Check out the result for SOL girls’ basketball teams in action Thursday.
SOL National Conference
COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 62, BENSALEM 42
Allison McGowan scored a game-high 17 points and was one of three players in double figures on a night that saw the Golden Hawks pick up their first conference win. McGowan, who also pulled down six rebounds, tied the program’s single game record for 3-pointers with five, and the Golden Hawks tied the program record with eight 3-pointers in the game.
“I was really pleased with the effort and execution by the girls tonight,” coach Blair Klumpp said. “I challenged them to get back to what we do well – get in transition, control tempo, win 50/50 balls, defensive effort and engagement, and they did that tonight.
“We really focused on us and had great contributions from the seven girls who got major minutes. A lot of times as coaches we get hung up on scouting and over prepare for the other team, so I wanted us to get back to playing to our strengths. And to the girls’ credit, they did that tonight.”
In addition to McGowan, Claudia Steinmetz had 12 points and five boards.
“Claudia Steinmetz was fantastic tonight at both ends of the floor,” Klumpp said. “She was active, aggressive, focused. I was really happy for her.”
Nicole Blaustein and Hannah Binder both added 10 points and three steals. Binder also had four rebounds. Emma Jones contributed eight points and six rebounds.
“Allison McGowan, Bailey Vetter and Emma Jones did great, communicating from the tip and providing leadership,” Klumpp said. “We did a really good job of finding our shooters and throwing the ball ahead and attacking in transition.
“That’s something I have been talking to Nicole Blaustein about, and she did a great job applying what we have talked about tonight and setting her teammates up.
“We were a little shorthanded tonight, and Hannah Binder and Carley Irvin did a good job being ready off the bench and contributed. I give them a lot of credit. It’s tough when minutes are not always consistent, and they responded well tonight when called upon.”
The Golden Hawks led 18-7 after one quarter and took a 38-24 lead into halftime. The Owls rallied but never could get over the hump.
“Give Bensalem credit,” Klumpp said. “They got it back to seven in the first half. We ended with a run and a McGowan three to go up by 14.
“They battled back in the second half to single digits as well. Don (Bogan) is doing a good job with a young group. I’m proud of how we were not content with a lead tonight. We played our brand of basketball throughout and answered their runs. It was a great job by the girls, and I’m proud of them and how hard they worked.”
For the Owls, Haley Keenan’s 16 points led the way. Chloe Munyon added 10 while Emily Wineburg had seven and Alayna McSeed, six points.
“(We) lost our last three games in a row, and turnovers are the main problem at the present time,” Bensalem coach Don Bogan said. “In the last three games, we are averaging 25 turnovers per game.
“The problems are correctable. It is just a matter of protecting the ball. The girls are working hard and are playing each game to the end. It has really been a tough stretch of games, but we are getting healthy, and the girls are determined to turn this stretch of bad luck around.”
Council Rock South (4-6, 1-3 SOL) will travel to Quakertown on Saturday for a 4:30 p.m. contest, and Bensalem (3-6, 0-4) will host Cheltenham on Saturday at 2 p.m. Both games are part of the SOL Challenge.
Council Rock South 18-20-7-17 62
Bensalem 7-17-9-9 42
Council Rock South (62) – Carley Irvin 2, Mendes 2, Claurida Steinmetz 12, Emma Jones 8, Karly Wunder 1, Nicole Blaustein 10, Allison McGowan 17, Hannah Binder 10.
Bensalem (42) – Parker 3, Emily Wineburg 7, Haley Keenan 16, Alayna McSeed 6, Chloe Munyon 10.
COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 51, PENNSBURY 10
Sparked from eight points from Olivia Boyle and seven more from Mackenzie Tinner, the Indians roared out of the gate to a 19-3 lead after one quarter. The shorthanded Falcons never threatened as the Indians rolled to the win.
Nine players contributed scoring for the Indians, who were led by Mackenzie Tinner with 10 points, five rebounds, five blocked shots and two assists. Boyle and Dana Bandurick each added eight points with Bandurick also contributing seven rebounds, two steals, four blocked shots and five assists. Ann Cairone had six points.
Point guard Becca Margolis finished with five points, four rebounds and three steals, and Camryn Polinsky had four points, three steals and two points. Abby Jones had four rebounds and two points.
Rock North converted 10-of-11 foul shots and connected on 19-of-35 shots from the floor (54 percent). The Falcons struggled to find their shooting touch and shot just 11 percent (4-for-37).
Council Rock North (6-5, 4-1 SOL) will face Wissahickon on Saturday at Quakertown at 3 p.m. Pennsbury (5-7, 2-4) will travel to Central Bucks East on Saturday to take on the Patriots in a 12:30 p.m. contest. Both games are part of the SOL Challenge.
Council Rock North 19-7-13-12 51
Pennsbury 3-5-0-3 10
Council Rock North (51) – Becca Margolis 5, Juliana Shields 2, Camryn Polinsky 5, Anna Cairone 6, Dana Bandurick 8, Sydney Blum 5, Olivia Boyle 8, Abby Jones 2, Mackenzie Tinner 10.
Pennsbury (10) – Cami Wiegand 5, Abbi Nassivera 3, Sydney Buell 2.
NESHAMINY 73, HARRY S TRUMAN 28
All 10 players who saw action put their names in the scoring column for the Redskins in Thursday’s win. Olivia Scotti led the way with 13 points while Meghan Ansel added 10 – all in the first half. Kelli Kowalick contributed 10 points, Allison Harvey had nine while Brooke Mullin and Kristin Curley both scored eight.
Truman’s Daisha Campbell led all scorers with 19 points, which included three 3-pointers.
Harvey scored seven points while Mullin and Curley each had six in a first quarter that saw seven players contribute scoring as the Redskins opened up a 31-5 lead. The Redskins tacked on 27 more points in the second quarter with both Ansel and Scotti scoring seven points each.
Neshaminy (8-3, 5-0 SOL) will face Pennridge on Saturday at Plymouth Whitemarsh at 4 p.m., and Harry S Truman will host Central Bucks South at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday. Both games are part of the SOL Challenge.
Harry S Truman 5-5-8-12 28
Neshaminy 31-27-7-8 73
Harry S Truman (28) – Haniyyah Jones 5, Daisha Campbell 19, Briana Cliney 4.
Neshaminy (73) – Brooke Mullin 8, Allison Harvey 9, Kristin Curley 8, Olivia Scotti 13, Kelli Kowalick 10, Meghan Ansel 11, Emily Tantala 4, Taylor Kelly 5, Amira Green 3, Sidney Tryod 2.
SOL Continental Conference
SOUDERTON 38, CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 17
Megan Walbrandt scored 14 points to lead all scorers, but it was the junior guard’s defensive effort on Maddie Burke that had coach Lynn Carroll raving. The sophomore standout did not score a point.
“Megan Walbrandt was outstanding,” the Indians’ coach said. “Megan played (Burke) every second – actually, I think Kate (Connolly) had to play her about 20 seconds, but otherwise, Megan was on her, and she was incredible.
“She was so good, she was so determined. (Burke) barely touched the ball, and when she did, most of the time she got rid of it. She drove to the basket a couple of times, and Megan had a lot of help. I think she took one outside shot at the buzzer at the end of one quarter, but Megan was so, so good and played great offensively too. It might be the best game she’s ever played. She was so good.”
The Indians led 11-2 after one quarter and took a 17-8 lead into halftime. Any thoughts of a West comeback were put to rest in a third quarter that saw the Bucks score just two points. The Indians took a 29-10 lead into the final quarter.
“We didn’t shoot well,” Carroll said. “We were 1-for-10 on threes in the first half. We definitely struggled on the perimeter, and they were determined to not let Kate (Connolly) score.
“We needed other people to step up, and Megan (Walbrandt) definitely stepped up.”
While Walbrandt was putting the clamps on Burke, senior point guard Tori Dowd was doing the same to the dangerous Diane Nicholson, who finished with four points.
“Tori played great on Nicholson,” Carroll said. “Obviously, we went in with a game plan, and we were ready to change it if we needed to.
“Our girls could not have executed it any better. It was really, really good.”
Connolly and Alana Cardona each added eight points. Connolly also had six rebounds and two blocks. Megan Bealer led the Indians under the backboards with nine rebounds to go along with five points.
Izzy Treon’s nine points led the Bucks, who received scoring from just four players.
Souderton (9-2, 3-1 SOL) will face PCL powerhouse Neumann-Goretti, the defending PIAA 3A champions, on Sunday at 5:30 p.m. at Thomas Jefferson University in the Play by Play Classic. Central Bucks West (6-6, 4-2) will face Hatboro-Horsham on Saturday at Central Bucks East (11 a.m.) as part of the SOL Challenge.
Central Bucks West 2-6-2-7 17
Souderton 11-6-12-9 38
Central Bucks West (17) – Diane Nicholson 4, Olivia Irons 2, Erin McIlhinney 2, Izzy Treon 9.
Souderton (38) – Megan Bealer 5, Alana Cardona 8, Megan Walbrandt 14, Megan O’Donnell 2, Kate Connolly 8.
SOL American Conference
SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP 39, QUAKERTOWN 21
The Spartans notched their first conference win of the season, opening up a 12-3 lead after one quarter and taking a 27-5 advantage into halftime.
“They’re been playing hard, and they haven’t had a lot to show for it,” coach Dave Giordano said. “We haven’t had a lot of practice time because of the weather, so we try to make the best of what we’re getting.
“We focused on defense and being aggressive and attacking the basket. It paid off in the first half. They took care of the basketball. As a team, they played well, and they looked for each other.”
Grace Barraclough scored 14 points to lead the Spartans.
“Grace was very aggressive and had some good open looks,” Giordano said. “They all did, but she played very well.”
Sydney Hannings and Emily Rodriguez each added six points.
For the Panthers, Samantha Howard led the way with nine points, and Kayla Horning added six.
Springfield (2-7, 1-3 SOL) will travel to Wissahickon on Tuesday, and Quakertown (1-11, 0-5) will host Council Rock South on Saturday at 4:30 p.m. as part of the SOL Challenge.
Quakertown 3-2-5-11 21
Springfield 12-15-7-5 39
Quakertown (21) – Kimmy Best 1, Samantha Howard 9, Brianna Letkoski 1, Hannah LaBonge 4, Kayla Horning 6.
Springfield (39) – Grace Barraclough 14, Mary Kate Smith 4, Emily Rodriguez 6, Rileigh Serroni 3, Emily Guicheteau 4, Sydney Hannings 6, Maddie Yoder 2.
Non-league
PENN CHARTER 43, HATBORO-HORSHAM 33
Lexie Brett had a big game for the Hatters, leading all scorers with 16 points, but it wasn’t enough to hold off the visiting Quakers, who took a 19-8 lead after one quarter on their way to the non-league win.
Kylie Halko also finished in double figures for the Hatters with 10 points to go along with eight rebounds. Cam Ryan led the Hatters defensively with five steals.
Hatboro-Horsham (4-8, 3-2 SOL) will face Central Bucks West on Saturday at Central Bucks East at 11 a.m. as part of the SOL Challenge.Penn Charter 19-7-9-8 43
Hatboro-Horsham 8-3-7-15 33
Penn Charter (43) – Carter 8, Maley 8, McLaughlin 9, Williams 9, Huatkowsky 4, Barnes 5.
Hatboro-Horsham (33) – Lexie Brett 16, Cam Ryan 3, Sara Mahoney 4, Kylie Halko 10.
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