Check out the recaps for SOL boys’ basketball teams in action Tuesday. CR South/Neshaminy photos provided courtesy of Darryl Rule of J&D Photography. Abington/UM photos provided by Jon Sklut. Check back for a gallery of photos.
SOL Continental
Souderton 43, Central Bucks West 39
Down three at the half, Souderton took the game over in the third quarter and then survived a two-point fourth quarter to outlast visiting Central Bucks West on Tuesday. Both teams went into the game undefeated, and the Indians were the team that emerged.
“We talked about it halftime,” said Souderton coach Tim Brown. “In the first half, it felt like we were walking on egg shells. We were not playing typical Souderton basketball. We’re a confident, good team and that showed in that third quarter.
“We’ve got to learn how to win these games. We’re definitely still hungry and focused on getting better every day.”
Dominic Natale continues to lead the way for the Indians, as he had 15 on Tuesday, but they also had a lot of balance. Jason Price had nine points and Andrew Vince added six.
“Dom Natale continues to kind of lead the way,” said Brown. “It’s his effort and intensity on the boards as well as scoring. Jason Price had a huge game for us tonight and made some big-time shots.
“Today, we were a little stagnant in the first half and let (CB West’s) pressure get to us. But in the third quarter, we went back to doing the things we like to do to win, and it was enough to squeak by with a win tonight.”
CB West scored only 13 points in the second half.
“Defensively, we locked down and we rebounded a lot better than we did in the first half,” Brown said.
West was led by Mika Munari’s 18 points, while Jack Neri had 11.
Souderton (6-0, 2-0 SOL) returns to action with a nonleague game Wednesday night at home against Academy Park. CB West (5-1, 1-1 SOL) is off until Friday when it plays at another unbeaten team, Pennridge.
CB West 14 12 8 5-39
Souderton 13 11 17 2-43
CB West (39): Mike Munari 18, Jack Neri 11, Danny Miller 4, Jack Slaymaker 3, Owen Haney 2, Teddy Spratt
Souderton (43): Dominic Natale 15, Jason Price 9, Andrew Vince 6, Jack Towsen 5, Sami Chouiraf 4, Ben Murawski 4
Central Bucks South 52, Central Bucks East 46
CB South won this inter-district battle thanks to balanced scoring and a big second half on the road to outlast CB East.
“We were down 31-24 near the end of the second quarter and went on a 6-0 run to close it to 31-30,” said Titans coach Jason Campbell. “Then, we opened the third quarter on a 9-0 run.”
Nine different players scored for the Titans, led by Michael Waltrich, Michael Farley and Nick Wursta with 10 points each. Zach O’Connor added nine points.
“Great team win with lot of contributions from our bench,” Campbell said. “Waltrich, (Evan) D’Orazio, Wursta, (Josiah) Harrison and (Colin) Mauz played well on both ends of the court for some starters who were in foul trouble.”
Jason Markowitz led CB East with 13 points and Tyler Young added 12.
It was CB South’s fifth win in a row and it is now 2-0 in the SOL Continental, with a game Friday at home against unbeaten Souderton.
“East is a well-coached team and their kids play hard 100 percent of the time,” Campbell said. “Our defense and rebounding had to come together in the second half to have a chance, and my team did that well by holding East to 15 points after halftime.”
CB East (2-3, 0-2 SOL) plays another tough game Wednesday night at Abington. Central Bucks South (5-1, 2-0) will host Souderton on Friday.
CB South 14 16 13 9-52
CB East 13 18 7 8-46
CB South (52): Zach O’Connor 9, Mike Waltrich 10, Mike Farley 10, Alex Dietz 5, Evan D’Orazio 4, Josh Consoletti 4, Colin Mauz 4, Josiah Harrison 1, Nick Wursta 10
CB East (46): Joe Jackman 7, Jack Hamilton 8, Tyler Young 12, Anthony Giordano 4, Brendan Harte 2, Jason Markowitz
Pennridge 69, Quakertown 52
Christian Guldin scored a team-high 21, including four 3-pointers as Pennridge remained undefeated and got past Quakertown on Tuesday.
Also for the Rams, Trent Fisher had 19 points and Luke Yoder 12.
“The big difference for us tonight is we had Trent,” said Pennridge coach Dean Behrens. “They couldn’t combat that. (Matt) Tuley, their biggest kid, rolled his ankle back in the first 10 seconds into the game.
“Just got (Fisher) the ball. They really had a tough time matching up with him. It wasn’t like we ran a bunch of stuff specifically for him. We just threw it in to him and he went to work. We talked about getting post touches. That was one of our keys to the game.”
Quakertown was led by Kayden Roley, who scored 16, Jake Hollowell with 14 and Jack Gordon with 13. Behrens said don’t let the Panthers’ record fool you.
“They’re actually a dangerous team,” he said. “I know their record doesn’t look it, but their three guards are tough. I just watched a little bit of the first quarter on my (tablet). They’re tough. Roley played really well for them. And it was Quakertown-Pennridge and all the stuff that goes into that.”
In the second half, Pennridge (5-0, 1-0 SOL) was able to force some turnovers defensively and put the game away.
“We went into the halftime up by 7,” Behrens said. “We were able to run a little pressure at him. They turned over, we were able to get lead up to 20. The pressure bothered them. That spurt killed them right at beginning of third quarter.
“Christian hit a couple of ‘3s’, Luke hits a ‘3’, Connor Pliebel hits a ‘3’. Connor Pleibel gave us great minutes off the bench.”
Next up for the Rams (5-0, 1-0 SOL) is a home game against Central Bucks West on Friday.
“We’ll have our hands full with West,” Behrens said. “It’s really going to be a challenge for us. The question is, are we up for the challenge?”
Quakertown (0-5, 0-2 SOL) will host Easton in a non-league game on Saturday at 7 p.m.
Pennridge 23 10 24 12-69
Quakertown 15 11 11 15-52
Pennridge (69): Connor Pleibel 3 1-2 8; Christian Guldin 8 1-1 21; Trent Fisher 9 1-2 19; Luke Yoder 5 1-1 12; Paul Croyle 2 0-0 5; Colin Post 0 1-2 1; Colin Monahan 0 3-4 3. Totals 27 8-12 69
Quakertown (52): Matt Catalano 1 2-2 4; Jake Hallowell 6 2-5 14; Luke Bauer 1 1-2 3; Jack Gordon 4 1-1 13; Ty Wilkin 1 0-0 2; Kayden Roley 6 2-3 16. Totals 19 8-13 52.
SOL National
Bensalem 56, William Tennent 47
James Ashford went 14-for-14 from the free throw line and ended up with 24 points to lead Bensalem to the SOL National win over William Tennent on Tuesday.
The Owls trailed by 10 points (39-29) going into the fourth quarter but turned up its pressure defense over the final eight minutes. Ashford had 16 of his points in the fourth quarter.
“It’s never easy to get a league victory the road,” said Bensalem coach Ron Morris said. “(Tennent’s Derrik) Cosenza is a really good player and he was giving us problems. We had to try something different in the fourth quarter when we were down 12.
“We changed our defense up and our guys responded well. Jason Ashford got it going in transition, Luke Zeidler and Justin Johnson played awesome defense for the last five minutes of the game.”
As a team, Bensalem went 27-for-30 from the free throw line.
Aaron Sanders added 11 points, while Travis Robinson had 10 and Jeremiah Alexander eight.
“We got in serious foul trouble in the first half and it continued all game,” Morris said. “It was a true team victory. The guys are as resilient as they come.”
For Tennent, Cosenza had 16 points, while Daulton Zeamon had four 3-pointers and 12 points.
Bensalem (5-1, 2-0 SOL) is back in league play Thursday night at home against Pennsbury. Tennent (2-3, 0-1 SOL) plays at Council Rock North on Friday.
Bensalem 13-8-8-27 56
William Tennent 8-17-14-8 47
Bensalem (56) – Travis Robinson 4 2-3 10; Justin Johnson 1 0-0 2; Aaron Sanders 2 6-7 11; Jeremiah Alexander 2 4-4 8; James Ashford 5 14-14 24; Luke Zeidler 0 1-2 1; Totals 14 27-30 56.
William Tennent (47) – Michael Russell 1 0-0 2; Brett Hanssens 1 0-0 2; Jay Stanfield 0 0-2 0; Daulton Zeaman 4 0-0 12; Sean Haus 3 0-0 7; Michael Scheller 2 2-2 6; Derrick Cosenza 6 4-5 16; Bryce Lockett 1 0-2 2; Totals 18 6-11 56.
Council Rock South 59, Neshaminy 41
Jack Rebholz scored 19 points – 16 in the opening half – as CR South jumped on top in the first quarter and pulled away from rival Neshaminy.
“We were very efficient at both ends of the court,” said CR South coach Chris Clark. “(We’re) very happy to get a league road win.”
The Golden Hawks outscored Neshaminy 13-4 in the first quarter and that lead was up to 30-18 at halftime.
Michael Stewart and Luca Baratta added 11 points each for the Golden Hawks, who are tied atop the SOL National standings with a 2-0 record.
“Kevin McNamee did a good job with post defensive rebounding,” Clark said. “Luke Meakim guarded (Neshaminy point guard Damon McGovern) well. I thought Jack (Rebholz) and Michael (Stewart) were really solid in all phases of the game”
Neshaminy was led by Jake McGinty, who scored nine points.
CR South (3-3, 2-0 SOL) plays a nonleague game Thursday at home against Lower Moreland. Neshaminy (1-3, 0-2 SOL) seeks its first SOL National Conference win Thursday at home against Harry S. Truman.
CR South 13 17 15 14-59
Neshaminy 4 14 9 14-41
CR South (59): Jack Rebholz 7 3-6 19; Michael Stewart 3 4-6 11; Kevin McNamee 2 1-1 5; Luke Meakim 2 0-0 5; Luca Baratta 4 3-4 11; Joe Purcell 1 4-4 6; Sebastian Gomez 0 2-2 2. Totals 22 17-23 59.
Neshaminy (41): Damon McGovern 3 0-0 6; Kyle Saglimben 2 0-0 6; Mike Murray 1 1-2 3; Matt Drapkin 0 1-2 1; James MacDonald 4 0-0 8; Sean Curley 2 0-0 6; Jake McGinty 2 3-3 9. Totals 14 2-7 41.
Council Rock North 46, Harry S. Truman 43
Sophomore guard Bernie Parent scored 31 points and CR North emerged with the three-point road win on Tuesday night, its first win of the 2019-20 season.
“It was a good game,” said Indians coach Jesse Krasna. “We actually never trailed in the game. Truman cut it to one point in the fourth quarter. They play so hard, they play with so much energy and they created a lot fast break opportunities because they were able to get in the passing lanes and get some steals.
“They’re such a good rebounding team too. They’re so physical and we had trouble containing them in those areas, but our guys were able to handle adversity, keep their composure after we turned it over a couple of times. We made just enough plays to come out with a win.”
Parent had a little something to do with that win too, accounting 12 of his team’s 16 field goals for the game and 64 percent of its offense.
“He was just absolute dynamite the entire game,” Krasna said. “He’s a kid that played a little bit for us last year as a freshman, but he’s just got such a tremendous work ethic and he’s such a great listener. He’s just taken massive steps, not just offensively, but defensively.
“Everybody could see how valuable he was on the offensive end, but he was our best defender and has been the whole year. He really, really carried us. It was a special display of just a guy that really wanted to win. The other guys followed his lead.”
Hunter Wan scored seven points.
“Mikey Sylvester didn’t score many points, but Mikey was just an animal rebounding the ball and came up with some huge loose balls for us,” Krasna said. “We were able to win the game when we had two of our three leading scorers not score in double digits. If you said of our three leading scorers only one was going to score in double digits, I would have said we’re going to have some trouble winning the game.
“It was just a really gutsy effort on (Bernie’s) part, and our other guys dug deep as well. It was a good win. We have a team that’s learning how to win right now. The good news is we’ve been competitive in just about every game. We have a chance to turn the corner, but we’re just trying to figure it out. It’s a great experience for all of our guys, so we were glad we were able to get this one.”
For Truman, Jordan Fant led the way with 11 points.
The Tigers (0-5, 0-2 SOL) plays at Neshaminy on Thursday. CR North (1-3, 0-1 SOL) hosts William Tennent on Friday.
CR North 8 14 10 14-46
Harry S. Truman 11 4 12 16-43
CR North (46): Bernie Parent 12 4-4 31; Andrew Stewart 2 0-0 4; Luke Vliet 1 0-0 2; Hunter Wan 1 4-6 7; Mike Sylvester 0 2-5 2. Totals 16 12-15 46.
Harry S. Truman (43): RJ Winton 1 0-0 2; Kashun Holden 2 1-4 5; Templeman 1 1-1 3; Fernando Vargas 1 5-5 7; Jordan Fant 5 0-2 11; Marvel Rogers 4 0-0 8; Mike Leonhauser 2 0-0 5; Ethan Flail 1 0-0 2. Totals 11 4 12 16.
SOL American
Abington 69, Upper Moreland 54
Abington shot a torrid 83 percent (15-for-18) from the field in the second half and put away Upper Moreland for the 15-point win on Tuesday.
For the game, the Galloping Ghosts were 25-for-44 (56.8) percent from the field and 7-for-14 from 3-point range.
Joey Brusha hit five 3-pointers and had a team-high 15 points for the game. Oreck Frazier, who was 6-for-8 from the field, had a career high 14 points, and Manir Waller had 12. Waller also had eight rebounds and six assists. Robert Bell had eight points and seven assists, and did not turn the ball over. As a team, the Ghosts had just eight turnovers.
Brusha ended up 5-for-7 from behind the 3-point line, the first time since 2013 that an Abington player has had five 3-pointers in one game.
For the Golden Bears, Beau Woolens led the way with 18 points, and Jahaire Johnson added 16.
The Ghosts (2-1, 1-0 SOL) are back in action Wednesday night when they host Central Bucks East. Upper Moreland (2-2, 0-2 SOL) will play at rival Hatboro-Horsham on Friday.
Abington 19-6-24-20 69
Upper Moreland 12-10-17-15 54
Abington (69): Robert Bell 2 4-7 8; Oreck Frazier 6 2-3 14; Manir Waller 4 4-8 12; Joey Brusha 5 0-0 15; Antoine Ellis 2 0-0 4; Sam MacFarlane 2 0-0 5; Caleb Baker 4 0-0 9; Connor Fields 0 2-2 2; Totals 25 12-20 69.
Upper Moreland (54): Byron Hopkins 3 4-8 10 Beau Woolens 7 2-4 18; Jordan Gregg 0 0-2 0; Jahaire Johnson 6 1-1 16; Matt Tiernan 2 3-4 7; Tyler Ibbotson 1 0-0 3; Totals 19 10-18 54.
Wissahickon 62, Hatboro-Horsham 29
After opening its season with five straight losses, Wissahickon is now on a two-game win streak as it jumped on top early and thumped visiting Hatboro-Horsham in a conference game on Tuesday.
“I’m just very proud of how these kids have stuck together, stayed positive and battled through a rough 0-5 start and then posted a couple of convincing wins,” said Wissahickon coach Kyle Wilson.
The Trojans outscored the Hatters 19-4 in the first quarter and by halftime that advantage was up to 35-11.
Matt Compas finished as the team’s leading scorer with 15 points, while Justin Rappaport added 11 and Harrison Williams and Andrew Buck had nine points each.
“They shared the basketball really well tonight, and they continue to grow as a team,” Wilson said.
Wilson also pointed to the return of 6-foot-5 senior center Carmen Ostrowski to the lineup after being sidelined with a back injury.
“He blocked several shots and added a nice baseline dunk to motivate the team and bring energy,” Wilson said.
The Trojans (0-5, 2-0 SOL) will look to make it three straight Friday at Springfield Township. Hatboro-Horsham (0-4, 0-1 SOL) will look for its first win at home Friday against rival Upper Moreland.
Hatboro-Horsham 4 7 12 6-29
Wissahickon 19 16 17 10-62
Hatboro-Horsham (29): N’Gianni Cerisier 2 0-0 5; Jack MAvin 1 0-0 3; Zehier Cheeze 6 0-1 13; DJ Cerisier 2 0-0 5; Kyle Dittus 1 0-0 3. Totals 12 0-1 29.
Wissahickon (62): Matt Compas 7 1-2 15; Harrison Williams 4 0-1 9; Carmen Ostrowski 2 2-3 3; Dshan Love 1 0-0 2; Andrew Buck 3 0-0 9; Stefan Lowry 1 2-2 5; Jackson Intrieri 2 1-2 6; Justin Rappaport 3 2-4 11; Will Kunzier 1 0-3 2. Totals 23 7-15 62.
Cheltenham 58, Upper Dublin 49
Sophomore Justin Moore scored 19 points and Cheltenham remained unbeaten on the season with a hard fought win over Upper Dublin Tuesday.
Moore also had five steals and four assists, earning high praise from coach Patrick Fleury.
“This was another game where Justin had the team high,” Fleury said. “And the thing about him is I can’t wait to see the day he cares about scoring. It’s not like he’s going out of his way to do it. He’s taking what’s presented, and it’s a beautiful thing to watch somebody that age have that much knowledge of what’s going, and be that receptive.”
The Panthers trailed 12-10 after one quarter, and the two teams were deadlocked 23-23 at halftime. But they bounced back and put the game away in the second half.
Jaelen McGlone added 10 points and Sean Emfinger ended up with nine points.
“Sean Emfinger and Brandon Scott were very steady for us,” Fleury said. “They definitely were catalysts for us on defense and just settling us.
“Saleem Payne did a great job coming in. It’s like a two-headed monster we’ve got with the point guards (Payne and Moore). They’re doing a very good job, especially today. I give them credit.”
Upper Dublin’s Drew Stover led all scorers with 29 points, accounting for 59 percent of his team’s offense.
Cheltenham (6-0, 2-0 SOL) is back in action Friday night when it plays at Plymouth Whitemarsh. Upper Dublin (3-2, 1-1) also plays Friday, at home against Abington.
Cheltenham 10 13 9 20-58
Upper Dublin 12 11 8 18-49
Cheltenham (58): Travis Coleman 2 0-0 4; Brandon Scott 2 0-0 4; Justin Moore 7 4-6 19; Brandon Hawkins 2 1-2 5; Saleem Payne 2 1-2 5; Jaelen McGlone 3 3-6 10; Michael McClain 1 0-0 2; Sean Emfinger 4 0-0 9. Totals 22 9-16 58.
Upper Dublin (49): Bazel Brody 1 3-4 5; Drew Stover 12 5-10 29; Will Mead 2 2-2 6; Amare Johnson 1 0-2 3; Aidan Pullian 3 0-2 6. Totals 19 10-20 49.
Plymouth Whitemarsh 76, Springfield Township 39
The Colonials erupted for 34 second-quarter points, turning a 19-8 first quarter lead into commanding 53-17 halftime advantage. Senior captain Caelin Peters led the charge, connecting for 19 of his game-high 26 points in the half. Included in his 26-point performance were six three-pointers.
Ray Tomassetti added 13 points, and David Harris was also in double figures with 10. Luke DiCianno had seven and Jaden Pryce chipped in six points in a contest that saw 12 Colonials contribute scoring.
Gabe Harris led the Spartans with 11 points, and Ethan Hamilton had six.
Plymouth Whitemarsh (2-3, 2-0 SOL) will host Cheltenham on Friday, and Springfield Township (2-3, 0-2) will host Wissahickon Friday.
Plymouth Whitemarsh 19-34-17-6 76
Springfield Township 8-9-9-13 39
Plymouth Whitemarsh (76) – Caelin Peters 10 0-0 26; Luke DiCianno 3 1-2 7; Ray Tomassetti 6 0-0 13; David Harris 3 2-2 10; Jayden Glover 0 2-3 2; Zende Hubbard 2 0-1 4; Jaden Prye 3 0-2 6; Taji Hubbard 1 0-0 2; Trey Jones 1 0-0 2; Quidire Bennett 0 1-6 1; Teddy Rinck 0 0-2 0; Z.Jerman 1 0-0 2; Aidan McGhin 0 1-2 1; Totals 30 7-20 76.
Springfield Township (39) – Amir Williams 1 0-0 3; Jay Joseph 2 1-2 5; Ethan Hamilton 3 0-0 6; Matt Leibfreid 0 0-2 0; Declan Farley 0 2-2 2; Micah Woods 1 1-1 3; Andrew Kennedy 1 0-0 2; Austin Maggioncaida 0 2-3 2; Jamal White 1 0-2 2; Gabe Harris 5 1-2 11; Jaquis Heath 1 0-0 3; Totals 15 7-14 39.
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