PW, Pennsbury & Neshaminy girls’ basketball teams were in action Saturday. All three notched wins.
Non-league
PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 48, GARNET VALLEY 33
Erin Daley scored a career high 25 points, burying shots – according to her coach – in every way imaginable. Included in the senior’s 25 points was a 10-for-12 effort at the foul line.
“Erin was really effective both inside and outside,” PW coach Dan Dougherty said. “She was scoring all three ways. She had a pop-out three in the first half, and then she was able to score back to the basket, driving to the basket, offensive rebounds. She just came out with high energy today and was able to use her size and strength to score for us.
“It was a really physical game – a lot of fouls on their end. We, as a team, shot 30 foul shots today.”
Also coming up big at both ends of the court for the Colonials was senior Abby Sharpe, who scored 15 points, which included a 9-for-10 showing at the charity stripe.
“Another kid that was special today was Abby Sharpe,” Dougherty said. “We put her on Garnet Valley’s really talented sophomore. It’s early in the season, but she’s a 15- to 20-point a game kid, and Abby held her to no field goals the entire game. They had her trying to guard Abby, and she fouled out.
“She’s the kid everybody who plays Garnet Valley tries to stop, and we put Abby on her today, and she had two points.”
Garnet Valley’s super soph, Haylie Adamski finished the day 2-for-4 at the foul line for her only points of the game.
A look back at the game shows that the two teams were tied 10-10 after one quarter – this despite the fact that PW had just one field goal in the frame. The Colonials – or more specifically Daley and Sharpe – were 8-for-8 at the foul line in the quarter with each burying all four of their foul shots.
The Colonials outscored the Jaguars 14-11 in the second quarter to go into halftime with a 24-21 advantage. Daley stole the spotlight in the second quarter, accounting for 12 of her team’s points. She had 16 of PW’s 24 points in the first half. Sharpe had the other eight.
Defense was the story of the second half for the Colonials, who limited the Jaguars to just 12 points while they scored 24.
Plymouth Whitemarsh is 3-1 on the young season
“The first four games of the season we played Berks Catholic, Delone Catholic, Abington and Garnet Valley,” Dougherty said. “It was kind of intentional to start out the season difficult. I didn’t schedule Abington – I wish that was a little bit later. To go through that stretch 3-1, I think gives us a lot of confidence heading into the rest of the season.”
PW will host Quakertown on Tuesday.
Plymouth Whitemarsh 10-14-11-13 48
Garnet Valley 10-11-7-5 33
Plymouth Whitemarsh (48) – Azzy Crumpton 0 1-2 1; Angelina Balcer 1 3-6 5; McKenna Winland 1 0-0 2; Erin Daley 7 10-12 25; Abby Sharpe 3 9-10 15; TOTALS 12 23-30 48.
Garnet Valley (33) – Kylie Mulholland 4 0-0 9; Savannah Saunders 0 2-2 2; Haylie Adamski 0 2-2 2; Jordan Daubenberger 3 2-3 10; Emily Olsen 5 0-1 10; TOTALS 12 6-8 33.
3-point goals: PW – Erin Daley; GV – Mulholland, Daubenberger 2.
She Got Game Tournament (Washington, D.C.)
PENNSBURY 51, GWYNN PARK (MD) 20
The Falcons took care of business in a hurry in Saturday’s contest in the She Got Game Tournament, opening up a 14-2 lead after one quarter and extending that to 28-9 by halftime on their way to the decisive win.
“We had a good look at Gwynn Park before we came down, and we knew that they returned everyone from a team that made the state semifinals in their classification in Maryland last year,” Pennsbury coach Frank Sciolla said. “They were way bigger than us, and they are very athletic, but we felt like we would be able to do some things to them defensively, and in the first half, we forced them into a ton of turnovers.
“Our guard play up top was really solid with Nevaeh Dash and Sofia Vitucci, and despite the difference in size, we were able to win the battle on the backboards. Tomorrow will be a tougher test with Bishop Loughlin, but no matter what, it’s always a great experience down here.”
Junior Sofia Vitucci – who earned game MVP honors – had another big outing for the Falcons, scoring a game high 15 points in three quarters. She had 11 – which included three 3-pointers – in the opening half.
“All 12 of our girls scored which is extremely rare, but it was a function of how we played,” Sciolla said. “I think that we were more rested because they had a dogfight last night with Audenreid (a 59-55 loss), and we gave them a style of play that was different from what they had previously seen.”
Dash, Presley Foote and Layla Matthias each added six points for the Falcons. Vitucci and Dash both had three assists.
“We’ve been really impressed with the leadership that Nevaeh Dash has shown,” Sciolla said. “She has really found her voice, and she has the respect of the team and certainly the coaches.
“It’s one of the coolest things that you can do as a teacher and that’s watch someone start to realize who they are and what they can be on and off the court. She’s been terrific.”
Pennsbury (3-0, 1-0 SOL) returns to action on day two of the We Got Game Tournament, taking on Bishop Loughlin (NY) Sunday at 10:55 a.m.
Gwynn Park 2-7-5-6 20
Pennsbury 14-14-13-10 51
Gwynn Park (20) – Neal 2 0-0 4; Mason 4 0-0 8; Jasmine Harper 1 0-0 2; Abraham 0 1-6 1; Davis 1 3-5 5; TOTALS 8 4-11 20.
Pennsbury (51) – Emily Panara 1 0-0 2; Presley Foote 3 0-0 6; Layla Matthias 3 0-2 6; Danielle Sherman 1 0-0 3; Maggie Burns 2 0-0 4; Sofia Vitucci 5 2-2 15; Oliveah Gilchrist 1 0-0 2; Daniella MacDonald 1 0-0 3; Nevaeh Dash 3 0-1 6; Ava Jordan 0 1-4 1; Neve Davis 0 1-2 1; Izzy Ruta 1 0-0 2; TOTALS 21 4-11 51.
3-point goals: Pennsbury – Sofia Vitucci 3, Daniella MacDonald, Danielle Sherman.
NESHAMINY 47, SPOTSWOOD (VA) 34
Led by the stellar 17-point performances of Taylor Gurysh and Reese Zemitis, the Redskins notched an impressive win over Spotswood (VA) in Saturday’s opening round game. The Trailblazers brought a perfect 4-0 record into the game.
Spotswood is a two-time Virginia 3A state champion and advanced to the state semifinals last year. A subplot to Saturday’s game that attracted a considerable number of college coaches was the marquee matchup of Reese Zemitis against senior Zoli Khali, a VCU commit who was the 2022 Virginia 3A Player of the Year. Last year, the 6-1 guard – who had numerous D1 offers – averaged 26.2 points, 12.2 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 3.2 steals and two blocks a game.
Zemitis – named game MVP – held Khali to 14 points, which is well below her average, while sharing team scoring honors and also contributing five rebounds and two assists. Khali scored seven of her 14 points in the first quarter and only had seven points over the next three.
“Reese’s defense was outstanding,” Neshaminy coach John Gallagher said.
Gurysh could have just as easily laid claim to the MVP honor for her dazzling offensive showing. The Kutztown bound senior connected on 5 of 7 shots from beyond the arc and also had a team-high eight rebounds and two assists.
The Redskins, who led 12-9 after one quarter, took a 25-18 lead into halftime. Gurysh led the way offensively, scoring 11 points, which included two 3s. Zemitis added eight points, including two 3-pointers.
In the third quarter, the Redskins outscored Spotswood 17-8 to go on top 42-26 on their way to the decisive win. Gurysh had two 3s in the quarter, but she had plenty of help. Zemitis and Lola Iabarrondo both had four points, and Ava Irizarry had a three.
In addition to Zemitis and Gurysh, Irizarry had a pair of clutch 3-pointers off the bench for six points.
Neshaminy (1-1, 0-1 SOL) will play Ursuline Academy (DE) on Sunday at 9:15 a.m.
Spotswood (VA) 9-9-8-8 34
Neshaminy 12-13-17-5 47
Spotswood (34) – Doss 1 0-0 2; Zoli Khail 6 1-2 14; H.Jones 3 1-1 7; Taylor 1 2-2 5; Grete 1 2-2 4; Moats 1 0-0 2; TOTALS 13 6-7 34.
Neshaminy (47) – Alena Cofield 1 0-0 2; Lola Ibarrondo 2 1-4 5; Taylor Gurysh 6 0-0 17; Ava Irizarry 2 0-0 6; Reese Zemitis 7 0-0 17; TOTALS 18 1-4 47.
3-point goals: Spotswood – Khal, Taylor; Neshaminy – Taylor Gurysh 5, Reese Zemitis 3, Ava Irizarry 2.
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