Check out the results for SOL girls’ basketball teams in action Thursday.
National Conference
NESHAMINY 47, PENNSBURY 36
It wasn’t always pretty, but it was a win for the Redskins, who dug themselves out of a 31-26 hole by closing out the game with a 21-5 fourth-quarter tear.
“They defend really well – to their credit their matchup zone is good,” coach Joe Lally said of the Falcons. “They shot the ball very well from the perimeter. We held them to three two-point field goals, but they made eight three-pointers.
“I said to the kids heading into the fourth quarter, ‘We need to find a way to amp up the press and put some more pressure on them and force some turnovers and get out and run on them a little bit.’
“We were able to do that early in the fourth quarter. We double teamed well, we trapped the ball and were able to get some easy buckets and create some separation.”
The Redskins led 10-7 after one quarter and took a 17-15 lead into halftime, but the Falcons had the hot hand offensively in the third quarter, outscoring their visitors 16-9 to go into the fourth quarter with a five-point lead. That’s when the Redskins turned up the pressure.
Maddie Murray – one of three Redskins to score 10 points – had eight of her points in the fourth quarter.
“Playing against Sarah (Atunrase), Maddie did a great job in the fourth quarter,” Lally said. “When we needed her, she really stepped up big time in the fourth quarter.
“Sarah is so long, and that makes their matchup zone so much better. You think you have some high-low action, and you turn around, and she’s there.”
Morgan Goldenbaum also had 10 points to go along with eight steals and eight assists.
“Morgan was phenomenal again,” Lally said.
Emily Alexis also added 10 points while Devon Storms had nine.
Maggie Kane led the Falcons with 17 points. Amy Blazejowski had eight and Meredith Webber, seven points.
While the Falcons are 3-8 in the league (10-6 overall), the Redskins upped their record to 8-3 in SOL play (13-5 overall). They are in a battle with Council Rock North for second place in the conference standings.
“We’re young – with one senior, and we’re in a nice position right now if we finish the season strong,” Lally said. “We’ll see what happens.”
Neshaminy 10-7-9-21 47
Pennsbury 7-8-16-5 36
Neshaminy (47) – Morgan Goldenbaum 10, Emily Alexis 10, Maddie Murray 10, Devon Storms 9, Tiara Porterfield 5, Josafinne McIlvaine 3.
Pennsbury (36) – Abby Wade 1, Amy Blazejowski 8, Chante Jackson 3, Meredith Webber 7, Maggie Kane 17.
Continental Conference
CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 50, CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 38
Jordan Vitelli came out of the gate on fire in Thursday’s battle between the neighboring rivals, torching the Patriots for 13 first-quarter points – which included two three-pointers – and propelling the Titans to a 16-6 lead after one quarter.
The junior sharpshooter finished with a game-high 25 points.
The young Patriots responded to the Titans’ strong start with a 12-8 second quarter to pull to within six at halftime (24-18). The Patriots outscored the Titans 13-10 in the third quarter to make it a 34-31 game heading into a fourth quarter that saw the Titans – sparked by nine point from Vitelli – outscore the Patriots 16-8.
“CB East played with a strong intensity, and for us coming out strong like we did, they made us earn that win the entire game,” coach Beth Mattern said. “You’re playing a district rival, and that always has meaning.”
A pair of freshman – Haley Meinel and MacKenzie Ehresman – also came up big for the Titans, contributing nine and eight points respectively.
“They came out and really played a solid game,” Mattern said.
For the Patriots, freshman point guard Bailey McManus led the way with 10 points while Bridget Birkhead and Bri Talbot each added six.
The Titans are alone in second place in the conference standings with a 9-2 record (15-3 overall) while the Patriots are 5-6 in the league (10-9 overall).
Central Bucks East 6-12-13-8 38
Central Bucks South 16-8-10-16 50
Central Bucks East (38) – Bridget Birkhead 6, Kyra Scaliti 5, Bailey McManus 10, Melanie Webzel 3, Bri Talbot 6, Abby Charlton 4, Grace Stewart 4.
Central Bucks South (50) – Kaley Smith 2, Chloe Entenberg 2, Meghan Kuypers 2, Haley Meinel 9, Jordan Vitelli 25, Sam Clevenstine 2, MacKenzie Ehresman 8.
CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 56, NORTH PENN 44
This was a marquee game, and any thoughts the top SOL Continental Conference teams may have had of making the battle for the conference crown into a two or three-team race down the stretch were effectively put to rest with West’s win.
The Bucks hold a two-game lead in the conference standings over Central Bucks South with three games remaining, but no one on West’s sidelines was going down that road.
“It was a great win,” West coach Terry Rakowsky said. “We don’t really talk about where we’re going. We stay in the moment. We were fortunate to get the win. They played real, real well, and we did some good stuff defensively.”
Early on, the Lady Knights had things going their way. They led 5-0 after a Jess Huber three-pointer, and freshman Bri Hewlett came off the bench to score six first-quarter points, propelling North Penn to a 16-12 lead.
By halftime, the Bucks – thanks to the inspired play of senior Nicole Munger – had rallied to knot the score 23-23. Munger accounted for 15 of those points. Only two other West players had field goals.
“They were playing good defense, they were forcing the issue,” Rakowsky said. “Thank god we have Munger on our team. I think she had every point in the first half.
“Our other kids came to life in the second half. You can box-and-one us, but you’re playing with poison because we have some kids who can score too. Not that they box-and-oned her, but they denied her a little bit in the second quarter. We need games like this.”
Corrinne Godshall scored on a drive to open the second half, and after a Lady Knight turnover, it was Mackenzie Carroll scoring on a drive.
“Coach Terry told us we needed to drive to the basket,” Carroll said. “We were taking too many shots that we weren’t getting rebounds, so we needed to drive.”
A fast break off a North Penn miss saw Godshall find Peyton Traina for an easy bucket, and when – after a Godshall block on the defensive end – Carroll buried a baseline trey, the Bucks led 32-23.
“I knew our shooting woes weren’t going to last all game,” said Munger, who led all scorers with 21 points and 10 rebounds. “I knew in time our shots were going to fall, so props to my teammates for really coming out in the second half and refocusing, playing all together as a team and getting easy layups to start.
“Mac (Carroll) hit the three – that was awesome. That was such a great shot.”
The Lady Knights didn’t go down quietly, responding to West’s 9-0 run with a run of their own. Mikaela Giuliani connected on a fast break basket and then – after a West turnover – converted a three-point play. A three-pointer by Sam Carangi pulled the Lady Knights to within one (32-31), and after another West turnover, Giuliani scored to cap a 10-0 run that put the Lady Knights on top 33-32.
But not for long.
Godshall scored in an inbounds play under West’s own basket, and when Makenzie Mason connected after a North Penn turnover, the Bucks led 36-33. Another Carangi trey knotted the score, but Maggie Rakowsky (eight points) buried a pair of foul shots to give the Bucks a lead they would not lose.
A pair of Carroll foul shots sent the Bucks into the fourth quarter with a 42-36 lead. They never looked back, opening the fourth quarter with a 10-2 run and then burying 8-of-8 foul shots down the stretch (21-of-24 in the game).
“My AAU coach always said, there’s a first run you’ll make, they’ll make a second run and come back, but you have to finish it off strong,” Munger said. “They made their run, and I thought as a team we really prevailed and really fought together.
“At the start of the fourth quarter, I think our defense really changed the game. The tempo changed, and our defense led to offense. I love games like this – these are the best games. I have so much fun playing in them.”
In addition to Munger, Carroll added 10 points – seven in the pivotal third quarter – while Maggie Rakowsky had nine and Mason, eight points.
For the Lady Knights, Giuliani led the way with 12 points and also had four rebounds. Huber and Carangi both had nine points, and Hewlett finished with eight points to go along with four rebounds and six steals. Carangi also had six assists.
“The effort was definitely there,” North Penn coach Maggie deMarteleire said. “I thought overall defensively – they scored 56 points, and that’s not horrible.
“We just need to make better decisions on offense. We lost our composure at times. We don’t really turn the ball over against their fullcourt press. We’re turning the ball over on the halfcourt set, but it is because they’re playing aggressive, so we just need to show more composure on offense.”
The Bucks are 11-0 in conference play (18-1 overall) while the Lady Knights are 8-3 in league play (14-5 overall).
North Penn (44) – Irisa Ye 4, Taylor Thames 2, Mikaela Giuliani 12, Jess Huber 9, Sam Carangi 9, Bri Hewlett 8.
Central Bucks West (56) – Mackenzie Carroll 10, Peyton Traina 2, Makenzie Mason 8, Corrinne Godshall 6, Nicole Munger 21, Maggie Rakowsky 8.
American Conference
CHELTENHAM 56, PENN WOOD 43
Ashley Jones had herself a night on Thursday, scoring a game high 32 points to go along with five rebounds and five assists.
“It’s one of those games – she just thrives in a game like that,” coach Brendan Nolan said. “They were all over her. They weren’t giving her an inch, but she gets the ball, and there are big gaps against Penn Wood, and she just loves to get in the gaps and get to the basket.
“It wasn’t her best night from the line – she was 10-for-15, but 32 points and a lot of rebounds. It was another great performance by her.”
The final score shows Cheltenham winning by double digits, but this win was anything but easy.
“It was a tough game,” Nolan said. “It was a very physical game, and it was not a game I would have wanted to officiate because it’s one of those games you can’t call everything because if you do, you’ll blow the whistle the entire game.
“Our kids played tough. We got up early, and we pretty much maintained the lead throughout, but it was never comfortable.”
The Lady Panthers led 10-9 after one quarter and took a 19-15 lead into halftime. They outscored Penn Wood by one in a high-scoring third quarter to go into the final quarter with a 40-35 lead. For good measure, they outscored their hosts 11-8 in the fourth quarter.
“We came out on a nice 8-0 run to start the second half, but they closed the third quarter with a run, so we only were up five going into the fourth quarter,” Nolan said. “We kind of took the air of out the ball a little bit in the fourth quarter and got to the line.
“We weren’t quite as solid from the line as we had been earlier, so we didn’t quite put it away as early as we had hoped, but we kept them at arm’s length in the fourth and pulled it out.”
Point guard Amarri Trueheart added six points and eight assists for the Lady Panthers while Gabrielle Wright had eight points and seven rebounds.
“While their numbers might not have been high as far as scoring, they played a great game all around,” Nolan said. “Nashira Brown played really, really well.
“Penn Wood is known for crashing the offensive boards. It’s almost like they’re playing to just shoot it and then go get it. Gabbi Wright and Nashira Brown did a great job keeping them off the offensive glass. Nashira drew two charges in the fourth quarter. She came up really big at the end.”
With the win, the Lady Panthers improved to 13-4 overall.
“It’s a great win,” Nolan said. “It’s like a playoff atmosphere in their gym, and it’s a seeding win. They’re 10-6, but they have give games left and should win all five. That’s a game come seeding time that really helps you.”
Cheltenham 10-9-21-11 56
Penn Wood 9-6-20-8 43
Cheltenham (51) – Ashley Jones 32, Amarri Trueheart 6, Gabrielle Wright 8, Nashira Brown 5.
Penn Wood (43) – Dahnye Redd 12, Gabrielle Hairston 9, Simone Walker 8, Nadege Durand 4, Joy Morton 10.
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