only.
It was no secret the Ghosts were going to be a tough matchup for the Patriots, but perhaps no one expected Abington to open up an 18-2 lead midway through the second quarter.
“We had a really good week of practice,” said coach Dan Marsh. “We told them that everything that happened prior to this means nothing.
“This was our goal all year. This is why we play a tough schedule – to get to this point and to be able to compete in districts and go from there. The kids were really prepared. I told them – we can struggle on offense, but we have to play defense. Defense wins championships. If you make a mistake, you have to come back and play defense. If you miss a shot, you have to come back and play defense, and they did. They got no easy shots.”
The Ghosts led 11-2 after one quarter and took a 23-12 lead into halftime.
“They hit a couple of threes in the second quarter,” Marsh said. “Otherwise, they might not have scored.
“Those threes were contested. They were fortunate they went in.”
Take away a 10-point second quarter, and the Patriots did not have a double-digit quarter, managing just two in the first and four in a third quarter that saw the Ghosts go on a 16-4 tear to go on top 39-16 heading into the final quarter.
Leah Simmons and Lizzie O’Leary owned the paint. Both finished with double-doubles. Simmons had 19 points and 12 rebounds while O’Leary added 12 points and 15 rebounds.
“When they doubled Lizzie, she’s able to find Leah,” Marsh said. “They were doubling her, and she found her. They were great on the boards too.
“Our league is tough. We have teams that can play. They were 18-4, but I looked at their schedule. I don’t think they played anybody like us.”
Abington (17-6, 12-2 SOL) will face a tough test when it travels to Perkiomen Valley for a second round matchup against the second-seeded Vikings.
“We’re focusing on doing well in districts,” Marsh said. “We feel like we can compete with anybody. Obviously, we have number two Perk Valley on Wednesday.
“They’re a very good team, they’re ranked in the state, but if we play the right way, it’s not going to be an easy game for Perk Valley.”
Abington 11-12-16-12 51
Great Valley 2-10-4-9 25
Abington: Britney James 2, Sammy Lochner 7, Leah Simmons 19, Lizzie O’Leary 12, Toni Washington 1, Miranda Liebtage 2, Kassondra Brown 3, Toni Washington 1, Sam Brusha 5.
Great Valley: Ashlyn Smith 2, Christina Perreca 2, Katie Peduto 2, Kodi Campetti 7, Sadie Buzan 5, Stephanie Aker 7.
#6 UPPER DUBLIN 44, #27 WEST CHESTER RUSTIN 27
The Flying Cardinals received a big lift from a pair of sophomores in Saturday’s opening round win.
Nicole Kaiser led all scorers with 12 points to go along with seven rebounds, and Maggie Weglos added 10 points, six steals and four rebounds.
Weglos scored all 10 of her points in a first half that saw the Cardinals, who led 11-5 after one quarter, open up a 24-13 halftime lead.
“Maggie is kind of what got us going,” coach Morgan Funsten said. “Nicole Kaiser came off the bench in the first half, and she had eight in the first half.
“We had 24 at halftime, and Weglos and Kaiser combined for 18 of our 24. If you watch our games, you’d be pretty surprised by those numbers.”
The Cardinals opened up a 15-5 lead early in the second quarter and maintained a double-digit lead the rest of the way.
“They have really good shooters,” Funsten said. “They have four girls that are legitimately good shooters.
“They’re not good at creating their own shots. We thought as long as we played our normal defensive game and just paid attention and knew where they were at all times and got a hand in their face we would be okay. That’s pretty much what it was.”
The game was a rematch of an early season meeting that saw the Cardinals win 56-28. In that game, veterans Allison Chernow and Josie Barrett led the way with double-figure scoring efforts.
On Saturday, it was Kaiser stealing the spotlight off the bench.
“They played zone, and she found her way behind the zone, and Allison Chernow did a great job of getting her the ball a few times,” Funsten said. “If she gets the ball in a good position down low, she’s great at finishing. The second half of the year she’s just been great for us.
“You rely so much in the experience we gained the last several years in playoffs. Yet we had two sophomores who really took over in the first half, which was great to see.”
Also for the Cardinals, Ashley Barber added six points and eight rebounds, and Chernow had six points, six rebounds and four assists.
Despite leading wire-to-wire, the Cardinals were not satisfied with their performance.
“It wasn’t the prettiest game,” Funsten said. “We struggled with some decision-making offensively.
“We turned the ball over more than we would have liked, and if you were in the locker room after the game, you would have almost thought we lost. We weren’t feeling great about our performance.”
Upper Dublin (19-5, 14-0 SOL) will host 11th-seeded Bishop Shanahan in Wednesday’s second round.
“We’re excited about the position we’re in,” Funsten said. “As a coach, there’s no trying to bring us down off a huge win – there’s no worry there. There’s no worry on my end getting these girls focused for practice. I think they know we need the practice and that we need to be better in our future games.
“We’re excited that we’ve guaranteed ourselves two more games. We know the easy way into states is to win the next one. We’re trying to totally focus on Shanahan. They have a lot of dangerous pieces.”
Upper Dublin 11-13-13-7 44
West Chester Rustin 5-8-10-4 27
West Chester Rustin: Gallagher 8, O’Hare 10, Nelson 2, Custin 1, Lexi Zavitsky 6.
Upper Dublin: Nicole Kaiser 12, Josie Barrett 3, Alison Gouveia 5, Allison Chernow 6, Demi Balasa 2, Maggie Weglos 10, Ashley Barber 6.
#8 CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 68, #25 HAVERFORD 35
Execution at both ends of the court was the key for the Titans in Saturday’s district opener against the Fords.
After taking a 30-18 lead into halftime, South blew the game wide open with a 20-11 third quarter and outscored their visitors 38-17 in the second half.
“Our ability – especially in the second half – to come out and really control what we wanted to and execute really won the game,” coach Beth Mattern said. “Defensively, we came out with more pressure, and we came out with a little more of – I guess in a way – a chip on our shoulder.
“We created a lot of turnovers to start the third quarter and just really put them back on their heels.”
Jordan Vitelli jump started the Titans in the first quarter, burying a pair of three-pointers and scoring 10 of her game-high 17 points in the quarter. The Titans led 15-8 after one quarter.
In the second quarter, Tricia DeCesare scored five points off the bench, and Taylor Dunn added four as the Titans opened up a double-digit lead. The Fords never threatened.
“It feels great to get the first win,” Mattern said. “Now you’re in the top 16 in the district. We’re an eight seed, so we get another home game on Wednesday night.
“We kind of had a bad taste in our mouth from the way our regular season ended, so now that we’ve gotten back on the court again – you still control your own destiny. One game at a time, and you can only control what you have in front of you, and you work hard to do the best you can.”
Dunn – who had six points in the third quarter – also finished the game in double figures with 10. Mackenzie Ehresman added nine points and nine rebounds.
“Mackenzie was 4-for-5 from the field, and she really came through with one of her better games of the season today,” Mattern said. “Jordan (Vitelli) had a nice game, and Taylor Dunn also had a great game, working hard on the offensive end and scoring some buckets. She’s a tough matchup defensively and does a great job.”
Freshman Alexa Brodie added six points on a day that saw 11 players get into the scoring column.
Central Bucks South (18-5, 11-3 SOL) will do battle with archrival Central Bucks East in a second round game on Wednesday.
Haverford 8-10-11-6 35
Central Bucks South 15-15-20-18 68
Haverford: Mollie Reynolds 9, Robyn O’Halloran 2, Brianna Blair 4, Ashley Murphy 4, Annaleana O’Reilly 2, Amanda Battista 10, Erin Kelly 4.
Central Bucks South: Alexa Brodie 6, Courtney Taylor 2, Taylor Dunn 10, Melissa Veal 2, Meghan Kuypers 4, Tricia DeCesare 8, Haley Meinel 4, Jordan Vitelli 17, Courtney Dietzel 4, Mackenzie Ehresman 9, Maddie McShane 2.
#10 CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 53, #23 KENNETT 38
Defense has been a trademark of this year’s West squad, and with the return of Maddie Maio and Alex Burkauskas to the lineup, the Bucks had plenty of fresh legs. They wore down their visitors, allowing just 14 points in the second half.
“Our kids did a good job defensively,” coach Terry Rakowsky said. “I think we just played a little smarter in the second half.
“It was a decently close game at halftime (32-24), and in the third and fourth quarters, we sort of put them away.”
The Bucks limited West Chester-bound guard Miranda Hill to just seven points.
“We did a great job of taking away their strengths,” Rakowsky said. “They have a kid (Hill) that shoots it from halfcourt – literally, she steps over halfcourt and she shoots it.
“We held her to one good shot. That’s all she had. In fact, she got a little frustrated in the fourth quarter, and she drew a technical foul.”
Makenzie Mason led the Bucks with 16 points on seven field goals and a two-for-two effort at the foul line. She also had six rebounds and four steals. Maggie Rakowsky added 11 points, which included a pair of three-pointers, to go along with six rebounds and four steals.
“Maggie had a big game for us scoring, driving, assisting and rebounding,” Rakowsky said.
Tori Abelson had eight points and a team-high 11 rebounds, and Izzy Treon also had eight points.
Alexa Hussey led Kennett with 13 points.
“They had some pretty good kids,” Rakowsky said. “Hill was good, and they had two big kids who were real aggressive rebounding.
“Izzy played another great game. We got good minutes from Erin McIlhenney. Bailey Tracy is hurt right now – she’s out with a concussion, and Erin took her spot in the lineup basically for minutes, and she did a great job on their big kid. She gave us really solid minutes today.”
Central Bucks West (18-7, 11-3 SOL) will travel to Conestoga on Wednesday for a second round game against the seventh-seeded Pioneers.
Kennett: Caroline Hertz 8, Andrea Prestianne 7, Melissa Houck 1, Miranda Hill 7, Alexa Hussey 13, Marnie Rodgers
Central Bucks West: Makenzie Mason 16, Maggie Rakowsky 11, Maddie Maio 5, Tori Abelson 8, Alex Burkauskas 2, Erin McIlhenney 1, Izzy Treon 8, Molly Rodebaugh 2.
#14 SPRING-FORD 42, #19 PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 34
A young Colonials squad – with no seniors on its roster – traveled to Spring-Ford and hung with the Rams for the better part of four quarters before falling in a tightly contested game.
“We had a real chance at it today,” coach Daniel Dougherty said. “I can’t say enough about my team, and the season we had.”
“Spring-Ford is such a deep team. They had 10 kids play today, non-stop running at us, and we played five kids the whole game. It was an impressive battle for us to be there with them. With no seniors, our kids are committed to working all year, and hopefully next year we can get a home game in the first round, and maybe things will turn out differently for us.”
The Rams led 7-3 after one quarter, but the Colonials outscored their hosts 9-6 in the second quarter to pull to within one at halftime (13-12).
“I think in the first quarter both teams came out with a lot of nerves and a lot of adrenaline,” Dougherty said. “Nobody could get a shot to fall.
“We struggled with our free throws in the first half – we went 3-for-7. In the second quarter, we settled in and made a good run at them. The game was tied 12-12, and they called a loose ball foul with one second to go. They made a free throw to go up 13-12.”
The third quarter was another war as the two teams exchanged baskets with Spring-Ford taking a 24-22 lead into the final quarter.
“We kept taking it to them and they kept coming back at us,” Dougherty said. “In the fourth quarter, they came out of a set play and hit a three right off the bat.
“They changed presses on us, and they got a steal off it right away, so it went from a two-point game to a seven-point game right away in the fourth quarter. We came down and we scored and cut it back to five, but we just couldn’t get over the hump of five points in the fourth quarter.
“Eventually, we had to start fouling. They missed a couple of free throws at first, so we kept hanging around, but then they made a few and it was over.”
In the battle of point guards, PW’s Taylor O’Brien finished with a game-high 20 points while Spring-Ford’s Sydney Wagner had 17.
“There were two really high level point guards,” Dougherty said. “Their man defense is their trademark, and Taylor O’Brien was absolutely unstoppable again.”
Laurel Suchsland added eight points, which included a pair of three-pointers, and eight rebounds.
“She had a real big game for us,” Dougherty said. “Both of her threes were really timely.
“Ali Diamond did a tremendous job handling their pressure. All anybody could tell us was the pressure we were going to face, and our kids handled it. They were able to handle it and beat it. They had to drop out of their press.
“Lauren Coscia played really, really good defense in the middle, and Sarah Putsch is just a rebounding machine and she was again too.”
Dougherty tipped his hat to Spring-Ford.
“I had never been to Spring-Ford, and what a class place that is,” he said. “It’s what every school should be. They are just tremendous.
“They take great care of the visiting team. It was a real playoff atmosphere. There were a lot of fans on both sides. It was – I hope – a great learning experience for the kids, and hopefully, we can go back there, and we’re better prepared.”
Plymouth Whitemarsh (10-4 SOL) closed out the year with a 16-7 record.
Plymouth Whitemarsh 3-9-10-12 34
Spring-Ford 7-6-11-18 42
Plymouth Whitemarsh: Taylor O’Brien 20, Ali Diamond 3, Sarah Putsch 2, Laurel Suchsland 8.
Spring-Ford: Juliana Allesandroni 2, Maddie Haney 11, Cassie Marte 1, Amy Roth 8, Chloe Schretzman 1, Sydney Wagner 17, Emily Walker 2.
#17 PENN WOOD 68, #16 CHELTENHAM 27
Dahnye Redd scored 13 points in the first quarter, propelling the visiting Patriots to an 18-12 lead. By halftime, Redd had 17 points, and the Patriots – who also received 10 points from Carle Andrews in the half – led 33-20. They limited the Lady Panthers to just seven points in the second half – none in the fourth quarter – to earn a win that erased memories of last season’s opening round loss to Cheltenham.
The Lady Panthers were led by the 11-point effort of Gabbi Wright while Mia Leonard added nine. No other player had more than three points.
Cheltenham (9-5 SOL) closed out the year with a 15-8 record.
Penn Wood 18-15-18-16 68
Cheltenham 12-8-7-0 27
Penn Wood: Gabrielle Hairston 8, Joy Morton 18, Carle Andrews 18, Selein Matthews 2, Khaliah Gordon 5, Dahnye Redd 25.
Cheltenham: Savannah Roberts 3, D’ajah Bourchereau 2, Mia Leonard 9, Gabrielle wright 11, Nashira Brown 2.
#2 PERKIOMEN VALLEY 63, #31 PENNRIDGE 38
The Vikings opened up a 15-9 lead after one quarter and took a 32-17 lead into halftime on their way to the convincing win over the Lady Rams.
Pennridge – minus Lydia Konstanzer – had no answer for the Vikings under the basket. The 6-0 senior center, who is in Australia, averages more than 15 points and 14 rebounds, and without her, the Vikings pretty much had their way in the paint.
Senior Devan Rimmer led the Rams with 16 points, which included three three-pointers. Sam Muredda added eight and Brooke Bachtle, six points.
Megan Jonassen (20 points) and KT Armstrong (17 points) led the Vikings.
Pennridge (5-9 SOL) closed out its season with a 12-11 record.
Pennridge 9-8-10-11 38
Perkiomen Valley 15-17-11-20 63
Pennridge: Brooke Bachtle 6, Gillian Anderson 4, Sam Muredda 8, Rose McCormick 1, Devan Rimmer 16, Emilee Cramer 3.
Perkiomen Valley: Nikki Marino 2, KT Armstrong 17, Hanan Richmond 4, Megan Moore 2, Ashley Bangert 3, Bridgette Bonjo 2, Tori Walter 3, Megan Jonassen 20, Taylor Hamm 10.
#11 BISHOP SHANAHAN 47, #22 NORRISTOWN 43
Norristown appeared to be on the verge of a big upset. The visiting Eagles led 12-7 after one quarter and took a 22-19 lead into halftime. They still led by three (34-31) heading into the final quarter when Shanahan used a 16-9 surge to eke out the win.
Patti Fortescue scored a game high 16 points. Beyonce Collins added nine points and Lauren Fortescue, six points.
Norristown (9-5 SOL) closed out its season with a 14-8 record.
Norristown 12-10-12-9 43
Bishop Shanahan 7-12-12-16 47
Norristown: Patti Fortescus 16, Lauren Fortescue 6, Precious Milan 2, Taijah James 4, Green 2, Beyonce Collins 9, Devon Morse 4.
Bishop Shanhan: Adams 14, Warley 12, Forde 10, Sendi 2, Phillips 5, Basile 4.
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