Four SOL teams participated in the 15th Annual Maggie Lucas Play-by-Play Classic at Philadephia University on Sunday. Check out all of the results.
CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 42, COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 39
A pair of the SOL’s youngest teams met on the big stage at the Maggie Lucas Scholastic Play-by-Play Classic on Sunday at Philadelphia University. Both squads have just one senior on their roster, and while West has three freshmen on its varsity roster, Rock North has seven.
In a game that had its ups and downs for both squads, it was the Bucks surviving a late game comeback by the Indians to earn the hard fought win.
“Every game we’re working together more as a team, getting the chemistry down, and every game we’re improving in that aspect,” freshman Tori Abelson said.
Abelson led a balanced West attack with 11 points to go along with seven rebounds and three steals. Late in Sunday’s game, Abelson pulled down a rebound and took it coast-to-coast for a layup.
“Definitely running the ball up and down the floor is what we’re known as,” senior Makenzie Mason said. “I’ve heard things from other girls, ‘We need to get back on defense quickly.’ We try to beat teams up the court as much as we can.”
“It never slows down,” Abelson added. “We’re always moving, looking for teammates.”
Mason, named team MVP for West, scored six points of her nine points in the pivotal fourth quarter and also pulled down nine rebounds.
It was a pair of underclassmen that propelled the Bucks to a 26-15 lead. Junior Maggie Rakowsky scored all eight of her points in the first half, which included a 6-for-6 effort at the foul line. Sophomore Maddie Maio – who also finished with four steals – scored seven of her 10 points in the first half.
Trailing by double digits, the young Indians staged a serious rally in a third quarter, opening the second half with an 11-0 tear to erase the 26-15 deficit. Megan Haggerty – named the Indians’ team MVP – did most of the damage, burying three consecutive three-pointers.
“She’s been shooting the ball well lately,” coach Lou Palkovics said. “Since the Downingtown East game (at the Boardwalk Classic), she’s been shooting the ball really well. She had three or four threes down there and hit three today.
“She’s starting to really play her role. If we start getting that kind of contribution from her with the size we have inside, I think it will make us better.”
Freshman Dana Bandurick – who led the Indians with 11 points – scored six points in the Indians’ third quarter comeback.
“Dana plays well every game,” Palkovics said. “She has the uncanny ability to get to the basket – where most girls would take four strides, she would take two. I think she’s going to be a great player in this area.”
The two teams were deadlocked 30-30 heading into the final quarter when Mason and Abelson went to work, combining for 10 points as the Bucks used a 10-1 run of their own to open the quarter. The Indians made things interesting when Hannah Weiler sank a pair from the foul line to make it a 42-38 game with 30 seconds remaining. Bandurick stole the inbounds and connected on a foul shot to make it a 42-39 game. A West turnover gave the Indians possession, but their three-point attempt for the tie bounced off the rim, allowing the Bucks to escape with the win.
Central Bucks West (9-3, 5-1 SOL) will travel to Central Bucks South for a key SOL Continental Conference contest on Tuesday (6 p.m.), and Council Rock North (5-6, 4-2) will host Bensalem.
Council Rock North 8-7-15-9 39
Central Bucks West 11-15-4-12 42
Council Rock North: Becca Margolis 4, Camryn Polinsky 2, Megan Haggerty 9, Kaelin Mealey 5. Hannah Weiler 6, Mackenzie Tinner 2, Dana Bandurick 11.
Central Bucks West: Maddie Maio 10, Makenzie Mason 9, Tori Abelson 11, Maggie Rakowsky 8, Izzy Treon 4.
NORTH PENN 39, GWYNEDD MERCY 29
Maggie deMarteleire opted to pass on a holiday tournament this season. The veteran coach hoped the break from games would pay dividends, and while it still may in the long run, the Lady Knights haven’t found their offensive stride since returning to action. They are averaging 10 points less a game in their three games since the holiday break and scored a season low on Sunday.
“Offensively, we’re struggling,” said deMarteleire. “Just our decision making – we’ve been a little bit out of sync offensively.
“We have a lot of kids that can score, and our decision making – we just need to clean that up a little bit. We didn’t play in two weeks, and I feel like we’re a little bit rusty, but they play good defense. Offensively, we just need to become more efficient.”
The Lady Knights threw some defense of their own at the Monarchs, limiting them to single digits in three of four quarters and sprinting to a 12-4 lead after one quarter. They limited high-scoring Erica DeCandido to 10 points, eight below her season average of 18.
“Oh my goodness, she’s so athletic, and she can do so many things,” deMarteleire said. “When they had her bring the ball up – we finally put Irisa (Ye) on her just because she’s very well rounded and can do so many things.”
Jess Huber led a balanced Lady Knight attack with 12 points while Ye added 10.
“I thought Jess sparked us, both scoring and making good decisions passing,” deMarteleire said. “I thought Irisa did a very good job, coming up with some steals, playing good defense and making some jumpers.
“I thought those two really stepped up when (they) needed to because we did struggle a little offensively – missed a lot of shots inside.”
The Monarchs made it a 12-10 game midway through the second quarter, but a clutch three-pointer by Huber extended the Lady Knights’ lead to five. They took a 19-15 lead into halftime.
“I think (the break) has had a big effect,” Huber said. “We were just out of our flow for a lot of it.
“Every one of us can score. If we drive and take it to the basket, it will come together for all of us. They play great defense, and we just wanted to overcome that and work together as a team.”
A basket by Carly Heineman (11 points) to open the third quarter made it a two-point game, but point guard Sam Carangi (seven points) took it the length of the court for a layup. Danielle Senour connected on a pair from the foul line, but the Lady Knights answered with a 7-0 run to go on top by nine before Heineman turned a DeCandido pass into a basket to make it a 29-22 game heading into the final quarter.
North Penn led 33-22 after back-to-back baskets to open the quarter – the first a fastbreak bucket by Bri Hewlett off a Monarch miss and the second a foul line jumper by Ye to all but seal the Monarchs’ fate.
North Penn (10-2, 6-0 SOL) will be on the road at Hatboro-Horsham on Tuesday night.
North Penn 12-7-10-10 39
Gwynedd Mercy 4-11-7-7 29
North Penn: Irisa Ye 10, Sam Carangi 7, Mikaela Giuliani 4, Bri Hewlett 4, Jess Huber 12, Jess McKenzie 2.
Gwyndd Mercy: Danielle Senour 4, Carly Heineman 11, Lizzy Ferguson 2, Erica DeCandido 10, Maggie Cameron 2.
UPPER DUBLIN 39, WILSON WEST LAWN 9
Defense is Upper Dublin’s calling card, and that spelled big trouble for a Wilson squad that simply was no match for the Flying Cardinals from the outset.
“We had two games this week where we won both of them, but we didn’t feel great about ourselves after either one,” said coach Morgan Funsten of his team’s wins over Upper Merion and Wissahickon. “One of our number one priorities today was to come out with a lot of energy and be really excited about proving what kind of team we are.
“We don’t always play the most exciting brand of basketball, but to hold a team to nine points – I’ve never done it before, but it’s impressive we were able to do that today.”
The Cardinals led 7-1 after one quarter and took a 16-5 lead into halftime.
“It’s the girls just sticking to what we do well,” Funsten said. “We were able to pressure them a little bit into some mistakes. When they got into the halfcourt, they run some really nice halfcourt stuff. The girls communicated well. It was just really solid – maybe not the most exciting win, but for us, that’s what we love to do.”
In the third quarter, Allison Chernow had some fun at the Bulldogs’ expense, putting on her own personal shooting clinic from beyond the arc with four three-pointers. The senior point guard – named team MVP – scored a team high 14 points, 12 in the third quarter.
“It’s taken me a little while -I haven’t been hitting three’s as often as last season,” said Chernow, who also had three assists and three rebounds. “I’ve been getting to the basket more, so it felt nice to get a couple of three’s today.”
Ashley Barber had a big game on the boards, pulling down 13 rebounds to go along with three assists. Demi Balasa had five points, four rebounds and four blocked shots. Josie Barrett added seven points.
Although the Bulldogs didn’t pose a serious challenge, the Cardinals stuck with their game plan.
“We can’t take any opponent lightly,” Chernow said. “We have to come out aggressive as always.
“Every team can beat you so you have to come out hard. We’ve hit a little bit of a rough patch, so to come out here today and just really take it to the other team – it gets us back on track and gets us ready for this week. It will be fun.”
Upper Dublin (10-2, 6-0 SOL) will wrap up its first go-around in the SOL at Springfield on Tuesday and follow that with a game against Norristown before a weekend that features a game against North Penn on Saturday as part of the SOL Challenge at Central Bucks East and then facing Inter-Ac powerhouse Germantown Academy at the Blue Star Basketball Invitational.
“The next week is huge for us,” Funsten said. “If we try and look at it all at one time, we’re going to have a lot of trouble.
“We just need to look at it one at a time. We start with Springfield Tuesday, and that has to be our primary focus now. It is a very intense stretch. Tonight was just another great team win.”
Wilson West Lawn 1-4-3-1 9
Upper Dublin 7-9-18-5 39
Wilson West Lawn: Kelly Ebner 2, Haley Myer 1, Madison Huber 2, Jennifer Wallace 2, Zakiyak Winfield 2.
Upper Dublin: Nicole Kaiser 5, Josie Barrett 7, Alison Gouveia 2, Allison Chernow 14, Demi Balasa 5, Maggie Weglos 4, Ashley Barber 2.
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