Check out the results for SOL girls’ basketball teams in action Friday. CR North/Neshaminy photos provided courtesy of Jesse Garber (http://jsgarber.zenfolio.com/p376284989)
SOL National Conference
COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 61, NESHAMINY 39
There’s a logjam atop the SOL National Conference standings. Council Rock North saw to that with its convincing win over the Redskins that vaulted both Rock North and Abington into a three-way tie for first place with Neshaminy.
The Indians, who led 8-5 after one quarter, took a 23-15 lead into halftime and then blew the game open with a 16-8 third quarter to go on top 39-23.
Olivia Boyle stole the spotlight and was a difference maker in for the Indians, entering the game with 3:25 remaining and immediately burying a pair of 3-pointers. She then drove for a layup, scoring eight points in short order to ignite the Indians’ third quarter surge.
"We played great offensively in the first half but just could not get shots to fall," coach Lou Palkovics said. "Liv Boyle took care of that, hiting three consecutive threes in the third quarter when we were only up four."
The Indians added to their lead in the fourth quarter, outscoring the ‘Skins in all four quarters.
Becca Margolis led a balanced Indian attack with 15 points – 10 in the second half. The senior point guard also had six assists. Boyle added 14 points, which included four 3-pointers, and Mackenzie Tinner had 12 points – all in the final three quarters. Tinner completed her double-double with 11 rebounds to go with four blocked shots. Dana Bandurick added eight points, four rebounds and six assists. Sydney Blum had six points.
For the Redskins, Olivia Scotti led the way with nine points, and Allison Harvey added eight. Kristin Curley had six points.
Rock North connected on 17-of-39 shots (44 percent) from the floor. The Indians were 7-for-17 from beyond the arc. Neshaminy made just 15-of-51 shots (29 percent) and connected on only 3-of-17 threes.
Council Rock North (15-5, 9-2 SOL) will host Mount St. Joseph on Saturday at noon, and Neshaminy (14-5, 8-2) will travel to Harry S Truman on Tuesday.
Neshaminy 5-10-8-16 39
Council Rock North 8-15-16-22 61
Neshaminy (39) – Emily Tantala 5, Olivia Scotti 9, Brooke Mullin 5, Kristin Curley 6, Meghan Ansel 4, Kelli Kowalick 2, Allison Harvey 8.
Council Rock North (61) – Becca Margolis 15, Juliana Shields 2, Dana Bandurick 8, Sydney Blum 6, Olivia Boyle 14, Abby Jones 2, Kaelin Mealey 2, Mackenzie Tinner 12.
ABINGTON 71, HARRY S TRUMAN 38
The Ghosts rolled to their sixth straight win, opening up a 22-11 lead after one quarter and taking a 44-17 advantage into halftime.
Sam Brusha (22 points) and Kassondra Brown (21 points) combined for 43 of the Ghosts’ points. Brown completed yet another double-double with 13 rebounds. Miranda Liebtag also finished in double figures with 12 points. Cam Lexow (eight points) and Jordyn Allen (seven points) also contributed to the Ghosts’ high-powered attack. Point guard Brittney James had six assists.
For the Tigers, Haniyyah Jones led the way with 14 points. Daisha Campbell added nine, and Briana Cliney had seven.
Abington (13-5, 9-2 SOL) will host Boyertown for a Saturday 8 p.m. non-league contest, and Harry S Truman (2-15, 0-8) will host Bensalem on Monday.
Abington 22-22-20-7 71
Harry S Truman 11-6-8-13 38
Abington (71) – Jordyn Allen 7, Tamia Wessels 2, Cam Lexow 8, Selena Marrero 1, Kassondra Brown 21, Miranda Liebtag 12, Hope Brower-Ancher 2, Morgan Benson 2, Sam Brusha 22.
Harry S Truman (38) – Haniyyah Jones 14, Daisha Campbell 9, Roneshia James 2, Briana Cliney 7, Zuri Clarke 4, Keys 2.
SOL Continental Conference
PENNRIDGE 63, CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 59
Talk about a bounce-back win – this was it.
On Jan. 9, the Rams fell to CB West 50-31. They made sure there would be no reruns this time around, and sparked by the double-digit scoring efforts of Brooke Bachtle (18 points), Gill Anderson (14) and Emilee Cramer (11), the Rams avenged that loss, stunning a West squad that was coming off a win over CB East.
“We looked at what we did in that first game, and it really came down to a lot of unforced turnovers. We were just sloppy with the ball,” coach Mike Elton said. “We had 22 turnovers in that first game, so that was what we were looking at. We said we had to eliminate the turnovers, and most of those came off of passes that got by us.”
The Rams scored 24 first-quarter points, doubling up the visiting Bucks (24-12). They managed just 13 over the next two quarters combined before exploding for 26 in the final frame.
“We had a great first quarter,” Elton said. “We shot incredibly well in the first quarter. From a scoring standpoint, I was really thrilled with Gill (Anderson), Brooke (Bachtle) and Emilee (Cramer).
“The second and third quarters were tough. We didn’t do a lot of scoring, but in the fourth quarter, everybody stepped up. In this kind of game, it comes down to a team effort. Somebody always has to pick somebody else up. Everybody contributed.
“They’re a good team, and they’re going to fight back and they’re going to battle. That’s where we really had to do a better job with patience and pace of the game. They made their run, they came out hard. We made our free throws when we had to make them at the end of the game.”
The score was deadlocked 37-37 heading into the final quarter when the Rams connected on 10-of-15 from the charity stripe. Bachtle was 6-for-6 in the fourth quarter.
Sophomore Maddie Burke led the Bucks with 22 points, which included five 3-pointers.
“That Maddie Burke is unbelievable,” Elton said. “Emilee Cramer was the person we put on her most of the game.
“She made five threes, and she made some big ones. When they really needed something, she made those shots. Emilee might have given up one shot. The rest of them were hand-in-the-face – she shot under pressure almost every time. It was unbelievable. She does everything well. You tell them to box her out, and she’ll just come in.”
Junior Izzy Treon added 21 points – 13 in the fourth quarter.
“Izzy had a really good game,” Elton said. “She picked up a lot of stuff under the basket.
“Obviously, they’re going to score somewhere. If you put all the focus on Maddie, someone else is going to score.”
For the Rams, the win snapped a three-game losing streak in a tough stretch that included games against Central Bucks East, Souderton and Neshaminy.
“It’s been two tough weeks,” Elton said. “In our games Tuesday and Wednesday, we struggled a little bit, and I’m really proud of the way they came through. It was a team win.”
Pennridge (9-9, 3-6 SOL) will be on the road at Souderton on Saturday at 1:30 p.m., and Central Bucks West (11-9, 7-4) will travel to Souderton on Tuesday.
Central Bucks West 12-17-8-22 59
Pennridge 24-8-5-26 63
Pennridge (59) – Corinn Mart 6, Sam Muredda 9, Brooke Bachtle 18, Gill Anderson 14, Rose McCormick 5, Emilee Cramer 11.
SOUDERTON 43, NORTH PENN 27
With three games left in the regular season, the Indians own the top spot in the District One 6A power rankings, and they also are atop the conference standings. It’s a spot many expected them to be in after last year’s magical run to the state semifinals, but the players aren’t paying a whole lot of attention to any of that.
“We just take it game by game and just focus on the next game,” senior Kate Connolly said. “We just focus on the next one, focus on the next one.
“We’ve been playing with each other for almost two seasons, so we’re really clicking and connecting, which really does bring up the confidence in each other because we’ve been working together and working hard for so long.”
In Friday’s win, the Indians survived a slow start and a cold shooting night – they didn’t have any threes in the entire game, and they were able to do more than just survive, thanks to another standout defensive effort that saw them allow less than 30 points for the third straight game.
“Defense is our main focus,” junior Megan Walbrandt said. “We practice it a lot, and if our offense isn’t flowing like tonight – we couldn’t really get any outside shots, we can stay in any game really with our defense.”
The Indians trailed 11-7 after North Penn senior Jenny Hulmes buried a three. Connolly connected on back-to-back baskets to knot the score, and when Alana Cardona, who had six points in the quarter, scored after pulling down an offensive rebound, the Indians led 13-11 heading into the second quarter.
Jess McKenzie put the Knights on top by one after she completed a three-point play, and the Knights still led by two (16-14) after freshman Alli Lindsay scored on a drive.
Connolly turned a steal by Megan O’Donnell into a fast break bucket, and when Walbrandt scored on a short jumper, the Indians had a lead they would not lose. It was just the beginning of a 13-0 Indian run to close out the half as the Indians opened up a 27-16 lead.
“When your shots aren’t falling, you have to find other ways to score,” Walbrandt said. “I think we really focused on driving and dishing and looking for that open player because they would all collapse on us.
“I think there was some frustration because we were getting wide open shots, and they weren’t really falling, but that didn’t faze us to ever stop shooting. We kept our confidence up and kept on shooting.
Not a whole lot changed in a second half that saw the Indians take care of business.
“It’s experience,” coach Ben Bowman said. “It’s something coach (Lynn) Carroll talked about all the time – no matter what happens, always keep your cool. If something goes wrong – you miss a shot or get a foul, it’s the next play. It’s always the next play, so I try to echo what she said. We always try to keep our cool, no matter what. If we play our game, we know we can battle back.”
Walbrandt’s 12 points led a balanced Indian attack. Connolly added 10 points, six rebounds and two blocks. Cardona – who battled foul trouble – added nine points. Megan Bealer had six points and eight rebounds.
For the Knights, Hulmes led the way with eight points, and Lindsay had seven.
The win gave the Indians – who defeated the Knights 55-27 earlier this season – a sweep of North Penn.
“I thought defensively we played much, much better than we did the last time,” North Penn coach Maggie deMarteleire said. “Defense wasn’t really our problem. Offense was our problem.
“Defensively, we wanted to be aggressive. Offensively, we wanted to be patient, and we were patient the first quarter and then we started making bad decisions, attacking the basket when there was nothing there or trying to make passes through three people. It was better than the last game, but offensively, we’re struggling.”
Souderton (17-2, 8-1 SOL) will host Pennridge on Saturday at 1:30 p.m., and North Penn (5-14, 1-9) will travel to Lansdale Catholic on Sunday for a 1:30 p.m. contest.
Souderton 13-14-5-11 43
North Penn 11-5-5-6 27
Souderton (43) – Tori Dowd 4, Megan Bealer 6, Alana Cardona 9, Megan Walbrandt 12, Megan O’Donnell 2, Kate Connolly 10.
North Penn (27) – Jenny Hulmes 8, Alli Lindsay 7, Carley Adams 2, Valerie McGriff 4, Jess McKenzie 3, Bri Hewlett 3.
CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 64, WILLIAM TENNENT 24
The Patriots erupted for 25 points in the first quarter while allowing just two and by halftime had an insurmountable 40-6 lead. In the opening quarter, the Patriots connected on 8-of-16 shots from the floor. Elyse Shine scored eight of her 14 points in the frame.
“We shot the ball well,” coach Liz Potash said. “We had 18 team assists and 17 steals, and that’ll do good things.”
Sophia Mancuso’s 17 points led the Patriots. Audrey LaBouliere and Bailey McManus both had eight points. In addition to scoring 14 points, Shine also had seven offensive rebounds.
Haley Crossley’s 10 points led the Panthers. Emma Stanfield added six points.
Central Bucks East (14-6, 7-4 SOL) will travel to Abington for a non-league game on Tuesday, and William Tennent (10-10, 1-9) will host Pennridge on Tuesday.
Central Bucks East 25-15-12-12 64
William Tennent 2-4-11-7 24
Central Bucks East (64) – Sophia Mancuso 17, Skylar Krause 3, Mia Salvati 3, Gina Russo 2, Caroline Pla 4, Audrey LaBouliere 8, Bailey McManus 8, Gabby Wilga 3.
William Tennent (24) – Kelly Scipione 2, Jenna Rodebaugh 3, Emma Stanfeld 6, Bryn Evans 2, Jess Rutkowsky 1, Haley Crossley 10.
SOL American Conference
WISSAHICKON 54, CHELTENHAM 39
Brianna Tilghman (16 points), Victoria Selverian (15 points) and Carly Fadel (14 points) combined for 45 points in the Trojans’ big win over the Lady Panthers. The Trojans trailed 23-22 at halftime but began to seize control of the game with a 19-11 third quarter. They outscored their visitors 32-16 in the second half.
“We came out and we got a lot of great looks in the first half, but we didn’t knock them down,” Trojan coach Rodney Cline said. “We were a little sluggish on defense on our rotations.
“Our big thing in the second half is the first four minutes – they’ve got to be ours. The girls came out and picked up the defense and capitalized on steals. We forced 23 turnovers, and most of them were in the second half. We got a lot of points in transition.”
The Trojans’ coach pointed to his team’s work under the boards – especially on the offensive end – as key.
“Brianna Tilghman rebounded tremendously today,” Cline said. “She’s only 5-7 or 5-8, but she played like she was 6-0 or 6-1 on the glass on both sides. She had 11 rebounds today along with her 16 points.”
Cline also acknowledged the offensive showing of Fadel.
“Carly Fadel was on fire – the rim was like an ocean to her,” the Trojans’ coach said. “She hit her first three, and that was it from then on.
“She was fundamentally sound. We said – when you’re in the paint, get the ball off the glass, and she used the glass. She knocked down a short corner jump shot and scored in the paint. She was patient and poised, and she put the ball in the basket.
“All the work she puts in, I’m really, really happy for her. I’m hoping this is her breakout game. This is the time for her to get hot and have that confidence. She does all the little things. Any 50-50 ball around the paint, she’s on the floor. She’s like a junkyard dog. She cleans up everything. I was just so happy to see her able to be efficient and successful on the offensive side.”
Wissahickon (9-10, 8-4 SOL) will host Great Valley on Saturday at 1:30 p.m., and Cheltenham (10-9, 4-7) will host Quakertown on Monday.
Cheltenham 14-9-11-5 39
Wissahickon 11-11-19-13 54
Cheltenham (39) – Savannah Roberts 10, Yanisha Dormil 3, Taylor Johnson 5, Courtney Murray 2, Madison Rorer 4, Kellia Holmes 7, Kai Williams 8.
Wissahickon (54) – Anna Schools 3, Brianna Tilghman 16, Sydney Ott 2, Macey Segal 2, Victoria Selverian 15, Victoria Wiliams 2, Carly Fadel 14.
UPPER MORELAND 44, QUAKERTOWN 19
Kaiya Herb erupted for 16 points to lead the Golden Bears, who received scoring from 10 players. The win was the sixth in a row for the Bears, who moved to the .500 mark.
Herb sparked the Golden Bears to a 17-2 lead at the end of one quarter, burying a pair of 3-pointers and contributing nine points. By halftime, the Bears led 27-5 and never looked back.
Caitlin Corr and Bean Hughes added six points each for the Golden Bears.
Veronica Best’s six points led the Panthers.
Upper Moreland (9-9, 6-6 SOL) will travel to Wissahickon on Tuesday, and Quakertown (1-18, 0-11) will be on the road at Cheltenham on Monday.
Quakertown 2-3-3-11 19
Upper Moreland 17-10-6-11 44
Quakertown (19) – Abigail Dickson 5, Samantha Howard 5, Emma Pizzullo 2, Brianna Leftkoski 1, Veronica Best 6.
Upper Moreland (44) – Emma Meakim 2, Phoebe Longstreth 6, Caitlin Corr 6, Kaiya Herb 16, Abby Ellen Wood 2, Bean Hughes 6, Kathryn Morrow 2, Kayla Meakim 1, Kelley Leighton 2, Cassidy Murphy 3.
PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 78, HATBORO-HORSHAM 20
Taylor O’Brien needed just 20 minutes to do a whole lot of damage, finishing with 32 points, six steals and five assists. Lauren Fortescue had a big night of her own, burying four three-pointers and scoring 19 points. In three games this week, Fortescue has 15 threes.
Ali Diamond, who connected on three 3-pointers for the second straight game, added 13 points. All told, the Colonials had 10 threes.
The Colonials gave coach Dan Dougherty his 100th win in just his sixth season at the helm on Wednesday, and they made his 101st look easy, opening up a 26-5 lead after one quarter and extending that to 42-9 at halftime.
For the Hatters, Kylie Halko’s seven points led the way.
Plymouth Whitemarsh (18-1, 12-0 SOL) will host Abington on Monday in a non-league contest. Hatboro-Horsham (6-14, 5-7) will travel to Upper Dublin on Tuesday.
Plymouth Whitemarsh 26-16-24-12 78
Hatboro-Horsham 5-4-4-7 20
Plymouth Whitemarsh (78) – Issa Crawley 5, Taylor O’Brien 32, Lauren Fortescue 19, Ali Diamond 13, Haley Zygmunt 5, Anna McTamney.
Hatboro-Horsham (20) – Lexie Brett 4, Cam Ryan 3, Kylie Halko 7, Sarah Sciubba 4, Kara Kaminski 2.
UPPER DUBLIN 66, SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP 20
The Flying Cardinals seized early control of Friday’s contest, opening up a 24-2 lead after one quarter and taking a 39-9 lead into the intermission.
Nicole Kaiser’s 12 points and six rebounds led a balanced UD effort. Jackie Vargas added 11 points, six blocks and three rebounds, and Maggie Weglos had nine points, five rebounds, three assists and three steals. Dayna Balasa added nine points and four assists, Jess Polin had eight points and three assists while Kara Grebe contributed seven points an five rebounds as everyone got into the act for the Cards.
Upper Dublin (16-4, 10-2 SOL) will host Hatboro-Horsham on Tuesday, and Springfield (4-14, 2-10) will travel to Collegium Charter School on Saturday for a non-league game.
Upper Dublin 24-15-11-16 66
Springfield Township 2-7-6-5 20
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