Check out the recaps for SOL girls’ basketball teams in action. CB West/CB South photos provided courtesy of Tracy Valko. Check back for a gallery of photos: https://solsports.zenfolio.com/f884733941
SOL Patriot Division
COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 40, COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 30
The Golden Hawks – who were led by the 12-point effort of Kathryn O’Kane – used a balanced scoring effort to earn a win in Friday’s spirited rivalry game.
“This game always brings a different type of feel and emotion to it for obvious reasons,” Rock South coach Blair Klumpp said. “It had even a different feel this year as (Rock North coach) Jack (Kelly) and I are friends, and it was good to coach against him head-to-head. He works really hard, prepares his team and is someone I have a lot of respect for as a person.
“I really wish they would go back to the boy/girls varsity doubleheaders for both our games with North. It would be a great environment for both schools and the community. Nonetheless, I was really proud of our effort tonight. We played really, REALLY hard and tough.”
North led 12-10 after one quarter, but the Golden Hawks used a 9-4 second quarter to go into halftime with a 19-14 advantage.
“Defensively, we were pretty solid throughout,” Klumpp said. “We were disciplined defensively and matched their energy. We seem to struggle offensively in their gym, but we stuck with our defense and trusted each other on offense, and we made enough plays.
“Kathryn O’Kane was really good and efficient, scoring 12 points on five attempts. I thought her aggressiveness in the second half was important to get our offense going. I also thought defensively we did a good job recognizing their action to get Jaden (Wan) the ball and where Delaney (McCaffery) was at all times. Lizzie Lustig played very well for them.”
The Golden Hawks duplicated their effort of the second quarter with a 9-4 third quarter and went into the final frame with a 28-20 lead. They added to that lead with a 12-10 fourth quarter to close out the game.
“We had a big stretch in the second half where Jess buried a three and hit Fiona Reckner on a back cut that enabled us to get into our pressure a little bit more,” Klumpp said. “I thought our depth again tonight was a strength – we played ten in the first half and were pretty fresh throughout. LB (Lily Bross) brought some real good defensive energy in the first half and sustained it through the second half. Lily, Kat (O’Kane) and KP (Katie Purpura) did a really good job executing and valuing the ball the last three minutes. I also thought the three of them and Lil Metrick were very good in our various defenses with recognition and execution.
“Katie (Purpura) had a very strong all-around game. She’s been practicing consistently well, and it’s showing in games too. We need to keep trusting each other and stay locked into the execution piece of the game. I am so proud of the effort and toughness tonight; I knew North would come in high energy, Jack has them bought in defensively and playing hard, and we matched them in those areas. I’m very proud of our group. Hats off to North. They will keep improving under his leadership.”
In addition to scoring 12 points, O’Kane also had three rebounds and two steals, Katie Purpura had seven points and a team-high six rebounds, and Lil Metrick had six points. Lily Bross had a pair of assists, and Jess Mangoni had two blocks.
For the Indians, Lizzie Lustig led the way with 13 points while Jaden Wan added seven.
“You can’t help but feel happy for Jaden Wan,” Klumpp said. “She’s had incredibly bad luck with injuries, and it’s awesome to see her not only back on the court but also showing flashes to the type of talented player she was early on in her career.
“One of our girls (Jess Mangoni) has been in similar situation with different injuries, and you see the appreciation they have for being able to play the game again. Jess has truly put her pride and ego aside in various ways and done whatever we asked of her, and you just feel good when kids bounce back in that type of way. I thought Darcy Leight and Jess both did a really good job on Jaden in the post. She’s very very good in the post with tremendous footwork and they did great on her. Cam (Gregory) and (Karissa Smedley) Smed also did well on her for spurts.”
Council Rock South (3-1, 2-1 SOL) will face Audenreid in a non-league game on Saturday at Imhotep.
“We have a quick turnaround with a matchup against a talented Audenreid team tomorrow,” Klumpp said. “It will be a different style of play than tonight, so you get excited to have an opportunity to build on tonight’s momentum.”
Council Rock North (3-3, 0-2) will be on the road at Neshaminy on Tuesday.
Council Rock South 10-9-9-12 40
Council Rock North 12-4-4-10 30
Council Rock South (40) – Kathryn O’Kane 4 4-6-12; Liliana Metrick 2 0-0 6; Lily Bross 0 4-6 4; Katie Purpura 3 1-2 7; Fiona Reckner 1 0-0 2; Karissa Smedley 1 2-4 4; Jess Mangoni 2 0-0 4; TOTALS 13 11-18 40.
Council Rock North (30) – Skyler Wright 1 0-0 2; Claire Pirkle 1 0-0 2; Lizzie Lustig 5 2-2 13; Delaney McCaffery 1 2-4 4; Jaden Wan 2 3-4 7; Ruth O’Keefe 1 0-1 2; TOTALS 11 7-11 30.
3-point goals: CRS – Liliana Metrick 2; CRN – Lizzie Lustig.
NESHAMINY 47, HARRY S TRUMAN 26
Eleven players contributed scoring for the Redskins, who were playing their first home game of the season after five straight road games.
Erin Dougherty, Jasmin Davis, Megan Gonzales and Ava Draut each scored their first varsity points.
Alena Cofield’s eight points led the Redskins while Lola Ibarrondo and Jess Purdy both added six points. Shylah McCleve and Erynn Bond both scored eight points to lead the Tigers. Ya’mazijah Thomas added six points.
Truman, according to coach John Gallagher, was the first team the Redskins faced that was not undefeated when they took them on. Take away their loss to Neshaminy, and those teams were a combined 16-0.
Neshaminy (4-2, 2-1 SOL) will host Council Rock North on Tuesday, and Harry S Truman (0-5, 0-2) will host Bensalem on Tuesday.
Harry S Truman 2-8-6-10 26
Neshaminy 26-12-6-3 47
Harry S Truman (26) – Saniya Blount 1 0-0 2; Ayla Beitler 1 0-0 2; Ya’mazijah Thomas 2 2-5 6; Shylah McCleve 2 4-6 8; Erynn Bond 3 2-2 8; TOTALS 9 8-13 26.
Neshaminy (47) – Jasmin Davis 1 0-1 2; Alena Cofield 4 0-0 8; Ava Draut 1 0-0 2; Lola Ibarrondo 2 1-2 6; Meg Gonzales 1 0-0 2; Ava Irizarry 1 1-2 3; Reese Zemitis 2 1-1 5; Jess Purdy 2 2-2 6; Linds Little 1 2-2 4; Erin Dougherty 1 2-2 4; TOTALS 17 12-15 47.
3-point goals: Neshaminy – Taylor Gurysh.
SOL Colonial Division
PENNRIDGE 44, CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 43
The season is young, but listening to Pennridge coach Jason Rapp tell it – Friday’s game against a Patriot squad that boasted a 4-0 record was something close to a must-win.
The Rams delivered, eking out the win in a hard-fought battle.
“This was enormous,” Rapp said. “You can’t tell the kids, but you go down 0-3 in the league, that’s quite a hill to climb.
“I was really proud – they pulled out a close game. We have a busy week next week. We have three games in four nights, and I told them – we’ll find out a lot about ourselves before the winter break. It’s hard to have must-wins in December. This is probably as close as you could have one. We needed to get this win, and the girls responded. We needed this.”
The Rams, who led 9-4 after one quarter, took a 21-18 lead into halftime and extended that to 34-26 heading into the final frame, but the Patriots came roaring back. With time about to expire and their team trailing by three, the Patriots were awarded two foul shots. After misfiring on the first, they needed a miss on the second and hope for a long rebound. Instead, they had to settle for the short rebound and putback as the Rams escaped with the win.
The key to the game, according to Rapp, was simple.
“We held Anna Barry scoreless – Anna Croyle did an unbelievable job on her, unbelievable, because that girl is a really good player,” the Rams’ first-year coach said. “I told (Croyle) jokingly to not let her score, and she did. We said if we hold her under 10 – we think we have a good shot to win. Thank god we held her to zero.”
The Rams were led by the 11-point efforts of Ella Brown and Katie Yoder. Yoder was 5-for-6 from the charity stripe. Grace Rosica added eight points, including a 4-for-4 effort at the foul line, while Croyle and Olivia Poole both had seven points.
In the pivotal fourth quarter, the Rams were 6-for-7 from the foul line. They were 11-for-14 from the line for the game.
“I thought our girls really fought,” Rapp said. “Defensively, they were great. We had a nice contribution off the bench from Olivia Poole, Grace Rosica took care of the ball, and Yoder and Brown did their thing scoring.
“We were balanced. It was a really good team win because Liz (Potash) does a great job with them.”
For the Patriots, who outscored their hosts 17-10 in the final quarter, Natalie Berndt and Jess Lockwood both had 11 points. Both were catalysts in East’s fourth quarter comeback attempt with Berndt burying a pair of 3-pointers in the quarter and Lockwood adding five points, including a 3. Erin LeRay had 10 points, and Kendall Gregor added nine.
Pennridge (3-2, 1-2 SOL) will host Upper Perkiomen in a non-league game on Monday, and Central Bucks East (4-1, 2-1) will host Souderton on Tuesday.
Central Bucks East 4-14-8-17 43
Pennridge 9-12-13-10 44
Central Bucks East (43) – Erin LeRay 5 0-0 10; Natalie Berndt 4 0-0 11; Chantal Van Dongeren 1 0-0 2; Kendall Gregor 4 0-5 9; Jess Lockwood 3 2-2 11; TOTALS 17 2-7 43.
Pennridge (44) – Ella Brown 4 2-2 11; Grace Rosica 2 4-4 8; Anna Croyle 3 0-0 7; Katie Yoder 3 5-6 11; Ava Fantaskey 0 0-2 0; Olivia Poole 3 0-0 7; TOTALS 15 11-14 44.
3-point goals: CBE – Natalie Berndt 3, Jess Lockwood 3, Kendall Gregor; Pennridge – Ella Brown, Anna Croyle, Olivia Poole.
CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 50, CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 35
The Bucks needed a big offensive performance, and they got just that.
After averaging just over 28 points in their first three games, they broke out of their offensive slump with a 50-point effort. Tai Henkels led the charge, scoring a game-high 19 points, which included four 3-pointers.
“It was a Tai Henkels night,” West coach Zach Sibel said. “One person described her as the queen of the court. She had 19 points, she was active on defense – she covered Yoyo Samayoa all night and did a really nice job. This was her night.”
Henkels scored eight points in a first half that saw the Bucks open up a 20-10 halftime lead. She erupted for 11 in the third quarter, including three 3s, and West took a 37-22 lead into the final quarter.
Also coming up big for the Bucks was Gabi Senior, who added 15 points.
“We’ve been asking for more and more from her, and she had 15,” Sibel said. “Alexis Castro had nine rebounds and nine points.
“This is going to be a year of committee for us – we’ve got to do it by committee. When you lose a player like Emily Spratt, you have to fill some big shoes. It was nice to have Katie Finnan back in the starting lineup and really get that first five playing together for the first time all year.”
Finnan was sidelined since the beginning of the season after an appendectomy.
“She was out of commission, and she had a great fall,” Sibel said. “That was a big roadblock but getting her back in the starting lineup has been great. The girls are all in new roles, so it’s cool to see them start to really own it.
“The girls needed this (win). They’ve played so hard, and they’ve done everything we’ve asked them to do. They’ve been locked into film, locked into scout. It was just really cool to see them execute the way we know they can execute. That was the biggest thing – they finished possessions tonight, and that was a difference maker for us.”
For the Titans, Mia Klein’s 12 points led the way. Ella Wheeler added 10 points.
Central Bucks West (2-3, 1-2 SOL) will be on the road at Pennridge on Tuesday, and Central Bucks South (1-4, 0-3) will host North Penn on Tuesday.
Central Bucks South 5-5-12-13 35
Central Bucks West 9-11-17-13 50
Central Bucks South (35) – Ella Wheeler 4 2-4 10; Casey Balkir 2 0-0 5; Jules Tropea 1 0-2 2; Yoyo Samayoa 2 1-2 6; Mia Klein 3 5-6 12; TOTALS 12 8-14 35.
Central Bucks West (50) – Gabi Senior 5 4-4 15; Tai Henkels 7 1-2 19; Katie Finnan 2 1-2 5; Meg Blue 0 2-2 2; Alexis Castro 2 4-6 9; TOTALS 16 12-16 50.
3-point goals: CBS – Casey Balkir, Yoyo Samayoa, Mia Klein; CBW – Tai Henkels 4, Gabi Senior, Alexis Castro.
SOUDERTON 64, NORTH PENN 52
Fans of fast-paced action had to love every minute of the second half of Friday night’s rivalry game that became something of a track meet. Neither team wasted a whole lot of time before putting up a shot and combined for 72 points.
Teya McConnaha – the Indians’ workhorse in the paint – smiled when asked what it was like being part of the fast-paced contest.
“It’s so much fun,” McConnaha said. “It really tests your weaknesses, see what you can and can’t do. They’re all pretty much guards, and I struggle on defense with that.
“This game was pretty much like a practice for me – just trying to get as low as I can, trying to keep my speed up, but they still got me. I can’t keep up sometimes. They are so fast.”
The Knights were fast, and they certainly proved they could shoot, but the Indians – they had McConnaha pulling down every shot the Knights did miss, finishing with 11 rebounds. They also had Northwestern-bound Casey Harter doing it all and torching the Knights for 27 points. The Indians also had the X factor in senior Mikayla McGillian, whose 16 points included 12 in the first half to propel the Indians to a 25-19 halftime lead.
When Souderton coach Lynn Carroll emerged from the locker room, before answering any questions, she said, “Let’s start with Mikayla McGillian.”
When informed that McGillian had connected on 8 of 9 shots from the floor, Carroll was not surprised.
“She’s playing her best basketball – she’s playing with so much confidence,” the Indians’ coach said. “She is hitting tough shots, she’s playing smart, she’s kicking the ball out when she doesn’t have (a shot). It’s going to be a challenge for every team we play to figure out how to defend us in the low post, and then we have to adjust to whatever they do.
“Mikayla really got us going in the first quarter and played almost 32 minutes but was just great. She’s always been good at creating her own shot, but she’s really come into her own this year. It’s kind of all coming together for her, and I think the confidence piece is at the top of the list why she’s playing so well.”
In the second half, it was Harter who brought the Indians home, scoring 21 of her game-high 27 points and displaying her versatility with a wide array of shots.
“Casey just hit big shot after big shot, found a way to get to the rim, made stops defensively,” Carroll said. “She did the things that big time players do. She’s a big-time player.
“She’s scoring in every way – she’s hitting three, she’s attacking, her teammates are finding her on cuts. She’s just playing great for us right now.”
Caleigh Sperling kept the Knights close with 15 of her team-high 20 points in the first half. She scored 13 of her team’s 15 points in the second quarter.
The second half featured a whole lot of offense on both sides. The Indians led 37-25 when McConnaha scored with just under three minutes remaining in the third quarter, and they still led by 12, 45-33, after a three-point play by Harter, who scored on a putback. A three-pointer by Abby Plaugher in the quarter’s closing seconds made it a 45-36 game, and the North Penn senior opened the final quarter with another 3 to trim the Indians’ lead to six.
The Indians had an answer.
Brooke Fenchel found Harter cutting to the hole for an easy bucket, and then – after a North Penn miss – McConnaha saved a long outlet pass from going over the end line with a hustle play that resulted in an easy bucket as her no-look save found McGillian in stride, and she laid it in to put the Indians on top 49-39.
The Indians scored on five straight possessions to open the fourth quarter, including back-to-back buckets by Erin Bohmueller – the first a layup and the second a 3-pointer that put the Indians on top 54-41.
The Knights – who had five 3s in the second half – shot well enough to win on most nights. They earned high praise from Carroll.
“The film I’ve watched of them – I’ve been very impressed, and I was even more impressed tonight,” the Indians’ coach said. “We pride ourselves on defense, and I thought there were possessions where we played great defense, and they just hit big shots that were well defended.
“The shots that Caleigh Sperling hit in the first half were just tough. She was finding a way to create her own shot. Abby Plaugher is tough to defend, especially at the end of the possession when the shot goes up – she goes after the offensive rebound as hard as anybody. They just grinded and grinded and found ways to stay in the game, and they’re only going to get better and better.”
In addition to scoring 27 points, Harter had seven rebounds and four assists, and McGillian had six rebounds. Fenchel had a team-high seven assists.
“Part of the game plan on most nights but definitely tonight was to force them to play some defense,” Carroll said. “We had some possessions in the second quarter where I feel like it was a little too quick, a little too rushed. We’re at our best when we’re moving the ball around and getting a high percentage shot. Most possessions we do that.
“Brooke Fenchel right now isn’t getting into the scoring column a ton, although she was 2-for-2 tonight, but she’s certainly contributing on both ends. The seven assists is obviously very impressive.”
Returning to the court for the first time this season after being sidelined with an injury was sophomore Grace McDonough.
“We got Grace back for a couple minutes here or there, and I think she immediately made her presence felt,” Carroll said. “She can guard anybody on the floor, and she’s extremely hard to guard.”
McConnaha, who was sidelined for the Indians’ only loss, is happy to be playing at full strength.
“It has been a great time getting back with these girls, playing hard again,” she said. “It was a little bit hard for me in the beginning since I got hurt, but since I got back, I’m having the greatest time. They’re pretty much my second family, and they helped me all the way back. It’s just been a great experience overall. Some of our goals this year are just to go out and play our hardest that we can, try and do better than we did last year.”
In addition to Sperling’s 20-point effort, Plaugher had 16 – all in the second half, Crowley had nine points and Stone added seven points.
Souderton (4-1, 3-0 SOL) will be on the road at Central Bucks East on Tuesday, and North Penn (3-3, 2-1) will travel to Central Bucks West on Tuesday.
North Penn 4-15-17-16 52
Souderton 10-15-20-19 64
North Penn (52) – Cameron Crowley 4 0-0 9; Caleigh Sperling 7 3-4 20; Abby Plaugher 5 4-4 16; Olivia Stone 3 0-0 7; TOTALS 19 7-8 52.
Souderton (64) – Erin Bohmueller 2 0-1 5; Brooke Fenchel 2 0-0 5; Mikayla McGillian 8 0-0 16; Casey Harter 11 3-3 27; Grace McDonough 1 0-0 2; Teya McConnaha 3 3-4 9; TOTALS 27 6-8 64.
3-point goals: NP – Caleigh Sperling 3, Abby Plaugher 2, Cameron Crowley, Olivia Stone; Souderton – Erin Bohmueller, Brooke Fenchel, Casey Harter 2.
SOL Liberty Division
QUAKERTOWN 54, WISSAHICKON 44
Carolyn Sipprell has been a consistent offensive force for the Panthers.
Through seven games, the senior has averaged close to 15 points, and she easily topped that in Friday’s win, scoring a game-high 27 points to go along with 13 rebounds in a glittering performance.
Sipprell was hardly a one-woman show as the Panthers received contributions up and down their lineup.
“It was a good win tonight for us,” Quakertown coach Brittany Bamford said. “Everybody chipped in.
“Our girls were tired from this week. We are down in numbers due to injuries and just low numbers to begin with. I’m proud the way they battled.”
The Panthers led 15-7 after one quarter and took a 25-19 lead into halftime.
“Katie Catalano got us going offensively in the first quarter and had some really important defensive rebounds,” Bamford said.
Catalano finished with 11 points – which included three 3 pointers. She also had seven rebounds – five defensive.
The Panthers outscored their visitors 29-25 in the second half on their way to their first league win.
“Kayla Sicher was consistent for us on defense in being in help or fronting (Kaitlyn) McGeary, who is such a good offensive rebounder,” Bamford said. “Even tonight we made her work hard for her baskets, and they were mostly off of rebounds.
“(Claira) Baldasano hit some little baseline jumpers (for Wissahickon) a few possessions in a row which made us make some adjustments. Ava (Pistone) got comfortable in the second half and hit some important shots when we were going back and forth with Wissahickon each possession. Even a sophomore Carli Maha stepped up for us and saw important minutes off the bench to help with our focus on closing down the paint. Carolyn had 13 rebounds tonight. The majority were in the second half on defense, and she had some beautiful reverse layups after grabbing some short shots.”
Pistone finished with 11 points – the third Panther in double figures.
For the Trojans, McGeary led the way with 14 points, eight rebounds and one block. Baldasano also had 14 points. Kylie Friedman added seven points, four assists and one steal, and Chloe Acuna had seven points, one rebound, one assist and one steal. Eva Schools chipped in two points, one rebound, one assist and one steal.
Quakertown (3-4, 1-2 SOL) will host Hatboro-Horsham on Tuesday, and Wissahickon (2-3, 0-3) will host Abington on Tuesday.
Wissahickon 7-12-15-10 44
Quakertown 15-10-17-12 54
Wissahickon (44) – Eva Schools 1 0-0 2; Kaitlyn McGeary 7 0-1 14; Kylie Friedman 3 0-0 7; Chloe Acuna 3 0-0 7; Claira Baldasano 7 0-0 14; TOTALS 21 0-3 44.
Quakertown (54) – Carolyn Sipprell 11 4-7 27; Carli Maha 0 1-2 1; Katie Catalano 4 0-0 11; Ava Pistone 5 0-2 11; Kayla Sicher 2 0-0 4; TOTALS 22 5-11 54
3-point goals: Wissahickon – Kylie Friedman, Chloe Acuna; Quakertown – Katie Catalano 3, Carolyn Sipprell,, Ava Pistone.
SOL Freedom Division
WILLIAM TENNENT 38, CHELTENHAM 33
Tennent – sparked by the 13-point effort of Morgan Volz – used a balanced scoring attack as well as a strong third quarter to earn a win in Friday’s battle of the Panthers.
“Overall, I thought it was a great team win tonight,” Tennent coach Laura Whitney said. “We had good balance. Everyone pretty much contributed, whether it was offensively scoring, defensively getting big rebounds or steals.
“It wasn’t pretty the whole time, and that’s definitely a credit to Cheltenham. Ben (Bowman) does a great job with his girls. I knew they were going to come in and be scrappy, and they were going to fight. They play with a lot of energy. He just does a great job of getting the most out of his girls.”
After battling to a 6-6 tie after one quarter, Tennent edged the visiting Panthers 13-12 to go into halftime with a tenuous 19-18 lead. Six different players contributed points for Tennent in the second quarter.
“In the first half, they made us work on offense, got us a little bit out of our rhythm,” Whitney said. “But I’m really proud of the girls and the resiliency they showed. They continued to battle and fight and not give up.”
Sparked by six points from Alyssa Lewicki and four from Avery Kocur, Tennent outscored its visitors 12-8 in the third quarter to go on top 31-26. That quarter proved to be the difference as the two teams exchanged baskets in the fourth quarter.
“We’ve had our moments where we’ve come out the second half kind of flat, and I thought tonight that was the most impressive thing – the way that we executed the second half,” Whitney said. “We kept our composure. Offensively, we made the plays when we needed to, and defensively, we got stops when we needed to. We got some really big rebounds, so that was really the difference in the game.”
Volz scored 13 points to lead a balanced Tennent attack. Lewicki added 10 and Kocur had seven.
“Avery, our freshman point guard, played the whole game,” Whitney said. “I’m just impressed with the way she handles herself and the team out on the floor. She plays with a ton of poise for a freshman. She just plays smart, makes good decisions. Her ability to look for her offense when it’s there and take those shots when we need them – I thought that was big for us tonight.
“Alyssa, our lone senior, really showed her experience and leadership tonight. She just showed a lot of toughness. She made some huge offensive plays, whether it was offensive rebounds and putbacks, a couple of tough drives, and she had some big rebounds late in the second half for us.
“Morgan Volz again played the whole game. She was just steady offensively, made baskets when we needed her to. It was probably the best I’ve seen her rebound – just attacking the ball and really being strong with it. It was just a great win all around.”
Cheltenham was led by the 18-point effort of Maya Simmons. Included in those 18 points was a near perfect 9-for-10 effort at the foul line. Jiah Price added six points.
“William Tennent worked harder than us and executed their plays when they needed to,” Cheltenham coach Ben Bowman said. “We played sloppy uninspired basketball and it cost us in the end. We need to put this behind us quickly and refocus for tomorrow’s game vs Phoenixville.”
William Tennent (3-2, 2-1 SOL) will travel to MaST Charter for a non-league game Monday, and Cheltenham (3-2, 1-2) will be on the road at Phoenixville for a non-league game on Saturday at 12:30 p.m.
Cheltenham 6-12-8-7 33
William Tennent 6-13-12-7 38
Cheltenham (33) – Jiah Price 3 0-1 6; Paige Powell 1 2-4 4; Maya Simmons 4 9-10 18; Cassie Bugg 2 1-2 5; TOTALS 10 12-17 33.
William Tennent (38) – Ella Mednick 0 0-1 0; Avery Kocur 4 1-3 9; Halie Staub 0 2-4 2; Alyssa Lewicki 5 0-0 10; Hailey Lorenzon 1 0-0 3; Haley Dickson 0 1-2 1; Morgan Volz 6 1-5 13; TOTALS 16 5-15 38.
3-point goals: Cheltenham – Maya Simmons; WT – Hailey Lorenzon
NEW HOPE-SOLEBURY 57, LOWER MORELAND 28
Gabby D’Agostino buried three 3-pointers in the first quarter. It marked the beginning of a big night for the freshman and her Lion teammates. D’Agostino led all scorers with 21 points, which included five 3-pointers. Reagan Chrencik added 13 points – 11 in the second quarter as the Lions opened up a 29-16 halftime led.
Izzy Elizondo also finished in double figures with 12 points, which included a pair of 3s, and Emily Wilson added seven points. It all added up to too much firepower for the Lions, and when it was over, LM coach Rich Becker tipped his hat to his opponent.
“We lost to a very good team,” Becker said. “We were able to hang around early, but offensively, they were just too talented. With D’Agostino, Wilson and Elizondo, they have really good quickness on the perimeter, and they can all shoot.
“On top of that, they have Reagan Chrencik who can do it all, and (coach) Steve (Polinsky) did a very smart thing – he put Reagan in the middle of our zone. Reagan is so talented that when we played her tight, she would pass out to their perimeter players, if we played off her, she would attack the basket. They’re a well-coached team that knows how to make adjustments. I was telling Steve before the game that just as we were thinking that we catch a break when Reagan graduates, he gets a freshman, D’Agostino who is going to be special. She hit five 3’s on us, and when we played her man, she was able to get to the rim.”
Lower Moreland was led by Jess Shein and Liz Neeld with nine points each. Brianna McFerran added seven points.
“Coach Becker does a great job of preparing his team,” Polinsky said. “His match-up zone gave us problems early. When we started a two high set, that helped.
“Izzy Elizondo has scored the ball consistently all year long. She has been terrific in transition. Emily Wilson played great defense tonight so tonight was a real team effort on both sides of the ball.”
The Lions, according to Becker, are just hoping to get healthy.
“We have 14 girls in the program – three were unavailable tonight, and we have a few other girls who are getting over illness,” he said. “It’s killing our conditioning, and we just don’t have the depth to overcome even two of our top six being under the weather.
“On our end, we’re not going to ‘out athlete’ teams, and we’re not consistent enough to sit on the perimeter, so we’re still looking for our offensive identity. We did a few things tonight that we can build on I’ve told the girls all year long that I like how we complete, so I’m confident that we’ll get it figured out. Hopefully, it’ll happen sooner rather than later.”
New Hope-Solebury (4-2, 3-0 SOL) will travel to William Tennent on Tuesday, and Lower Moreland (2-4, 0-3) will host Springfield Township on Tuesday.
Lower Moreland 9-7-7-5 28
New Hope-Solebury 15-14-16-12 57
Lower Moreland (28) – Brianna McFerran 3 0-0 7; Jess Shein 4 1-1 9; Liz Neeld 4 1-2 9; Nikki Sahl 1 0-0 2; Kayla Quirk 0 1-1 1; TOTALS 12 3-4 28.
New Hope-Solebury (57) – Gabby D’Agostino 6 4-6 21; Izzy Elizondo 5 0-0 12; Emily Wilson 3 0-0 7; Reagan Chrencik 6 1-2 13; Nina Mixler 1 0-0 2; Anna Char 1 0-0 2; TOTALS 22-5-8 57.
3-point goals: LM – Brianna McFerran; NHS – Gabby D’Agostino 5, Izzy Elizondo 2, Emily Wilson.
UPPER MORELAND 61, SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP 17
Nine players contributed scoring for the Golden Bears, who jumped out to an early lead and never looked back.
“Overall we played really unselfishly and spread the ball around to everyone,” UM coach Matt Carroll said. “It was good to see our shots starting to fall and our girls getting some confidence back.”
Holly Gohl’s 16-point effort led the Golden Bears, and EmmyFaith Wood added 15 – 10 in the first quarter to set the tone for the win.
Jayla Daniels had six points to lead the Spartans.
“Tonight’s game was much more than basketball,” Carroll said. “The Springfield community is dealing with some heavy stuff right now, and you could see it on their faces.
“Springfield gave it their all and they worked hard, but you could tell they weren’t there mentally, and I don’t blame them. At the end of the day, basketball is just a game, and it sucks when tragic events are what it takes for us to remember that. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Springfield community during this difficulty time.”
Upper Moreland (6-0, 3-0 SOL) will travel to Cheltenham on Tuesday, and Springfield Township (2-3, 0-3) will be on the road at Lower Moreland.
Springfield Township 5-8-0-4 17
Upper Moreland 24-19-13-5 61
Springfield Township (17) – Alana Decker 1 0-0 2; Hannah Brandon 2 1-1 5; Jayla Daniels 3 0-0 6; Paige Robinson 1 0-0 2; Delaney Lake 1 0-0 2; TOTALS 8 1-1 17.
Upper Moreland (61) – Mikel Lancit 3 1-1 7; Zoe Longstreth 1 2-2 5; Lanna Adames 1 0-0 3; Alyssa Wiley 1 0-0 3; EmmyFaith Wood 6 0-0 15; Lilly Hansen 2 1-2 5; Holly Gohl 8 0-0 16; Marie Meyers 2 0-0 5; Allie LaRocco 1 0-0 2; TOTALS 25 4-5 61.
3-point goals: UM – EmmyFaith Wood 3, Zoe Longstreth, Lanna Adames, Alyssa Wiley, Marie Meyers.
Non-league
ABINGTON 78, ALBERTUS MAGNUS 76
Cire Worley was – in a word – unstoppable.
The Abington senior matched a career high with 38 points and put her name in the program record books with nine 3-pointers in a brilliant outing. All told, the Ghosts buried 18 3-pointers – also a program record – in a contest that saw the two teams combine for 28 3s.
For the Ghosts, who love to create havoc on defense and get up and down the court, the pace of the game was very much to their liking.
“This was a great game,” Worley said. “They were very talented. I think it was important for us to keep our pace up because a couple of their bigs couldn’t run with us, and since we were able to get their bigs off the floor at crucial points in the game, we were able to pull it out.”
It was Worley – who invariably attracted a crowd – finding teammate Jordyn Reynolds for a three down the stretch that turned out to be the game-winner.
“This was one of the best high school games I’ve ever been part of,” coach Dan Marsh said. “It was just unbelievable. They’re very, very good. They’re ranked number one in their section of New York, and they have two 6-3 kids – one that’s already committed D-1.
“The first quarter they jumped out to an early lead. They tried to play us in a zone. Cire (Worley) went bonkers – she had 38, and the game literally came down to the last seconds because they had the ball. We doubled their point guard, which was a little bit of a risk because she was so good. We knew they would have trouble running their play against our pressure, and they lost it. Literally, the horn went off with both teams diving for the ball. I was like, ‘This is a poetic way to end the game’ – it was that kind of game.”
In a preview of things to come, the two teams battled to a 22-22 tie after one quarter. Worley’s 11 points led the Ghosts. In the second quarter, Worley connected on four 3-pointers and the Ghosts made six shots from beyond the arc to open up a 45-40 halftime lead.
“The 3-point shot got them get out of their zone a little bit,” Worley said. “When teams go zone, we have to rely on the three.”
Albertus Magnus held a 36-33 scoring edge in the second half, but it wasn’t enough to overtake the Ghosts.
“Both teams played really well,” Marsh said. “There were some spots where it was ugly, but that’s what we do. Our t-shirts are on the way say, ‘Thriving in chaos,’ and that’s what we’re doing. We must have had three or four lead changes under two minutes. They hit, a three, we hit a three. It was just unbelievable.”
“They were so big – we were mostly getting perimeter shots. Cire was taking it to the rim – she’s the only one who could take it to the rim with their two big kids. It was a complete team effort. Everybody played well – Piper (McGinley), Jordyn (Reynolds), Abril (Bowser), Maya (Johnson). Sarah Oleary came in and gave us some great rebounds and defense against their big kids. It was a complete team effort. We moved the ball really well – this group just likes each other. I know it’s early, but I’m really happy with the way we’re playing. Defensively, we were great, we wore them down. It’s a huge win.”
The Ghosts’ depth, according to Worley, was the difference in the game.
“I think our ability to rely on our bench when our starters get tired – other teams, when they bring in their second string, it’s a drop-off versus us, it’s not really a drop-off because everybody has the same energy and intensity,” Worley said. “I think this was big for us because I’ve said before – we don’t really play too many big games, so tomorrow is another test, and Thursday we have another test (against Penn Charter). When we have these big games, it’s all about preparation. That’s why we’ve got to take the other games seriously because those lead up to those games.”
Abington (6-0, 3-0 SOL) will face Archbishop Carrol on Saturday on day two of the She Got Game Classic at Middletown High School North at 12:40 p.m.
Abington 22-23-15-18 78
Albertus Magnus 22-18-16-19 76
Abington (78) – Cire Worley 13 3-3 38; Maya Johnson 1 0-0 2; Abril Bowser 5 0-0 14; Mikiaya Durham 1 0-0 3; Jordyn Reynolds 5 2-3 16; Piper McGinley 2 1-2 5; TOTALS 27 6-8 78.
Albertis Magnus (76) – Maddy Zuppa 6 0-0 15; Riley Herold 1 0-0 2; Kalleigh McGuinnen 2 0-0 6; Karly Fischer 5 4-4 14; Allie Falesto 6 2-2 19; Julia Scott 8 3-4 19; TOTALS 28 9-10 76.
3-point goals: Abington – Cire Worley 9, Abril Bowsser 4, Jordyn Reynolds 4, Mikiaya Durham; Albertus Magnus – Allie Falesto 5, Maddy Zuppa 3, Kalleigh McGuinnen 2.
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