Check out the recaps for SOL girls’ basketball teams in action Sunday.
Non-league
PENNSBURY 61, CONWELL-EGAN 40
Sunday’s non-league game at Conwell-Egan pitting the neighboring schools was a reunion of sorts, and the change in venue attracted fans from both sides.
“Today’s game with Egan was originally supposed to be played in the Maggie Lucas Classic at Jefferson University, but it was moved to Egan because we have so many girls that are seniors that played on the same club basketball team (Philly Heat North),” Pennsbury coach Frank Sciolla said. “I felt like it would be cool to play a game in the gym where they practice and play their games, and it could create a really nice environment for us to have to face. There was a really good crowd there.”
The Eagles and Falcons were deadlocked 12-12 after one quarter, but the Falcons finished the half strong and took a 29-23 lead into halftime. Sofia Vitucci’s 14 points led the Falcons while Lily Milewski led the Eagles with 10 points.
“Egan came out strong and surprised us right off the bat by opening the game with a 3-pointer from someone that we did not expect it from, and they played with a great deal of confidence after that and had a 19-14 lead late in the second quarter,” Sciolla said. “But from that point on, we went on a 10-0 run to change the game.
“It was a crazy week with no practice and all the games, and we also were aware that emotions could be running high because in addition to the girls who play with Philly Heat, there were several other girls on our team that have connections with each other, and it makes for a nice neighborhood rivalry.”
The Falcons came out of halftime and outscored the Eagles 20-12 to up their lead to 49-35 and added to their lead in the fourth quarter. Daniella MacDonald’s nine points on three 3-pointers led the Falcons in the second half, and Vitucci, who had a pair of 3s, added eight points.
Vitucci’s 22 points led the Falcons while MacDonald added 14.
“Sof was more active looking for catch and shoot 3s today, and we have really been on her to do that,” Sciolla said. “She has that ability but sometimes she looks for that middle game and today she got open looks, and we also got some really good inside-out looks for Daniella MacDonald, and she knocked them down. Mac is such a good shooter when she can step into her shot.”
Also for the Falcons, freshman Joley Hohman added eight points, which included a pair of 3s. She also had four assists. Layla Matthias and Danielle Sherman each had six points.
“We got a really good game from Joley Hohman as she got us into our offense several times, and she made some really good inside-out passes for open shots and also a great pass for layup against pressure,” Sciolla said. “Joley has been competing against 6A competition and athletes all years and there are no nights off. She faces the best every game, and just in our league, she goes up against a senior guard almost every night, and I think that type of experience helped her and was a difference maker today
“Layla did what she does up top and on the glass and also was able to finish inside for us, which is something we really need from her.”
The Falcons’ coach also credited the play of his reserves.
“Our bench was really solid today,” Sciolla said. “Teams are not playing us this year in the fashion that we thought they would, and it’s forced us to go to pressure lineups and five-guard lineups so Emily Panaro has not played as much as we would like, but we knew that today was an opportunity for her to be able to do some damage and she took two big charges.
“Danielle Sherman was very effective in getting to the rim. Rather running to the 3-point line and waiting there, she attacked and used her skill set. She also grabbed some rebounds for us which is something we’ve really been pushing her to do so that we can keep her on the floor more and take advantage of her unique skill set.
“Maggie Burns was really good for us defensively and continued to pull down big girl type offensive rebounds”
Milewski’s 16 points led the Eagles.
“Chris (Brennan) has done an incredible job building up the numbers in that program, and he’s really had some good players come through there,” Sciolla said. “Lily Milewski is a Pennsbury resident, and her mother coached one of our middle school teams while Lily was here. When Egan ran the offense through Lily, it was very difficult for us to get stops, and she is someone that will be going to college for free if she wants to play basketball. She’s an absolute game changer.
“Egan’s style of play forces tempo, so the game does go up and down, but we were okay with that, and we really became solid on the defensive end in the second half and limited them to one shot. Lily makes that so difficult, but we got a nice group effort to keep her off the backboard. At times, we were able to speed up their guard play up top and get them playing east to west because you don’t want them to be comfortable setting up Brooke McFadden for open looks or getting it into Lily Milewski down low because that’s when they are very difficult to guard.”
Sciolla was the boys’ basketball coach at Conwell-Egan for three years and led the Eagles to the program’s first District 12 2A and PIAA 2A state titles.
“It’s always cool being back at Egan,” the Falcons’ coach said. “I met so many good people there, and I was happy to see them there today after the game. Chris Brennan coached my daughter in CYO, so he will always have a special place in my heart. I’m glad to see Egan thriving again.
“We really need practice, and we are looking forward to be able to do that tomorrow night and get ready as we turn back into Patriot Division play.”
Pennsbury (10-4, 7-3 SOL) will host Neshaminy on Tuesday.
Pennsbury 12-17-20-12 61
Conwell-Egan 12-11-12-5 40
Pennsbury (61) – Layla Matthias 3 0-0 6; Danielle Sherman 3 0-0 6; Maggie Burns 1 1-2 3; Sofia Vitucci 6 4-4 22; Daniella MacDonald 5 0-0 14; Joley Hohman 3 0-0 8; Sammie Haws 1 0-0 2; TOTALS 23 5-6 61.
Conwell-Egan (40) – Brianna McFadden 1 1-4 3; Emma Candy 1 0-0 3; Brianna Jackson 3 2-6 9; Jayla Butler 0 2-2 2; Ariella Parks 0 1-2 1; Lily Milewski 7 0-0 16; Brooke McFadden 3 0-1 6; TOTALS 15 6-14 40.
3-point goals: Pennsbury – Sofia Vitucci 4, Daniella MacDonald 4, Joley Hohman 2; CEC – Lily Milewski 2, Emma Candy, Brianna Jackson.
Maggie Lucas Classic
UPPER DUBLIN 54, WEST CATHOLIC 38
Morgan Funsten has seen a whole lot of basketball, so when the veteran coach says Megan Ngo played one of the best games he’s ever seen, you know it had to be something special.
It was.
Ngo had five points in a first quarter that saw the Cardinals take a 13-11 lead, but it was in the Cardinals’ 21-point second quarter that the junior point guard took it to another level.
Funsten explains.
“In the first half we had 11 field goals. Meg was 5-for-5 from the field with 17 points and assisted on our other six field goals in the half,” the UD coach said. “She finished with 28 points on 12 shot attempts and was perfect from the foul line. She made the opposing point guard uncomfortable all day.
“She was completely dominant on both sides of the ball and continues to amaze me and anyone else in the gym who was lucky enough to witness her performance today. I would say it was a once in a lifetime performance, but it’s not much different than what she’s been doing every game for us.”
The Cardinals led 34-19 at halftime, all but sealing West Catholic’s fate before the second half even began.
“We – like a lot of teams – hadn’t played in nine days, so it was important that we survived the first quarter while we knocked the rust off,” Funsten said. “We came back with a great second quarter and took the lead from Megan Ngo, who played one of the best games I’ve ever seen from a player.”
Ngo – who earned team MVP honors – finished with a stat line that saw her connect on 10-of-12 shots from the field and 6-of-6 from the foul line for 28 points. UD had 18 field goals in the game – Ngo had 10 field of those and assisted on six others. The junior point guard also had three steals and three rebounds.
Ngo was one of three UD players to finish in double figures. Amy Ngo added 12 points, and Tamia Clark had 10 points and a team-high eight rebounds. Bridget DiMartile added six rebounds.
“I’m very excited about the little things that we did well today,” Funsten said. “We’ve been trying to improve our defensive rebounding, and although we gave up some offensive rebounds, the effort and focus was the best it’s been all year.
“Tamia Clark, Brighid Brady, and Bridget DiMartile were outsized but did a great job rebounding. I also thought we improved our half-court defense from the last time we played. I was very pleased with our overall performance today.”
Upper Dublin (14-1, 9-0 SOL) will host Quakertown on Tuesday.
West Catholic 11-8-10-9 38
Upper Dublin 13-21-9-11 54
West Catholic (38) – Sakinah Abud-Sabam 0 2-4 2; Ciana Blake 2 0-1 5; Ciani Scott 3 5-6 11; Jasmine Butler 5 0-1 11; Nyla Haynesworth 1 1-2 3; Kijah Henry 1 0-0 2; Myla Coleman 1 2-4 4; TOTALS 13 10-18 38.
Upper Dublin (54) – Bridget DiMartile 0 4-6 4; Megan Ngo 10 6-6 28; Tamia Clark 4 2-2 10; Amy Ngo 4 2-2 12; TOTALS 18 14-16 54.
3-point goals: WC – Ciana Blake, Jasmine Butler; UD – Megan Ngo 2, Amy Ngo 2.
NESHAMINY 51, BISHOP SHANAHAN 20
The Redskins rolled to a no-doubt-about-it win over the Eagles, allowing just 10 points over the final three quarters.
“The first quarter was a little rough as we gave up the 10 points, but Alena (Cofield) and Ava (Irizarry) had picked up multiple fouls,” Neshaminy coach John Gallagher said. “Lola (Ibarrondo) followed in their footsteps in the second quarter, picking up her second. This afforded our bench, specifically Mia Raivich and Grace Weyler, an opportunity to make an impact on the game.”
The ‘Skins led 14-10 after one quarter and then outscored the Eagles 8-4 in the second to go into halftime with a 22-14 lead.
“The game changed in the second quarter when we did a very good job on the defensive end,” Gallagher said. “We had a good discussion as a team at our last practice in an effort to refocus our energy on the defensive end. The players took it upon themselves to assert themselves on the defensive end after the first quarter.”
Neshaminy blew the game wide open with a 13-6 third quarter and then outscored the Eagles 16-0 in the final frame.
Reese Zemitis, the Redskins’ team MVP, led the way with 12 points, three rebounds, three assists and one steal. The senior standout is now tied with 1979 Neshaminy graduate Stephanie McGinty for fifth place in the program’s all-time scoring list.
Irizarry added eight points and three rebounds while Raivich had seven points, three rebounds and three assists. Auslyn Watkins had six points. Duffy’s four rebounds led the Redskins. She also had a pair of assists.
“The coaches have been requiring both Mia and Ashlyn Duffy to assert themselves more and focus on rebounding,” Gallagher said. “Over the last few games, after watching video, I see them both fighting hard for rebounds at both ends of the floor.
“Grace (Weyler) has given us an added ball handler with the ability to get to the rim and to shoot behind the arc. Ava Irizarry came up with a few defensive rebounds in traffic and one resulted in a throw ahead layup to Reese.
“We had two players register their first varsity points as frosh Auslyn Wilkins knocked down a three pointer in the fourth quarter and sophomore Sydney Snyder did the same in a 16-point fourth quarter.”
Neshaminy (12-3, 9-1 SOL) will travel to Pennsbury on Tuesday.
Bishop Shanahan 10-4-6-0 20
Neshaminy 14-8-13-16 51
Bishop Shanahan (20) – Sam Blumenthal 1 0-0 2; Lauren Foster 1 0-0 3; Carmel Ambrose 1 0-0 3; Abby Wolf 2 0-0 6; Faith Ambrose 2 1-3 6; TOTALS 7 1-3 20.
Neshaminy (51) – Grace Weyler 1 0-0 2; Alena Cofield 2 0-0 4; Angelina Tibeerio 1 0-1 2; Ashlynn Duffy 1 0-0 3; Lola Ibarrondo 3 0-0 6; Auslyn Wilkins 1 0-0 3; Ava Irizarry 3 0-0 7; Mia Raivich 3 0-0 8; Reese Zemitis 5 0-0 12; Erin Dougherty 0 1-2 1; Sydney Snyder 1 0-0 3; TOTALS 21 1-2 51.
3-point goals: Shanahan – Abby Wolf 2, Lauren Foster, Carmel Ambrose, Faith Ambrose; Neshaminy – Reese Zemitis 2, Mia Raivich 2, Ashlynn Duffy, Ava Irizarry, Sydney Snyder, Auslyn Wilkins
GERMANTOWN ACADEMY 48, COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 40
The Golden Hawks and Patriots were deadlocked 8-8 after one quarter, but the Patriots used a 14-3 second quarter to go into halftime with a 22-11 halftime lead.
Rock South actually outscored GA 29-26 in the second half but never could make up the ground it lost in the opening quarter.
Kathryn O’Kane’s 18-point effort led the Golden Hawks with 11 of those points coming after the break. Fiona Reckner added 10 points.
Council Rock South (9-5, 6-3 SOL) will travel to Bensalem on Tuesday.
Council Rock South 8-3-11-18 40
Germantown Academy 8-14-10-16 48
Council Rock South (40) – Sarah Freeman 1 2-2 5; Lily Bros 1 1-2 4; Kathryn O’Kane 7 3-8 18; Camryn Gregory 1 0-0 3; Fiona Reckner 5 0-0 10; TOTALS 15 6-12 40.
Germantown Academy (48) – Jenna Aponik 6 0-0 12; Sam Wade 1 1-2 3; Gabby Bowes 5 0-0 14; Isabella Casey 5 0-0 10; Jess Kolecki 2 0-0 5; Jen Aponik 2 0-0 4; TOTALS 21 1-2 48.
30
3-point goals: CRS – Sarah Freeman, Lily Bros, Kathryn O’Kane, Camryn Gregory; GA – Gabby Bowes 4, Jess Kolecki.
HAVERFORD 53, ABINGTON 43
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