Upper Dublin, CB East & Pennsbury punched their tickets to the PIAA 6A State Tournament with wins on Wednesday. Upper Dublin/Bensalem photos courtesy of Greg Lindsay, Tennent/Garnet Valley photos courtesy of Greg Powell, & Pennsbury/Neshaminy photos courtesy of Darryl Rule of J&D Photography, Check back for galleries. (CB East/PW photos courtesy of Diane Berry/CB East BB) CLICK HERE to go directly to Suburban One Sports’ GIRLS’ BASKETBALL GALLERIES.
Class 6A
#1 UPPER DUBLIN 64, #16 BENSALEM 25
Upper Dublin – with Wednesday’s win – made it 12 state appearances in a row.
“Qualifying for states is not something we take for granted, and we our very happy we did it again this year,” UD coach Morgan Funsten said.
From the outset, the Cardinals were in command, opening up a 15-6 lead after one quarter and stretching that to 33-14 by
halftime on their way to the decisive win.
By the numbers: Tamia Clark led the Cardinals with 18 points and seven rebounds. She also had three assists, four steals and two blocks. Emilia Coleman added 14 points and seven rebounds Megan Ngo had eight points, eight assists and two steals. Ella Morris added 10 points, three steals and two blocks.
For the Owls, Grace McShane’s 10 points led the way. Eliza Meersman had six rebounds.
Upper Dublin coach Morgan Funsten:
–The game: “It was good to get back out there after not playing for eight days. We were rusty shooting the ball, but I was very happy with our ability to create turnovers. We started the game 2-for-17 from 3-point range but forced them into 18 first half turnovers.
“The game was 25-14 with 30 seconds to go in the second quarter, and we scored a quick eight points on 3s from Meg (Ngo) and Emilia (Coleman), followed by a bucket by Tamia (Clark) right before halftime.
“We then scored the first 12 points of the third quarter and got separation. We assisted on 19 of our 25 field goals made, and it was fun again to watch our girls move the ball. It was also fun to see our bench play really well in the fourth quarter. They work so hard all year and don’t get the same recognition as some of the other girls. It was a complete team effort and a great start to our district playoff run.”
Bensalem coach Steve Johnson:
“Congrats to Upper Dublin and their coaching staff. They play a special brand of basketball and have some real next level talent. We wish them the best the rest of the way. This was a great learning experience for our program moving forward.”
Up next: Upper Dublin will host #8 Garnet Valley Saturday (1pm). Bensalem will be on the road at William Tennent for a playback game, one of eight teams vying for three state berths.
Bensalem 6-8-4-7 25
Upper Dublin 15-18-17-14 64
Bensalem (25) – Kamiya Alexander 1 0-0 2; Mary Beck 1 0-0 2; Grace McShane 4 2-2 10; Kylie O’Neil 0 2-2 2; Sydney Daut 3 0-0 6; Kylie Smith 1 0-0 3; TOTALS 10 4-4 25.
Upper Dublin (64) – Shannon Connaughton 1 0-0 2; Tamia Clark 6 5-6 18; Megan Ngo 3 0-0 8; Emilia Coleman 6 0-0 14; Ella Morris 4 0-0 10; Julia Scullen 1 0-0 2; Ryniah Sharpe 2 0-0 5; TOTALS 25 5-6 64.
3-point goals: B – Kylie Smith; UD – Megan Ngo 2, Emilia Coleman 2, Ella Morris 2, Tamia Clark, Bridget DiMartile. Ryniah Sharpe.
#2 CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 35, #15 PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 18
It wasn’t pretty, but it was a win, and on a night when their offense struggled, the Patriots threw some serious defense at the Colonials, limiting them to just four first-half points and eight heading into the final quarter.
It had been eight days between games for the Patriots, who had an opening round bye, and according to senior Jess Lockwood, a catalyst on defense with five steals, it was a welcome break.
“It definitely allowed us to rest because we’ve just been going, going since November, so I think it was definitely good,” Lockwood said. “It allowed us to have a few easy practices and then the last few really just lock in on the team we’re playing.”
The win locked up a state berth for the Patriots, but there wasn’t a whole lot of celebrating.
“They’re an interesting group,” East coach Liz Potash said. “They weren’t satisfied when they won the league. They just have bigger goals, and they have been focused on that the whole time.
“So for them, winning this game was like – ‘We were supposed to win this game.’ I’m like, ‘Guys, you just bought yourselves three more weeks.’ That’s what they expected to do. From last year getting to the final four, this year, they’d like to get a step further. We’re thrilled to be able to get back to where we want to be. We think we can compete with a lot of teams out there.”
Key players: Freshman Payton Williams led the Patriots with 12 points, and Natalie Berndt added 10. Jess Lockwood finished with eight.
Grace Harvey’s six points led the Colonials. Eliza Meersman led PW under the boards with six rebounds.
Central Bucks East coach Liz Potash:
–The game: “I’m proud that we were able to stay composed, and in the second half, we executed more on offense. Obviously, a four-point half is great defense. They play a style we’re not used to playing. We play a little bit more up tempo
, so they took us out of our rhythm, and we were struggling to finish in the first half. In the second half, we were able to get things going.”
Central Bucks East senior Jess Lockwood:
–Takeaway from a tough offensive game: “The past few games we’ve been struggling to score around the basket, but we try and make up for it on the defensive end – try to get stops whether it’s steals or just five seconds in the press. We know eventually the shots are going to fall.”
–Bound for states: “We know the potential and strengths we have on the team, and we know in past years, we’ve gone to the first round of states and we just fell short of a win, so this year, we really just want to get a win and extend our season.
“These next games are very important because it determines who we play in states.”
Plymouth Whitemarsh Dan Dougherty:
–The game: “I’m really proud of how hard the girls competed tonight. The game was 9-4 nearing the end of second quarter, but we couldn’t get a shot to drop, and then they score four quick points heading into halftime.
“In the third quarter, they just kicked it into another gear, and we couldn’t counter. Finally got a few shots to drop in the fourth, but too little too late.”
Up next: Central Bucks East will host #7 Pennsbury in a quarterfinal game Friday as part of a girls/boys doubleheader. Plymouth Whitemarsh will travel to #10 Neshaminy for a playback game Saturday.
Plymouth Whitemarsh 2-2-4-10 18
Central Bucks East 7-6-18-4 35
Plymouth Whitemarsh (28) – Olivia Patete 2 0-0 5; Kenna Winland 1 2-2 5; Eliza Meersman 1 0-0 2; Grace Harvey 3 0-0 6; TOTALS 7 2-2 18.
Central Bucks East (35) – Haley Moran 3 0-0 6; Natalie Berndt 3 2-2 10; Payton Williams 6 0-2 12; Jess Lockwood 3 0-0 7; TOTALS 15 2-4 35.
3-point goals: PW – Olivia Patete, Kenna Winland; CBE – Natalie Berndt 2, Jess Lockwood.
#7 PENNSBURY 23, #10 NESHAMINY 16
It’s not always pretty when the Falcons and Redskins do battle, and last night’s second round battle was a perfect example, but for Joley Hohman, every game she’s on the court – after sitting out last season with a torn ACL – is a gift.
“It feels great,” the Falcons’ junior guard said. “I mean honestly, it amazes me every single game. I’m just so grateful for everything that I’ve had this year and all the success we’ve had. So, all the glory to God that I was able to come back from that injury and recover. And that I’ve been blessed again with a healthy body for the entire season so far.”
There were no surprises when the two teams took the court Wednesday.
“We’ve played against these girls since third grade, especially me and Sammie Haws because we’re the same age,” Hohman said.
“As you see with Neshaminy, it’s a mostly junior based lineup. All of those girls – we’ve played against them in travel growing up and middle school and now high school, so there’s probably close to a hundred games of us playing them. There are no secrets anymore, so it makes games a grind.”
Wednesday’s game was the third meeting between the two schools – the Falcons won the preceding two 32-15 and 24-23, so no one was all that surprised when the Falcons had an 8-3 lead after one quarter and then managed just two points in the second but took a 10-6 lead into halftime.
“When we saw the brackets come out and we saw that we would likely play Neshaminy, it’s obviously not a good feeling,” Pennsbury coach Frank Sciolla said. “We’ve already played them twice and they are a good team, but more importantly, we want to see teams in our league move on.”
The Redskins’ offense came to life in the third quarter, outscoring the Falcons 10-6 and briefly taking a 16-13 lead after an Ashlyn Duffy 3. That, however, would be the Redskins’ last hurrah. They did not score again as the Falcons closed out the game with a 10-0 run.
The two teams were deadlocked 16-16 heading into the final quarter, and it was the Falcons taking an 18-16 lead, a lead they were able to maintain.
“I said to Alyssa Thomas when I was passing the ball – ‘If they’re not going to come out, we’re up two, there’s no need to force it at all because if they’re not going to extend, what’s the point,” Hohman said. “If we can grind this out to the point where it’s a minute-and-a-half, then we’re in control. I know our free throw percentage is high for all of us. In this game, to be up two felt like being up 10.”
The Falcons missed their first two free throws but closed out the game connecting on 5 of 6. Alyssa Thomas was 3-for-4 in that stretch while Keira Socha was 2-for-2.
Pennsbury coach Frank Sciolla:
–The game: “(Neshaminy) is an extremely difficult matchup for us because of their size and length. Because of that, we spent past eight days trying to work against the zone defense because we knew that’s what we would see. But we have no real way to simulate that, and when the game starts and they put an extremely smart, high motor kid with length and athleticism up top, it’s going to be a challenge.
“We countered by pressing man-to-man full court all game in an effort to create tempo, but to their credit, they were prepared and handled it well. Alyssa Thomas picked up her second foul with a little over two minutes to go in the first quarter, and we were really proud of our girls for playing the rest of the half without her because we have not gone that long this season. Joley (Hohman) took over up top and moved the ball really well.
“We were able to get inside the zone a bunch in the first half, but we struggled getting to balance and, therefore, had a hard time finishing. Their length changed so many shots, but our girls do a fantastic job preparing to take teams out of actions that they want to run, and our defense once again kept us in the game, but to their credit, they came out in the third quarter and they ran some isolation for Nicole (Trespalacios) and posted Hayley (Kolk), and they took a 16-13 lead after a Duffy 3 and forced us to call timeout .
“The girls regrouped well in the timeout, made a couple adjustments and then Shea Quenzer made an enormous 3-pointer for us, and at that point, they didn’t score again.
“The fourth quarter went by in a flash. We got big free throws from Keira (Socha) and Alyssa (Thomas). They were packed in their zone, and we kept moving the ball and we absolutely didn’t want to hold the ball because to be honest it’s not something we can really do, but we couldn’t get inside their zone so we just kept passing it corner to corner, and they didn’t come out and chase us, so eventually, the clock ground down and we were able to finish the game.
“People after the game we’re trying to give us credit for some sort of delay, but we weren’t trying to delay at all. We were just trying to find a gap in their zone against that size. It’s not easy, and it will be a very effective defense for them. When the game got down to about 90 seconds left, then we did pull the ball out.”
–Surviving shooting struggles: “To win a game shooting under 25 percent…it’s rare, but we seem to figure it out. So many people obsess over points and touches and shots, and they don’t understand the importance of winning plays, and all of our girls made a number of them tonight. It’s not easy to beat a good team once, let alone three times in the season, so we understand.
“We also understand the dynamic of our program. Our girls grow up playing in our youth basketball league, Lady Falcons Elite, and they play for our middle schools. They have a really good sense of our history. To qualify for states again is a really good accomplishment for them and they should be proud.
“This group has really shown toughness and moxie. That’s Pennsbury basketball and it’s great to be guaranteed more time together.”
–Props “Milan Reeves was so good for us defensively and so was Grace Schaufler, and it’s just the type of things that people don’t understand. Sammie (Haws), Emily (Panaro), Bella (Stewart) all pitched in with winning plays as well.”
Pennsbury junior Joley Hohman:
–Bound for states: “It’s great. This is my second time being In a state playoff experience. I was there my freshman year, and we lost in the first round of stats to Hazleton. It’s great that I have that experience under my belt too.”
Up next: Pennsbury will travel to #2 Central Bucks East for a quarterfinal game as part of a boys/girls doubleheader with the Pennsbury boys’ team. Neshaminy will host #15 Plymouth Whitemarsh in a playback game.
Neshaminy 3-3-10-0 16
Pennsbury 8-2-6-7 23
Neshaminy (16) – Ashlyn Duffy 1 0-0 3; Mia Raivitch 1 0-0 2; Nicole Trespalacios 2 2-3 6; Haley Kolk 1 3-4 5; TOTALS 5 5-7 16.
Pennsbury (23) – Grace Schaufler 1 0-0 2; Bella Stewart 0 1-2 1; Sammie Haws 1 2-2 4; Alyssa Thomas 0 3-6 3; Shea Quenzer 1 0-0 3; Joley Hohman 1 2-3 5; Milan Reaves 1 0-0 2; TOTALS 6 8-13 23.
3-point goals: N – Ashlyn Duffy; P – Shea Quenzer, Joley Hohman, Keira Socha.
#8 GARNET VALLEY 53, #9 WILLIAM TENNENT 35
The Panthers made the long trek to Garnet Valley, and for three quarters, they were well within striking distance – trailing by two after one quarter, four at halftime and six heading into the final frame.
But they never could get over the hump.
Avery Kucor and Megan Volz led the Panthers with 11 points each while Halie Staub added eight points.
William Tennent coach Laura Whitney:
–The game: “It was a tough one. It was definitely a winnable game. I thought our girls came out and really played hard, and we battled for three straight quarters.
“Even early in the fourth quarter, we had a couple of opportunities on two straight possessions to possibly tie it up, but we missed a layup, and then we had a turnover, Unfortunately, things just started unraveling from there, And I think I think our girls kind of started getting a little bit frustrated. Maybe we weren’t getting some of the calls. And then defensively, we just had some miscommunications.
“We knew they had some outside shooters, And I thought our girls did a great job on closeouts and not giving them anything easy on the perimeter. Unfortunately, we gave up some open lanes to the basket, and our help defense wasn’t always there in time.
“The game was a lot closer than the final score, but this is what you expect. At this time of the season, you are going to be playing against great competition. Unfortunately, it wasn’t our night.”
–Looking ahead: “Luckily, we have at least one more game to try to go out and compete and put our best effort forward and see what happens. It’s been a great season. That’s what I try to tell the girls. This one game doesn’t define how the season goes, and it’s just a matter of coming back tomorrow with a positive attitude. Get back to work and try to correct some things and be ready for Saturday.
“Bensalem’s a familiar opponent. We’ve battled with them through summer league, fall league. We played them earlier this season, and we came out on the losing end, but it was also during a stretch of the season where we weren’t playing our best. So, it’ll be a good challenge there. They’re a great team. They’ve had a great season. Grace McShane is a heck of a player. We know we’ve got our hands full. But again, we’re excited about the opportunity that we still get another chance to play.”
Up next: William Tennent will host Bensalem in a must-win playback game Saturday.
William Tennent 10-9-6-10 35
Garnet Valley 12-11-8-22 53
William Tennent (35) – Avery Kucor 4 2-2 11; Halie Staub 3 1-2 9; Hannah Wong 2 0-4 4; Megan Volz 4 2-4 11; TOTALS 13 5-12 35.
Garnet Valley (53) – Ryann Razzano 2 0-0 4; Heaven Dada 3 2-4 8; Regan Leydig 3 4-5 10; Amanda Bilson 1 2-2 4; Katie Dwyer 1 0-0 2; Kendall Devlin 1 0-0 2; Addison Adamski 5 4-7 14; Kylie Adamski 2 4-6 TOTALS 18 16-24 53.
3-point goals: WT – Halie Staub 2, Avery Kucor, Megan Volz; GV – Kylie Adamski.
Tuesday, Feb. 17
Class 4A
#2 SPRINGFIELD TWP 41, #3 MERION MERCY 37
If past performances are worth anything, the Spartans didn’t stand much of a chance against a Merion Mercy squad that earned a 47-20 win on Springfield Twp’s home court on Jan. 24. Although that loss came in a contest they were without Ava Culler.
That 27-point loss apparently meant nothing to the Spartans, who – with Culler back in the lineup – avenged that loss with a win that vaulted the team into Saturday’s District 1 4A final against Villa Joseph Marie.
Granted, the game didn’t start out all that promising when Merion Mercy opened up a 14-8 lead after one quarter, but the Spartans – sparked by five points from Julia Guicheteau – evened the score with a 10-4 second quarter.
The Spartans broke that 18-18 halftime tie with a 10-7 third quarter and went on to outscore their visitors 23-19 for the big win.
Key players: Ava Culler’s impressive double-double included 14 points and 18 rebounds. Julia Guicheteau added 10 points while Caitlin Lewis had eight.
Springfield Twp coach Dave Giordano:
–The game: “You have to give all the credit to the team tonight. They played exceptionally well. Their defense was awesome. We played with discipline and with a purpose. We only had a total of eight fouls for the entire game, and considering how physical the game was being played that was incredible.
“Our first five went the entire game. We mixed up our defenses the entire night, and I think it confused Merion just enough that we could come out with a win.
“There was a great crowd tonight to see the team and also enjoy our first district win in approximately 15 years. The team is extremely excited to have the opportunity to play on Saturday for the District One 4A title.”
–Props: “It was a great game tonight by all five. Ava led the way with 14 points and 18 rebounds. We got a great game and ball control from Julia Guicheteau and Caitlin Lewis and steady play all night long from Karly Hartman and Keira Brandon.”
Up next: Springfield Twp will face fourth-seeded Villa Joseph Marie in the District 1 4A title game Saturday at Bensalem. The Jems upset top-seeded Pope John Paul II 38-33.
Merion Mercy 14-4-7-12 37
Springfield Twp 8-10-10-13 41
Merion Mercy (37) – Maddy Kydd 3 0-0 8; Maeve O’Rourke 1 0-0 3; Dylan Hall 2 1-2 5; Hannah Kenefick 4 0-0 10; Amara Gittens 4 0-0 8; Emerson Wiegand 1 0-0 3; TOTALS 15 1-2 37.
Springfield Twp (41) – Caitlin Lewis 3 1-2 8; Keira Brandon 1 1-3 3; Julia Guicheteau 3 0-0 10; Ava Culler 6 2-6 14; Karly Hartman 2 2-4 6; TOTALS 15 6-15 41.
3-point goals: MM -Maddy Kydd 2, Hannah Keneflick 2, Maeve O’Rourke, Emerson Wiegand; S – Caitlin Lewis, Julia Guicheteau 4.
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