Upper Dublin advanced to the District 1 6A semifinals while Neshaminy & Bensalem earned wins in Saturday’s District 1 6A playback games. Neshamiiny/PW photos provided courtesy of John Gleeson, and Bensalem/William Tennent photos courtesy of Greg Lindsay. Check back for galleries of both games.
District 1 4A final
#4 VILLA JOSEPH MARIE 38, #2 SPRINGFIELD TWP 29
It was not the outcome they had hoped for, but Saturday’s season-ending loss in the District 1 4A title game could not detract from a successful season.
“Of course, I wish we could’ve won today’s game and extended our season a bit longer, but I have to say that our girls both individually and as a team had a tremendous year,” Spartans’ coach Dave Giordano said. “We had a chance to celebrate a 1000-point scorer. We have the most wins (15) since 2011, and we had a home playoff win in a district game. We had a chance to play in the district final for a title.
“This group of senior girls have worked extremely hard not just this year but for all four years, and it was great to have received some recognition and acknowledgment for all their hard work. I would’ve liked to help them get one more accomplishment for this year, but it just didn’t work out.”
There were early signs that points would be hard to come by in Saturday’s title game as it took the Spartans close to half the opening quarter to put points on the board, but they trailed by just a 7-2 score after one quarter. By halftime, they had battled back to make it a 16-14 game. The two teams were deadlocked at 22 entering the fourth quarter, when the Jems put up 16 points to earn the win.
“Having today’s game tied at the start of the fourth quarter was the best scenario that we could have asked for, but in the end we just ran out of gas,” Giordano said. “I am thankful for the opportunity this year to coach the team and look forward to next year and see what we can accomplish moving forward. Congratulations to Ava Culler, Keira Brandon, Chloe Kaczor , Caitlin Lewis, Kamryn Wells, and Olivia Beck.”
Karly Hartman’s seven points – which included a pair of 3s – led the Spartans.
Springfield Township closed out its season with a 15-8 record.
Villa Joseph Marie 7-9-6-16 38
Springfield Twp 2-12-8-7 29
Villa Joseph Marie (38) – Lucy Jasionis2 2-4 6; Aubree Kovik 2 0-0 4; Kramli Aydriann 0 0-2 0; Haley Costello 2 0-0 5; Emerson Akright 1 2-5 8; Avery Akright 5 2-2 12; Kiki Hadgimallis 0 3-4 3; TOTALS 12 12-24 38.
Springfield Twp (29) – Caitlin Lewis 5 0-4 10; Keira Brandon 1 0-0 2; Julia Guicheteau 1 3-6 5; Ava Culler 2 1-2 5; Karly Hartman 2 1-2 7; TOTALS 11 5-14 29.
3-point goals: VJM – Emerson Akright, Haley Costello; S – Karly Hartman 2.
District 1 6A semifinal
#1 UPPER DUBLIN 54, #8 GARNET VALLEY 22
The Flying Cardinals continued to roll through the District 1 6A Tournament. Three days after notching a 39-point win over Bensalem, the Cardinals put a 32-point beating on the eighth-seeded Jaguars.
“I thought the difference of the game was our defensive effort and execution,” UD coach Morgan Funsten said. “The girls did a great job all day staying connected defensively and were able to force 15 first-half turnovers.
“We didn’t have a great shooting day, especially from the perimeter where we shot 5-for-25 for the game. To have a district quarterfinal game where we shoot poorly from the field and still win comfortably is a testament to the level that our girls are playing at.”
Tamia Clark’s 12-point first quarter propelled the Cards to a 19-10 lead, and by halftime, their advantage had grown to 36-16. Garnet Valley managed just six points in the second half.
By the numbers: Tamia Clark’s 20 points and nine rebounds led the Cardinals. She also had a team-high nine deflections. Emilia Coleman also finished in double figures with 12 points to go along with eight rebounds and five deflections. Megan Ngo stuffed a stat sheet with nine points, eight assists and seven steals. Ella Morris added eight points.
Upper Dublin coach Morgan Funsten:
–Props: “I thought Megan Ngo was awesome on both ends of the floor and flirted with a triple double while also having zero turnovers. Emilia Coleman and Tamia Clark did a great job defending the Adamski twins and held both to single digits.
“Our girls have been very consistent in their approach and execution so far during our playoff run. They have a quiet confidence about them that is fun to be around. We made it to this point last year and weren’t able to get over the hump. We are hoping to change that this year. Obviously, the weather situation is out of our control, but I’m confident that our girls will be ready to play on Wednesday night regardless of what’s thrown their way.”
Up next: Upper Dublin will host #5 Downingtown East in a District 1 6A semifinal on Wednesday (6 pm). Downingtown East was a 36-28 winner over #4 Perkiomen Valley.
Garnet Valley 10-6-4-2 22
Upper Dublin 19-17-14-4 54
Garnet Valley (22) – Hunter Reese 1 0-0 2; Amanda Bilson 2 0-0 5; Katie Dwyer 1 0-0 2; Addie Adamski 2 1-2 7; Kylie Adamski 3 0-0 6; TOTALS 9 1-2 22.
Upper Dublin (54) – Shannon Connaughton 1 0-0 2; Bridget DiMartile 1 0-0 3; Tamia Clark 9 2-2 20; Megan Ngo 3 1-2 9; Emilia Coleman 4 2-2 12; Ella Morris 3 2-2 8; TOTALS 21 7-8 54.
3-point goals: GV – Addie Adamski 2, Katie Dwyer; UD – Megan Ngo 2, Emilia Coleman 2, Bridget DiMartile.
Class 6A playbacks
#10 NESHAMINY 47, #15 PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 30
It was win and live to see another day or lose and go home for several SOL teams.
The Redskins, who led by one after one quarter, took a 23-19 lead into halftime. Nicole Trespalacios scored seven points to lead a balanced Redskin attack in the half. Neshaminy took a 33- 27 lead into the fourth quarter when the outscored the Colonials 14-3, putting an exclamation point on the win that kept their season alive.
“To beat a team like PW who’s deliberate to score 47 points and hold them to 30 – it’s something we’re pretty proud of,” Neshaminy coach John Gallagher said. “Being one game away from capturing a state playoff spot is something we’ve been looking forward to all year. It’s been an emphasis for us and hoping that we can get it.”
Neshaminy is one of three SOL Patriot Division teams still alive in the District 1 6A Tournament.
“I’m really proud of the fact that three Patriot teams are alive,” Gallagher said. “I think our division is really, really strong. I was thrilled for Pennsbury last night – I watched the game, and I’m happy just as much for Bensalem today. It shows how strong our division is.”
By the numbers: Grace Weyler’s 10 points led the Redskins. Ashlyn Duffy had nine points and three assists, and Camryn Rodriguez had nine points and three rebounds while Nicole Trespalacios added seven points, five rebounds and five assists. Mia Raivitch had six points, six rebounds, three assists and two steals.
For the Colonials, Olivia Patete had eight points and Kenna Winland had seven.
Neshaminy coach John Gallagher:
–The game: “We jumped out to a 7-0 lead, and in a couple of minutes, it was 7-6. We knew they were very deliberate on
offense, but we have a lot of experience against teams that are deliberate with their offense, so the score at halftime was 22-19. I’m thinking to myself – if we win the second half by three, we’ll walk out of here with a six-point win. We really played extremely well offensively in the second half.
“It was 24-19 in the third quarter, and Ashlyn Duffy calls her own number, runs a play for herself, and she bangs a 3, and we’re up 27-19. With the score 27-22, Nicole (Trespalacios) picked up her third foul, and we had to pull her out.
“Camryn Rodriguez comes in and hits a (mid-range) jumper and then she gets a reverse layup off a pass from Hayley Kolk to put us up 31-24. Again, with Nicole out, Camryn stepped up and got a huge basket. Mia Raivitch got a steal, and she went the length of the court and got fouled. She hit two free throws to put us up 33-24. With the score 33-27, Ashlyn again calls her own number, and she hits a big 3 to put us up 36-27. They never got any closer than that.
“Mia got an offensive rebound and putback to make it 38-27. Mia had a really tough first half. We walked into the locker room at halftime, and she wasn’t thrilled with herself, and we could see it on her face. In the second half, she played fabulous in regards to rebounding, passing and scoring, so I was really happy for Mia, who also hit an and-one from Ashlyn on a back cut that put us up 43-29 at one point.”
–Player of the game: “The player of the game was clearly Grace Weyler. Grace was fabulous for us in regards to assists, defense and scoring. She did great for us in the first half and gave us some breathing room. I don’t know if she came out of the game – if she did, maybe for a minute. After the game, one of our assistant coaches pointed out that she clearly had her best game of the year. I was really happy for Grace, who puts so much effort into our program. Somebody like that needs to be rewarded.”
–Props to Rodriguez: “In our game against Pennsbury, we didn’t have very good matchups, and we weren’t able to use Camryn Rodriguez as much. There was nobody on the bench that was more engaged, talking scouting reports, praising each other, talking people through screens than Camryn. It was brought up after the game by one of our assistant coaches, and we all thought that Cambryn was going to have a really good game today because of the matchups that were a little bit better, and she did not disappoint. She had nine points, including a 3 in the first quarter.”
Plymouth Whitemarsh coach Dan Dougherty:
–The game: “It’s never easy to end a season on a loss, but really proud of the effort girls gave this week and today. We had to ask four of our kids to try to play 32 minutes today, that’s a big ask against a team as physical and quick as Neshaminy.
“Despite falling behind 7-0 very quickly, the girls battled back to 22-19 at halftime. Eliza Meersman made great drive and kick to Joslyn Perez at end of third quarter to pull us to 33-27. We were really close to causing couple of turnovers on the next inbounds, but it just didn’t happen for us.
“In the fourth, Neshaminy was able to space us out. We gave our best efforts to draw five second counts, but they would eventually get loose and make a play to score. I feel like the game was much closer than final score would suggest.
“This team will hold a special spot to me for what they were able to do given the constant adversity, distractions, and disruptions we went through. Happy to continue the ‘Shamrock shake’ playoff tradition. We usually reserve it for playoff wins, but this team was very deserving of it.”
–The season: “Ending this season 16-10 in district playbacks is far more than we dreamed of at the beginning of the season. This year’s team and this year’s seniors have faced a ton of adversity. Through it all they accomplished everything we asked of them, and seeing the tears in the locker room afterward just reminds of us what is most important, the bonds they’ve made as teammates.
–Tribute to seniors: “Have to give props to our seniors today. Mia Baron turned the end of our season around with her relentless energy and defensive tenacity. Joslyn Perez worked incredibly hard mentally and physically to get herself back to a major contributor, especially today returning to the starting lineup. Finally, McKenna Winland has been one of the best senior captains I’ve had in my 14 years at PW. She held this team together all season on and off the court. Without her attitude and leadership, we would have been done weeks ago. So happy to see her end her career on such a positive note.
Up next: Neshaminy will host #11 Conestoga in a playback game Wednesday (6 pm).
“Conestoga has an extremely talented player that’s going to Lehigh, Ryann Jennings,” Gallagher said. “Last year, we played Conestoga and we got beat by like 100 (actually 61-22), but there are only two returners from that team. Ryann Jennings is fabulous, and we will have to game plan extremely well not only for her but for Conestoga.”
Plymouth Whitemarsh closed out its season with a 16-10 record.
Plymouth Whitemarsh 12-7-8-3 30
Neshaminy 13-9-11-14 47
Plymouth Whitemarsh (30) – Joslyn Perez 2 0-0 6; Olivia Patete 3 0-0 8; Kenna Winland 3 1-1 7; Mia Baron 1 0-0 2; Eliza Meersman 2 1-2 5; Brook Peduzzi 1 0-0 2; TOTALS 12 2-3 30.
Neshaminy (47) – Grace Weyler 4 0-1 10; Ashlyn Duffy 3 0-0 9; Mia Raivitch 2 3-3 7; Nicole Trespalacios 2 1-2 8; Hayley Kolk 3 0-0 6; Camryn Rodriguez 4 0-0 9; TOTALS 18 4-6 47.
3-point goals: PW – Olivia Patete 2, Joslyn Perez 2; N – Ashlyn Duffy 3, Grace Weyler 2, Nicole Trespalacios, Camryn Rodriguez
#16 BENSALEM 55, #9 WILLIAM TENNENT 32
It was a must-win for both squads with the winner living to see another day and the loser going home.
The Owls – behind six points from both Mischa Ellzy and Sydney Daut – opened up a 15-7 lead after one quarter, and by halftime, that lead had grown to 33-14. Kamiya Alexander’s eight points sparked the Owls in the second quarter.
The Panthers – propelled by 10 points from Avery Kocur – cut into that lead with an 18-point third quarter, trimming Bensalem’s lead to 39-32 after three quarters, but the Owls closed it out with a 16-0 fourth quarter.
“We’ve had a couple losses this year and especially playing Upper Dublin last week and losing by 40 – the next day they come to practice, and they’re still ready to go,” Bensalem coach Steve Johnson said. “It’s just as if they have a good short-term memory, which is nice to have especially this time of year where it’s like when one thing doesn’t go your way, it’s not the end of the world. You’ve got to look forward to the next play. One possession doesn’t dictate the next, so I think we’re doing a nice job with that.”
The win ensured the Owls at least two more games. A win in one of them will give the program its first trip to states in a very long time.
“Our girls are really bought in,” Johnson said. “They’ve bought in since day one, since the offseason started last year, and it’s just a really fun group to be around. They don’t care who gets they credit. They come every day ready to play hard. They’re a close group of girls. They hang out outside of school, they hang out inside school. They’re always joking around at practice, and it’s just a really close-knit feel, and that type of team helps you win games in February and March. They trust each other, they trust in our coaching staff, and we’re putting our best foot forward when it matters the most.
“We’re not done yet, and it’s just one game at a time. We’ll see what we can make out of it, but it’s really been a blessing. I’m super proud of this group.”
Key players: Junior Sydney Daut led a balanced Owls’ attack with 14 points. Kamiya Alexander added 12 points, and Mischa Ellzy had 11 points. Grace McShane had eight points.
For the Panthers, Avery Kocur led the way with 14 points, and Megan Volz had seven.
Bensalem coach Steve Johnson:
–The game: “My assistant coach said, ‘If you would have told me that we would win a game with Grace having only two field goals for the game, we would have said the odds wouldn’t be in our favor,’ but our two sophomore guards Mischa (Ellzy) and Kamiya (Alexander) stepped up big time as well as junior Sydney Daut. All three of them had really, really good games. Sydney Daut led us in scoring with 14 points, Kamiya had 12, and Mischa had 11. Mischa and Kamiya did a really good job of driving to the basket and just being aggressive. They had a nice couple of layups. Obviously, they were keyed in on Grace, so those two had nice driving gaps, and when they helped out from the low post or from the paint, Sydney was open for the drop off. She did a great job of being in the right spot at the right time and playing the angles. It was really a collective group win.”
–A team united: “I feel like, as a coach, you want your team to be playing the best basketball later in the season. You want to get better throughout the season. You don’t want to start out playing hot and fizzle out, and I think we’re doing just that. We’re clicking at the right time. Not that we started out slow by any means, but I feel like we’re playing our best team basketball later in the season, which is really nice to see.
“I just think it really comes down to coming to work every day. Coming to practice every day with a positive attitude and just having that next play mentality. Grace has been our leading scorer in 95 percent of our games this year, but we also have other girls that can play basketball. They’ve been playing for years as well, and they put in the work. They come to practice, and they don’t complain, and they’re ready for moments like this because of that positive attitude. Grace is going to help us win games, but we don’t have to rely on her to score 20 points a game.”
William Tennent coach Laura Whitney:
–The game: “We knew going into the game Grace McShane is a heck of a player, and we knew we had to contain her. If you would have told me before the game that we would have held her to eight points and four of those eight points came from free throws in the final couple of minutes when we had to start fouling, I would have liked our chances. But credit to them, their role players really stepped up for them. Honestly, I don’t think they’ve missed many shots the whole game. They made it tough on us to really get into our offensive rhythm and to run our offense and execute.
“We were down 19 at halftime, but all the credit to our girls, they really fought. We actually got the game to seven at the end of the third quarter. I don’t know if we just ran out of gas. Unfortunately, we didn’t score a point in the fourth quarter, so it’s tough to win when you can’t score. They didn’t miss, and we had to start fouling. It was tough, but it was a great season.”
–The season: “The loss today doesn’t take away from anything that we’ve accomplished this season. I am just super proud of the girls for just the way they competed all season long. They just brought so much pride and joy. Just the whole school community and the support we had all year – it’s just been an incredible journey. Every goal that we set for ourselves as a team coming into the season – we literally accomplished every single one of those goals and then some.
“It’s been historical on so many levels, so it’s unfortunate that we had a tough loss today, and credit to Bensalem, they’re a talented team. They’re well coached. We knew coming in that it was going to be a tough challenge for both them and us. Your season’s on the line. You win, you survive and advance, and you lose, you know your season ends. You hate to have to be in that situation.
“I’m really proud of the girls, and the younger girls got a little taste and experience what playoff basketball is about, and I think we have new expectations and standards for William Tennent girls’ basketball. Our girls are going to come back motivated in the offseason to put in the work and come back and try to make another push at it next year. “
–Tribute to the seniors: “All three of our seniors – Megan Rodebaugh didn’t see the court that much, but she came to practice every day. She had a positive attitude and was willing to do whatever we asked of her. She was our biggest supporter and encourager on the bench.
“Then obviously you have Avery (Kocur) and (Halie) Staub, who were just super talented. They started since freshman year, and every year they just continued to get better and better. We’re in this position in large part due to what they’ve been able to do for the program, so it’s going to be hard to replace them next year, but we are still confident. We have a great group of girls coming back next year, so we think we have a chance to kind of possibly run it back again and try to win the division again and then just see what happens in the postseason. That’s certainly going to be our goal coming in next year. “..
Up next: Bensalem will travel to #13 Methacton on Wednesday. One win in the next two games will vault the Owls into the state tournament.
William Tennent closed out its successful season with a 19-8 record and a 7-1 record for the SOL Freedom Division title.
“It just stinks that one of us had to go home,” Johnson said. “I feel like (Tennent’s) seniors between Avery Kocur and Halie Staub – they mean a lot to their program, and they’ve kind of helped transcend their program very much like our senior group has. Their seniors had a great four years, and they had a really memorable season.”
Bensalem 15-18-6-16 55
William Tennent 7-7-18-0 32
Bensalem (55) – Kamiya Alexander 4 2-4 12; Mary Beck 1 0-0 3; Mischa Ellzy 4 3-4 11; Grace McShane 2 4-4 8; Gianna Creque 0 1-2 1; Jordyn Bell 2 0-0 4; Kylie O’Neil 1 0-0 2; Sydney Daut 5 4-5 14; TOTALS 19 14-19 55.
Wiliam Tennent (32) – Avery Kocur 6 0-2 14; Carissa Malpezzi 1 0-0 3; Halie Staub 1 0-1 2; Hannah Wong 2 1-2 6; Megan Volz 3 1-2 7; TOTALS 13 2-7 32.
3-point goals: B – Kamiya Alexander 2, Mary Beck; WT – Avery Kocur 2, Carissa Malpezzi, Hanna Wong.
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