American Conference
Upper Merion 47, Norristown 34Cassidy Koenig is rewriting the record books at Upper Merion.
The junior sharpshooter connected on five three-pointers in Friday’s big win to give her 55 for the season, shattering the previous single season mark in just 15 games. Kate Brobson, who held the previous record of 54, accomplished that feat in 25 games.
Koenig finished the night with a game-high 25 points.
“Koenig has been a staple for us for three years,” coach Tom Schurtz said. “Tonight she had 15 on three’s, but she also had four (baskets) from the field and was 2-for-5 from the line, so it was a pretty complete boxscore for her.
“Tonight when they were running at her, she was going to the basket. She has carried us this season. We’re a small, young team. We only have one senior who got substantial minutes, and now she’s out. We played good basketball tonight. That’s the best we’ve looked all season.”
Koenig’s performance allowed the Vikings to avenge an early-season 53-42 loss to the Eagles.
“It was a jim dandy of a game,” Schurtz said. “It was a lot of fun tonight.”
Early on, it didn’t look as though it would be the Vikings’ night as they opened the game 0-for-10 from the free throw line but finished 8-for-22.
The Vikings took a 19-16 lead into halftime and then outscored the Trojans 13-6 in the third quarter to seize control of the game. A key to the big quarter, according to Schurtz, was the fact that Norristown’s 6-3 center, Tyshay Britten, was forced to take a seat on the bench because of foul trouble.
“She’s gotten worlds better since last year,” Schurtz said. “With her out of the game, (Kristina) O’Sullivan could go to the basket.
“She only had 10 points, but she put them in foul trouble by attacking the rim with Cassidy Koenig spotting up behind her. It was a real physical game. They played fullcourt man the entire game, and we played halfcourt man. They have great team size, and we don’t have a girl over 5-9, but we just played a real physical game.”
A pair of freshmen came up big for the Vikings. In only her second start of the season, Katherine Bailey scored seven points while MJ Valeri added five points.
“To see a freshman who played jayvee all year step in because one of our senior starters (Jamie Mazzi) has pneumonia and will be out at least three more weeks – it was a great effort today,” Schurtz said. “When we make shots, we’re a tough team. When we don’t, we’re not.
“Today we attacked the rim and played very hard.”
Britten and Brianna Kennedy led the Eagles with 12 points each.
While the Eagles fell to 2-5 in the league (8-8 overall), the Vikings are 3-4 in the league (7-8 overall). Norristown will face William Tennent in an SOL Challenge game at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday at Souderton.
Plymouth Whitemarsh 49, Wissahickon 46 (OT)
As wins go, they don’t get much more exciting than the Colonials’ come-from-behind overtime win at Wissahickon.
“My heart hasn’t stopped pounding,” coach Becky Duffy said. “It was crazy. It was one of the craziest games I have ever been involved in, but it was a lot of fun.”
Things certainly didn’t start out on a promising note for the Colonials when – on the very first play of the game – senior Alyssa Butcher fell while going for a defensive rebound and dislocated her shoulder.
“Our whole game plan pretty much went out the window because she’s a big part of that game plan, and we need her to execute certain things,” Duffy said. “We continued to try and execute the same game plan without her, but it wasn’t working.”
The Colonials found themselves staring an 11-2 deficit at the end of one quarter.
“You have to give a lot of credit to Jerry (Hartman),” Duffy said of the Trojans’ coach. “He knew exactly how to tear apart our defense, and he was totally prepared for everything we were throwing at him. It came down to ‘Alright, the game plan is out the window. Let’s play good old-fashioned basketball. Let’s see who wants it more.’”
The Trojans – sparked by the eight-point effort of Dominique Earland – took a 22-12 lead into halftime. They still appeared to be in command heading into the fourth quarter with a 33-23 lead, but the Colonials – behind the torrid shooting of Gabby Schumacher – came roaring back.
Schumacher buried four three-pointers in the quarter as the Colonials outscored the Trojans 18-8 to send the game into overtime.
“Things didn’t click until really the fourth quarter,” Duffy said. “They never gave up. I’m just so proud of them because this team last year had the same thing happen except we were on the other end. We were winning the whole game, and we lost it.
“We have been in these situations before, and this year we have the experience to recognize it’s not over until it’s over, and you don’t stop playing.
“You hear coaches say all the time that it was a team effort. I’m telling you – it came down to managers. That’s how much of a team effort this was. The kids on the bench were starting ‘Defense’ chants, the managers were rushing to get the kids water. Everybody was cheering and clapping. It was special.”
The Colonials won it by outscoring the Trojans 7-5 in overtime. Lindsay Wacker scored four of those points, including a pair of foul shots to give the Colonials the lead.
“Players that were role players for the first half of the season were now big-time players in this game,” Duffy said. “People like Maya Thomas came in and played pretty much the whole second half.
“Lex Borkowski – my starting center fouled out of the game in the fourth quarter, and we had another kid come in. It was really a team effort. It’s exciting for the program, and it’s exciting for the kids.
Schumacher finished with a game-high 20 points, which included six three-pointers. Erin Martin added 11 points and, according to Duffy, took a huge charge with eight seconds remaining in regulation.
“You couldn’t ask for a better effort,” Duffy said. “I was thinking to myself in overtime - I wasn’t even worried about the score any more because I was so proud because of what I was experiencing and what I was seeing around me.
“You always want to win as a coach, but it was more than that. The fact that we won was a bonus. It’s a huge win for us because it’s a league game. It’s nice to see the turnaround and how things are now moving in the right direction.”
Earland led the Trojans with 13 points while Rachel Stone added 10 and Kim Schwemmer and Sierra Eskridge, eight points each.
While the Trojans fell to 2-5 in league play (5-8 overall), the Colonials upped their league mark to 5-2 (8-5 overall). Wissahickon returns to action in the SOL Challenge on Saturday when the Trojans will face Pennridge in a 2 p.m. contest at Hatboro-Horsham.
Continental Conference
Quakertown 58, Hatboro-Horsham 43
On Dec. 17, Hatboro defeated Quakertown 57-43. The Panthers decided to return the favor on Friday night, stunning the visiting Hatters by almost an identical score.
The win was the second in as many outings for the Panthers, who notched their first league win on Wednesday in OT over Pennridge.
The Panthers jumped out to a 16-9 lead at the end of one quarter and never looked back.
Lauren Starzecky was once again the offensive hero for the Panthers, collecting her second double-double in as many outings. On Friday, Starzecky had a game-high 25 points to go along with 16 rebounds.
Kathryne Vetter and Juli King each added 10 points while Natasha Hay had another strong defensive game to go with her six points and seven rebounds.
The Hatters were led by the eight-point efforts of Lindsay Day and Becca Purtell.
While the Hatters will host Plymouth Whitemarsh in an SOL Challenge contest on Saturday at 5 p.m., the Panthers (2-6 SOL, 4-10 overall) will go for their third win in a row on Saturday when they travel to Exeter.
National Conference
Abington 39, Neshaminy 34
It wasn’t easy, but the Ghosts gutted out an important win over the Redskins in a classic SOL battle.
“This game was very physical and very defensive-oriented,” coach Dan Marsh said. “They did a good job on us defensively, and we did a real good job on them defensively.”
Abington standout Aiyannah Peal was hampered by foul woes the entire night and fouled out 30 seconds after re-entering the game early in the fourth quarter. Peal picked up two quick fouls in the first quarter and saw limited action in the opening half. She picked up her third and fourth fouls early in the third period.
Although Peal scored just four points, her teammates picked up the slack. Chynna West led the Ghosts with 15 points, which included an 11-of-14 effort from the foul line. She also had eight rebounds and four steals.
“She was phenomenal,” Marsh said of West.
Jess Schmidt added nine points for the Ghosts while Sarah Listenbee contributed eight points.
“Neshaminy had some chances to catch up but missed some shots, and we were able to rebound,” said Marsh, whose team was 20-for-26 from the foul line.
The Ghosts led 17-11 at halftime, and although the Redskins held a 23-22 edge in the second half, the Ghosts never lost their lead.
Jade Kent led the Redskins with 13 points.
While the Redskins fell to 3-5 in the league (10-5 overall), the Ghosts upped their record to 7-1 in league play (10-4 overall). Neshaminy will face Central Bucks East in an SOL Challenge game at Council Rock North at 2 p.m. on Saturday while Abington will host neighboring Cheltenham at 5 p.m.
Pennsbury 55, Bensalem 48
Freshman Sajanna Bethea exploded for 25 points and also pulled down 10 rebounds to lead the Falcons to the big win. Kaitlin Kelly, also a freshman, added 13 points while senior Molly Phillips had nine points, eight rebounds and four steals.
Lindsay Bolger handed out eight assists to go along with four points for the Falcons, who connected on 5-of-6 from the foul line in the fourth quarter.
The Falcons took a 29-26 lead into halftime and added to that lead by outscoring the Owls 19-13 in the third quarter on their way to the win.
While the Owls dropped to 1-7 in league play, the Falcons improved to 3-5 in the league (5-9 overall). Pennsbury will travel to Souderton for an SOL Challenge contest with the Indians at 5 p.m. on Saturday while the Owls will face North Penn in a 2 p.m. contest at Abington.
Council Rock South 67, Harry S. Truman 23
Alex Wheatley scored a game-high 21 points – 16 in the first quarter – to lead the Golden Hawks. She also had nine rebounds. Teammate Taylor Hunt added nine points and Courtney Brown, seven points, in a contest that saw 10 Golden Hawks get into the scoring column.
Shannon McDuffie led the Tigers with eight points.
The Golden Hawks saw their SOL mark improve to 6-2 in league play (9-4 overall) while the Tigers fell to 0-8 in the league (1-13 overall). Truman will face Upper Moreland in a 2 p.m. contest at Council Rock South as part of the SOL Challenge while the Golden Hawks will face Central Bucks West at 5 p.m.
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