Check out the recaps for SOL boys’ basketball teams in action in Friday’s opening round of the District 1 6A Tournament. Neshaminy/Abington photos courtesy of Greg Lindsay. Check back for a gallery of photos. CLICK HERE to go directly to Suburban One Sports’ BOYS’ BASKETBALL GALLERIES.
District 1 6A opening round
#21 Neshaminy 62, #12 Abington 58
Just getting into the District One Class 6A playoffs wasn’t easy for Neshaminy. It was always a fight and that continued Friday when the team was rewarded with a 62-58 upset victory on the road against Abington. Junior Eriq Gold buried a 3 to break a tie with 15 seconds remaining for the game-winner.
“It was probably one of our most complete games this year,” said coach Mark Tingle. “The last time we played Abington was seven years ago when they were in our league and they had (current Villanova standout)
Eric Dixon, and we lost to them in districts. None of our guys had ever played them.
“It’s nice going into someone else’s place. We spent a lot of the week watching film on them. It’s a great environment. I’ve always liked playing in that gym, and we stepped up to the challenge.”
Key players: For Neshaminy, Eriq Gold (18 points), Max Currie (15 points, 6 rebounds, 4 blocks), Logan Gale (10 points).
For Abington, Jake Manigualt (17 points, 16 in second half), Paul Glants (15 points), Xander Grasty (11 points).
Neshaminy coach Mark Tingle said: “It really was a great game. We were down 12-4 early, had to call timeout, and we were able to get it back to 12-11. It was back and forth from that point on. I think four points was the biggest lead for either team the rest of the game.
“We shared the ball. They pressed us the whole game, and we did a great job of keeping our composure and attacking.”
–The big shot: “Eriq Gold – with 15 seconds left and a tie game – hit a huge ‘3’ to put us up three. That was definitely the game-winner.
“He came off the bench and had 18 points tonight. We had injuries earlier in the year, and he started the first seven or eight games, and has been our
sixth man ever since. He had a huge game-winner for us in the first game of the year. He’s a kid that doesn’t shy away from big moments or big shots. He had a nice game for us.
“Abington is definitely a very good team. They attacked the rim a lot, and Max (Currie) did a great job sliding over and helping out. Logan Gale and Jason Leiva did a great job handling pressure. It was a total team effort.”
Next up: Neshaminy (11-12) plays at #5 Plymouth Whitemarsh in a second round game on Tuesday. Abington closed its season with a 14-9 overall record.
Neshaminy 11 17 15 19 – 62
Abington 12 13 14 19 – 58
Neshaminy (62) – Jason Leiva 2 2-2 6; Eriq Gold 6 2-2 18; Logan Gale 4 2-4 10; Cadenn Amati 2 1-2 5; Max Currie 8 0-3 16; Gilardi 3 1-2 7. Totals 25 8-15 62.
Abington (58) – Kyler Pickron 0 1-2 1; Skit Garland 1 2-2 4; Xander Grasty 5 1-2 11; Michael O’Rourke 1 0-0 3; Jake Manigualt 7 3-5 17; Zion Hospadales 3 0-0 6; Paul Glants 6 1-2 15. Totals 23 8-13 58.
3-point goals: N-Gold 4; A-Glants 2, O’Rourke
17 Pennsbury 63, #16 Great Valley 49
On the road and searching for an elusive district playoff win, Pennsbury went to Great Valley confident that its guard play could make the difference against a solid, physical opponent from the Ches-Mont League.
Senior guards Grayson Gozum and Mike Roccograndi combined for 33 points, and the Falcons took over a close game in the second half for the victory that sends them to Tuesday’s second round and a date with #1 seed Lower Merion.
“It’s been that way all year,” coach Wes Emme said about his team’s guard play. “Patrick Jajua, Grayson Gozum, Mike Roccograndi. How they go is how we’re going to go. If they play well, we usually win. If they don’t, we’re going to struggle.”
Key players: For Pennsbury, Grayson Gozum (18 points), Mike Roccograndi (15 points), Max Manga (13 points).
Coach Wes Emme said: “We got off to a little bit of a slow start, but eased into the game and were up 18-10 in the second quarter. It felt like we were one or two plays away from breaking it open in the first half. They got a little momentum, started forcing turnovers and we ended up tied at halftime.
“In the third quarter, I think we wore them down a bit. We kind of broke them with our pressure. They have good size, really good shot making, and they’re physical defensively. But we thought if we go use our strength, which is our guard play, we could wear them down.”
–Props: “Graysom Gozum was outstanding. He guarded their best player, Chris Woodard, and ended up with 18 (points), 7 (rebounds) and 7 (assists). Mike Roccograndi was just solid in every single moment of the game. He had 15 points, and he really guarded well. He probably played 31 1/2 minutes. Max Manga had his best game in the last couple of weeks with 13 points and double digit rebounds.”
–Playoff success: “This is my third year back with the program, and getting our first district win means a lot. It feels good to get on the board. And it gives us a little breathing room. We have two more opportunities to play.
“But we’ve been mostly focused on the day, on the next play. We’re going to really enjoy this win, and we’re super excited to play Lower Merion. A great team, historic program, great coach in Greg Downer, a great place to play a high school basketball game. And the stakes are so much higher.”
Next up: Pennsbury (13-10) plays at #1 Lower Merion (18-4) in the second round on Tuesday.
Pennsbury 18 8 21 16 – 63
Great Valley 13 13 12 11 – 49
Pennsbury (63) – Brayden Clark 1 1-2 4; Mike Roccograndi 6 1-4 15; Grayson Gozum 7 3-4 18; Sean Breslin 2 0-0 4; Pat Jajua 2 3-4 9; Max Manga 4 5-6 13. Totals 22 13-20 63.
Great Valley (49) – Person 4 0-0 9; Metrick 2 0-0 4; Weikert 4 0-0 9; Benson 2 0-0 4; Levine 2 0-0 5; Alexander 1 0-0 2; Woodward 7 1-1 16. Totals 22 1-1 49.
3-point goals: P – Brayden Clark, Mike Roccongrandi 2, Grayson Gozum, Pat Jajua 2. GV-Person, Weikert, Levine, Woodard
#13 Bensalem 57, #20 Owen J. Roberts 33
It didn’t look great for Bensalem early on, but after falling behind 10-3 in the first quarter, the Owls found their stride, dominating the second and third quarters on the way to the blowout win over visiting Owen J. Roberts Friday.
Bensalem outscored ORJ 13-2 in the second quarter and 16-8 in the third.
Key players: For Bensalem, Aidan Mayfield (15 points), Amir Drummond (11 points), Christian Lee (10 points, 2 3-pointers).
Bensalem coach Ron Morris: “It’s a great win. Coming into the game, we knew Owen J. Roberts is an up-and-coming program. They had a couple guys that are real key to their scoring, so we were really focused in on them. They came out in a 2-3 zone, and we weren’t hitting shots early. We were down 10-3, but we’re a resilient group. It’s a position we’ve been in before. We’ve played so many different styles of basketball where teams slow it down or we win by a lot or lose by a lot. We’ve played six overtime games, we had 10 games five points or under, so we’re prepared for any type of basketball that’s going to come our way.
“Our guys didn’t blink an eye. Christian Lee had five points in the second quarter to bring us right back, so he was key. We got a lot of contributions. Aidan Mayfield was just unbelievable on defense. Their kid, number five (Elijah Cline), is going to York College, and Aidan just did an amazing job on him. That kid didn’t really score much at all. He didn’t score in the second and third quarter. He scored in the fourth quarter when we subbed.
“Jahmir Chatman did a great job on No. 1 (Danny Walker), who’s a great lacrosse player and is a sniper out on the court. In the second and third quarter, we held them to eight points total, and that was the difference in the game. We just had a lot of toughness and grit on defense, which then got us easier buckets on offense. We knew once we got the lead they would have to come out of the zone, and we felt our speed could hurt them when that happened.”
–Props: “Trevor Morris had a monster second half. We started him in the second half. He had a bunch of rebounds, he was out in transition, finishing at the rim. Jahmir Chatman continued to do everything. He had six points and eight rebounds. He had three or four offensive rebounds, so he gave us a lot of good minutes. Amir (Drummond) didn’t have it going in the first half. He ended up scoring nine in the second half. Jacob Eberhardt came in and gave us solid minutes throughout the game. He had a nice 3 in the second half. Chris Kelly continues to give us good minutes.
“Aidan Mayfield is just doing an awesome job on the defensive end. Once he got confident on the offensive end, he got out in transition, and he has such good agility he can get around these guys and finish at the rim. That’s fun to watch.
–Moving on: “We battled, we’re resilient. This is a fun group to coach. We’re just really excited to make it past the first round. We’ve had goals coming into the season of winning the league, making districts. We’ve done both of those, and we want to qualify for states. Now we’re one game closer. We’ll enjoy this win tonight and get ready for a war on Tuesday.”
Next up: Bensalem (15-9) plays at #4 Garnet Valley in the second round on Tuesday.
Owen J Roberts 10-2-6-15 33
Bensalem 3-13-18-23 57
Owen J Roberts (33) – Danny Walker 1 0-0 3; Ryan Holmburg 3 0-0 6; Elijah Cline 6 2-4 14; Gavin Winnick 1 0-2 2; Ryan Simpson 0 5-8 5; Dylan Drumheller 1 1-2 3; Totals 12 8-16 33
Bensalem (57) – Jahmir Chatman 3 0-0 6; Aidan Mayfield 7 1-2 15; Christian Lee 4 0-0 10; Amir Drummond 4 3-6 11; Dymaire Johnson 1 0-0 2; Trevor Morris 4 0-0 8; Jayden Matthew 1 0-0 2; Jacob Eberhardt 1 0-0 3; Totals 25 4-8 57.
3-point goals: OJR – Danny Walker; B – Christian Lee 2, Jacob Eberhardt
#11 Cheltenham 45, #22 Penn Wood 29
The Panthers led by just a 16-15 score after one quarter but then allowed just 14 points over the next three quarters combined on their way to the opening round win.
“At this time of year, offense is great, but defensively, I just think that we came in with a plan to try to just defend every possession, try and limit as many second chance points as we could and just stay as a unit defensively and collectively rebound,” Cheltenham coach Patrick Fleury said. “And in terms of our possessions, try not to waste our possessions.”
Key players: For Cheltenham, Osei Johnson led a balanced scoring effort with 15 points – seven in a 16-point first quarter Kamal Mason added 10 points.
Cheltenham coach Patrick Fleury on the game: “Penn Wood had a lot of size in their front court, so we definitely understood we had to crash the glass collectively and just put our best foot forward defensively. They are a good team, and 29 points is an amazing feat, one I would prefer rather than trying to get 90 points.
“I just think the guys were cohesive on the defensive end. Offensively, they shared the ball, they took the opportunities that were there and didn’t really force anything. It’s cliché, but it was a team effort. All the contributions were similar. There wasn’t a drop-off with our rotations. The most exciting part was the cohesion on defense.”
Next up: Cheltenham (16-7) plays at #6 Central Bucks South in the second round on Tuesday.
Penn Wood 15-5-6-3 29
Cheltenham 16-8-8-13 45
Penn Wood (29) – Jehki Estrada 3 1-2 8; Mafi Davis 1 0-0 2; Taj Cobbs 2 0-0 5; Maurion Miller 0 2-2 2; Amaury Womack 1 2-2 5; Zahsheen Levens 0 2-2 2; Haji Ali 1 0-0 2; Malik Edwards 0 3-6 3; Totals 8 10-14 29
Cheltenham (45) – Chris Harmon 0 2-4 2; Kamal Mason 5 0-2 0; Xavier Willoughby 1 1-2 3; Mark Hill 1 0-2 2; Osei Johnson 3 8-8 15; Salim Kelly 2 0-0 5; Isaia Vargas 1 0-0 2; Tyree Martin 2 2-8 6; Totals 15 13-26 45
3-point goals: PW – Jehki Estrada, Taj Cobbs, Amaury Womack; C – Osei Johnson, Saliim Kelly
#10 Spring-Ford 59, #23 Wissahickon 54
This one was going to be a tough one for Wissahickon to begin with. After clinching a playoff berth in the last two games, the Trojans were on the road against a very good Spring-Ford team on Tuesday.
And, they had to play the game without their best player – sophomore guard and leading scorer Nico Vacchiano (18.6 ppg), who was sick.
But coach Kyle Wilson’s squad never stopped battling before coming up a little short in the end, 59-54. Senior Mason Stelzer kept the Trojans in with a team-high 24 points – 16 in the second half.
Key players: For Wissahickon, Mason Stelzer (24 points), Chris Lee (11 points).
Coach Kyle Wilson said: “You try to teach kids all season about grit and determination. Nico Vacchiano was sick. He tried to practice yesterday and couldn’t. His parents took him to Urgent Care last night, and he couldn’t go today. It’s always tough to play a game without a Vacchiano on the court. We’ve had that for the last five years, with his brother who graduated last year.
“Mentally, that can mess with guys, but our guys stepped on the court and competed. It’s always awkward not playing with your main player, and we
made some mistakes and were down 10 after the first quarter. But after that, we pretty much played them even.
“In the third quarter, we got it to two, but just couldn’t make enough plays down the stretch.
“You’re not looking for moral victories this time of year, but going in without your key player, you can hang your hat on playing well and playing the kind of basketball that we like to play.”
Next up: Spring-Ford (18-7) advances on to play at #7 Souderton in the second round on Tuesday. Wissahickon concluded its season at 11-12 overall.
Wissahickon 8 13 12 21 – 54
Spring-Ford 17 13 13 16 – 59
Wissahickon (54) – Mason Stelzer 8 7-7 24; Chris Neumeister 0 2-2 2; Michael Maltin 2 2-2 6; Chris Lee 4 0-0 11; Owen Haughey 1 0-1 2; Ben Schwartz 2 1-4 5; Delmar Taliafaro 2 0-0 4. Totals 19 12-16 54.
Spring-Ford (59) – Blake Turner 0 2-2 2; Tommy Kelly 3 5-8 11; Jacob Nguyen 8 7-9 27; Jordan Marsillo 1 2-4 4; Sy Barnes 5 2-2 13; Luke Putko 1 0-0 2. Totals 18 18-25 59.
3-point goals: W-Lee 3, Stelzer; SF-Nguyen 4, Barnes
#14 Methacton 83, #19 Council Rock South 72
On the road, CR South dug itself a hole in the second quarter, but came storming back to get to within six in the fourth quarter, before host Methacton was able to pull away for the 83-72 victory.
“I’m proud of our guys’ fight,” said coach Andrew Rogers. “In the fourth quarter, we got it to six and a chance to get to four, but we had a couple of bad bounces. The second quarter was a combination of missed shots, and they were able to get to the basket against us. But credit to our guys. They could have packed it in and they didn’t.”
Key Players: For CR South, Ryan Delp (26 points), MJ Thompson (19 points), Adam Elabed (10 points, all in fourth quarter).
Coach Andrew Rogers said: “I think some of the (high scoring) was due to us being down and we tried to pressure to get the game quicker in the second half to give us more possessions.
“I thought in the first quarter, we played really well, but we had a lull in the second quarter, were missing some shots. (Methacton) played good defense and took us out of our stuff, and we went into the half down 20.”
–Props: “I thought everybody in the game for us gave us good minutes. Ryan Delp and MJ Thompson were able to get loose for shots, and any time they’re able to do that is a good thing for us. Senior Adam Elabed came in and had 10 points in the fourth quarter as well.
“We tried to kind of give credit where credit is due, especially our senior class. This is the second year we were able to make districts, and it sends them off in the right way. We only started one senior, and that’s great experience for our younger guys. But the way we look at it, is that you owe the guys before you. Our four seniors exemplify what we want to be as a program. Now it’s up to our younger guys to take over and live up to that.”
Next up: Methacton (17-6) advances on to play at #3 Conestoga in the second round on Tuesday. CR South finished the season with a 13-10 overall record.
Council Rock South. 12-13-14-23 72
Methacton 11-34-14-24 83
Council Rock South (72) – MJ Thompson 6 4-4 19; Ryan Delp 10 2-2 26; Ray Haglund 2 0-1 4; Ryan Wekluk 3 2-2 9; Pat Malone 1 2-2 4; Adam Elabed 4 1-3 10; Totals 26 11-14 72.
Methacton (83) – Mason Conrad 3 5-5 12; Jack Lineen 2 3-4 7; Sal Iemmelle 5 4-5 15; John Bradford 2 0-0 6; Wes Robinson 10 9-13 29; Jahmir Carter 1 3-4 5; John Leet 3 2-3 9; Totals 26 26-33 83.
3-point goals: CRS – Ryan Delp 4, MJ Thompson 3, Adam Elbed, Ryan Wekluk; M – John Bradford 2, John Leet, Sal Iemmello, Mason Conrad.
Class 5A
# 7 Holy Ghost Prep 74, #10 Springfield Twp 41
Springfield faced a tall order in the opening round of the Class 5A district tournament, traveling to perennial independent power Holy Ghost Prep on Friday night, and the result ended up being a 74-41 win for the host Firebirds.
Brandon Thompson had 13 points to lead the Spartans, who continued to gain ground as a program this season, qualifying for districts three years removed from a winless season.
Key players: For Springfield, Brandon Thompson (13 points, 5 rebounds), Will Cooney (8 points, 4 blocks), Aiden Hood (7 points, 5 rebounds, 3 steals), Bob Hartman (7 points, 7 rebounds).
Coach Rob Fusaro said: “It was a great year. Those guys all bought in from the top to the bottom. It was really nice to see them finally have success at Springfield.
“They came in, and we started building with these guys (when they were freshmen). They’ve all stayed true to it, stayed with it and really bought into and committed to basketball, which was really fun to see.
“They have set the standard. Basketball is not just an activity in the high school, it’s performance-based. It’s not recreational where everyone just goes in and plays. If you want to be competitive, you have to play guys that can go in there and do that. These kids understood that. They put the time in to get themselves in that position..
“High school varsity basketball is competitive. To be competitive in the Suburban One, you have to have guys that are willing to do that, and they were. They set the standard for the younger guys who now know what the expectation is and what you need to do to play varsity competitively.
“It was a fun run with these guys.”
Next up: While Holy Ghost (15-8) advanced on to play #2 Penncrest on Wednesday, Springfield finished its season at 12-11 overall.
Springfield Twp. 8-12-8-13 41
Holy Ghost Prep. 20-24-19-11 74
Springfield Twp (41) – Brandon Thompson 5 3-8 13; Bob Hartman 3 1-3 7; Chadrack Kiamba 1 0-0 2; Aiden Hood 3 0-0 7; Will Cooney 3 0-0 8; Cahlin Spearman 2 0-0 4; Totals 17 4-11 41
Holy Ghost (74) – Zachary Sharlin 4 3-7 14; Adam McDonald 3 2-3 8; Robert Segarich 5 0-0 13; Brandon Bass 2 0-0 6; Aden Brody 1 0-0 3; Charles Steinmentz 1 0-0 2; Mark Stenardo 2 0-0 5; Liam Condon 5 0-0 10; Adrien Varella 3 3-4 9; Thomas Nahill 2 0-0 4; Totals 28 8-14 74
3-point goals: S – Will Cooney 2, Aiden Hood; HGP – Zachary Sharlin 3, Robert Segarich 3, Brandon Bass 2, Aden Brody, Mark Stenardo.
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