Check out the recaps for SOL girls’ basketball teams in action Thursday. Abington/Upper Moreland photos provided by Kathy Leister Photography. Check back for a gallery of photos.
SOL National Conference
BENSALEM 35, WILLIAM TENNENT 33
Haley Keenan scored a game-high 17 points to lead the Owls to the come-from-behind victory. The win was the 10th of the season for Bensalem.
“We’re struggling offensively, but defensively, they usually play fairly well, but I’ll tell you – they come to play with lunch pails,” Bensalem coach Sheldon Per said. “We had our best practice of the year yesterday. They work hard.
“We’re in a great league – Neshaminy is (ranked) third in the state, and they have the best player in the league in (Brooke) Mullin, and Rock is very, very good. Pennsbury is very, very good and is in the top 10 in the district. We just take one game at a time. They’re playing hard, and that’s all I can ask for.”
The Panthers – sparked by three-pointers from Caitlin Somerville and Hannah Reimel – jumped out to a 10-4 lead after one quarter, but behind five points from Keenan and four from Emily Wineburg, the Owls came back to take a 17-16 lead into halftime.
“We blew a lead heading into halftime,” Tennent coach Laura Whitney said. “We were up seven with a minute-and-a-half, and they went on an 8-0 run which kind of killed us. We had a couple of offensive fouls called against us, and it seemed like the momentum shifted. We gave up a couple of easy shots, and next thing you know – instead of being up seven, we’re down one at halftime.”
The Panthers opened up a 26-21 lead in the third quarter. Again, the Owls came back, knotting the score 26-26 heading into the final quarter.
“We gave up an open three and another offensive rebound, and now it’s tied,” Whitney said. “I think our lack of experience really hurt us down the stretch.
“They were up 31-30, and it seemed like it was that score forever. We got a couple of stops, we had some opportunities, we called a couple of timeouts, drew up some plays but just couldn’t execute. We’re not used to being in those type of situations, and unfortunately, I think our inexperience kind of hurt us.”
In addition to Keenan, Michaela Sit had seven points and Chloe Munyon, six, for the Owls.
“It was a tough loss, but I give Bensalem credit – they play hard,” Whitney said. “Sheldon (Per) does a great job. He’s got them playing well together. They understand their roles within the team, and they play really, really hard.”
Reimel – who had three three-pointers – led the Panthers with 10 points. Jenna Rodebaugh and Haley Crossley each added nine.
“They’ve been playing so well the last couple of games,” Whitney said. “I’ve said it before – it’s hard to stay positive when you’re not seeing the results that you want, but I love that our girls just compete and battle. To come up on the short end in a game like this, it’s frustrating and you feel for them, so we just have to find a way to rebound and close out the remaining games on a positive.”
Bensalem (10-5, 4-4 SOL) will be on the road at Pennsbury on Thursday, and William Tennent (4-13, 1-6) will host Council Rock North on Friday.
William Tennent 10-6-10-7 33
Bensalem 4-13-9-9 35
William Tennent (33) – Caitlin Somerville 3, Emily Thran 2, Chelsea Meltzer 1, Hannah Reimel 10, Jenna Rodebaugh 9, Haley Crossley 9.
Bensalem (35) – Emily Wineburg 4, Michaela Sit 7, Haley Keenan 18, Chloe Munyon 6.
NESHAMINY 67, COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 51
Brooke Mullin – in a preview of things to come – scored eight points in the first quarter to lead the visiting Redskins to a 19-14 lead. By halftime she had 11 of her game-high 26 points, but the Redskins led the Golden Hawks by just two, 34-32. Nicole Blaustein’s 10 points led the Hawks. Bailey Vetter and Hannah Binder had six points each.
The pesky Golden Hawks trailed by just three heading into the final quarter (46-43) when Mullen took over, erupting for 15 points as the Redskins outscored their hosts 21-8.
“CR South really played well,” coach Joe Lally said. “They were well prepared and played smart.
“Blair (Klumpp) does a great job with his program, and he has really good assistant coaches in Nick Heim, John Boyd, Alexis Hofstaedter and Taylor Dillon.”
In addition to Mullin, Kelli Kowalick and Kristin Curley also finished the game in double figures with 10 points each. Emily Tantala had eight points while Alexa McCoy had six.
For the Golden Hawks, Blaustein led the way with 16 points. Montanna Chambers – who connected on three three-pointers – had 11. Bailey Vetter added eight and Binder had nine.
Neshaminy (16-2, 8-0 SOL) will travel to Harry S Truman on Thursday, and Council Rock South (6-9, 3-5) will be on the road at Central Bucks East for a non-league game on Saturday.
Neshaminy 19-15-12-21 67
Council Rock South 14-18-11-8 51
Neshaminy (67) – Emily Tantala 8, Olivia Scotti 2, Brooke Mullin 26, Kristin Curley 10, Alexa McCoy 6, Kelli Kowalick 10, Allison Harvey 5.
Council Rock South (51) – Montanna Chambers 11, Madison Broaddus 2, Nicole Blaustein 16, Bailey Vetter 9, Jenn a Culp 5, Hannah Binder 8.
ABINGTON 57, UPPER MORELAND 18
With Tamia Wessels sidelined, coach Dan Marsh is looking for other players to pick up the slack. In Saturday’s win over Governor Mifflin, it was Amanda Jackson stepping up. On Tuesday, it was Miranda Liebtag’s turn, and the senior, who is usually happy to contribute in a supporting role, scored a game-high 17 points, which 
included a pair of three-pointers.
Kassondra Brown had another big game in the paint, finishing with 16 points and 15 rebounds. Khalis Whiting added seven points, and Jackson had six on a pair of threes.
The Ghosts and Golden Bears were deadlocked 6-6 after one quarter, but an 18-1 second quarter sent the Ghosts into halftime with a 24-7 lead. They outscored their visitors 23-7 in the third quarter.
Bean Hughes (seven points) and Hannah Finn (six points) led the Golden Bears.
Abington (14-2, 8-1 SOL) will travel to Upper Dublin on Friday, and Upper Moreland (10-5, 5-4) will host Hatboro-Horsham on Friday.
Upper Moreland 6-1-7-4 18
Abington 6-18-23-10 57
Upper Moreland (18) – Kathryn Morrow 1, Kaitie Opferman 3, Emma Meakim 1, Bean Hughes 7, Hannah Finn 6.
Abington (57) – Cam Lexow 4, Kassondra Brown 16, Miranda Liebtag 17, Khalis Whiting 7, Amanda Jackson 6, Becca Pohle 5, Abbie Kelly 2.
COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 77, HARRY S TRUMAN 40
The Indians erupted for 48 first-half points. Senior Olivia Boyle sparked a 28-point first quarter with 10 of her team-high 16 points. Dana Bandurick added six. Emma Benson came off the bench and had the hot hand in the second quarter, scoring all 13 of her points – a career high.
Six different players combined for nine three-pointers. The second half began with the Indians burying four quick threes. Boyle had a pair in the quarter while Camryn Polinsky, Anna Cairone and Sydney Boyle had one each in the quarter.
In addition to Boyle and Benson, Bandurick also finished in double figures with 13 points. Polinsky added eight while Cairone, Abby Jones and Mara Penner had six each. Jones also had a game-high 13 rebounds – nine on the offensive end. All told, the Indians had 24 offensive rebounds and 17 steals. Blum led the defense with five and Polinsky had four.
Daisha Campbell had a big game for the Tigers, who were once again without Haniyyah Jones. Campbell finished with 20 points, which included a half-court shot at the buzzer ending the first half.
Rock North was 31-for-72 from the field (43 percent) and 9-for-24 from beyond the arc. Truman connected on 11-of-40 shots.
Council Rock North (14-3, 7-1 SOL) will travel to William Tennent on Friday, and Harry S Truman (2-14, 0-8) will host Neshaminy on Thursday.
Council Rock North 28-20-20-9 77
Harry S Truman 4-11-13-12 40
Council Rock North (77) – Camaryn Polinsky 8, Anna Cairone 6, Sydney Blum 5, Olivia Boyle 16, Dana Bandurick 13, Emma Benson 13, Abby Jones 6, Riley Hamilton 4, Mara Penner 6.
SOL Continental Conference
SOUDERTON 49, CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 40
“Megan O’Donnell, how about her?” coach Lynn Carroll said as she studied her stat sheet.
The Indians’ coach didn’t need a stat sheet to tell her exactly how valuable the senior point guard is to this year’s squad. O’Donnell – who took a seat on the bench after picking up her second foul in the final minute of the opening quarter – re-entered the game in the third quarter. Things were never the same for either side.
“She’s the fire in terms of feisty, fist pumps after something good happens, and every team is better when they have one of those kids,” Carroll said. “Most of the other kids are pretty even keel, but Mo’s kind of the energizer for us.
“How she played offensively in the second half – if she wasn’t finishing a layup, she was getting a layup for Mikaela (Reese), and she was just making really, really good decisions.”
O’Donnell and Reese both finished the game with 15 points – both scored 13 points after the intermission, and the fun started early. Reese scored less than a minute into the second half, giving the Indians, who trailed 20-19 at halftime, a lead they would not lose. Then it was the 5-1 O’Donnell – despite being fouled – scoring on an impossible drive in traffic and completing the three-point play.
“Sitting on the bench the whole second quarter was definitely not fun,” O’Donnell said. “But all props to my teammates for playing such great offense and defense in the second quarter to keep us in the game.
“I came out looking to take control of the game. That was my goal – and just passing it to my teammates. We were playing so well together tonight.”
A runner by O’Donnell put the Indians on top 26-20 and prompted West coach Terry Rakowsky to call a timeout. Maddie Burke buried a short jumper out of the timeout, but O’Donnell found Reese breaking ahead of the defense on the press for layup and a three-point play.
After a West miss, O’Donnell scored on a tough drive, landing on the floor after laying it in the basket for a 31-22 Souderton lead.
“She just has that personality where she’s willing to step up and she wants to step up when the team needs her to,” Carroll said of O’Donnell. “She’ll do whatever the team needs.
“I thought she had a couple of hustle plays on defense. We see that in Megan a lot, so we know she’s capable of it.”
Burke and Reese exchanged baskets, and then it was Walbrandt finding Reese for an easy two. A three-point play by freshman Emily Spratt after pulling down an offensive rebound pulled the Bucks to within six, but Megan Bealer answered for the Indians. A Burke bucket made it a six-point game heading into the final quarter.
A basket by Izzy Treon pulled the Bucks to within four, but O’Donnell found Reese for a bucket at the end of the press to put the Indians on top by six.
“I was driving in the lane, and they kept crashing on me and left Mikaela wide open,” O’Donnell said. “I feel confident to put the ball in her hands to make it.”
A Reese block on the defensive end set the stage for a pair of Bealer foul shots, and when O’Donnell found Reese yet again, the Indians led 41-31.
“Everyone was communicating – the other girls were spreading out which helped me and Megan get open,” Reese said. “Just the connection of playing AAU before really helps us, and Meg is such a good basketball player. When she drives, she has a lot of players on her, and she has an amazing dish-out which really helps.”
“Having her out as long as we did in the first half – she’s our leading scorer right now,” Carroll said of Reese. “She’s rarely in foul trouble.”
Walbrandt also finished in double figures for the Indians with 10 points – all in the first half.
“In the entire first half, Megan Walbrandt is shadowing Maddie Burke and then bringing up the ball the entire second quarter,” Carroll said. “Offensively, she played great in the first half. She was hitting tough shots, creating her own shots.
“I was happy being down one (at halftime) with Megan and Mikaela on the bench the entire second quarter. We got good minutes out of Erica (Stephens) and Olivia (Schneider) in the second quarter.
“We executed well in the second half. Our defense was really good. This was a good team effort.”
Burke – who along with Treon battled foul woes – led the Bucks with 14 points. Olivia Irons, Jess Broskey and Spratt each added six points.
“We worked real hard and did a great job for two-and-a-half quarters of rotating,” West coach Terry Rakowsky said. “The kids did a great job and then just decided not to do it in the fourth quarter and gave up a layup or that power move.
“(Souderton) does a very good job, they’re very well coached, but we just didn’t rotate down. I think what happens is they get a little tired, and they go back to bad habits.”
With the win, the Indians have a three-game lead with four conference games remaining.
“We’re really just trying to take one game at a time,” O’Donnell said. “We’re not trying to get caught up in the future. (A conference championship) is our goal, but I think we’re more successful if we take it one game at a time.”
Souderton (14-1, 8-0 SOL) will host Central Bucks South on Friday, and Central Bucks West (9-6, 4-3) will host Pennridge on Thursday.
Souderton 8-11-16-14 49
Central Bucks South 7-13-9-11 40
Souderton (49) – Megan Bealer 6, Megan Walbrandt 10, Erica Stephens 1, Curran O’Donnell 2, Megan O’Donnell 15, Mikaela Reese 15.
Central Bucks West (40) – Olivia Irons 6, Jess Broskey 6, Maddie Burke 14, Emily Spratt 6, Izzy Treon 4, Tori Abelson 4.
CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 45, CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 40
The Patriots would have undoubtedly like their chances in Tuesday’s rivalry game if someone had told them Alexa Brodie would score just 10 points. The all-state point guard finished with 10 points but was a facilitator while a pair of freshmen picked up the slack. Mackenzie Erb led the Titans with 12 points, and Taylor Hinkle added 10.
“This was offensively the most aggressive our team has been and playing like a team,” coach Beth Mattern said. “Alexa got to be more of a point guard tonight and didn’t have to be a point guard and scorer and have so many roles.
“Although she only scored 10 points, her points were important, and the others took some of the pressure off of her, which was nice to see.”
The Titans, who led 11-7 after one quarter, took a 21-16 lead into halftime. Hinkle had six points while Erb and Brodie had five each. Caroline Pla led the Patriots with a pair of three-pointers.
South led 30-26 heading into the final quarter, and the Titans held off the Patriots in the final frame.
“Mackenzie Erb scored seven points in the fourth quarter – she hit a three and went 4-for-4 from the foul line,” Mattern said. “Taylor Hinkle had her 11 points in the first three quarters, and Allie Burke scored four points in the fourth quarter on some nice moves.
“People are really playing within themselves and understanding their roles. It was fun to be part of tonight because as a team we needed a game like this.”
Pla led the Patriots with 11 points, Mia Salvati had nine – eight in the fourth quarter, and Skylar Krause had eight.
Central Bucks South (7-8, 5-3 SOL) will travel to Souderton on Friday, and Central Bucks East (7-8, 4-4) will host North Penn on Friday.
Central Bucks East 7-9-10-14 40
Central Bucks South 11-10-9-15 45
Central Bucks East (40) – Mia Salvati 9, Gabby Wilga 5, Caroline Pla 11, Emily Chmiel 2, Skylar Krause 8, Aubrey DeAngelis 2, Emily Barry 3.
Central Bucks South (45) – Taylor Hinkle 11, Mackenzie Erb 12, Allie Burke 6, Kirsten Schaller 2, Alexa Brodie 10, Sofia Sonnet 4.
PENNRIDGE 58, QUAKERTOWN 39
Eleven players put their names in the scoring column for the Rams, who were led by the 10-point effort of Emilee Cramer. Corinn Mart and Julia Kreider both added eight points.
The Rams opened up a 19-6 lead after one quarter and never looked back.
Bri Lefkoski’s 12 points led the Panthers. Abigail Dickson added six points.
Pennridge (8-7, 2-5 SOL) will travel to Central Bucks West on Thursday, and Quakertown (2-13, 0-8) will be on the road for a non-league game at Norristown on Thursday.
Quakertown 6-3-12-18 39
Pennridge 19-19-15-5 58
Quakertown (39) – Bri Lefkoski 12, Abigail Dickson 6, Laney Mitchell 5, Katie Offner 2, Emma Pizzullo 5, Fallon Grandinetti 2, Alexis Miccuci 2, Morgan Sipprell 4, Abigail McClaskey 1.
Pennridge (58) – Corinn Mart 8, Sam Muredda 4, Julie Kreider 8, Courtney McGurl 6, Ashley Gordon 4, Emilee Cramer 10, Megan Kriney 4, Ava Unzicker 3, Kiersten Moyer 4, Emma Pyne 3, Jillian Coughlin 4.
SOL American Conference
HATBORO-HORSHAM 65, WISSAHICKON 34
Senior Kylie Halko scored a game-high 19 points, and freshman Emily Thomas added 18 to lead the Hatters to the impressive win over the visiting Trojans. Halko was 5-for-8 from beyond the arc. Freshman Alice Hall also finished the game in double figures with 10 and pulled down a game-high 12 rebounds to complete her double-double.
The Hatters, who led 13-10 after one quarter, took a 30-20 lead into halftime.
“Into the second quarter, the game was very similar to the first time we played,” said HH coach Dennis Steinly, whose team eked out a 48-46 win in the initial meeting. “We got up early, and then they hit some shots to get back in it, and I thought, ‘Here we go again,’ but our girls came out energized in the third quarter.”
The Hatters outscored their visitors 14-7 in the third quarter and 35-14 in the second half to win going away.
Point guard Cam Ryan dished out seven assists and also paced the defense with five steals to go along with five points. Thomas added five steals to her 18 points.
“She had a great all-around game,” Steinley said of the freshman.
Anna Schools (11 points) and Lauren Fadel (nine points) led the Trojans, who are still without Brianna Tilghman.
Hatboro-Horsham (7-9, 4-5 SOL) will travel to Upper Moreland on Friday, and Wissahickon (4-11, 2-7) will host South Philadelphia in a non-league game Thursday.
Wissahickon 10-10-7-7 34
Hatboro-Horsham 13-17-14-21 65
Wissahickon (34) – Anna Schools 11, Lauren Fadel 9, Lily Hyatt 3, Rebecca Selverian 4, Macy Segal 2, Kelly Prestipino 2, Leah Dubin 3.
Hatboro-Horsham (65) – Emily Thomas 18, Cam Ryan 5, Logan Cummings 1, Kylie Halko 19, Maddie Throne 4, Graceanne Griffis 1, Alice Hall 10, Kara Kaminski 4, Sam Hollish 3.
PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 69, SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP 33
The Colonials led by just three after one quarter, 19-16, but a 22-5 second quarter sent them into halftime with a 41-21 lead on their way to the big win.
Sophomore Anna McTamney led the Colonials with 22 points while Jordyn Thomas added 14. Lily Belle McGrorty and Ally Zolty both added eight points, and Mackenzie Leszczynski had seven. Sydney Kesselman chipped in two. Zolty and McGrorty both had a pair of three-pointers.
Plymouth Whitemarsh (15-2, 7-2 SOL) will travel to Cheltenham on Friday, and Springfield Township (2-13, 1-8) will be on the road at Wissahickon on Friday.
Springfield Township 16-5-6-6 33
Plymouth Whitemarsh 19-22-19-9 69
Plymouth Whitemarsh (69) – Ally Zolty 8, Kate Flanagan 2, Mackenzie Leszczynski 7, Marcaela Allen 2, Sydney Kesselman 6, Anna McTamney 22, Jordyn Thomas 14, Lily Belle McGrorty 8.
UPPER DUBLIN 66, CHELTENHAM 21
In a remarkable display of long-range shooting, the Flying Cardinals buried six three-pointers in the first quarter – three each by Sarah Eskew and Dayna Balasa. Jackie Vargas added nine points as the visiting Cardinals opened up a 27-6 lead over the Panthers.
Vargas finished the game with an impressive stat line – 17 points, 15 rebounds, six blocks and four assists. Anajae Smith added 14 points and four rebounds. Balasa had 12 points on four three-pointers while Eskew had nine. Kara Grebe added eight points and four rebounds.
“Upper Dublin is a really good team,” Cheltenham coach Ben Bowman said. “We need to learn to play with the same intensity no matter the opponent. The effort wasn’t there tonight.”
Freshman Umray Sulayman’s 13 points led the Lady Panthers. Madison Rorer added six.
Upper Dublin (14-2, 9-0 SOL) will host Abington on Friday in a battle with title implications, and Cheltenham (2-14, 0-9) will host Plymouth Whitemarsh on Friday.
Upper Dublin 27-16-13-10 66
Cheltenham 6-3-6-6 21
Upper Dublin (66) – Bliss Brenner 2, Jess Sobieski 2, Anajae Smith 14, Brianna Felgoise 2, Kara Grebe 8, Sarah Eskey 9, Dayna Balasa 12, Jackie Vargas 17.
Cheltenham (21) – Madison Rorer 6, Umayrah Sulayman 13, Kelia Holmes 1, Kai Williams 1.
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