Check out the recaps for SOL girls’ basketball teams in action Monday.
Non-league
BENSALEM 51, NEW HOPE-SOLEBURY 48
In a game that came down to the wire, it was the visiting Owls eking out the non-league win.
“What a game,” Bensalem coach Steve Johnson said. “New Hope just doesn’t stop and Emily (Wilson) and Izzy (Elizondo) are exceptional high school players. They both play so well off of each other and do not take a single play off.
“Coach (Andy) Krasna has New Hope playing great, especially with them only playing five players for the first 28 minutes of the game. Hats off to New Hope’s first five for playing that long in a fast-paced game. That shows how well conditioned they are.”
The visiting Owls, who led 9-6 after one quarter, took a tenuous 19-18 lead into halftime. Grace McShane’s 11 points led the way in the half. The Lions had a 33-32 advantage heading into the fourth quarter when the Owls – behind six points from Jordyn Bell and five from Devon Bell – scored 19 points.
Key players: Grace McShane led the Owls with 17 points. The Bell sisters had it going from the outside, combining for six 3-pointers. Devon buried four 3-pointers and scored 14 points – 11 after halftime. Jordyn Bell added nine points – six in the fourth quarter.
The Lions had three players in double figures – Emily Wilson (13 points), Mary Tresler (12 points) and Izzy Elizondo (10 points). Wilson had all 10 of her points in the second half.
Bensalem coach Steve Johnson on the win: “Great win for our girls today. Our last two games we have been scoring by committee, which is a nice thing to see.
–Props: “We had a handful of girls make impactful plays, but we were really impressed with Talia DiMichele’s’s play today. Talia flirted with a triple-double today ending with nine points, nine assists, and seven rebounds. She has been doing a wonderful job of running our offense while also being assertive and getting herself shots. She had two beautiful back door passes which cut into New Hope’s momentum when they were fighting back.
“Driz and JBell (Bell sisters) had it going from downtown combining for 6-for-13 from 3 which was nice to see. JBell is only a sophomore and is gaining confidence as the season is progressing. Sydney Daut hit a huge shot for us in the middle of the fourth to keep momentum on our side. Grace McShane led us in scoring with 17 and did a nice job of playing off the catch when she had to, but she was also patient on offense. Talia found her a few times for some easy scores which I was pleased with.”
–Heading down the home stretch: “We don’t have many practices these next two weeks, so we are going to really have to learn on the fly and be able to focus better than ever on personnel matchups, game plans, and the little things that help win basketball games – 50/50 balls, communication, rebounding. Seniors are no longer seniors. In a few short months they will be unpacking their bags in their college dorms. Juniors will be in charge at Spring workouts. Some sophomores and freshmen will be taking that step to the Varsity level. Every game is an opportunity to get better.”
Up next: Bensalem (6-6, 2-3 SOL) will be on the road at Hatboro-Horsham for a non-league game Tuesday, New Hope-Solebury (8-4, 4-1) will host Central Bucks East in a non-league game Tuesday.
Bensalem 9-10-13-19 51
New Hope-Solebury 6-12-15-15 48
Bensalem (51) – Talia DiMichele 4 0-0 9; Grace McShane 7 2-4 17; Jordyn Bell 3 1-2 9; Devon Bell 4 2-2 14; Sydney Daut 1 0-0 2; TOTALS 19 5-8 51.
New Hope-Solebury (48) – Mary Tresler 6 0-0 12; Kayla Fennell 4 1-2 9; Ella Dudick 1 2-4 4; Izzy Elizondo 4 0-0 10; Emily Wilson 6 0-0 13; TOTALS 21 3-6 48.
3-point goals: B – Devon Bell 4, Jordyn Bell 2, Talia DiMichele, Grace McShane. NHS – Izzy Elizondo 2; Emily Wilson.
LOWER MORELAND 68, VILLA JOSEPH MARIE 56
Dan Brusha didn’t score a point in the first quarter, but the senior sharpshooter sure had a lot of fun in the next three, scoring 33 points, which included a 16-for 20 effort at the foul line.
The Lions trailed 21-12 after one quarter, but erased that deficit with a 22-point second quarter to go into halftime with a 34-30 advantage. The Jems battled back to even the score heading into the fourth when the Lions erupted for 22 points.
Key stretch: The Lions broke 46-46 tie with a 22-point fourth quarter that included 15 points from Brusha.
Key players: Dani Brusha (33 points – 3 3-pointers), Emma DiJoseph (12 points – 4 3-pointers)
Lower Moreland coach Rich Becker on the win: “I continue to be impressed with the resiliency of our team. After a few really big games last week, I had a feeling that we would be emotionally flat, and we were. We got outscored 21-12 in the first quarter. If it weren’t for Emma DiJoseph’s three early 3s, the game could have gotten away from us.
“The second quarter did not start much better. We switched to one of our zones, and they extended the lead to 25-15. Again, DiJoseph made another 3 to keep us in striking distance.”
Key moment: “After Emma’s 3, we decided to go to our third defense, a tempo press into an odd front zone, and that was the key moment of the game. We finished the half on a 19-5 run and went into the half up 34-30. We haven’t run that defense in a while, so I don’t think they were ready for it, and that was the spark we needed to get us back into it.
“The second half was back and forth. We were up one with 4:30 left. From that point on, we went on a 14-3 run to close out the game.”
–Key players: “Emma DiJoseph and Dani Brusha. Emma kept us in it early, and Dani closed it out for us. Dani finished with 33 points including 10-for-13 from the foul line down the stretch. For the game, she was 16-for-20 from the free throw line and was everything you would want your captain to be.”
Up next: Lower Moreland (8-6, 3-2 SOL) will host Souderton in a non-league game Tuesday (6 pm).
Villa Joseph Marie 21-9-16-10 56
Lower Moreland 12-22-12-22 68
Villa Joseph Marie (56) – Riley Deal 2 0-2 5; Syd Housman 1 0-0 3; Lucy Jasionis 9 3-3 23; Grace Pizzica 4 3-4 12; Avery Akright 1 0-0 2; Kiki Hadgimallis 2 0-0 4; Haley Dickson 3 0-0 7; TOTALS 22 6-9 56.
Lower Moreland (68) – Briana McFerran 3 3-8 9; Dani Brusha 7 16-20 33; Emma DiJoseph 4 0-0 12; Mady Rossiter 1 0-0 2; Nikki Sahl 3 0-2 6; Maddie Broderick 2 0-0 6; TOTALS 20 19-30 68.
3-point goals: VJM – Lucy Jasionis 2, Riley Deal, Syd Housman, Grace Pizzica, Haley Dickson; LM – Emma DiJoseph 4, Dani Brusha 3, Maddie Broderick 2.
ABINGTON 52, PENN WOOD 39
The Ghosts won their sixth straight game, and they took care of business in a hurry in this one, opening up a 19-5 lead after one quarter and extending it to 34-10 by halftime.
Key players: Mikiaya Durham’s 21 points led the Ghosts, 13 in the first half. Aniyah William added 14 points – all in the first half. She also had eight rebounds and four assists. Maya Johnson handed out 12 assists and also had five points and four rebounds. Shya Crafton added four points and 10 rebounds. Vanessa Griffin contributed seven rebounds and five blocks.
Up next: Abington (8-4, 3-1 SOL) will host Neshaminy Tuesday.
Penn Wood 5-5-12-17 39
Abington 19-15-11-7 52
Penn Wood (39) – Taylor Morris 4 5-7 14; Elisia Lawrence 3 6-6 12; Jaylah Kennedy 1 2-3 5; Yasmin Majid 1 1-6 3; Kailyn Freeman 2 0-0 5; TOTALS 11 14-22 39.
Abington (52) – Ayana Miller 0 0-2 0; Maya Johnson 2 0-2 5; Nora Luskin 1 0-1 2; Mikiaya Durham 8 4-8 21; Shya Craften 2 0-0 4; Caleigh Fitgerald 1 0-0 2; Hannah Gilchrist 1 0-0 2; Vanessa Griffin 1 0-0 2; Aniyah Williams 6 0-0 14; TOTALS 22 4-12 52.
3-point goals: Penn Wood – Taylor Morris, Jaylah Kennedy, Kailyn Freeman; A – Aniyah Williams 2, Maya Johnson, Mikiaya Durham.
PHOENIXVILLE 52, PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 46
A rough shooting first half put the Colonials in a 22-11 halftime hole.
The Colonials outscored their hosts 35-30 in the second half but couldn’t make up the ground they lost in the first half.
Eliza Meersman’s 14 points led the Colonials. She scored 12 in the second half, which included eight from the foul line. She also had a team-high nine rebounds to go along with two steals and two blocks.
AJ Avery added 13 points, which included three 3-point field goals. She also had five rebounds and three assists.
Up next: Plymouth Whitemarsh (8-5, 2-2 SOL) will host Council Rock South Tuesday.
Plymouth Whitemarsh 7-4-21-14 46
Phoenixville 10-12-18-12 52
Plymouth Whitemarsh (46) – Taylor Williams 1 2-2 5; Liv Patete 2 1-2 5; AJ Avery 3 4-6 13; Kenna Winland 2 4-4 9; Eliza Meersman 3 8-13 14; TOTALS 11 19-27 46.
Phoenixville (52) – Riley Ford-Bey 2 2-6 6; Taylor Schneider 3 0-0 6; Ava Gnias 4 0-0 11; Kayden Baratta 3 2-2 8; Emine Ulcay 1 2-2 4; Nevaeh Batimore-Beasley 4 0-1 8; TOTALS 21 6-11 52.
3-point goals: PW – AJ Avery 3, Taylor Williams, Kenna Winland; P – Ava Gnias 3, Emine Ulcay.
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