Continental Conference
Quakertown 53, Pennridge 51 (OT)Lauren Starzecky couldn’t stop smiling.
It was hard to blame the Quakertown senior. After all, the Panthers – thanks in no small part to her late-game heroics – had just won their first game of the SOL season.
“No matter what the record – Pennridge or Quakertown – it comes down to this every single year,” said Starzecky, who scored a game-high 21 points and pulled down 10 boards. “This is exactly what happened at home last year. It went into overtime, and we ended up winning.
“We have been having a rough season, but we really wanted to come together this game and get our first league win, and it’s even sweeter being against our cross-town rival. Any time we face Pennridge – it’s always good competition. It’s never dull.”
There certainly was nothing dull about Wednesday night’s thriller, and according to coach Greg Swavley, the Panthers came into the game with a singular goal.
“The girls said before the game that their motto for this game was ‘Refuse to lose,’” the Panthers’ coach said. “There were times where we were on the ropes, but we came back swinging.
“I’m just so proud of the girls. We needed this win.”
It looked like the Panthers might have things under control when Kathryne Vetter connected on an outside shot to give Quakertown a 32-25 lead late in the third quarter, but the pesky Rams had other ideas.
After Molly McGuire sank one-of-two from the charity stripe, Jessie Tennett buried a pair from the foul line, and it was a 32-30 game when Tennett scored a bucket in the closing seconds after teammate Jen Cooley made a dazzling save of a rebound heading out of bounds.
A three-point bucket by Alyssa Marchunsky put the Rams on top 35-33 at the 5:19 mark of the final period, and they still led by two (41-39) when McGuire made one of two foul shots with 1:10 remaining in regulation.
A win seemed all but assured after Marchunsky connected on a pair of foul shots to put the Rams on top 43-39 with 45 seconds remaining. They still led by four (44-40) after a Marchunsky foul shot with 34 seconds remaining, but Vetter connected on a basket to make it a two-point game with 24 seconds remaining.
Jessie Dominic sank one-of-two from the foul line with 10 seconds remaining to give the Rams a 45-42 edge, but a sure Pennridge win went out the window when Juli King hit nothing but net on a trey from well beyond the arc at the buzzer.
“That shot by Juli King was probably the biggest shot of her life,” Swavley said. “When that went in, it was just an unbelievable feeling. I’m so happy for her being a senior.
“The girls decided that if Juli got us to overtime – they wanted to finish it off.”
That’s exactly what they did, although it wasn’t easy.
The Panthers took an early lead on a bucket by Starzecky on the low post, but Cooley answered with a hook shot at the other end. Katie Kelsall scored from just inside the arc to put the Panthers on top 49-47, but not to be outdone, Dominic buried a trey to give the Rams a 50-49 advantage.
They led by two after a Nici Bonacci foul shot with 1:54 remaining, but another Starzecky bucket on the low post knotted the score with 32 seconds remaining. A Pennridge turnover resulted in a trip to the foul line for Starzecky, who buried one-of-two despite the Rams’ attempts to ice her by calling timeouts before each shot.
A Vetter steal and foul shot in the closing seconds sealed the win, setting off a jubilant celebration on the court.
“We really came together as a team,” Starzecky said. “It’s always important when we utilize every single person on the team and not just depend on one person because they were collapsing down on me the whole time.
“Juli really stepped it up and hit that three-pointer. I always knew she had it in her. She really stepped it up, and I am so proud that words cannot describe. Kathryne (Vetter) and Katie (Kelsall) – everyone really stepped up and played a part in the win. It was a team effort.”
King finished with 17 points while Vetter added 11 for the Panthers, who are 1-6 in league play (3-10 overall).
“This is definitely a pick-me-up,” Starzecky said. “We haven’t won since the Christmas Tournament, and we haven’t won in the league, and we wanted to get a win in our Suburban One column and come out with the victory.
“It’s against Pennridge, so it’s even better.”
The Rams – who start two freshmen, one sophomore and two juniors - were led by the 11-point effort of Marchunsky while Dominic added 10 points, which included three treys. Pennridge is 0-7 in league play (0-10 overall).
Central Bucks East 51, Souderton 34
The Patriots are 7-0 after their first go-round in Continental Conference play, and the best part about it – according to both coach Tom Lonergan and his players – is not that East occupies its usual spot atop the conference standings but rather the improvement the team has shown over the course of the season.
“You have to be getting better throughout the team,” Lonergan said after Wednesday’s decisive win at Souderton. “We’re getting more comfortable, and the coaches are getting a feel for the rotation, and that’s important.
“All your growing pains through December and early January – you’re just trying to get a feel of what they’re good at and what pieces you can use out on the floor. That’s where we see the improvement.”
Courtney McManus scored a game-high 18 points to lead the Patriots while Melissa Remmey added 10. Lindsey Kelly contributed eight points while Shannon Devlin had a big day on the offensive glass, pulling down six offensive rebounds and eight rebounds overall – while scoring six points.
“I thought she played a strong game,” Lonergan said. “For a guard to get that many offensive rebounds – that’s important.”
In Wednesday’s win, the Patriots – sparked by six points from Kelly - took a 13-5 lead after one quarter and then outscored the Indians 17-10 to go into halftime with a commanding 30-15 lead. McManus scored 11 points in the half to lead the Patriots, eight in the second quarter.
“We have definitely improved overall,” Devlin said. “What we have improved at the most is rebounding.
“Coach always says we play great defense, but we’re not rebounding the ball. I think rebounding has improved tremendously which has obviously shown in our games. It keeps teams to one-and-done so they don’t have second opportunities, and it starts our transition.”
The Indians scored just two points in the fourth quarter and that basket came in the final minute of the game.
“Right now we feel pretty good about our defensive rotation and what each one brings to the table defensively,” Lonergan said. “The staff feels comfortable knowing with a certain group out on the floor what we do effectively in the defensive scheme.
“The offense is still taking time, but we’re getting more inside play.”
The Patriots will put their 7-0 SOL record on the line when they take on a suddenly streaking North Penn squad on Friday.
“This is only the first time through,” Lonergan said. “We have to go play everybody again. Teams are going to work harder to get ready for us, and we have to work even harder to be ready for them.”
“To me and the girls on the team, being 7-0 in the league doesn’t mean anything,” Devlin added. “Playing teams again – they’re going to come gunning for us.
“It’s important to stay focused and stay composed out there.”
Freshman Bianca Picard led the Indians with nine points while Nicole Perna and Carley Kendall each added eight points. Kendall scored all of her points in the third quarter.
North Penn 64, Hatboro-Horsham 34
The red hot Maidens - who surpassed the 50-point mark for the fourth game in a row - sprinted to a 37-12 halftime lead and coasted to the big win.
Lauren Crisler continued her string of torrid offensive performances, scoring a game-high 19 points for her fourth double-digit scoring effort in a row.
“She is playing really well,” coach Maggie deMarteleire said. “She’s playing good defense, she’s passing the ball well, and she’s being real strong with the ball. She’s looking to attack the basket more, which is a really good thing.”
The Maidens also received double-figure scoring efforts from Shannon Knauer and Meg Gallagher. Both players scored 10 points.
“We had some nice balance scoring,” deMarteleire said. “Everyone played well.”
Alicia Hayes led the Hatters with 11 points.
While the Hatters fell to 2-5 in SOL play (4-9 overall), the Maidens improved to 5-2 in the league and 8-4 overall.
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