PW defeated Lower Merion 53-42 to earn a spot in the District One Quad-A title game. Check out all of Wednesday's results. Photos of the PW/Lower Merion game provided courtesy of Kathy Leister Photography and Larry Small. Check our gallery of game photos…CLICK HERE.
By Scott Huff
Philadelphia – Plymouth Whitemarsh earned a return trip to the PIAA Quad-A District One championship game as the No. 2 seeded Colonials captured a 53-42 victory over No. 11 seed Lower Merion at the Liacouras Center on the campus of Temple University.
PW – which lost in the district finals to Abington last season – will square off against No. 9 Chester on Friday night with an 8 pm tip-off. The Clippers earned their date with the Colonials as Chester was impressive in a 74-62 victory over No. 4 Ridley.
“Last year we were new to the whole thing about playing in a district final,” said Plymouth Whitemarsh head coach Jim Donofrio. “But now we are a veteran group – and we can and will do good things.
“We are playing with a confidence that we didn’t have even three or four weeks ago,” added Donofrio. “We are quietly overcoming what I call our ‘casual cool’.”
One of the coolest players on the Colonials in this semifinal victory was 6-foot, 6-inch senior Mike Lotito. Lotito scored early for PW to help generate the early lead – and played well in the paint both offensively and defensively the entire 32 minutes.
“I liked what I saw tonight out of Mike Lotito,” said Donofrio. “He didn’t have this experience last year.”
Lotito – who missed district play last season due to fractured vertebrae in his back – had a grin from ear to ear after the game.
“This is an amazing feeling,” said Lotito – who has a number of Division 3 offers to play basketball next season. “Last year I got hurt in December and didn’t have a chance to play in the district playoffs.
“It is way harder watching from the bench than playing in the game,” added Lotito. “Watching us play last year might have been the toughest thing I have ever had to do.
“Even though it was great to play in a college arena – it felt like home,” continued Lotito. “This was a nice win – but we haven’t won the game we want to win – that game will be on Friday.”
PW battled Lower Merion to an 11-11 deadlock late in the first period. However, senior Oakley Spencer scored the final three points of the period to give the Colonials a 14-11 lead – and PW never trailed the remainder of the game.
The Aces forged a 32-32 tie in the third period – but a 5-0 run at the end of the quarter regained the lead for PW at 37-32.
The Colonials then went on a 6-2 run to take a 43-34 lead – but a six-point Lower Merion run closed the gap top 43-40 with 4:46 left in the game. However, PW scored eight of the next nine points to seal the victory for the SOL American Conference champions.
The Plymouth Whitemarsh offense was fueled – as usual – by Rider-bound senior Xzavier Malone who scored a game-high 19 points on a variety of drives to the rim. Oakley was clutch on the free throw line in the final period and also scored in twin digits with 14 points.
But the most impressive statistic, though, may have been the 18 turnovers that the swarming PW defense generated.
“Our defense play well, but I wasn’t too happy with our turnovers,” said Donofrio as PW had 12 turnovers – only one in the fourth period. “They trapped us – and we threw too many away. But we finally figured it out.”
And – as always – the Colonials seemed to figure out a way to win.
Lower Merion Aces 11-9-12-10*42
Plymouth Whitemarsh 14-10-13-16*53
LM: Jeremy Horn 12, KJ Helton 11, Noah Fennell 9, Terrell Jones 6 and Steve Payne 4.
PW: Xzavier Malone 19, Oakley Spencer 14, Mike Lotito 12, Kevin Ashenfelter 3, Ahmin Williams 3 and Ahmad Williams 2.
# 25 Hatboro Horsham Hatters [46] – # 5 Pennridge Rams [43]
East Rockhill – Hatboro Horsham continued its magical mystery tour through the PIAA Quad-A District One playoffs with a stunning victory over the host Rams. The Hatters (14-12) have now claimed victories over No. 1 seed Coatesville, No. 5 seed Pennridge, and No. 8 seed Strath Haven to gain a berth in the state playoffs.
Hatboro-Horsham once again will make a district playoff road trip as the Hatters will meet No. 18 Academy Park Friday night to determine the No. 9 and No. 10 seed in the state tournament. The Golden Knights advanced to the state tournament with a win over No. 3 seed Downingtown West – 61-54.
“Let’s just say it was a very good night for Hatboro Horsham basketball,” said head coach Ed Enoch. “It was an exciting game played before a sold-out crowd at Pennridge – you couldn’t get a ticket.
“It came down to the last possession at the end of the game,” added Enoch. “There was a couple of plays that we made at the end of the game that helped us beat a great Pennridge team.”
Pennridge – which had beaten Hatboro Horsham twice during the regular SOL Continental Conference season – actually led 43-42 late in the game after Max Wagner (game-high 16 points) scored a basket. However, Brian McEachern scored a basket to regain the lead for the Hatters at 44-43.
“Brian missed the first two-thirds of the season with an injury,” said Enoch. “And now that he is back healthy we are a much better basketball team.”
Pennridge decided to hold for a good shot for the possible game winner and called timeout with seconds remaining. Hatter junior Clifton Moore stole the inbounds pass – was fouled – and made a pair of free throws to give the Hatters a 46-43 lead. A Ram shot at the buzzer failed – and the Hatters became the lowest seed at 25 to make the state playoff field.
“We knew it was win or go home,” said Enoch. “And now we have some more basketball to play.”
Hatboro Horsham Hatters 13-16-7-19*46
Pennridge Rams 12-8-12-11*43
HH: Jay Davis 15, Clifton Moore 13, Brian McEachern 9, Brandon Crews 6 and Kyle Katz 3.
P: Max Wagner 16, Dan Long 14, Steve Lowry 6 and Sean Yoder 5.
# 7 Central Bucks West Bucks [59] – # 14 Conestoga Pioneers [31]
Doylestown – Central Bucks West tied a school record of 23 wins in a season as the Bucks (23-5) captured a PIAA Quad-A District One victory over the visiting Pioneers (19-9). CB West will now host # 12 Spring-Ford to determine the No. 5 and No. 6 seeds in the state tournament from District One on Friday night.
“It was one of those games where we defended very well the entire game,” said Central Bucks West head coach Adam Sherman. “We have played great defense the last few games. We held teams in the 30’s (Conestoga, Phoenixville, Downingtown East and Abington) and held PW to the low 40’s.
“Offensively we have five guys averaging around nine points a game,” added Sherman. “We are very balanced – and you never know who is going to step up in any given game.”
In the win over Conestoga, it was senior Billy Power who stepped up with a game-high 14 points. Senior Connor Lynch also scored in twin digits with 11 points.
The suffocating West defensive pressure did not allow the Pioneers to score in double figures in any of the four quarters. In contrast, the Bucks scored in double figures in each of the four periods.
“We’re very excited to still be playing,” said Sherman. “This has been a fun group to coach.
“We would like to play well against Spring-Ford in the next game,” added Sherman. “You want to have some confidence going into the state tournament, and a win helps with that confidence.”
Conestoga Pioneers 9-8-6-8*31
Central Bucks West Bucks 15-16-11-17*59
C: Andrew Larkin 11, Darryl Caldwell 5, Angus Mayock 4, MJ Leznic 4, Charlie Martin 3, Jack Baker 2 and Milt Robinson 2.
CBW: Bill Power 14, Connor Lynch 11, Jake Reichwein 9, Erich Hohlenleiter 6, Luke Irons 5, Liam Cooney 4, Shane Harrison 4, Collin MacAdams 4 and Zach Paley 2.
# 12 Spring-Ford Rams [64] – # 17 Central Bucks East Patriots [58] – Overtime
Limerick – Central Bucks East rallied in the fourth quarter to take a 43-38 lead but could not seal the deal in an overtime PIAA Quad-A District One loss to the host Rams. CB East (15-11) will now play still another away game on Friday night – this time against No. 14 Conestoga (19-9) in a game that will determine the No. 7 and No. 8 seed from District One.
“The players are disappointed,” said CB East head coach Erik Henrysen. “We gave it everything we had – and we had our chances to win the game.”
The Patriots had a huge game turned in my senior Blake Peterson who rebounded the ball well – scored 11 points – and scored the game-tying basket with one minute remaining in regulation.
“Blake controlled the glass and made some big baskets,” said Henrysen. “And Elijah (Seger) made some big plays for us to get us the lead.”
Spring-Ford outscored the Patriots 17-11 in overtime, burying 12-of-15 foul shots in the frame.
Tommy Strasburger led the Patriot attack with a game-high 19 points, which included three three-pointers. He now holds the CB East program record for three’s made in a career with 116. Joining Peterson in double digits for CB East were Justin O’Neil (12) and Matt Pattyson (10).
“We will get back on the bus on Friday and take the hour and a half trip to play Conestoga,” said Henrysen. “We have played every playoff game on the road – and really I don’t think it has had any impact on how we have played.
“You always want to win the game before entering states,” added Henrysen. “We want to build some momentum and continue to move forward.”
Central Bucks East 10-10-12-15-11*58
Spring-Ford Rams 15-5-18-9-17*64
CBE: Tommy Strasburger 19, Justin O’Neil 12, Blake Peterson 11, Matt Pattyson 10 and Elijah Seger 6.
S-F: Matt Gnais 16, Nigel Cooke 15, Nestor Diaz 13, Cameron Reid 11 and Charles Drummond 9.
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