Check out the recaps for SOL boys’ basketball teams in action Tuesday. Bensalem/Neshaminy photos courtesy of John Gleeson. CB East/North Penn photos courtesy of Tracy Valko. Check back for galleries of both games.
SOL Liberty
Wissahickon 50, Plymouth Whitemarsh 34
Defensively, Wissahickon was solid all night, especially down the stretch in the fourth quarter, and the Trojans also did a good job against Plymouth Whitemarsh’s pressure defense and the result was a surprising 16-point win as SOL Liberty Division play resumed on Tuesday night.
“When your kids have to see that level of pressure – nobody else in the league does jump-traps as well as (PW does), it was good for our kids,” said Wissahickon coach Kyle Wilson. “They held their ground, handled their pressure, had good ball movement and good execution. You know their jump-tramps are coming, you have to have someone step up and help break the pressure.”
Sophomore Dom Vacchiano had a big night for the Trojans with 16 points, 10 rebounds and five steals.
“He had a phenomenal game,” Wilson said. “He just was constant, he was steady. They force so many mistakes, so many turnovers, and if it wasn’t Josh Twersky, it was Dom. For a sophomore playing with so much poise, he’s getting better and better every game.”
Up 38-31 after three quarters, Wissahickon then held PW to just three points in the fourth quarter and put the game away.
“We were able to contest (shots) and box out,” Wilson said. “Our guys did a good job boxing out and not giving up second and third opportunities. They were pretty much one-and-done.
“I hope our kids get a feeling that they can get on a run. We hung with a Methacton team that I think is one of the best teams in the district. We came in and played a solid PW team. We want to play with anybody in the district. Our goal is to be a playoff contender, and our kids are on track to reach some of those goals. With COVID, you never know what’s going to happen, but they’re sharing the ball well and we’re playing good defense.”
Earl Stout also had 11 points for Wissahickon, and Josh Twersky had eight.
PW was led by Qudire Bennett’s 13 points.
Wissahickon (6-3, 3-1 SOL) plays at William Tennent on Friday. PW (4-3, 2-1 SOL) hosts Cheltenham.
Plymouth Whitemarsh (34)
Zende Hubbard 2 2-2 6; Jaden Colzie 2 0-0 5; Marshall Baker 1 0-0 2; J. Sayler 1 0-0 2; Taji Hubbard 2 0-1 4; Qudire Bennett 4 2-2 13; Patrick Flynn 1 0-0 2. Totals 14 4-5 34.
Wissahickon (50)
Rondale Stewart 1 1-2 3; Josh Twersky 3 2-2 8; Jaylon Williams 2 0-0 6; Morgan Wilson 3 0-2 6; Dom Vacchiano 7 0-0 16; Earl Stout 4 1-2 11. Totals 20 4-8 50.
Plymouth Whitemarsh 9 11 11 3 – 34
Wissahickon 13 15 10 12 – 50
3-point goals: PW-Colzie 1, Bennett 1; W-Vacchiano 2, Stout 2
Abington 56, Quakertown 38
Playing with its full roster for the first time this season, Abington went on the road and handled Quakertown in a SOL Liberty Division game on Tuesday night.
Derrius Lucas led all scorers with 16 points, while Connor Fields and Fhenyx Scott were also in double figures with 15 and 10 points, respectively.
“Derrius Lucas played well,” said Galloping Ghosts coach Charles Grasty. “He got into a little bit of foul trouble, but besides that, he played well. Connor Fields played well.
“Some of the other guys that got in – Damon Rawls is a 5-3 sophomore; he played extremely hard, really good defense, and he hit a shot for us. He’s earning some minutes for us as a sophomore. He’s coming along really well. I know he’d like to play a few more minutes, but he has some guys in front of him. When he gets in, he is full throttle, and we like that about him.”
Abington, which lost at Quakertown last season, led by six, 25-19, at halftime, but then pulled away in the second half.
“I was definitely pleased with our defense,” Grasty said. “(Quakertown) made some shots. Their coach gets them to play hard. No doubt about it, they play hard and they kept coming at us, but I thought our defense was solid.
“Kayjel Morris played some really good defense and came up with some really good stops and got us out in transition, and we were able to get a couple of easy ones which we weren’t getting earlier in the year.
“I thought our energy and our defense definitely picked us up.”
Ty Wilkin led Quakertown with 10 points.
Abington (3-3, 3-1 SOL) plays at Lower Moreland on Friday, while Quakertown (2-8, 0-5 SOL) hosts New Hope-Solebury.
Abington (56)
Derrius Lucas 16, Connor Fields 15, Fhenyx Scutt 10, Jimmy Marino 6, Damon Rawls 3, Jeremiah Lee 3, Chris Dorman 3.
Quakertown (38)
Sam Wilkin 4, Kyle Rosenberger 3, Ethan Tomlinson 6, Ty Wilkin 10, Brendon Ruzicka 3, Vince Micucci 1, Miles Longacre 4, Anthony Callan 2, Stephan Frumusselu 3, Max Morris 2.
Abington 15 10 15 16 – 56
Quakertown 10 9 10 9 – 38
Upper Dublin 44, Hatboro-Horsham 26
Colin O’Sullivan scored a team-high 19 points, 10 in a big first half as the Flying Cardinals pulled away from Hatboro-Horsham on Tuesday.
“It was a close game early on, a close game at half,” said Upper Dublin coach Chris Monahan, whose team led 21-19 at halftime. “The third quarter was a big quarter for us. We held them to two points and, really the whole second half, we held them to (seven) points. Some of that was defense, some of that they missed shots they could have made, but i think overall our defense was much better in the second half than it was in the first half.
“We pressed them in the third quarter. They turned it over a few times which let us score. They did miss some shots, but I think our defense had a little bit to do with it as well.”
Seaton Kukla added 11 points for Upper Dublin.
“Seaton (Kukla) is right around his average for the year,” Monahan said. “He’s been doing that game-to-game, and then it’s been somebody else. It’s been a different guy – whether that’s DJ (Ceresier), whether that’s Chris Kohlbrenner – and tonight it was Colin (O’Sullivan).
“He started off knocking down a ‘3’ early in the first quarter, and I think that got him going a little bit. He made another in the second quarter, and he was steady for us all night, not just scoring the ball with 19 but handling the ball, making good decisions down the stretch. He played a very good overall floor game when a lot of our guards were in foul trouble. DJ had fouls, Chris Kohlbrenner had fouls, and Colin really did a great job steadying the ship.”
Noah Schlosser’s 11 points led the Hatters, who also received nine points from Kyle Dittus.
Upper Dublin (5-2, 3-0 SOL) hosts Springfield on Friday. Hatboro-Horsham (1-8, 1-4 SOL) plays at Upper Moreland.
Upper Dublin (44)
D.J. Ceresier 1 0-0 2; Noah Lee 0 2-3 2; Chris Kohlbrenner 1 0-0 2; Mason Pensabene 1 0-0 2; Colin O’Sullivan 6 5-5 19; Griffin Pensabene 1 2-2 4; Coleman Zambrosky 0 2-2 2; Seaton Kukla 4 3-4 11. Totals 12 15-16 44.
Hatboro-Horsham (26)
Noah Schlosser 3 5-6 11; Kyle Dittus 3 2-4 9; Chrishon Avery 1 2-2 4; Cole Jackson 0 0-2 0; Christian Daniels 0 2-2 2; Totals 7 11-16 26.
Upper Dublin 7-14-13-10 44
Hatboro-Horsham 7-12-2-5 26
3-point goals: UD – Colin O’Sullivan 2; HH – Kyle Dittus.
SOL Freedom
Cheltenham 67, Springfield Township 43
Playing for the first time since Dec. 17, Cheltenham shook off some rust, built a 16-point lead by halftime and handled Springfield in a SOL Freedom game on Tuesday.
“We had such good momentum before (the shutdown),” said Panthers coach Patrick Fleury. “It’s going to take us some to get back, but I’m definitely confident that we will. It could be a good thing for us – a rejuvenation – but it was just way too long of a layoff, but everyone’s going through it. It just gives you a whole new appreciation and focus.”
Defensively, the Panthers shut down the Spartans from the start, allowing only 14 first-half points and 43 for the game.
“To give up 43 points effort-wise is nothing I can be upset about, but we obviously want to do better,” Fleury said. “Defensively, they gave the effort. We’re just happy to be back and playing again. We definitely want to remain safe throughout all of it.
“The kids played well. Our guards – Josiah (Hutson) and Elias (Walker) – together had very good games, which we anticipate. Sheem (Dearry), (Justin) Savage and our other seniors held the fort down. It’s not showing up as much in the box score, but their plays are key. It was very good to see.”
Offensively, Hutson had 12 to lead Cheltenham. He also added three rebounds. Elias Walker had 10 points and four assists. Savage finished with six points, five blocks, seven rebounds and three steals. Dearry and John Fevrier had four rebounds each, while Kevin Addison-Anderson had three boards. As a team, the Panthers finished with 21 steals.
“Kamani Healey, who had seven (points), and John Fevrier came off the bench with six for us,” Fleury said. “Kevin Addison also gave us two steals and two blocks.
“It was a total team effort. Obviously, offensively we want to do better, and I think we will in time once we are back in the season. Today, it was just good to compete against somebody else and be off the restrictions.”
Springfield was led by Kyle Smythe’s 15 points.
Cheltenham (6-0, 3-0 SOL) plays at Plymouth Whitemarsh on Friday, while Springfield (3-3, 1-3 SOL) plays at Upper Dublin.
Springfield (43)
Dylan McKenzie 6, Ben Cooney 6, Brett Smith 2, Harry Rittenhouse 4, Jimmy Halligan 2, Kyle Smythe 15, Tommy Koppel 2, Christian Montavo 2, JT Slapinskiy 4.
Cheltenham (67)
Rasheem Dearry 2, Josiah Hutson 12, Yakeen Respes 4, Elias Walker 11, Kamani Healey 7, Nasir Edens 8, Brandon Bush 6, Justin Savage 6, Johnathan Fevrier 6, Taavi Mateen 3, Kevin Addison-Anderson 2.
Springfield Township 8 6 14 15 – 43
Cheltenham 12 19 17 19 – 67
William Tennent 54, Lower Moreland 49
Tennent built a big lead through three quarters and then held off visiting Lower Moreland down the stretch for the five-point win on Tuesday.
“We almost gave it away,” said Panthers coach Robert Mulville. “We were up 42-26 going into the fourth quarter, and then (Lower Moreland) came out hot in the fourth quarter. They hit four ‘3s’, had a couple three-point plays, and cut it all the way back down to two. Fortunately, we were able to get to the foul line, and we made 8 of 10 free throws in the fourth quarter.”
George Marion finished with 20 points for Tennent, while Kirby Mooney had 14.
“I think overall it was a pretty good team effort,” Mulville said. “Scoring wise, those two guys stood out, but we played all 10 guys, because we got in foul trouble in the first quarter.
“I feel good about them. I told after the game that we made mistakes in the fourth quarter, but in the end, the goal was to get better and we did that. From the first game against Neshaminy until now, I think we’ve made progress each game. Our passing is a little bit better. I feel real good about what we’re trying to do collectively as a team. We hadn’t played since Dec. 20. The last two games were cancelled, and we didn’t even play over the break.”
Tom Przblinski had 16 points to lead Lower Moreland, including five 3-pointers, while John Kroll had 10 points.
Tennent (3-3, 3-1 SOL) hosts Wissahickon on Friday. LM (2-5, 2-1 SOL) has a nonleague game Wednesday at Delaware County Christian.
Lower Moreland (49)
Tom Przyblinski 5 1-3 16; Brian Grant 2 0-0 5; Matt Ernst 3 0-1 6; Ian Alicea 2 1-2 6; John Kroll 3 4-5 10; Mason Tammaro 2 1-1 6
William Tennent (54)
Henry 0 2-2 2; George Marion 8 4-6 20; Kirby Mooney 4 6-6 14; Dawson 2 0-0 4; Fithian 1 0-0 2; Tim Stanfield 3 0-0 8; Scheller 1 0-0 2; Beluch 1 0-0 2; Devor 0 0-2 0.
Lower Moreland 8 7 11 23 – 49
William Tennent 18 13 11 12 – 54
3-point goals: LM-Przyblinski 5, Grant, Kroll, Tammaro; WT-Stanfield 2
Upper Moreland 47, New Hope-Solebury 28
Matt Tiernan and Byron Hopkins were a potent inside-outside combination in the first half, as Upper Moreland jumped up early and then put host New Hope away with a dominant second half defensively on Tuesday night. They outscored the Lions 25-9 after the intermission to seize control of a close game.
Tiernan scored 10 of his game-high 16 points in the first half. Hopkins had seven in the first quarter, including a 3-pointer and finished with 11 for the game. They scored all but three of UM’s points in the first half.
Then, defensively, the Bears clamped down, holding New Hope to just two points in the third quarter and nine total for the second half, enabling them to break open what was a three-point lead at halftime.
Miles Demby led NH-S with nine points.
UM (5-2, 2-2 SOL) hosts Interboro in a nonleague game on Wednesday. New Hope (1-9, 0-4 SOL) plays at Quakertown on Friday.
Upper Moreland (47)
Sean Dallahan 1 0-0 3; Byron Hopkins 4 2-2 11; Nigel Adamson 1 0-0 2; Bo Meakim 1 0-0 2; Rashim Lancet 2 2-2 7; Matt Tiernan 7 2-2 16; Stefano Garofalo 1 0-0 2; Colson Campbell 1 2-2 4. Totals 18 8-8 47.
New Hope (28)
Jon Wilson 1 2-2 4; Charlie Albano 3 0-0 7; Justin Lehman 2 1-2 6; Brian Demby 1 0-0 2; Miles Demby 2 4-6 9. Totals 9 7-10 28.
Upper Moreland 11 11 12 13 – 47
New Hope 7 12 2 7 – 28
3-point goals: UM-Dallahan 1, Hopkins 1, Lancet 1; NHS-Albano 1, Lehman 1, M. Demby 1
SOL Patriot
Bensalem 64, Neshaminy 54
Tied at halftime, Bensalem upped the defensive pressure in the third quarter and built a lead it would never surrender on the way to the 10-point win at Neshaminy.
“It’s always tough to go on the road and get a league win, especially at Neshaminy.” said Owls’ coach Ron Morris. “Coach (Mark) Tingle does a great job. They’re always prepared, and it’s a tough
place to play. The good thing about our team is that on any given night different guys can step up and contribute.
Aaron Sanders led Bensalem with 16 points for the game, while Jake DeLange and Jeremy Rodriguez finished with 12 points each.
“Jake DeLange is coming off an injury,” Morris said. “He was our starter, and we were down since Abington (on Dec. 14). He was slow to start his first couple games back. Tonight, he came out and he played really well.
“I thought Aaron (Sanders) did a nice job. We talked before the game about just letting the game come to him. In the first half, he facilitated, and in the second half, he took over when he needed to.”
Bensalem may have won by 10, but this was a 19-19 game at halftime.
“In the third quarter, we came out and played really good defense, which led to some easy buckets,” Morris said. “We were unselfish on the break. Jeremy (Rodriguez) did a really nice job breaking the press, getting to the rim. Allen (Myers) had a 
couple of finishes and some foul shots. It was good, unselfish basketball, and when you play as a team, it’s hard to defend because at any given time, anybody can score.
“The defensive end is where you get going, and that’s what we did in the third quarter. We locked in and we held them scoreless for about three minutes in the third quarter, and that was the difference in the game.
“Neshaminy fought hard. We knew they weren’t going to quit. Emeer Coombs did a nice job getting in the paint, drawing contact and making foul shots. We just honed in. Jeremy and Aaron did a nice job on (Sean) Curley and (Evan) Esposito. We know those guys can get going at any given moment. Allen Myers also was a difference maker on defense in the middle and also rebounding.”
Esposito led Neshaminy with 12 points, while Coombs and Kade Benjamin had nine points each.
Bensalem (6-2, 4-1 SOL) plays at CB South on Friday, while Neshaminy (3-3, 2-2 SOL) hosts CB South.
Bensalem (64)
Jeremy Rodriguez 5 1-2 12; Tra Edwards 1 2-4 5; Allen Myers 2 4-9 8; Eric Gonzalez 1 2-4 5; Aaron Sanders 5 5-6 16; Jack Wineburg 2 0-0 6; Jake DeLange 5 1-1 12; Totals 21 15-26 64.
Neshaminy (54)
Joey Zack 2 2-2 6; Evan Esposito 4 2-3 12; Emeer Coombs 2 5-6 9; Kade Benjamin 4 1-1 9; Nunzio Zydzik 1 2-2 5; Sean Curley 1 0-0 3; Nate Townsend 2 4-6 8; Totals 16 16-20 54.
Bensalem 17-12-18-17 64
Neshaminy 15-14-11-14 54
3-point goals: B – Jack Wineburg 2, Jeremy Rodriguez, Tra Edwards, Eric Gonzalez, Aaron Sanders, Jake DeLange; N – Evan Esposito 2, Nunzio Zydzik, Sean Curley.
Council Rock South 64, Harry S Truman 51
Shane Dawson scored nine points in a big first quarter as CR South jumped up early and never looked back on the road at Truman on Tuesday.
CR South led 17-8 after one quarter and 31-15 at halftime.
Dawson finished with 14 of his game-high 19 points in the first half, and also led South with 10 rebounds.
Zach Schwartz added 14 points, 10 in the second half, for the Golden Hawks, while Gavin Holloran had 13 and Anthony Burns 10 points and six assists.
Ethan Flail scored 22 and Makai Jackson added 12 to lead Truman.
CR South (4-5, 1-4 SOL) hosts CB East on Friday. Truman (2-4, 0-3 SOL) plays at Pennridge.
Council Rock South (64)
Gavin Holloran 4 4-4 13; Anthony Burns 2 5-6 10; Shane Dawson 8 1-2 19; Matt Robinson 2 0-0 5; Zach Schwartz 6 2-3 14; Chase Littig 1 0-0 3. Totals 23 12-15 64.
Truman (51)
Ethan Flail 9 2-2 22; Anthony Masterson 0 1-2 1; Tylin Carringon 1 0-0 2; Gavin Burns 0 2-2 2; Franz Fabian 2 0-0 4; Wyatt Spinks 3 0-1 8; Makai Jackson 4 4-4 12. Totals 19 9-11 51.
CR South 17 14 16 17 – 64
Truman 8 7 13 19 – 51
3-point goals: CRS-Dawson 2, Holloran 1, Burns 1, Robinson 1, Littig 1; HST-Flail 2, Spinks 2
SOL Colonial
Central Bucks East 67, North Penn 60
CB East shook off a slow start, grabbed the lead and then protected the basketball to hold off visiting North Penn in only the second home game of the season for the Patriots.
“We started a little bit slow,” said Patriots coach Erik Henrysen. “Yesterday, we didn’t have practice and didn’t get to prepare the way we wanted to. As the game went on, we got into a little bit of a rhythm. We got a big lift from Tyriq Toney-Bailey and a big ‘3’ from Josh Lyzinski.
“Then, Jacob (Cummiskey) and Nick (Rivera) really took over in terms of closing the game out. (North Penn’s) guards are really fast and can really ramp up the pressure.”
Cummiskey finished with 19 points, eight rebounds and five blocks, scoring eight points in the critical fourth quarter. Rivera was also in double figures with 10, Toney-Bailey scored all six of his points in the fourth quarter, while Liam Cummiskey ended up with four points and six rebounds.
Norm Gee led North Penn with 18 points, while Joe Larkins had 14 and Milind Pulugura had 10.
CB East (8-1, 4-1 SOL) remained in a first-place tie in the SOL Colonial standings as it gets ready for cross-over play Friday night at Council Rock South.
“We’re just taking it game-by-game,” Henrysen said. “Right now, we’re 8-1 but we have room for improvement. We’re just trying to simplify things, one play at a time, one quarter at a time. But, yeah, we’re pleased to be 8-1.”
North Penn (5-4, 3-2 SOL) plays at Pennsbury on Friday.
North Penn (60)
Mario Sgro 1, Tehran Wright 4, Norman Gee 18, Ryan Zeltt 7, Joe Larkins 14, Ryan Deininger 2, Duece Dorsey 4, Milind Pulugura 10
CB East (67)
Tyriq Toney-Bailey 6, Jacob Cummiskey 19, Liam Cummiskey 4, Nick Rivera 10, Brett Young 6, Aidan Weaver 8, Joshua Lyzinski 5, Ryan Lenahan 3, Joey Giordano 2, Kyle Berndt 4
North Penn 16 12 14 18 – 60
CB East 14 18 14 21 – 67
Central Bucks South 62, Pennridge 59
It came down to a final possession and one final shot, and Joe Rooney delivered for CB South with a 3-pointer at the buzzer as the Titans emerged with the exciting win on Tuesday.
“It was back-and-forth at the end,” said South coach Jason Campbell. “We were up 10 in the first quarter, and then we wind up going down six or seven points. But we chipped away, and it came down to the final possession, full court, with 14 seconds left.
“We held for one shot, set a pick at the top of the key, and Bryan Delara did a nice job coming off the ball and drawing the help defender. He looked for the wing player in the corner and that was Joe Rooney. Joe’s an exceptional shooter. He caught it and coming off of his hands it looked great. Joe knew it, and I felt like I knew it. It was nothing but net. He drained it as time expired.”
Michael Farley had 20 points to lead CB South, while Chris Granito and Tyler Meinel finished with 10 points each.
Pennridge was led by Justin McCormick and Matt Campione, who combined for 36 points and six 3-pointers.
“They played tough,” Campbell said. “But you know that going in when you play Pennridge. They’re a physical team that will outwork you and they do that on a lot of possessions.”
CB South (5-3, 4-1 SOL) remained in the first-place tie with the win and will play at Bensalem on Friday. Pennridge (2-7, 0-5 SOL) hosts Harry S. Truman.
Pennridge (59)
Justin Nichols 3 0-0 6; Matt Campione 7 2-3 18; Justin McCormick 6 2-3 18; Xavier Peters 2 0-2 4; Tommy Cramer 3 1-2 7; Jude D’Agostino 3 0-0 6. Totals 24 5-9 59
CB South (62)
Jesse Rutunno 1 0-0 2; Joe Rooney 2 2-2 8; Chris Granito 2 6-6 10; Bryan Delara 3 2-3 9; Flynn Carroll 1 0-0 3; Tyler Meinel 3 4-5 10; Michael Farley 8 3-5 20. Totals 20 17-23 62
Pennridge 7 15 18 19 – 59
CB South 17 10 16 19 – 62
3-point goals: P-McCormick 4, Campione 2; CBS-Rooney 2, Delara 1, Carroll 1, Farley 1
Souderton 42, Central Bucks West 35
Jay Bonnet scored 15 points, including three 3-pointers as Souderton pulled away in the fourth quarter for the close win over CB West on Tuesday.
The Indians – deadlocked 19-19 at halftime – led 26-25 after three quarters, but in the fourth, Bonnet nailed two 3-pointers and was 4-for-7 from the free throw line to help put the game away.
Shaun Purvy scored Souderton’s other six points in the quarter, including two from the foul line.
Aleks Smith was also in double figures for the Indians.
CB West was led by Donte Mancini’s 12 points, who went 7-for-11 from the free throw line for the game.
Souderton (8-2, 3-2 SOL), which won its fifth straight game, hosts Council Rock North on Friday.
CB West (1-8, 1-4 SOL) plays at Neshaminy.
Souderton (42)
Chris Towsen 1 1-2 4; James Blair 2 0-0 4; Jay Bonnet 4 4-7 15; Aleks Smith 4 2-3 10; Chase Scheuren 1 0-0 2; Shaun Purvy 2 3-4 7. Totals 14 10-13 42.
CB West (35)
Matt Engle 1 1-2 4; Joe Gallagher 2 1-3 6; Donte Mancini 2 7-11 12; Colin McKenna 0 1-2 1; Bowen Gugger 2 1-2 6; John Lee 2 0-0 5; Mike Fountain 1 0-0 2. Totals 10 11-20 35
Souderton 11 8 7 16 – 42
CB West 9 10 6 10 – 35
3-point goals: S-Towsen 1, Bonnet 3; CBW-Engle 1, Gallagher 1, Mancini 1, Gugger 1
About the Author
