Abington, PW, CB West and Neshaminy advanced to the Sweet 16 of the PIAA 6A Tournament with wins on Saturday. Abington/Harrisburg photos provided courtesy of Keith Clemens Photography. PW/Dallastown photos courtesy of Larry Small. Check back for photo galleries of both games.
#1-1 ABINGTON 61, #3-6 HARRISBURG 57
For perhaps the first time in his life, Eric Dixon said he was happy to have practice on Monday.
The Abington junior knew that meant his season was still going and he'd get at least a few more days in the gym with his teammates. Dixon played a large role in getting himself those few more days of practice with 26 points as the Ghosts held off a tenacious Harrisburg team in their state playoff opener at Cheltenham.
"It's definitely a monkey off our backs," Dixon said of the Ghosts' recent struggles in the first round of states. "There's pressure, people are asking if you're going to get out of the first round this year. It's a little annoying so getting the win is definitely a good thing."
Harrisburg didn't have anyone big enough to match up with Dixon, so the Cougars resorted to being physical. Dixon took a lot of contact all game, but used it to his team's advantage by drawing plenty of fouls and earning himself 17 free throws throughout the game.
Robbie Heath was a strong second option, scoring 23 points while Lucas Monroe added seven points and seven rebounds. Dixon also had 13 boards for the Ghosts, who struggled shooting in the first half and relied on a 12-of-14 effort at the foul line to keep pace with Harrisburg.
"It prepares us,” Heath said. “Every team in the state tournament is a good, solid team that can get hot at any moment.
“Today, (Na'Reece Glenn) was really shooting the ball well. We just had to stay disciplined, respond and come out with a 'W'."
Abington coach Charles Grasty likened Harrisburg to Norristown, who the Ghosts beat in the District I quarterfinals, as a smaller team with plenty of pride and heart. Abington didn't take a lead until the second quarter, led by just one at halftime and found itself trailing again early in the third quarter.
Heath, who felt the second half rim was much kinder to the Ghosts than the first half basket they shot on, started an 8-0 run that gave Abington the lead for good. Heath, Dixon and Monroe combined for all eight points in the spree to put the Ghosts up 36-31.
"We just needed to settle down," Grasty said. "We're seven minutes from home, we have a big crowd and they want to come in and take the first shot, they weren't falling for us. We felt our size could hurt them. We put Eric down in the post. We wanted to pound it in instead of shooting a bunch of jump shots."
Harrisburg was really good at quelling potential Abington runs before they got going all game, but especially in the second half. Every time the Ghosts scored a hoop or two, it felt like the Cougars came back with a three or some other bucket to stop the momentum.
Even though the Cougars never tied or led again, they kept getting within three points as the third quarter turned to the fourth. Cue Heath, who was determined not to go 0-for-states in his stellar high school career.
The senior ripped off seven straight points on a three, a dunk and a leaning shot in the lane, to give the Ghosts a 58-48 lead with 4:26 to go. That wasn't game over, but Abington was in good position.
"It's what we expect of him," Dixon said of Heath. "That's our guy, he's closing in on being our all-time leading scorer. He does it day in and day out. He practices hard, he scores in practice, he scored in scrimmages, we expect it from him."
Abington will face St. Joe's Prep, the third seed from District 12, in Wednesday's second round. The Prep, a 62-57 winner against Northampton, is led by La Salle recruit big man Ed Croswell and guard Darius Kinnel.
"Another week sounds good," Grasty said. "We get to practice Monday and that's all you want this time of year."
Abiington 10-18-19-14 61
Harrisburg 10-17-14-16 57
Abington (61) – Eric Dixon 26, Robbie Heath 23, Lucas Monroe 7, Darious Brown 2, Brandon Coffman 2, Xavier Crawford 1
Harrisburg (57) – Sumpter 11, Anthony 3, Glenn 15, Brannon 12, James 4, Ganntt 6, Jones 4, Butler 2
#1-2 PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 71, #3-5 DALLASTOWN 47
Ahmin Williams still had his game face on as he stood outside the Colonials’ locker room after Saturday’s no-doubt-about it opening round win. One week earlier, the Colonials dropped their first game of the season to Abington in the District One 6A title game.
According to Williams, the team still has some unfinished business.
“We know that we gave up that game, and we just need to push every game just like we’ve been doing,” he said. “We’re just trying to complete three out of four championships. We’re going to take it one game at a time and hopefully get to the state (championship) and try and win it.”
The loss to Abington dropped PW out of USA Today’s Super 25, but that is the last thing on the Colonials’ minds.
“To tell you the truth, we didn’t really care about the ranking or the record, so it really didn’t faze us,” Williams said. “Like coach was saying, it’s just a mirage, and we try and pay no attention to that.
“We put in a lot of hard work just like everyone else. We work 24/7. Today was a good win – we needed it.”
Coach Jim Donofrio had his own thoughts about his team’s response to the Abington loss after 27 straight wins.
“Once before we were 26-0 – it’s a very odd thing,” the Colonials’ coach said. “It’s a very, very challenging psychology. If you’re 27-0, you have two options – you have to go 33-0 or you have to be really, really mentally strong.
“Kids are kids, and I have to be able to bounce back the right way. I wasn’t really up with people for seven days. We brought it back, but you don’t know.
“When you do all you do to get to a championship game and then it comes down to a scenario no one really wants to have, which is a two-point loss, there are teams that will pack it in.”
The Colonials didn’t pack it in, controlling play in Saturday’s state opener from start to finish. They opened up a 16-6 lead after one quarter, sparked by seven points from Alan Glover and five from Danny Cooper.
Ish Horn scored seven points in the second quarter, and the Colonials took a 32-19 lead into halftime.
“We weren’t happy with ourselves at halftime,” Donofrio said. “We were losing every 50-50 ball.
“One thing Dallastown was doing – as soon as we got a rebound or would pick up a loose ball, they were digging in on the ball. That to me is something our guys had to react to. This is real – you lose you go home, so kids are going to bring everything they have.”
Ahmin Williams led a balanced PW attack with 15 points, and Ahmad Williams – who did not play the first half (team issue) – had 14 in the second half. Ish Horn and Glover both had 11. Glover was injured in a fourth quarter collision, banging his head on a teammate’s knee. He did not return.
Plymouth Whitemarsh (28-1, 14-0 SOL) will take on Roman Catholic in Wednesday’s second round.
“The biggest thing I had to remind us all of is – you’re 27-1. Think about that number, so stop acting like the sky is falling and everything is wrong,” Donofrio said. “Maybe Abington made a lot of great shots. Watching the film, there’s plenty of things to point fingers at, but don’t point fingers at each other.
“We have two theories in that game – one is you just got to make sure you shoot well, and we didn’t in stretches, and we missed some chip shots, and that’s what great teams when they go at each other do, so let’s not get to a point where we’re paranoid or we fracture. It’s a long run.
“Don’t take any of these games for granted. You could be ranked number one in the whole world – it doesn’t matter. You’ve got to stay healthy, you’ve got to stay emotionally healthy and want it.”
Dallastown 6-13-11-17 47
Plymouth Whitemarsh 16-16-14-25 71
Dallastown (47) – Braden Caldwell 0 4-4 4; Will Barton 8 2-3 18; Justin Atwood 1 2-2 4; Brandon McGlynn 2 5-6 10; Brian Thomas 0 1-2 1; Da’Trail Albert 2 0-0 5; Kyle Richardson 2 3-4 5; Ben Ward 0 0-2 0; TOTALS 15 17-23 47
Plymouth Whitemarsh (71) – Ish Horn 5 0-1 11; Naheem McLeod 2 3-8 7; Danny Cooper 2 4-4 10; Ahmin Williams 5 5-5 15; Brendan Sullivan 0 3-6 3; Ahmad Williams 6 2-2 14; Alan Glover 3 4-4 11; TOTALS 25 21-30 71.
3-point goals: Dallastown – Brandon McGlynn, DaTrail Albert; PW – Danny Glover 2, Ish Horn.
#1-4 CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 53, #11-4 EMMAUS 35
The Bucks advanced to the Sweet 16 with a convincing win over Emmaus, taking early control of the game and never looking back.
“The kids are excited to be playing in March,” coach Adam Sherman said. “They’re hoping they can live to play another day.
“Coming into the season, we felt we had enough talent to get this far. We knew we had to work hard, but you go into it with your hopes every year.”
The Bucks opened up a 16-11 lead after one quarter and took a 32-18 lead into halftime.
“We started off well, got their big guys in foul trouble, and they went zone to protect their bigs,” Sherman said. “Shane McCusker went off – he had three first-quarter threes, so that opened things up.
“From there, we were able to front run and dictate tempo and style of play.”
Emmaus cut into West’s lead in a third quarter that saw the Bucks score just four points, but they still led 36-28 heading into the fourth quarter and closed it out with a 17-7 tear.
McCusker led the Bucks with 16 points, which included four three-pointers. Jake Reichwein added 10 points (one three), and Collin MacAdams had nine. Jack Neri finished with eight points.
“Jake Reichwein and Jack Neri were very solid – they have a big kid inside (Zach Sabol) that’s about 6-8 or 6-9 and 250, and they did a nice job of keeping him off balance and not letting him catch the ball in good spots,” Sherman said of the Green Hornets’ junior center who had just three points. “I thought Collin MacAdams had a solid game and did a good job of setting guys up and played well.”
Saturday’s win came on the heels of back-to-back losses in the District 1 6A Tournament.
“Having a full week off gave us a chance to re-center ourselves and get back to fixing a couple of things,” Sherman said. “Sometimes when you only have two days (between games), you don’t really have time to fix – you have to really focus on preparing, but with a full week, it gave us time not only to prepare but also to fix some things.
Central Bucks West (22-7, 10-2 SOL) will face District 3 champion Reading in Wednesday’s second round.
Emmaus 11-7-10-7 35
Central Bucks West 16-16-4-17 53
Central Bucks West (53) – Shane McCusker 16, Jake Reichwein 10, Collin MacAdams 9, Jack Neri 8, Mika Munari 4, Jack Mulhearn 4, Reed Zerweck 2.
#1-9 NESHAMINY 62, #11-1 EAST STROUDSBURG 47
The Redskins made sure their close to two-hour road trip to Pleasant Valley High School for Saturday’s state opener was well worth their while. They led 14-6 after one quarter and – behind the 14-point second quarter of Chris Arcidiacono – extended that lead to 31-15 by halftime on their way to the convincing win.
“We were in control the whole game, which was nice,” said coach Mark Tingle. “We knew it was a good matchup – they’re actually a pretty small team.”
The Cavaliers may have been small, but they found a way to win the District 11 title without their leading scorer, Greg Eck, who suffered a torn ACL the final week of the regular season.
“We knew that was something we would be able to capitalize on,” Tingle said. “We knew they didn’t have anyone who could guard Chris or our big kid Danny (Bodine) down low.
“If they had to try to trap them, everybody else on the kick out was knocking down shots. We were pretty hot.”
The Redskins buried seven threes – three by Anthony Papeo (all in the first quarter), two by Charles Dominick and one each from Greg Deluca and Brandon Belton.
Without Eck, the Cavaliers were pretty much a one-man show with Jeremiah Anderson carrying most of the scoring load. He finished with 22 points, but it wasn’t enough to keep his team in it.
“I thought we did a really good job trying to take away their best player,” Tingle said. “He still had 22, but he kind of had to do that.
“We did a really good job of sticking to our game plan and knocking down shots.”
Arcidiacono finished with a game-high 27 points, which included a 13-for-14 effort at the foul line. He also had 12 rebounds and five assists. Papeo added 15 points, three rebounds and four assists.
“Anthony’s been stepping up all year, but lately, he’s been helping out with the scoring more,” Tingle said.
Danny Bodine was a presence in the paint with six rebounds and four blocked shots.
Saturday’s state win was the first for Neshaminy since the Ryan Arcidiacono era that saw the Redskins advance to the Sweet 16 in both 2010 and 2011.
“We’re having a great time,” Tingle said. “We’re peaking at the right time.
“We have a nice matchup with Lower Merion. We already played them. We lost a tight one to them in January (73-64). We match up well as far as size and guards, so we’ll see what happens. At least we played them before and we know what they’re about.”
Neshaminy (18-10, 7-5 SOL) will face the Aces in a second round game on Wednesday.
Neshaminy 14-17-15-16 62
East Stroudsburg 6-9-15-17 47
Neshaminy (62) – Pat Campbell 1 0-0 3; Brandon Belton 1 0-0 2; Chris Arcidiacono 7 13-14 27; Anthony Papeo 6 0-0 15; Danny Bodine 1 0-0 2; Greg Deluca 3 0-0 7; Charles Dominick 2 0-0 6; TOTALS 21 13-14 62.
East Stroudsburg (47) – Isaiah Bradley 1 0-0 2; Jeremiah Anderson 10 1-2 22; Brian Rodriguez 0 1-2 1; Mike Long 1 1-3 3; Demarco Bruce 1 0-2 2; Cristian Sapp 1 1-2 3; Shawn Owens 0 5-8 5; Jahi Hamilton 3 3-4 9; TOTALS 17 12-22 47.
3-point goals: Neshaminy – Anthony Papeo 3, Charles Dominick 2, Pat Campbell, Greg Deluca.
#12-2 ROMAN CATHOLIC 58, #1-6 PENNRIDGE 56
The Rams threw a scare into the highly-regarded Cahillites, rallying from an 11-point deficit entering the final quarter to having a shot for the tie before falling by two.
“It was an exciting game,” coach Dean Behrens said. “Year in and year out, they’re always a top team, and we gave them everything they could handle. We just came up a little short. The kids gave a great effort.”
The Rams found themselves in an early 5-0 hole but rallied to knot he score 16-16 after one quarter.
“The first four minutes are crucial, and when we got down 5-0, it was like, ‘Oh, boy,’” Behrens said. “What really propelled them is they shot the three well – they hit 10 threes.
“We zoned a ton because man-to-man was a difficult task for us with their speed and quickness.”
The Rams trailed Roman 30-24 at halftime and saw that deficit grow to 49-38 by the end of the third quarter.
“We did struggle to end the half and end the third quarter, so we’re down 11 going into the fourth quarter, which doesn’t look too promising when you’re playing Roman,” Behrens said. “Usually games like that you lose by 25 because mentally you just get worn down.
“We made a nice little run at them. Jake Pestrak hit a three in the corner to cut the lead to three with about three minutes left, and then he got another one on the next possession – I thought it was going down. It looked good – it was in and out.
“Unfortunately, there wasn’t enough time in the game. We cut it to two with two seconds left. Called timeout, but we needed some more time. They were getting nervous. I wonder if we had played another minute what would have happened.”
Jon Post’s 18 points led the Rams. Sean Yoder added 10 points. Tyrese Lewis had nine points, Mike Molletiere had eight and Pestrak had six on a pair of threes.
“Jake Pestrak and Mike Molettiere hit two threes in that fourth quarter, and that really helped us,” Behrens said. “The third one that Jake took looked like it was going down. That would have been interesting if he knocked that down. It would have changed the game a little bit. They would have had to shoot the ball under more duress and more pressure.”
Penridge (9-3 SOL) closed out the season with a 19-9 record and just the second trip to states for the program.
“I think it was a good experience for our guys,” Behrens said. “Unfortunately, we lose four seniors (Molettiere, Lewis, Ryan Warner and Brett Henofer), but hopefully, the younger guys will see this and say, ‘This is what we want. We want to do this,’ but nothing is guaranteed. It was a great showing. We showed a lot of heart. Unfortunately, it’s about winning, and we didn’t get that done, but I think we can look back at the season and recognize it was a successful season. We had 19 wins, the third most wins in school history and only the second time Pennridge has been in states, so there are some real positives there.”
Roman’s Hakim Hart led all scorers with 22 points, which included four three-pointers. Lynn Greer III added 16, and Seth Lundy had 15.
“Hakim Hart played very well for them – he extended us out, and Lynn Greer III – his dad played at Temple – really controlled the game at the point position for them,” Behrens said.
Pennridge 16-8-14-18 56
Roman 16-14-19-9 58
Pennridge (56) – Ryan Warner 2 0-0 5; Sean Yoder 5 0-0 10; Jake Pestrak 2 0-0 6; Mike Molettiere 3 0-0 8; Tyrese Lewis 3 3-4 9; Jon Post 9 0-0 18; TOTALS 24 3-4 56.
Roman (58) – Lynn Greer III 5 4-4 16; Betrand 0 0-1 0; Seth Lundy 5 2-2 15; Hakim Hart 7 4-4 22; Kelly 1 0-0 2 Lott 1 0-0 3; TOTALS 19 10-11 58.
3-point goals: Roman – Hakim Hart 4, Seth Lundy 3, Lynn Greer III 2, Lott. Pennridge – Jake Pestrak 2, Mike Molettiere 2, Ryan Warner.
#3-1 READING 63, #1-10 BENSALEM 38
The Owls hung with the defending state champions for one half, trailing by just one after one quarter and by five at halftime, 25-20. The second half belonged to the District 3 champions, who outscored the Owls 16-4 in the third quarter and 38-18 in the second half.
James Leible’s 12 points led the Owls.
Bensalem (7-5 SOL) closed out its year with a 17-11 record.
Bensalem 10-10-4-14 38
Reading 11-14-16-22 63
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