New Hope-Solebury/Gwynedd Mercy photos provided courtesy of Kim Supko. Check back for a gallery of photos. All SOS photo galleries for GIRLS’ BASKETBALL can be viewed by clicking HERE.
Class 5A
#6 RADNOR 46, #3 UPPER MORELAND 42
The Golden Bears found themselves in an early hole. They trailed 14-9 after one quarter and saw that deficit grow to 32-18 by halftime. They outscored their visitors in the second half but never could make up the ground they lost.
“It was the tale of two halves, and at the end of the day, the first half came back to bite us as we ran out of time,” UM coach Matt Carroll said. “We were down what seemed to be double digits the entire first half, and we just couldn’t get things going. We got a ton of open looks but just couldn’t get any of them to go and they didn’t miss. We turned up the intensity both offensively and defensively, but it wasn’t enough.
“There are some games where we give up 32 points in the entire game. To give up 32 in the first half was very unlike us. I give them credit, they came out firing and didn’t miss.”
The Golden Bears trailed 40-29 heading into the final quarter, and they continued to chip away but could not get over the hump..
“As usual, our girls never stopped and kept playing for each other until the very end. We made some big shots and at one point cut it to two with under 30 seconds.
“We had a timeout left, and in hindsight, I should have called it to set something up as the clock got under 20. I kind of hung them out to dry there and should’ve taken more of that end-of-the-game responsibility off their plate. (Mary) Sareen made a great play and ended up stealing the ball, making both free throws, and that was that. Because of 5A getting five state berths, we have an opportunity to extend our season. Everyone is disappointed, but we have to figure out a way to get back after it tomorrow and get ready to go to Marple Newtown on Friday.”
Sophomore Holly Gohl’s 18 points led the Golden Bears while EmmyFaith Wood added 12 and Kiera Coyle had 10.
Upper Moreland (17-7, 13-3 SOL) will travel to Marple-Newtown for a 7 p.m. playback game on Friday.
Radnor 14-18-8-6 46
Upper Moreland 9-9-11-13 42
Radnor (46) – Paige Yurchak 4 4-4 12; Ava Gummel 3 0-0 7; Mary Sareen 4 5-7 14; Ellie Davis 3 0-0 6; Maddie Bader 1 1-1 4; Kate Gallagher 1 0-0 3. TOTALS 16 10-12 46.
Upper Moreland (42) – EmmyFaith Wood 3 4-4 12; Kiera Coyle 3 1-2 10; Holly Gohl 6 4-4 18; Mikel Lancis 1 0-0 2. TOTALS 13 9-10 42.
3-point goals: Radnor – Ava Gummel, Mary Sareen, Maddie Bader, Kate Gallagher; UM – Kiera Coyle 3, Holly Gohl 2, EmmyFaith Wood 2.
#1 GWYNEDD MERCY 56, #4 NEW HOPE-SOLEBURY 28
Coach Steve Polinsky knew his team would have its hands full against a Gwynedd Mercy squad that had not lost a game. The Lions – behind five points from Reagan Chrencik and a basket by Madi
Fasti – opened up an early 7-2 lead.
It turned out to be their last hurrah as the Monarchs closed out the half with a dazzling 32-3 tear. They added to their lead in the third quarter, putting the mercy rule in effect.
Despite the outcome, Polinsky remained positive.
“I’m really proud of them,” the Lions’ coach said. “We had a great year. I’m really looking forward to next year.
“We’re a young team. Going into the SOL and playing against PW, it’s daunting. A lot of them are freshmen, going from eighth grade to playing against those teams. We grew a lot. Our best basketball is ahead of us with all the freshmen since we have so many of them. Reagan (Chrencik) did a great job. We didn’t give her much help tonight, but she’s a great player. I’m just proud of how we ended. I would have loved to have been closer today, but they’re just a well-oiled machine.”
Madi Fasti’s 13 points, which included three 3-pointers, led the Lions. Chrencik added 11 points.
The Monarchs were led by their three seniors – Bianca Coleman (16 points), Sofia Coleman (15 points) and Maddie Newell (14 points).
New Hope-Solebury closed out its season with an 11-11 record (10-6 SOL).
New Hope-Solebury 7-3-9-9 28
Gwynedd Mercy 18-16-22-0 56
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