North Penn, Souderton and PW will be in action in Saturday’s PIAA 6A quarterfinal round. Check back for recaps.
Teams have had a quick turnaround after a winter storm pushed Tuesday’s PIAA 6A second round games to Thursday night, and less than 48 hours after picking up big wins, three SOL teams will be back on the court in Saturday’s quarterfinal round.
District runner-up Plymouth Whitemarsh will take on a Souderton squad that earned the 11th and final state tournament spot. Coach Dan Dougherty isn’t putting any stock in the Indians’ low seed.
“In the bracket that we fill out, they were a popular pick because we’ve seen them play, and we know how good they are,” the Colonials’ coach said. “I know they came out with the 11th seed, but they’re really good. I know it will be a fun game.
“I have a lot of respect for coach (Lynn) Carroll. We’ve never played a game against each other in the regular season. I’ve seen her coach, and I love the t-shirt they put on the bench for their assistant coach (Tom Welch, who passed away in 2013). They’re a special program, and I have tremendous respect for them.”
Both PW and Souderton are in brand new territory, and both have exceeded their own expectations. One will be advance to Monday’s Final Four.
“We kind of have a Hickory Huskers feel to us,” Dougherty said of the team featured in Hoosiers. “We’re probably far away the smallest school left. Some of the teams we play are two and three times the size of us population-wise. We’re this nice little team from this nice little conference that no one really pays any attention to. We love it that way. The kids don’t feel any pressure.”
Carroll echoed a similar sentiment after Thursday’s win over Central Bucks South.
“For whatever reason, we are playing without putting any pressure on ourselves, and I think we’re having fun,” the Indians’ coach said. “We didn’t do that in districts, and I think the result is that we’re playing a lot looser on the offensive end, and no matter who we’re playing, we’re playing with determination and effort on the defensive end.”
North Penn, meanwhile, will be looking to keep its season alive against PCL champion Cardinal O’Hara, the 2016 PIAA 4A runner-up. The Knights haven’t forgotten last year’s 48-41 loss to O’Hara in the state semifinals in a contest they led by eight in the third quarter. They scored just 10 points over the final 11:40 after opening up a 31-23 lead.
“We’re very grateful to be playing them again,” said senior Jess Huber, whose 17 points led the Knights in last year’s contest. “We’re excited for the game.
“They’re a very good team. I give them a lot of respect. I think it’s going to be a good game.”
The Knights will take on O’Hara in the second game of a tripleheader at Spring-Ford High School at 2:30 p.m. Boyertown will face Northampton at 1 p.m. The Souderton/PW game will be the final game at 4 p.m.
#1-5 NORTH PENN vs. #12-1 CARDINAL O’HARA (at Spring-Ford HS, Saturday, 2:30 p.m.
North Penn
- 25-4 overall
- 10-2 SOL Continental Conference champion
- Fell to CB West 43-35 in SOL Tournament title game, snapping a 14-game winning streak.
- Led by senior captains Sam Carangi (Villanova), Jess Huber (University of the Sciences) and Irisa Ye (University of the Sciences). All three were part of the Knights’ district title run when they were freshmen.
- Huber (14.7) is second only to PW senior Taylor O’Brien in scoring in the SOL. Ye (11.4), Bri Hewlett (11.1) and Carangi (8.1) also are dangerous offensive weapons.
- Top-seeded team entering the District One Tournament.
How they got here:
- In a second round contest, North Penn defeated Central Bucks East, District One’s 10th place squad, 44-38. The Knights opened up a 10-point lead only to watch the Patriots trim that lead to two heading into the fourth quarter, but they held on for the win. Jess Huber led all scorers with 15 points, Bri Hewlett added 11, Jess McKenzie had nine, and Irisa Ye, seven points.
- In an opening round game, North Penn defeated District 3’s third place team, Cedar Crest, 53-34. The Knights, who led 22-20 at halftime, blew the game open with a 21-8 third quarter. Irisa Ye scored 12 of her game-high 21 points in the pivotal quarter. Jess Huber added 13 points, and Sam Carangi had eight points and seven steals. Bri Hewlett contributed seven points.
Coach Maggie deMarteleire says: “We were playing really well last year (against O’Hara) and then we got very stagnant on offense. We were up by eight in the third quarter, and we turned the ball over several times in a row, and we were leaving three-point shooters wide open, so defensively, we’re going to have to work on making sure we’re not helping from ball side and leaving people wide open. Offensively, we just need to be patient and strong with the ball.”
Cardinal O’Hara
- 24-5 overall
- 12-2 PCL regular season behind Archbishop Wood and Neumann-Goretti
- Won PCL Championship with 35-30 win over Archbishop Wood
- 2016 PIAA Class 4A runner-up
- Led by St. Joseph’s recruit Hannah Nihill and Drexel recruit Mary Sheehan. Both seniors have surpassed the 1,000-point milestone this year.
- Dangerous lineup also includes Drexel Commit Maura Hendrixson and Villanova commit Mackenzie Gardler.
How they got here:
- In a second round contest, Cardinal O’Hara rolled to a 55-35 win over District 3’s fourth place team, Central York. Three players – Hannah Nihill (18 points), Maura Hendrixson (14 points) and Mary Sheehan (13 points) – finished the game in double figures. Sheehan also had 11 rebounds.
- In an opening round contest, Cardinal O’Hara raced to a 25-7 halftime lead on its way to a 53-25 win over Upper Dublin, District One’s 10th place team. Hannah Nihill (15 points), Mary Sheehan (11 points) and Mackenzie Gardler (10 points) led the Lions.
#1-2 PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH vs #1-11 SOUDERTON (at Spring-Ford HS, Saturday, 4 p.m.)
Plymouth Whitemarsh
- 27-2 overall
- 14-0 SOL American Conference champion
- First solo championship for program since 1983
- District One 6A runner-up
- Tied program record for wins in a season
- Won 22 straight to open season before falling to #5 Central Bucks West in SOL Tournament semifinals (73-63)
- Junior Taylor O’Brien, who surpassed the 1,000-point milestone, is the SOL’s top scorer, averaging 21.6 points a game.
- Junior Lauren Fortescue (10.5 ppg), junior Ali Diamond (8.0 ppg) and senior Lauren Coscia (7.3) add to a dangerous attack.
- Seeded third entering the district tournament.
How they got here:
- In a second round contest, Plymouth Whitemarsh earned a 60-47 win over Council Rock North, District One’s seventh place team. The Colonials, who led 24-20 at halftime, used a 14-6 third quarter to blow the game open. Taylor O’Brien led the Colonials with 31 points while Ali Diamond added 12. Lauren Coscia had seven points and 13 rebounds.
- In an opening round game, Plymouth Whitemarsh rolled to a 62-41 win over District Three fifth place J.P. McKaskey. The Colonials, who led 38-21 at halftime, buried 10 three-pointers in the win. Taylor O’Brien connected on 13-of-17 at the foul line en route to a game-high 26 points, which included three three-pointers. Lauren Fortescue had four threes and finished with 21 points. Ali Diamond added eight points and Laurel Suchsland, seven.
Coach Dan Dougherty says: “I’ve seen Souderton play a few times this year. Their starting five can match up with any starting five at any level. They are extremely talented one through five. I’ve never seen a bench player because I don’t think they really need to go to a bench player. They can all defend all five positions. They’re really good. I think in districts they just ran into a tough matchup getting Abington.”
Souderton
- 21-7 overall
- 8-4 SOL Continental Conference third place behind North Penn and Central Bucks West.
- Balanced attack led by junior Kate Connolly (10.4 ppg), junior Alana Cardona (9.4 ppg) and sophomore Megan Walbrandt (8.6 ppg).
- First trip to state tournament in program history
- Entered the District One Tournament as the eight seed.
How they got here:
- In a second round contest, Souderton defeated Central Bucks South, the fourth place team from District One, 40-27. The Indians used a 14-4 run to blow open a close game. Junior Sami Falencki accounted for eight of those points off the bench. Junior Kate Connolly led the Indians with 12 points and 10 rebounds. Megan Walbrandt (seven points) and Alana Cardona (six points) also contributed.
- In an opening round game, Souderton stunned District 3 champion Central Dauphin, jumping out to a 26-17 halftime lead and blowing the game wide open with a 17-4 third quarter en route to a 50-29 win. Junior Kate Connolly was unstoppable, connecting on 10-of-12 shots from the field and scoring a career-high 30 points. The Drexel recruit also had 15 rebounds, four steals, two blocks and two assists. Sophomore Megan Bealer added eight points, seven rebounds and four steals.
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