Three SOL girls’ basketball teams will be in action Tuesday. Check out their preview capsules.
District 1 Class 6A
#15 NORTH PENN at #3 GARNET VALLEY (Tuesday, 5:30 pm)
North Penn
—13-11 overall
—8-2 SOL Colonial Division second place
—Led by sophomore Lily Brown (16 ppg, 12 rpg), senior Cameron Crowley (10 ppg, 5 rpg) & senior Leah Mikulski.
—Wins over #17 Pennridge (59-42, 50-33), #21 Methacton (55-51) & #22 Abington (60-25) #23 Central Bucks South (46-44, 41-44).
—Split with Class 6A #2 Central Bucks East (49-61, 54-44) & Class 5A #4 Unionville (47-27, 47-60)
—Won six of eight to close out regular season.
How they got here: North Penn defeated #18 Phoenixville 57-40. Sophomore Lily Brown led the Knights with a game-high 21 points.
Garnet Valley
—23-1 overall
—15-1 Central League champion
— Central League Tournament champion with 40-36 win over Conestoga
—Led by Lafayette commit Haylie Adamski, who averages 17.4 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 3.3 steals per game. Surpassed 1,000-point mark in January of 2024.
—Senior Kylie Mulholland (12.5 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 2.7 apg, 3.8 spg) surpassed the 1,000-point mark in January. Sophomore Addison Adamski (9.0 ppg, 3.3 rpg) is also a major contributor.
—Wins over Class 6A #9 Conestoga (29-24, 50-43), #20 Lower Merion (56-21, 58-38), #22 Abington (72-53), Class 5A #2 Radnor (51-38)
—-Split with Haverford (28-47, 43-26)
How they got here: Opening round bye
Next up: Winner will face #7 Downingtown West/#10 Haverford
District 1 Class 5A
#6 VILLA MARIA ACADEMY at #3 LOWER MORELAND (Tuesday, 6 pm)
Lower Moreland
—13-9 overall
—6-4 SOL Freedom Division
—Led by seniors Danis Brusha (19 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 5.1 apg, 4.7 spg) and Briana McFerran (12.1 ppg, 10.2 rpg, 3.2 spg).
—Nikki Sahl helps anchor the defense with 4.1 deflections and 2.3 steals.
—Wins over Class 6A #16 Plymouth Whitemarsh (53-48), #23 Central Bucks South (55-41), Class 5A #6 Villa Maria Academy (39-38)
—-Split season series with Class 6A #19 William Tennent (55-49, 64-67)
Coach Rich Becker: “In spite of losing two starters for the year before the season began and another five games into the season, we’ve had consistently good practices which has resulted in nice team chemistry, which is why we’ve had a rewarding regular season with wins against quality teams and went 5-2 in games decided by five points or less. We’re hoping to continue this into the postseason with qualifying for the State tournament a reasonable goal.”
How they got here: Opening round bye
Villa Maria Academy
—14-11 overall
—-5-3 Catholic Academies League second place
—Defeated top-seeded Gwynedd Mercy 47-42 in AACA Tournament title game.
—Led by junior Sophia Tray
—Wins over Class 5A #5 WC Rustin (39-29), #12 Harriton (50-43) & Class 4A #2 Villa Joseph Marie (46-36, 39-25),
How they got here: Villa Maria Academy defeated #11 West Chester East 48-44. Junior Sophia Tray led Villa with 21 points.
Next up: Winner will face the winner of the #2 Radnor/#7 Strath Haven.
Class 4A
#3 SPRINGFIELD TWP at #1 POPE JOHN PAUL II (Tuesday, 5:30 pm)
Springfield Twp
—9-16 overall
—-Junior Ava Culler is the lone returning starter from last season and leads the Spartans in scoring and rebounding, averaging close to a double-double.
—Caitlin Lewis, Chloe Kaczor, Keira Brandon, Julia Guicheteau, Maddie Decker, Olivia Beck also have been contributing.
Coach Aileen Wetton: “With everything that happened with the head coach (who is on medical leave), we’ve had girls step up. We’ve had girls come off the bench and contribute. We’re a young team, and we’ve improved. We’re hardworking. Everyone has been resilient, and everybody is contributing at different points in the game.”
Pope John Paul II
—14-6 overall
—9-3 PAC Frontier Division champion
—Led by senior Katie Nilles and freshman Sophie Vigliotta, both All-PAC Frontier Division first selections.
–Sophomore Rylee Derecola and junior Grace Fitzgerald earned second team honors.
—Wins over Class 4A #2 Villa Joseph Marie (57-28), #3 Merion Mercy (42-39)
Next up: Winner will face the winner of the #2 Villa Joseph Marie/#3 Merion Mercy contest in the District 1 4A title game Saturday.
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