Souderton, CB South, Abington, Neshaminy & Upper Dublin advanced to Friday’s PIAA 6A quarterfinals. CB South/CR North and Neshaminy/PW photos provided courtesy of Jon Sklut. Check back for a gallery of photos.
It was a historic night for the SOL as five of its teams advanced to Elite 8 in the PIAA 6A Tournament. Four of those teams will comprise both quarterfinal games in the east while Central Bucks South is the lone team in the western half of the bracket.
#1-1 SOUDERTON 55, #1-3 EASTON 41
Defense has been the calling card of an Indian squad that captured the program’s first ever district title, and an opening quarter that showcased the Indians’ stifling defense was capped with Kate Connolly deflecting a ball to teammate Megan Bealer, who coasted in for a layup that put Souderton on top 16-2.
“I think we just had a lot of energy coming into this game, and we knew that defense was what we needed to get it done,” said senior Kate Connolly, who had three steals in the quarter. “We were trying to get hands on as many passes as we could and tried to create chaos on the defensive end.”
Chaos would effectively describe what it undoubtedly felt like for a Red Rover squad that had 10 turnovers in the opening eight minutes.
"The first two defensive possessions we deflected the ball, and it felt like the same old Souderton defense that we've been seeing all year," Souderton coach Lynn Carroll said. "But that's a good team. They’re tough, they’re aggressive, and they're not afraid to bang around a little bit. It got a little bit ugly at different points in the game, but that's a tough team."
While the Indians’ defense was doing its job, Bealer – for the second time in as many games – jumpstarted the Indians’ offense, this time with eight points in the first quarter and 14 in the first half.
"We're a very unselfish team, and our main goal – what our coaches tell us before the game – is 'get the shot you want, look for the most open player,'" Bealer said. "Everyone can shoot on our team, everyone can drive. We all trust each other, so passing to the wide open person is very easy for us."
In the second quarter, the Red Rovers – behind three three-pointers by Hanna Doerner – got back in the game, pulling to within eight by halftime, 24-16. They got even closer in the third quarter, cutting the Indians’ lead to five after another Doerner three, but Bealer answered with a three for the Indians.
The Red Rovers used five straight points from Leanna Deegan and a foul shot from Mikayla Roach to make it a four-point game with 2:29 remaining in the third quarter, 34-30.
“I think we just needed to take a deep breath and continue to play our game, try to end their run and create our own,” Connolly said.
“I don’t think our confidence goes down,” Bealer said. “We just need to keep playing, keep pushing. Don’t let other things affect you.”
Alana Cardona broke Easton’s run with a basket, and after a Red Rover miss, Tori Dowd pulled down an offensive rebound in traffic and found Connolly for an easy bucket to give the Indians an eight-point lead. They took a 40-32 lead into the final quarter.
A pair of plays early in the fourth quarter broke the Red Rovers’ collective backs. The first came when Megan Walbrandt buried a three after a lengthy passing sequence that culminated with finding the junior guard wide open in the corner.
Shortly thereafter, a bad pass by the Indians on the offensive end gave the Red Rovers possession, but not for long. Dowd came up with a theft and then found Bealer under the basket. The junior guard, after making the basket, was laid out with a hard foul and buried the foul shot to put the Indians on top 46-33. The Red Rovers never threatened the rest of the way.
Bealer finished with a game-high 22 points, connecting on 6-of-9 shots from the field. She also had six rebounds and four steals. Connolly added 16 points, nine rebounds, five steals and five blocked shots. Cardona, who had six points, also had five blocks in a contest that saw the Indians collect 14 blocks – most in the fourth quarter. The Red Rovers had just one blocked shot.
“I thought an advantage we had was our length on the perimeter compared to their size, and I think that proved to be true in the fourth quarter,” Carroll said.
Deegan had a big game under the basket for the Red Rovers, finishing with 19 points and 16 rebounds. Doerner finished with 12 points on four three-pointers.
“That Deegan is tough,” Carroll said. “She is a solid basketball player, and we knew exactly what we needed to do against her. You can know how to do it, but getting it done against a kid of that caliber is another thing.
“Doerner had a nice game. She kept them in it in the first half. We weren’t able to extend that lead because of how well she played. Our solution to that was – let’s put Tori (Dowd) on her, and Tori did a great job on her in the second half.”
Dowd finished with just two points but had seven rebounds and seven assists.
“What Tori does is immeasurable,” Carroll said. “And Bealer stepping up again, shooting well and not hesitating.
“Kate stepping up at the end of the game, making foul shots down the stretch and scoring throughout the game when other people were having a tough time scoring, and being in some foul trouble, we got good contributions from Megan O’Donnell and Sami (Falencki).”
Souderton (28-2, 11-1 SOL) will face Neshaminy in Friday’s quarterfinal round.
“It’s very exciting,” Bealer said. “We’re very excited to keep going and keep focusing at practice.”
Easton 2-14-16-9 41
Souderton 16-8-16-15 55
Easton (41) – Allison Altobelli 1 0-0 2; Leanna Deegan 7 5-7 19; Hanna Doerner 4 0-1 12; Courtney Grundhauser 1 0-0 2; Jahnel Oliver 1 0-0 3; Mikayla Roach 1 0-0 3; TOTALS 15 6-10 41.
Souderton (55) – Megan Bealer 6 6-7 22; Alana Cardona 2 2-5 6; Kate Connolly 5 4-6 16; Tori Dowd 1 0-3 2; Sami Falencki 1 0-0 2; Megan O’Donnel 0 2-2 2; Megan Walbrandt 2 0-0 5; TOTALS 17 14-23 55.
3-point goals: Easton – Hanna Doerner 4, Jahnel Oliver; Souderton – Megan Bealer 4, Kate Connolly 2, Megan Walbrandt.
#1-2 CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 48, #1-7 COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 31
The Titans made history, earning the program’s first ever trip to the state quarterfinals as a result of their win over the Indians.
“To see how many seniors we had and the quality players we have and the ability to defend – I would say it was a goal to break through barriers we haven’t been able to break through before,” coach Beth Mattern said. “I don’t think that in November we sat down and said, ‘We need to make it to the second round of states,’ but as February and March hit, we knew we wanted to keep playing to put ourselves in the best position to keep moving forward.”
Alexa Brodie and Haley Meinel combined for nine points, propelling the Titans to a 13-8 lead after one quarter. Brodie erupted for nine points in the second quarter, which included a pair of threes, and the Titans went into halftime with a 29-18 lead.
The Titans went on to outscore the Indians in each of the four quarters.
“I was really, really happy with our defensive effort tonight,” Mattern said. “I thought we played a great team game, potentially one of the best games of the season, trying to limit their scoring opportunities and trying to create for ourselves.”
For the Titans, Tuesday’s win was the second of the season over the Indians.
“It was pretty tough,” Meinel said. “Our first game we played them I remember all of us being in a lot of foul trouble.
“We turned the ball over constantly, but I thought this game today we played to the best of our ability, and I thought we really hustled.”
Brodie led all scorers with 16 points and Meinel had 13. Mackenzie Ehresman had eight points and Maddie McShane, six, but on this night, defense was the key.
“I thought Alexa Brodie did a great job on Margolis, trying to make her touches difficult,” Mattern said. “Maddie McShane played phenomenal in the post on Mackenzie Tinner, and our help defenders really reading what was going on.
“Haley Meinel had a couple steals that were clutch that she turned into baskets. Our key was our defense and controlling the boards for sure.”
Margolis led the Indians – who were once again without Dana Bandurick (injury) – with eight points while Tinner had eight and Olivia Boyle, seven points.
Central Bucks South (26-4, 10-2 SOL) will play William Allen, District 11’s fourth place team, in Friday’s quarterfinal. Council Rock North (10-2 SOL) closed out its season with a 20-8 record.
Council Rock North 8-10-7-6 31
Central Bucks South 11-18-10-9 48
Council Rock North (31) – Becca Margolis 3 4-4 11; Sydney Blum 1 0-0 3; Olivia Boyle 3 0-0 7; Kaelin Mealey 1 0-0 2; Mackenzie Tinner 4 0-2 8; TOTALS 12 4-6 31.
Central Bucks South (48) – Lindsay Scott 1 3-4 5; Haley Meinel 5 3-7 13; Alexa Brodie 6 1-2 16; Maddie McShane 3 0-1 6; Mackenzie Ehresman 3 2-4 8; TOTALS 18 9-18 48.
3-point goals: CR North – Becca Margolis, Sydney Blum, Olivia Boyle; CB South – Alexa Brodie 3.
#1-5 ABINGTON 63, #11-1 FREEDOM 55
Camryn Lexow is more than happy to defer to her teammates when it comes to taking shots and setting the tone for the offense.
“Definitely, I’m more of a defensive player, and the defense usually tends to leave me a little wider open than the other players,” Lexow said. “When I was in warm-ups today, I felt like I was hitting my shots, and usually in the beginning of the game, I wouldn’t start off shooting. I would let other people shoot, but since I was feeling it during warm-ups, I decided to take a shot off the bat.”
Lexow buried a three for her team’s first basket of the game. By the time the first quarter ended, Lexow had a pair of threes and eight points, effectively setting the tone for the Ghosts. Teammate Sam Brusha added seven points, and Abington led 21-18 after a fast-paced opening quarter.
“If they’re going to leave Cam open, they’re going to pay for it because Cam has gotten to the point now where we’re comfortable with her shooting that jump shot or going to the basket or shooting the three,” coach Dan Marsh said. “We’ll take that shot every time, and she’ll bury them in the flow.”
Back-to-back three-pointers by point guard Britney James, the second from well beyond the arc, put the Ghosts on top 29-20 less than two minutes into the second quarter, and a basket by Kassondra Brown upped that advantage to 31-20. The Ghosts, who went on to lead 33-22, appeared to be in command, but Freedom closed out the half with a 13-0 run that was capped by Hailey Silfies connecting on 3-of-3 from the foul line with .6 seconds on the scoreboard clock.
“In the first half, we were up by 11, and it seemed like everything was going our way,” Brusha said. “By the end of the half we were only up by two, so it was really frustrating because we thought we could take our time, but it’s a state playoff game. Teams are not going to back down, but honestly, it was a good test because the next three rounds – if we make it – it’s going to be just like that. It’s not going to be easy.”
“We knew coming in how hard they play and how pesky they are,” Marsh said of Freedom. “Our strength of schedule helps us in these kinds of situations because we’ve had good teams make runs at us before, so we’re able to be resilient in that way and fight through those runs.
“I think there was a point in the first half where we could have put them away, but we didn’t take advantage, and they came storming back, but again, there are 16 teams left in the tournament, and you’re going to play good teams, and good teams make runs.”
Three minutes into the second half, Brusha buried a three that put the Ghosts on top 41-39. The teams were deadlocked at 41 and 43. A pair of Brown foul shots put the Ghosts on top 45-43, a Brusha basket upped that lead to four, and a Brown putback in traffic gave the Ghosts a 49-43 lead after three quarters.
Lexow’s third three put the Ghosts on top 57-47, and they led the rest of the way.
“The key for us was honestly defense,” Brusha said. “We focused on shutting down (Hailey) Silfies and (Kyra) Jefferson, and if our offense doesn’t come, we have to always be on the defensive end and try to stop those easy layups they got in the first half.”
“In the first half, I felt like a lot of people got backdoor cut,” Lexow said, “And we weren’t talking on screens. That’s what we talked about at halftime, and we fixed that.”
Abington (22-7, 10-2 SOL) will face Upper Dublin in an all-SOL quarterfinal. The Ghosts last advanced to the quarterfinals in 2015.
Freedom 18-15-10-12 55
Abington 21-14-16-14 63
Freedom (55) – Yasmine Herrera 0 1-2 1; Kyra Jefferson 4 3-6 11; Jennifer Kokolus 9 2-2 21; Brenna Ortwein 1 5-5 7; Hailey Silfies 3 9-11 15; TOTALS 17 20-26 55.
Abington (63) – Jordyn Alen 2 0-0 4 Kassondra Brown 7 5-8 19; Sam Brusha 7 0-0 16; Britney James 4 0-1 10; Camryn Lexow 4 0-0 11; Tamia Wessels 0 3-4 3; TOTALS 17 8-13 63.
3-point goals: Freedom – Jennifer Kokolus; Abington – Camryn Lexow 3, Britney James 2, Sam Brusha 2.
#1-8 NESHAMINY 43, #1-6 PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 37
Thirteen days after falling to the Colonials by three points in a district playback game, the Redskins – behind the inspired play of Brooke Mullin – avenged that loss, and defense, according to coach Joe Lally, was the difference this time around. 
“We set the tempo early with defense,” the Redskins’ coach said. “Basically, we were in a 3-2 matchup, and when Taylor O’Brien drove to the basket, we wanted our help to come from the backline.
“We didn’t want our help to come from the corners so she could just kick it out to wide open shooters. The conventional way is to collapse from that corner, but we stayed home on the corner. We met her with help, so when she did pass the ball out, those shots were contested.”
Behind 11 points from Mullin, the Redskins opened up a 24-7 halftime lead. Mullin led all scorers with 20 points and completed an impressive double-double with 14 rebounds.
“She’s really come out every game in the playoffs so far and even our playback games – she’s definitely playing the best basketball I’ve seen her play since I’ve known her, and that’s been since fourth grade and even younger,” Lally said. “She’s playing confident, she’s getting her teammates involved, and she’s definitely taking advantage of mismatches that are on the floor.
Point guard Kristin Curley buried a pair of clutch threes in the second quarter, and Allison Harvey also had a three in the frame.
“We got a couple of big threes in the second quarter from Kristin Curley and four foul shots down the stretch by Kristin and Brooke to nail it,” Lally said. “They were one-and-ones, and both of them made the front end and the second.
“You can’t say enough about Brooke’s game, but I thought Kristin was really good tonight also. Everybody that played for us – normally, as a coach, you can find something, but they played really hard, they played with a purpose. They did try to execute what we spoke about over the past two days.”
The two teams exchanged baskets in the second half with both teams scoring 30.
“They came out and they made some shots in the second half – I have to give them credit,” Lally said. “They made some really tough contested shots.
“I had to tell the kids – you have to keep your heads up. Sometimes good defense gets trumped by better offense. They were making some really difficult contested shots.”
In addition to Mullin, Curley and Olivia Scotti both contributed eight points.
In many ways, Tuesday’s win was bittersweet for Lally.
“It’s always a funny feeling playing PW because I’ve worked there for 17 years,” the Redskins’ coach said. “A big chunk of me is PW and the PW kids.
“For an hour-and-a-half, I have to be anti-PW, and it’s always a strange feeling.”
Taylor O’Brien’s 17 points led the Colonials. The senior standout leaves PW as the school’s all-time leading scorer with 2,040 points. Ali Diamond added six on a pair of threes. Lauren Fortescue, who had five points, surpassed the 1,000-point mark this season.
For the PW seniors – O’Brien, Ali Diamond, Lauren Fortescue and Gia Schweitzer, it has been a historic run. They were part of Colonial squads that were undefeated in SOL American Conference play the past two seasons en route to a pair of conference titles. Three times in the past four years, the Colonials advanced to the district playoffs, finishing second in 2017 and sixth this year. Twice they earned state berths, advancing to the Elite 8 in 2017 and the Sweet 16 this year. PW was 78-26 during the seniors’ four-year run – 50-9 over the past two seasons.
With the win, the Redskins advanced to the Elite 8 for the second time in three years. Neshaminy (20-8, 10-2 SOL) will face Souderton in Friday’s quarterfinal round. Plymouth Whitemarsh (12-0 SOL) closed out its season with a 23-6 record.
Neshaminy 9-15-6-13 43
Plymouth Whitemarsh 3-4-15-15 37
Neshaminy (43) – Brooke Mullin 6 8-10 20; Allison Harvey 1 0-0 3; Kristin Curley 2 2-2 8; Olivia Scotti 4 0-1 8; Kelli Kowalick 2 0-0 4; TOTALS 15 10-13 43.
Plymouth Whitemarsh (37) – Taylor O’Brien 6 2-4 17; Lauren Fortescue 1 2-2 5; Ali Diamond 2 0-0 6; Haley Zygmunt 1 0-0 2; Anna McTamney 0 2-2 2; Sydney Kesselman 2 0-0 5; TOTALS 12 6-8 37.
3-point goals: Neshaminy – Kristin Curley 2, Allison Harvey; PW – Taylor O’Brien 3, Ali Diamond 2, Lauren Fortescue, Sydney Kesselman.
#1-9 UPPER DUBLIN 39, #1-3 GARNET VALLEY 29
The Flying Cardinals put themselves in lofty company in the Upper Dublin record books with their second round win, joining the 2007 squad that featured three 1,000-point scorers as the lone teams in program history to reach the state quarterfinals.
Included on that 2007 squad was the program’s all-time leading scorer, Lisa Harchut, who closed her career with over 1,800 points.
“I don’t believe an Upper Dublin girls’ basketball team – or maybe just an Upper Dublin team in general – has made it past this next round,” coach Morgan Funsten said. “The girls proved tonight that they’re not satisfied with that O’Hara win – they want more.
“The atmosphere in the locker room after the O’Hara game was really almost a championship atmosphere and we just won the championship. Tonight, the same excitement was there, but by the time we walked out of the locker room, the girls wanted more. They want to make history, they’re having a lot of fun. They’re extremely excited.”
The Flying Cardinals – after scoring not a single point in the second quarter – found themselves on the short end of a 19-13 score at halftime.
“From about the four-minute mark in the second quarter, the score is 19-13, and that’s how it went into halftime,” Funsten said
The Cards have been down this road before, winning in double overtime in Friday’s opening round game against Cardinal O’Hara after trailing 19-12 at halftime. In the opening moments of the second half, Dayna Balasa buried a three.
“We desperately needed something to jump start us,” Funsten said.
The Jags answered with a three at the other end to go on top 22-16 but did not score again until three minutes remained in regulation. By that time, the Cardinals led 33-22, thanks to a 17-0 tear. For the game, Garnet Valley connected on just 28 percent of its shots. The Jaguars were 3-of-11 from beyond the arc and connected on just 5-of-23 two-point shots.
“The story of that was Maggie Weglos completely shutting down Bri Borcky – she held her to two all night,” Funsten said. “She had an offensive rebound putback in the first quarter, and after that, she didn’t score.
“(Emily) McAteer got a little hot in the first half and had 11 and had zero in the second half. Nicole Kaiser was playing defense on her, and it’s not just those two because the awareness of the other three players at all times – knowing where those two girls were and getting in the passing lanes. The second half defensively was close to flawless.”
Sparked by Balasa’s three and five points from Jess Polin, the Cards outscored the Jaguars 10-3 in the third quarter to go on top 23-22 heading into the final frame.
In the fourth quarter, the Cardinals were 9-for-15 at the foul line. Balasa buried her fourth three of the game to go along with two foul shots to lead the Cardinals, who closed out the game with a 16-7 tear.
“People say – oh, what did you say at halftime?” Funsten said. “We honestly didn’t change much.
“The main word we use at halftime was we have to continue to grind it out. We can’t panic, we can’t make silly decisions. We flat out got shut out in the second quarter. To win a game where you score zero points in a quarter doesn’t happen too often. We didn’t play with a ton of confidence in the second quarter, but the mental toughness to be able to come back from that because it’s a little embarrassing for the girls – just to come back from that and not stray from the defensive game plan to try to do too much offensively. We shot 0-for-11 in the second quarter. We were still getting some good shots. We didn’t move the ball as well as we’d like to. Their zone is tough. They’re extremely long, they’re very athletic, so a lot of credit to them in the second quarter.”
Balasa led the Cardinals with 14 points. She also had three assists and two blocked shots. Jackie Vargas had 10 points. Polin added eight points and also had a team-high six rebounds. Weglos had a team-high six assists, three rebounds and five points.
“We had a good student section, and it’s a credit to our girls – they’ve got a nice collection of fans that are hooked on this team, and it was pretty cool,” Funsten said.
Upper Dublin (24-5, 12-2 SOL) will face Abington in an all-SOL quarterfinal game on Friday.
Upper Dublin 13-0-10-16 39
Garnet Valley 12-7-3-7 29
Upper Dublin (39) – Nicole Kaiser 1 0-1 2; Jess Polin 2 3-4 8; Maggie Weglos 1 2-4 5 Dayna Balasa 4 2-2 14; Jackie Vargas 4 2-2 10; TOTALS 12 9-13 39.
Garnet Valley (29) – Morgan Falcone 1 1-2 3; Emily McAteer 4 2-2 11; Jillian Nagy 1 4-4 7; Nicole Barnes 1 0-0 3; Liesl Dentinger 0 3-4 3; Brianne Borky 1 0-0 2; TOTALS 8 10-12 29.
3-point goals: Upper Dublin – Dayna Balasa 4, Maggie Weglos, Jess Polin; Garnet Valley – Emily McAteer, Jillian Nagy, Nicole Barnes.
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