Check out the recaps for SOL girls’ basketball teams in action Friday. Pennsbury/CB South photos provided courtesy of Darryl Rule of J&D Photography. Check back for a gallery: https://solsports.zenfolio.com/f226313402
SOL Patriot/Colonial crossover
PENNSBURY 43, CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 33
(Check back for a feature about coach Frank Sciolla’s 500-win milestone)
Pennsbury’s games have been few and far between recently, and in a season that regularly includes two or three games a week, the Falcons found themselves playing just
their third game in 30 days on Thursday.
This one had special significance as the win – the 500th in coach Frank Sciolla’s extraordinary career – ensured the Falcons’ coach a spot in history, an achievement that was celebrated after Thursday’s home game.
Coming as no surprise, Sciolla was much more interested in talking about the game than the historic win.
“One of the things about coaching for a long time – you always like to say you’ve seen it all, but you really haven’t,” the Falcons’ coach said. “Through a weird confluence of events – not playing over the Christmas break for the first time in forever combined with snow-outs, we haven’t played much, and we kind of looked like a team that hasn’t played much, which is understandable.
“I certainly haven’t had that experience, so you practice a great deal, but the kids want to play games. They were tired of being told the same thing over and over again.”
The Titans had the better of play for three quarters, but the Falcons persevered, rallying for the win with an 18-4 fourth quarter explosion.
Sciolla – recalling the first time he saw coach Beth Mattern in action – paid tribute to the Titans’ program under their veteran coach.
“The first girls’ program – other than Council Rock/ Lou Palkovics – that I ever noticed while I was coaching with the boys was CB South because I saw Beth Mattern’s teams practicing in the auxiliary gym when we were there to play their boys’ teams,” Sciolla said. “I remember being impressed with how she ran her practice – and this was back in 2008.
“I didn’t know this, but she was just in the (early) stages of her career at that point, and she already had it together. I watched her play our girls’ teams at Pennsbury, and she was dominant. No matter what she has, she does a really good job of getting her kids to buy in to the way she wants to play, which – in today’s culture of club basketball where it’s harder than ever to coach high school – is a real challenge.
“She does a good job with that, and they came out with a good game plan, and they made some shots early on that kept them in the mix, and we were not shooting the ball well, although I was happy with the shots we were getting.”
The Titans, who led 8-6 after one quarter, took a 17-14 lead into halftime. Yoyo Samayoa sparked the Titans in the half with a pair of 3-pointers while Sofia Vitucci’s eight second-quarter points kept the Falcons close.
The Titans took a 29-25 lead into the fourth quarter. Vitucci led the Falcons with six points in the third quarter. The Falcons owned the fourth quarter, outscoring their visitrs 18-4. Vitucci led the charge with seven points, and freshman Joley Hohman added five.
“In the second half, we came out, and they still were playing well,” Sciolla said. “They made some shots, we missed two breakaway layups, which is not normal for us. Then the seniors really stepped up.
“It starts with Sofia Vitucci, who had one of those classic Sofia Vitucci games in terms of her shot-making ability. She also is so smart – she’s one of the five smartest players I’ve ever coached. She wants to be a coach, and I know that I am unique in how many people I have that are head coaches who were former players, and I’m blessed with that, but I think she could be another one. She knows how to rally the troops, and her leadership has improved. She knocked down some shots for us, and she was better for us defensively in the second half because in the first half she was kind of playing make-believe defense.”
Vitucci led all scorers with 21 points – 13 after the break. She also had seven rebounds. Hohman and Daniella MacDonald both had seven points.
“Daniella MacDonald really struggled shooting the ball in the first half, but she knocked down a big
three for us,” Sciolla said. “Joley Hohman, who is a freshman, struggled a little bit and had some tough moments through the first three quarters. We stuck with her, and at the beginning of the fourth quarter, she really made some big plays for us, creating shots for other people and knocked down free throws and shots herself. That was a really big moment for her.
“I know we’re living in this world where it’s normalized that ninth graders are playing, but it’s really not normal. I don’t care how many times we see it. You have to understand that 14 is different than 18. A girl like Joley Hohman is playing a girl like Yoyo (Samayoa), so you have one kid that is in her 11th game and another kid who might be playing their 90th game. That was a good performance for her, and it was good for us to get a win. Even though we only played three in 30, we’re about to enter a stretch where we’re going to be playing games almost every day.”
Layla Matthias had a monster game under the backboards, pulling down 13 rebounds – 10 offensive.
“Layla Matthias had one of the all-time great games with 10 offensive rebounds,” Sciolla said. “Even though we were not making shots, she extended possessions and gave us multiple opportunities, and I don’t think anyone is ever going to have 10 offensive rebounds again unless they’re 6-5 or something along those lines.
“We also got a boost from Presley Foote, who is a senior reserve committed to softball at West Chester. She knocked down a 3-pointer for us, and she helped speed people up.”
For the Titans, Samayoa and Jules Tropea both scored eight points to lead the way. Ella Wheeler had six points.
Pennsbury (8-4, 6-3 SOL) will travel to Central Bucks West on Saturday for a crossover game at 1:30 p.m., and Central Bucks South (8-7, 5-5) will host Souderton on Tuesday.
Central Bucks South 8-9-12-4 33
Pennsbury 6-8-11-18 43
Central Bucks South (33) – Megan Schmidt 1 0-0 3; Ella Wheeler 2 2-2 6; Casey Balkir 0 1-2 1; Jules Tropea 4 0-0 8; Yoyo Samayoa 3 0-0 8; Mia Klein 1 0-0 3; Gabby Tropea 1 2-4 4; TOTALS 12 5-8 33.
Pennsbury (43) – Presley Foote 1 0-0 3; Layla Matthews 1 0-0 2; Maggie Burns 1 1-2 3; Sofia Vitucci 10 0-2 21; Daniella MacDonald 3 0-0 7; Joley Hohman 2 3-6 7; TOTALS 18 4-8 43.
3-point goals: CBS – Yoyo Samayoa 2, Mia Klein, Megan Schmidt; Pennsbury – Presley Foote, Sofia Vitucci, Daniella MacDonald.
NESHAMINY 39, CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 35
A pesky West squad led by seven at halftime and extended that to 10 early in the third quarter, but the Redskins came roaring back to take the lead.
Coach (Zach) Sibel and I spoke before the game about what the snow has done to our schedules and to the schedules of other high school teams,” Neshaminy coach John Gallagher said. “We were glad the originally scheduled Friday game was moved up to tonight. Coach Sibel did not allow the excuse of changing schedules affect his team as we trailed the majority of the first half.”
The Bucks – sparked by six points from Gabi Senior – took a 24-17 lead into halftime. Lola Ibarrondo kept the Redskins in it, scoring eight points in the half.
“I thought Gabi Senior had an excellent performance in so many aspects of the game,” Gallagher said. “Gabi gave us problems outside of the 10 points she scored as she made her teammates better each possession.”
Reese Zemitis erupted for eight points in the Redskins’ third quarter, and Ibarrondo had six as the Redskins went on a 14-5 tear to go on top 31-29. The fourth quarter was a battle, but the Redskins escaped with the win.
“We had a 10-point lead at one point early in the third quarter,” Sibel said. “They went to zone, and we struggled to make some shots.
“This is a team – we’ve played good competition early, we struggled a little bit, but going into a perennial power like Neshaminy that has girls like Zemitis and Ibarrondo – they’re players, and I thought our girls did a really nice job. We limited Zemitis to two points in the first half. She got hot in the second, and Lola got going, but it wasn’t for lack of effort.
“I thought our girls played really hard. They executed. It came down to a game where you’re playing a really talented team that has been in big positions before, and they made plays. We got a steal with 15 seconds left, down two (points) and we turned it over. They made free throws to make it a four-point game.”
Zemitis led all scorers with 18 points – 16 in the second half. She also had six rebounds. Ibarrondo added 14 points. The senior point guard also had seven rebounds, five assists and five steals. No other Neshaminy player had more than three points.
“The CB West team is bigger in person than what I saw on video,” Gallagher said. “They are strong and not afraid to use their strength around the basket. (Alexis) Castro got us on offensive rebounds, which resulted in us fouling her. That was all effort by her and indicative of the entire game.
“While we were not in individual foul trouble, we did foul too much which was due in part to CB West and also due to our less than acceptable focus and effort.”
Senior and Castro both scored 10 points to lead the Bucks.
“I’m incredibly proud of this group,” Sibel said. “Every girl that got in played really hard. They’re dedicated to watching film and scout, so it’s one of those things – I hate to say it’s a good loss because I don’t like saying that as a coach, but this game showed what our team is capable of.
“Having Gabi Senior and Alexis Castro step up with 10 apiece, and Gabby Reichner played awesome. She was active on the backboards, she was active on offense with five points. Aniya McDaniel really challenged one of the best point guards in the SOL and made her uncomfortable. You walk out of that game and you have nothing bad to say. The kids battled. You wish the outcome was a little bit different, but I think this was kind of a statement of who we are as a team and where we’ve come from the beginning of the season.”
Neshaminy (11-3, 9-1 SOL) will face Bishop Shanahan in a non-league game at Thomas Jefferson University at the Maggie Lucas Classic on Sunday at 4:30 p.m. Central Bucks West (5-9, 3-6) will host Pennsbury in a crossover game on Saturday at 1:30 p.m.
Central Bucks West 10-14-5-6 35
Neshaminy 12-5-14-8 39
Central Bucks West (35) – Gabi Senior 4 1-2 10; Peyton Cramer 1 0-0 3; Aniya McDaniel 2 0-0 5; Alexis Castro 3 4-6 10; Gabby Reichner 2 1-3 5; Janelle Blokker 1 0-0 2; TOTALS 13 6-11 35.
Neshaminy (39) – Grace Weyler 1 0-0 3; Lola Ibarrondo 4 5-7 14; Ava Irizarry 1 0-0 3; Mia Raivich 0 1-2 1; Reese Zemitis 6 4-7 18; TOTALS 12 10-16 39
3-point goals: CBW – Gabi Senior, Aniya McDaniel, Peyton Cramer; Neshaminy – Reese Zemitis 2, Grace Weyler, Lola Ibarrondo, Ava Irizarry.
COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 53, SOUDERTON 37
The visiting Golden Hawks used a 21-4 third-quarter explosion to blow open a close game on their way to the crossover win. Souderton hung with their visitors for one half and took a 24-23 lead into halftime.
“Souderton came ready to play and jumped on us early,” Rock South coach Jesse Krasna said. “We were down 7-0 to start the game and down by one at halftime.
“I thought we were playing fine offensively, but Souderton played a great first half and we had trouble getting stops. They have improved so much since we saw them in a tip-off tournament back in early December, which is a huge credit to their girls and the job Coach (Lynn) Carroll does over there.”
Leading the Indians in the first half was freshman Kiera Fadden, who scored eight points. Camryn Gregory had seven to lead the Hawks while Lily Bross had six points on a pair of 3s.
“Our bench gave us a big lift in the first half when our offense was a little flat and we faced some foul trouble,” Krasna said. “Lily Bross, Miranda Cantor and Sarah Freeman were ready to go when their number was called like they have been all year, and they were key for us to overcome the slow start.”
Kathryn O’Kane’s eight points led the Golden Hawks in their 21-point third quarter. Fiona Reckner connected on a pair of 3s in the frame.
Rock South was led by the 13-point efforts of Katie Pupura and O’Kane. Bross added nine points, Gregory had seven, and Recker had six. Bross, Gregory and Reckner each had a pair of 3-pointers.
“Kat played downhill all game and put so much pressure on the defense,” Krasna said of O’Kane. She’s really been playing well lately.
“Katie Purpura was so good on the glass and she generated some second chance points with her individual effort and pursuit of the basketball.”
For the Indians, Fadden’s 13 points led the way while Madison Bealer – who had a pair of 3s – and Brooke Fenchel both had six points.
Council Rock South (9-4, 6-3 SOL) will travel to Thomas Jefferson for the Maggie Lucas Class where the Golden Hawks will face Germantown Academy in a non-league game Sunday at 6 p.m. Souderton (3-12, 1-8) will be on the road at Central Bucks South on Tuesday.
Council Rock South 9-14-21-9 53
Souderton 14-10-4-9 37
Council Rock South (53) – Liliana Metrick 1 0-0 2; Lily Bross 3 1-2 9; Miranda Cantor 1 0-0 3; Katie Purpura 5 3-4 13; Kathryn O’Kane 5 2-2 13; Cam Gregory 2 1-2 7; Fiona Reckner 2 0-0 6; TOTALS 19 7-10 53.
Souderton (37) – Jacquelyn Bermel 2 0-0 4; Julia Purvy 1 2-2 4; Olivia Herron 0 4-4 4; Madison Bealer 2 0-0 6; Brooke Fenchel 2 2-4 6; Kiera Fadden 6 1-1 13; TOTALS 13 9-11 37.
3-point goals: CRS – Lily Bross 2, Cam Gregory 2, Fiona Reckner 2, Miranda Cantor, Kathryn O;Kane; Souderton – Madison Bealer 2.
NORTH PENN 59, HARRY S TRUMAN 33
The Knights opened up a 15-10 lead after one quarter and extended that to 37-16 after a 22-point second quarter.
Olivia Stone had the hot hand for the visitors – scoring 15 points in the first half, which included a pair of second-quarter 3s. Caleigh Sperling added nine points in the half, and Kelly Donnelly had six with a pair of 3-pointers.
Yamazjiah Thomas kept the Tigers afloat, scoring eight of her team’s 10 first-quarter points and scoring 12 in the first half.
Stone’s 19 points led the Knights while Sperling added 15. Donnelly finished with eight points.
Shylah McCleve led the Tigers with 17 points – 13 in the second half. Thomas finished the game with 15 points. The duo combined for 32 of their team’s 33 points.
North Penn (12-2, 9-1 SOL) will host Methacton in a non-league game on Saturday at 1 p.m. Harry S Truman (1-14, 0-11) will host Council Rock North on Tuesday.
North Penn 15-22-14-8 59
Harry S Truman 10-6-8-9 33
North Penn (59) – Cameron Crowley 2 0-2 4; Lailani Williams 1 1-1 3; Caleigh Sperling 6 2-2 15; Lily McGee 1 0-0 3; Lily Brown 1 3-4 5; Cailin Halfpenny 1 0-0 2; Kelly Donnelly 3 0-0 8; Olivia Stone 8 1-2 19; TOTALS 23 7-11 59.
Harry S Truman (33) – Brianna Philemond 0 1-2 1; Shylah McCleve 7 3-6 17; Yamazjiah Thomas 6 1-2 15; TOTALS 13 5-10 33.
3-point goals: NP – Kelly Donnelly 2, Olivia Stone 2, Caleigh Sperling, Lailani Williams; HST Yamazjiah Thomas 2.
SOL Liberty/Patriot crossover
UPPER MORELAND 33, PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 31
The Golden Bears, who led by nine at the break, needed some late-game heroics to escape with a win over the Colonials. The win brought to a welcome end the long winning streak over UM the Colonials brought into Thursday’s crossover contest.
“They gave me the date of 2007 – 21 straight games,” UM coach Josh Adelman said.
The Colonials had a chance to tie the game as time wound down but could not convert.
Stealing the spotlight on attack was UM’s Lilly Hansen, whose 14 points led all scorers. Hansen’s nine first half points helped propel the Golden Bears to a 21-12 lead.
“A lot of credit to their number 12 (Hansen),” PW coach Dan Dougherty said. “She hit a lot of big shots. Not that we were intentionally leaving her open, but she was the kid who we had to always come off and help. A lot of credit to that kid. I don’t know what her shooting percentage was, but she really knocked down some big shots.”
The two teams were deadlocked 12-12 after one quarter, but UM kept the Colonials off the scoreboard in the second quarter and opened up the nine-point halftime lead.
“We just go through these stretches sometimes when we can’t make a shot – we can’t make a foul shot, we can’t make a layup, we can’t make any kind of shot,” Dougherty said. “That’s where they got some separation, but we came out of halftime and decided to step up our ball pressure against them, cause some turnovers.”
The Colonials still trailed by five heading into the final quarter, 26-21.
“We went from being down 21-12 to taking the lead 27-26,” Dougherty said. “Then we got caught in another over-help situation, and their other role player, number 25 (Marie Meyers) hit a 3 because we were too far off in help.”
Freshman Eliza Meersman buried a 3-pointer to even the score 31-31, and Mike Lancit scored on a drive to give UM a lead it would not lose.
For Adelman, there was plenty of praise to go around.
“Lilly Hansen probably played the best game I have ever seen her play,” the UM coach said. “She had blocks, and it seemed like every time we needed a big shot in the first half and even the third quarter – she came up with some great shots.
“She hit some deep jump shots, a couple 3s and just had an amazing block. She actually blocked one – hit it all the way out to half court, picked it up, dribbled down and got fouled and hit two foul shots. It was just such a great night for her.”
The UM coach went on to laud the play of his defense.
“Defensively, I could name everybody that played for us,” Adelman said. “Number 11 for their team (AJ Avery) is such a good player, and I thought Mikel (Lancit) and Lianna (Adames) did a very good job on her. Holly (Gohl) played a great game down low to complement Lilly with her blocks and rebounds. Marie Meyers really had to play outstanding defense.
“Molly Meakim, Olivia Meakim and Makaila Allen came off the bench and gave the girls some really great minutes to rest. PW is very patient with their offense. I give them a lot of credit. They make you play defense for a good 35-40 seconds, which is very difficult to do, and our girls were really up to the task tonight.”
In addition to Hansen, Lancit, who scored the game-winner, scored seven points for UM.
“We had been winning the entire game, and it got to the point where we couldn’t seem to make a bucket, and they played some very good defense,” Adelman said. “They really were up real tight, and it got to a point where the lead was squandered a little bit, but they got some key buckets.
“Marie Meyers hit a 3 from the top of the key, and Holly (Gohl) gets a great shot down on the post. Mikel Lancit gets a really nice layup down the lane. Our defense was there all night, but our offense disappeared at a point, but the girls kept getting some very, very good looks, and eventually, they started to fall. It was such a great game tonight.”
Thursday’s game was PW’ss fourth straight with the outcome determined by six points or less.
“This was our fourth nailbiter game in a row,” Dougherty said. “I told the kids after the game – like the cliché says, ‘If you play with fire, you’re going to get burned.’ We kind of got burned tonight.
“From the eye test, when you look at the two teams, Upper Moreland physically looks like a high school varsity team, and from the size differential, we look like a jayvee team in size. I thought our girls really played with a lot of grit tonight. We’re so overmatched from the size and strength point of view. We tried to mix our defenses to start the game. We had to be in so much help trying to stop their number 24 (Holly Gohl).”
AJ Avery and Eliza Meersman both had nine points to lead the Colonials.
“Eliza Meersman is a freshman, and she’s started the last several games,” Dougherty said. “We were down 31-28, and she hit the big 3 to tie the game.
“Jos Perez and Marissa Perez – we were using them to try and stop number one (Mikel Lancit) and number 24 (Gohl). The two of them did an excellent job. Number one scored the layup at the end, but aside from that, we held her in check, and we really held 24 in check.
“I was really proud of the girls. You never want to lose a close game. I watched Upper Moreland at the beginning of the season, and I watched their last two games – they’ve gotten so much better as the season has gone one. They’re really a good team. They have tremendous size. We’re so undersized, we’re so inexperienced. We have three sophomores and a freshman out there, and they really battled back. Our young kids showed a lot of grit.”
Upper Moreland (10-5, 6-3 SOL) will be on the road at Lower Moreland on Tuesday, and Plymouth Whitemarsh (9-4, 6-3) will travel to Abington on Tuesday.
Plymouth Whitemarsh 12-0-9-10 31
Upper Moreland 12-9-5-7 33
Plymouth Whitemarsh (31) – Joslyn Perez 0 1-2 1; Taylor Williams 1 0-0 2; AJ Avery 1 7-8 9; Kenna Winland 2 0-2 5; Eliza Meersman 3 2-4 9; Lex Shubin 1 0-0 2; Marissa Perez 1 0-0 3; TOTALS 9 10-16 31.
Upper Moreland (33) – Mikel Lancit 3 0-0 7; Lianna Adames 2 0-0 5; Marie Meyers 1 0-0 3; Lilly Hansen 5 2-2 14; Holly Gohl 2 0-0 4; TOTALS 13 2-2 33.
3-point goals: PW – Eliza Meersman, Kenna Winland, Marissa Perez; UM – Lilly Hansen 2, Mikel Lancit, Lianna Adames, Marie Meyers.
LOWER MORELAND 62, WISSAHICKON 32
Briana McFerran scored 25 points – 21 in the opening half – in a glittering offensive performance to lead the Lions over the Trojans in crossover play.
“Briana McFerran, who’s been out for the last week with illness, scored 25 points in just over two quarters of playing time,” LM coach Rich Becker said. “We might have her get sick more often. If it were not for missing three layups, she would have had her first 30-point game of her career.
“Overall, the team played well. They moved the ball well on offense, and defensively, our secondary rotations are continuing to improve. Before the game, we listed our keys to the game – win the free throws and rebounding totals; keep them at no more than eight points per quarter and to commit to help defense. It might be the first time all year we’ve reached all of our pre-game goals.”
The Lions – behind 10 points from McFerran – opened up an 18-12 lead after one quarter. She added 11 points in a 22-point second quarter that also included eight points from Sydney Santora and five from Dani Brusha. The Lions put 50 points on the board in an explosive offensive showing in the first half.
“At this time of the year, when you have six days off between games, it feels like it’s too much time off, but I think it may have been good for us,” Becker said. “After a rough outing versus Abington last Friday, our girls responded with a solid game.
“We got up 15-4, and unfortunately, our bench allowed Wissahickon to close out the first quarter on an 8-3 run to make it an 18-12 first quarter. Early in the second quarter it was 19-14, and the next thing I know, we’re up 27-14 and ended up scoring 32 points in the second quarter.”
In addition to McFerran, Brusha had 10 points – all in the first half, and Santora and Emma DiJoseph both had eight points.
For the Trojans, Ashley Klein led the way with 13 points.
“For Wissahickon, Ashley Klein played very well,” Becker said. “It seemed like every time she got a good look she converted.”
Lower Moreland (9-4, 7-2 SOL) will travel to Marple Newtown for a non-league game Monday, and Wissahickon (2-12, 1-8) will be on the road at Cheltenham for a crossover game Monday.
Wissahickon 12-7-5-8 32
Lower Moreland 18-32-7-5 62
Wissahickon (32) – Maura Jacob 1 2-2 5; Julia Lettieri 2 1-4 5; Kristen DiGiovanni 1 0-0 3; Casey Burden 1 0-0 3; Kai Potter 1 0-0 3; Ashley Klein 6 1-3 13; #2 0 1-2 1; TOTALS 12 5-11 32.
Lower Moreland (62) – Briana McFerran 9 6-8 25; Dani Brusha 3 2-2 10; Sydney Santora 3 2-3 8; Emma DiJoseph 3 3-4 8; Nikki Sahl 2 2-2 4; Sofia Fey 1 0-0 2; Haylee Huber 1 0-0 3; TOTALS 21 15-19 62.
3-point goals: Wissahickon – Maura Jacob, Kristen DiGiovanni, Casey Burden; LM – Dani Brusha 2, Briana McFerran, Emma DiJoseph, Haylee Huber
Non-league
CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 51, ABINGTON 39
The Patriots, who led by one after one quarter, outscored the visiting Ghosts 25-13 in the middle quarters on their way to the non-league win that snapped a seven-game Abington winning streak.
“Abington is tough,” East coach Liz Potash said. “They have kids who can get to the basket, they have kids they can kick out and score too, and they want to play a sped up, fast-paced game. We knew coming in that was not the game plan for us, and if we wanted to have success, we had to slow them down in the half court.
“We came out and played at their speed, but once we were able to settle in and run our stuff on offense and make them have to play some half-court offense as well, not getting things out of transition – we were able to settle in a little bit, but they play hard. They’re tough, they forced us into a lot of turnovers – way more than we would have liked to have had, but we had some really timely shots.”
The Patriots – who celebrated Teacher Appreciation Night – took a 23-18 lead into halftime. Anna Barry’s seven points led a balanced attack that included four 3-pointers. In a 13-5 third quarter, Natalie Berndt had five points, but again, it was a team effort.
“I thought Chantal (Van Dongeren) and Natalie (Berndt) did a really great job defending (Mikaiya) Durham and (Jordyn) Reynolds,” Potash said. “(Maya) Johnson is a nice point guard – she’s quick, and she’s tough, and they have some really nice pieces. They play hard. They force you to play at a pace you don’t really want to play at. Even in the fourth quarter, we had it up to 15, and all of a sudden, it’s a 10-point game. They’re a tough team.”
Berndt’s 14 points led the Patriots and included a pair of 3s.
“She was our leading scorer, but defensively, she is really making life hard for scorers right now,” Potash said. “She’s just doing such a great job defensively, and that’s big.”
Barry added 13 points, which included a perfect 6-for-6 at the foul line in the second half. Sydney Ralph added nine points, but there were other important contributors.
“I thought Savannah Hayes gave us some really great minutes off the bench,” Potash said. “Jess (Lockwood) picked up two fouls early in the first quarter, and we went to Savannah pretty early, and she did some really nice things for us. It’s a tough spot to be in, having that role, but I thought she did some nice things.
“Haley Moran came in in the first half and gave us a little spark in the second quarter like she’s been able to do throughout the year. It was a nice team win. There were key spots where we needed a big shot – Syd Ralph hit a big 3, Nat hit a 3, but it was pretty balanced scoring-wise which was nice.”
For the Ghosts, Johnson’s 11 points led the way. Durham added nine points, and both Harper and Piper McGinley had six points.
“We didn’t execute on offense and missed some key assignments on defense which hurt us in the third quarter,” Abington coach Allison Lawson said. “We just didn’t play our game today and it showed.
“Piper and Maya did a great job defending their leading scorers, but their role players stepped up and hit some key shots.”
Central Bucks East (12-2, 7-2 SOL) will host Central Bucks West on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m., and Abington (10-3, 7-1) will host Academy of New Church on Monday in a non-league game.
Abington 10-8-5-16 39
Central Bucks East 11-12-13-15 51
Abington (39) – Maya Johnson 4 2-4 11; Harper McGinley 2 2-2 6; Mikaiya Durham 3 0-0 9; Jordyn Reynolds 2 0-0 5; Piper McGinley 2 1-2 6; Zyn McClain 1 0-0 2; TOTALS 14 5-8 39.
Central Bucks East (51) – Sydney Ralph 3 2-4 9; Haley Moran 2 0-0 5; Natalie Berndt 5 1-2 14; Anna Barry 3 6-6 13; Jess Lockwood 2 0-0 5; Chantal Van Dongeren 1 2-2 5; TOTALS 16 11-14 51.
3-point goals: Abington – Mikaiya Durham 3, Maya Johnson, Jordyn Reynolds, Piper McGinley; CBE – Natalie Berndt 3, Sydney Ralph, Haley Moran, Anna Barry, Jess Lockwood, Chantal Van Dongeren.
SPRINGFIELD TWP 52, INTERBORO 28
The visiting Spartans led 10-4 after one quarter and then blew the game wide open with a 21-4 second quarter burst. Catlin Lewis scored seven points in the quarter and Ava Culler added six to lead the Spartans, who took a 31-8 lead into halftime on their way to the decisive non-league won.
“It was a solid team win with balanced scoring, good team defense and first-half play execution,” Springfield Twp coach Dave Giordano said.
Lewis and Culler led a balanced Spartan attack with 11 and 10 points respectively. Jayla Daniels added eight points, and Hannah Brandon had six.
Springfield Twp (7-6, 3-5 SOL) is scheduled to host William Tennent on Tuesday.
Springfield Twp 10-21-10-11 52
Interboro 4-4-5-15 28
Springfield Twp (52) – C. Kazcor 2 0-0 4; Hannah Brandon 3 0-0 6; Catlin Lewis 5 0-1 11; Jayla Daniels 3 2-2 8; Grace Dailey 2 0-0 4; Devan Nolan 1 0-0 2; J Guichetau 2 0-0 4; Kaleigh Evans 1 1-2 3; Ava Culler 3 4-4 10; TOTALS 22 7-11 52.
Interboro (28) – Olivia Bulovas 0 2-4 2; Isabella Horowitz 0 1-2 1; Sarah Kerr 0 1-2 1; Ashley Talbot 1 0-0 2; Alaina D’Angelo 2 1-2 6; Madilyn Mea 2 2-6 6; Gianna Munro 0 1-2 1; Molly Hughes 1 0-0 2; Lilli Colvin 1 0-0 2; S. King 2 1-2 5; TOTALS 9 9-22 28.
3-point goals: Springfield Twp – Catlin Lewis; Interboro – Alaina D’Angelo.
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