Check out the recaps for SOL girls’ basketball teams in action Wednesday. William Tennent/Quakertown photos provided courtesy of Jon Sklut. Check back for a gallery of action photos.
ABINGTON 62, NORWIN 59
The Ghosts led at the end of every quarter but could not put away a pesky Norwin squad in the opening round of the Wright Automotive Holiday Tournament at North Allegheny on Wednesday.
“We’re literally trying to put this team away all night, and they just wouldn’t go away,” coach Dan Marsh said. “They were mighty mites. They had no kid over 5-7, and they played so hard.
“They had a three-pointer – a half court shot – at the buzzer to try and tie it. Obviously, it fell short, but this is why we came up here. We came up here to play well-coached teams that play hard, and that’s what we got tonight. We got a team that was very well coached and played very hard in a foreign area with different referees who don’t know us, and we were able to persevere so I’m proud.”
Kassondra Brown (22 points) and Sam Brusha (21 points) both had huge games to lead the Ghosts, who also received a standout 14-point effort from Cameron Lexow.
Abington led 14-9 after one quarter and took what appeared to be a commanding 34-25 lead into halftime. Norwin stormed back in the third quarter, outscoring the Ghosts 18-12 to pull to within three heading into the final frame (46-43).
“There were a couple of times where we were up double digits, and literally, they would storm back,” Marsh said. “It was very tough. They’re a very, very fast team, and they just played really hard.
“They were very physical and in your face to try and wear you down. We don’t have (Tamia) Wessels right now – she’s hurt, so our bench was shorter, and Jordyn Allen got in foul trouble so we’re basically playing five kids for 32 minutes, and it wore on us a little bit. They stormed back on us at the end. We missed a couple of free throws and turned the ball over a couple of times.
“Again, that’s why we’re here. We’re here to get into situations and try to persevere through them. We could have gone to a tournament and played some teams we know we can beat, but we wanted to come out here and play the best teams on the western side of the state, and we’re doing it. North Allegheny is number one in the state, and they’re still alive. There’s a team from Ohio that’s really good. We have Trinity tomorrow and we’ll see what happens.”
Abington (4-2, 2-0 SOL) will face defending PIAA 5A runner-up Trinity on Thursday at 2:30 p.m. in a second round game of the eight-team tournament.
Norwin 9-16-18-16 59
Abington 14-20-12-16 62
Norwin (59) – Polezynski 15, Brozeski 5, Kolesak 6, Race 4, Wehner 17, Gribble 12.
Abington (62) – Britney James 3, Cameron Lexow 14, Kassondra Brown 22, Miranda Liebtag 2, Sam Brusha 21.
COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 50, WISSAHICKON 28
The Golden Hawks rolled to a convincing win over the Trojans in the opening round of the Upper Merion Holiday Tournament.
Freshman Nicole Blaustein led a balanced Rock South attack with 15 points to go along with five assists. Sophomore Claudia Steinmetz added 11 points and four steals. Allison McGowan contributed eight points, which included a pair of threes. Bailey Vetter and Jenna Culp led the Hawks under the boards with seven and six rebounds respectively.
“It was a great overall team effort with a lot of contributions from everyone,” coach Blair Klumpp said. “McGowan and (Bailey) Vetter set the tone with their leadership and communication.
“(Jenna) Culp was fantastic all around. It was by far her best game. She did a lot of the little things. Steinmetz was efficient and effective at both ends of the floor, and Blaustein’s decision making was real good. She took care of the ball.”
Klumpp was also pleased with the performance of his players off the bench.
“We got good minutes from (Emma) Jones, (Hannah) Binder, (Karly) Wunder, and (Carley) Irvin,” the Golden Hawks’ first-year coach said. “Jones was really good defensively and played within herself.”
The Golden Hawks led by eight at halftime and then blew the game wide open in the third quarter.
“We dictated the tempo and pace in the third quarter to go up 20 into the fourth quarter,” Klumpp said. “We had a similar situation versus Tennent two weeks back (in a 53-50 loss).
“I learned some things and adjusted, and the girls really listened and executed. I‘m very proud of their effort.”
Victoria Selverian’s eight points led the Trojans.
Council Rock South (3-3, 0-2 SOL) will face Bishop Shanahan in Thursday’s title game at Upper Merion (7 p.m.). Wissahickon (1-3, 1-1) will face Upper Merion in the consolation game at 5:30 p.m.
Wissahickon (28) – Victoria Selverian 8, Sydney Ott 5, Macey Segal 2, Lauren Fadel 2, Anna Schools 3, Victoria Williams 4, Rebecca Selverian 3.
Council Rock South (50) – Carley Irvin 2, Mendes 1, Claudia Steinmetz 11, Bailey Vetter 1, Emma Jones 2, Karly Wunder 4, Nicole Blaustein 15, Allison McGowan 8, Hannah Binder 1, Jenna Cup 5.
UPPER DUBLIN 53, SPRINGSIDE CHESTNUT HILL 43
The Cardinals parlayed a scorching hot start into a trip to the championship game of their own Cardinal Classic.
“Springside is a dangerous team,” coach Morgan Funsten said. “They have everybody back from last year, plus Mo’ne Davis, who – in the game we scouted – had 28 points, so she’s much improved. They’ve had a few really good wins so far this season.
“We were ready – we came out in the first couple of minutes and kind of punched them in the face. Credit to them, they made a lot of tough shots, but we also need to clean some things up defensively, and I think we’ll be okay.”
Upper Dublin made its first five shots to go up 10-0, then added another basket soon after for a 12-0 lead. Springside Chestnut Hill was able to get as close as five points, but each time the Cardinals responded with a few baskets to rebuild their lead.
After SCH cut the lead to 35-30 early in the third, the Cardinals scored the next five. They would also score seven of the final nine points in the quarter.
“We only had one practice after the holiday to get ready for this, and I’m sure everybody only had one practice, but we wanted to make sure we came out strong, and we definitely did,” Funsten said. “You look at the final score, and that (fast start) is pretty much what won the game for us.”
Jackie Vargas led Upper Dublin with 19 points. She was one of three Cardinals in double figures. Nicole Kaiser had 13 and Dayna Balasa scored 11 to help pace Upper Dublin's offense. All of Balasa’s points came in a first half that saw the Cardinals open up a 33-26 lead.
Balasa hit three 3-point shots while senior Maggie Weglos hit a pair of 3-pointers and paced a pass-happy Cardinal offense with five assists to go along with three rebounds. Upper Dublin assisted 18 of its made field goals.
“The story of the game for us was offensively having great balance again, sharing the ball, moving the ball and making shots,” Funsten said. “Teams are really going to have to pick – how are they going to slow us down because we do have a lot of weapons this year. If you take one thing away, it’s going to open something else up.”
Vargas was also a force on the glass, pulling down 11 rebounds and blocking seven shots. Kaiser had six rebounds.
“She was close to a triple-double,” Funsten said of Vargas. “Nicole was incredibly efficient. She was 6-for-8 from the field for 13 points.
“We were very efficient. Even shots we missed, we were moving the ball well. Defensively, we’re still making too many mistakes, but what I’m excited about – I feel that they’re very fixable mistakes. I think that once we fix these little things defensively the sky’s the limit for this team.”
Upper Dublin will face Allentown Central Catholic in the tournament final Thursday at 2:45 p.m. ACC beat Gwynedd Mercy 24-23 in an opening round contest.
Upper Dublin 21-12-14-6 53
Springside Chestnut Hill 12-14-7-10 43
Upper Dublin (53) – Jackie Vargas 19, Nicole Kaiser 13, Dayna Balasa 11, Maggie Weglos 6, Sarah Eskew 2, Kara Grebe 2
Springside Chesnut Hil (43) – Davis 12, Clark 11, Seawright 9, Bridges 7, Rodgers 4
CHELTENHAM 54, DOWNINGTOWN WEST 37
Kai Williams turned in a monster performance in the paint, scoring a game-high 18 points and pulling down 24 rebounds to lead the Lady Panthers to the win in an opening round game of the Downingtown West Holiday Tournament.
“Kai was awesome from start to finish,” coach Brendan Nolan said. “Kai has really been a leader for us.
“She’s just all over the place around the basket. She doesn’t have the size a lot of girls have, but she kind of makes up for it with effort and positioning. On both ends of the floor, she constantly has a nose for the ball. She’s trying to rebound every shot. She did a real nice job getting offensive rebounds and then finishing. She was catching some dishes from the guards driving and finishing.”
Savannah Roberts also had a big game for the Lady Panthers, burying three 3-pointers en route to a 16-point effort. Courtney Murray added six points and also handed out six assists.
“This is probably the best win we’ve had so far,” Nolan said. “I know Downingtown West is not having a great season, but they’re a good program, they run their stuff well, and they’re well coached, so it was a good win for us.”
The two teams were deadlocked 8-8 after one quarter, and the Lady Panthers used a 17-13 second quarter to go into halftime with a 25-21 lead. They put some distance between themselves and the Whippets with a 17-8 third quarter and outscored their hosts 29-16 in the second half. Roberts connected on three 3-pointers in the Panthers’ third-quarter surge.
“The effort level was better than it’s been in a while,” Nolan said. “We’ve been struggling a little bit.
“Losing to Upper Dublin the way we did (a 55-10 loss) kind of took its toll on the girls a little bit, and then not getting to go play Springfield right afterwards – we were kind of sitting on that (UD) game for a while.
“Yesterday I threw the whole team out of practice five minutes early – I was so disgusted, and they responded. Their effort level was better tonight, but it still can get better in areas.”
Cheltenham (4-1, 0-1 SOL) will face Nazareth Academy in Wednesday’s title game at 7:15 p.m.
Cheltenham 8-17-17-12 54
Downingtown West 8-13-8-8 37
Cheltenham (54) – Savannah Roberts 16, Yanisha Dormil 3, Taylor Johnson 3, Courtney Murray 6, Madison Rorer 3, Kelia Holmes 5, Kai Williams 18.
Downingtown West (37) – Sammie Sipes 5, Sage Hurley 4, Jenna Young 2, Julian Marrone 8, Hannah Smith 2, Jess Wills 16.
CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 52, RADNOR 24
The Patriots gave new meaning to turning up the defensive pressure in Wednesday’s opener at the Boardwalk Classic. They took a modest 24-20 lead into halftime, and then allowed just four points in the entire second half – none in the third quarter.
“We got back in transition ‘D’ and picked up the pressure,” coach Liz Potash said. “We also rebounded better too. We ended up with 20 offensive rebounds and held them to two in the second half.”
Five East players had six points or more with Elyse Shine’s 10 points leading a balanced attack. Sophia Mancuso and Bailey McManus each had nine points, and Audrey LaBouliere added seven. Caroline Pla had six points.
Gina Russo led the Patriots under the boards with six rebounds, and LaBouliere had five.
Central Bucks East (5-3, 1-1 SOL) will face Wildwood Catholic in the title game of the Frank McAlarnen Memorial Bracket on Thursday at 8:30 p.m.
Radnor 12-8-0-4 24
Central Bucks East 13-11-13-15 52
Radnor (24) – Jacqueline Sinkard 2, Brienne Williams 2, Missy Massimino 1, Sydney D’Entremont 2, Audrey Rosenblum 4, Julia Rigolizzo 2, Ellie Mueller 5, Holly Holtsberg 6.
Central Bucks East (52) – Sophia Mancuso 9, Skylar Krause 4, Mia Salvati 3, Gina Russo 2, Caroline Pla 6, Audrey LaBouliere 7, Bailey McManus 9, Gabby Wilga 2, Elyse Shine 10.
HATBORO-HORSHAM 42, STRATH HAVEN 33
The Hatters raced out of the gate to a 17-8 lead after one quarter and took a 27-17 lead into halftime.
“Our first quarter we went to Lexie Brett inside,” said coach Kathie Sims. “Eight of her 13 points came in that quarter, and Syd Kemp added five points in the first quarter.
“The girls played really tough defense. Cam Ryan had eight points and four steals. The girls are playing hard.”
The second half was pretty much a draw, but Strath Haven never could make up the ground it lost in the opening quarter.
Brett led the Hatters with 13 points and a team-high eight rebounds. Kemp added 12 points. Ryan had a season-high eight points to go along with five rebounds, four steals and three assists. Ryan connected on 4-of-5 shots from the field. Kylie Halko contributed six points, five rebounds and two assists. Sarah Sciubba didn’t score but pulled down six rebounds.
Hatboro-Horsham (3-5, 2-0 SOL) will host Quakertown on Tuesday at 7 p.m.
Hatboro-Horsham 17-10-10-5 42
Strath Haven 8-9-10-6 33
Hatboro-Horsham (42) – Lexie Brett 13, Cam Ryan 8, Sydney Kemp 12, Sara Mahoney 1, Kylie Halko 6, Madie Throne 2.
Strath Haven (33) – Olivia Fender 8, Margot Hotham 3, Jazmeen Harper 5, Rosey Iannello 3, Faith Raymond 10, Tori Vieira 4.
WILLIAM TENNENT 49, QUAKERTOWN 11
The host Panthers seized control of Wednesday’s opening round game from the outset, sprinting to a 20-2 lead after one quarter and taking a 37-4 advantage into halftime.
Haley Crossley’s game-high 12 points led a balanced Tennent attack. Brianna Broccardi added 10 while Emma Stanfield and Kelly Scipione both had seven.
Wiliam Tennent (4-2, 0-1 SOL) will face New Foundations in Thursday’s title game at 7 p.m., and Quakertown (0-7, 0-2) will take on Phil-Mont Christian Academy in the consolation game at 3 p.m.
Quakertown 2-2-3-4 11
William Tennent 20-17-8-4 49
Quakertown (11) – Abby Dickson 4, Maggie Garllick 4, Hannah LaBonge 2, Sam Howard 1.
William Tennent (49) – Haley Crossley 12, Brianna Broccardi 10, Emma Stanfield 7, Kelly Scipione 7, Jenna Rodebaugh 5, Jess Rutkowsky 4, Chelsea Meltzer 4.
WILDWOOD CATHOLIC 45, PENNSBURY 39
The Falcons – minus Kate Mix (injury) – battled gamely but came up short in their opening round game at the Boardwalk Classic in Wildwood.
Pennsbury, which led 10-9 after one quarter, trailed 24-21 at the intermission. It was still a three-point game after three quarters (32-29). The Falcons never could make up the ground they lost.
Three Falcons – Mary Miller, Cami Wiegand and Mary Miller – finished the game in double figures in a contest that saw just four Falcons put their names in the scoring column. Miller – who connected on 6-of-9 shots from the floor, led the way with 13 points while Weigand added 12. Buell came within a rebound of a double-double, finishing with 10 points and nine rebounds.
Pennsbury (4-4, 1-2 SOL) will face Radnor in the consolation game of the Frank McAlarnen Memorial Bracket on Thursday at 11 a.m.
Pennsbury 10-11-8-10 39
Wildwood Catholic 9-15-8-13 45
Pennsbury (39) – Bella Acuri 4, Mary Miller 13, Sydney Buell 10, Cami Wiegand 12.
SPRING-FORD 40, SOUDERTON 38
The Penncrest Tournament has not been particularly kind to the Indians. Last year, Souderton was upset by Harry S Truman in an opening round game, and on Wednesday, the Indians fell to an upstart Rams’ squad that improved to 5-0 on the young season.
The Indians were ultimately doomed by a forgettable first quarter that saw them manage just four points while the Rams scored 16. They spent the rest of the game playing catch up and came close to crawling out of that early hole but fell just short.
Kate Connolly led the Indians with 22 points, which included a 5-for-8 effort at the foul line. No other Souderton player had more than five points.
Souderton (5-2, 1-1 SOL) will play Parkway Center City in Thursday’s consolation game. Parkway Center City fell to Penncrest 62-21 in an opening round contest.
Spring-Ford 16-10-9-5 40
Souderton 4-9-12-13 38
Spring-Ford (40) – Lucy Olsen 9, Juan 4, Christman 5, Higgins 5, Abby Goodrich 8, O. Olsen 6, Cooper 1, Marte 2.
Souderton (38) – Megan Bealer 5, Megan Walbrandt 4, Sammi Falencki 3, Alana Cardona 4, Kate Connolly 22.
JENKINTOWN 66, SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP 26
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