Check out the recaps for SOL girls’ basketball teams in action Saturday. CB East photos provided courtesy of Diane Barry/CB East basketball)
Tampa Bay Christmas Invitational
Championship game (Anna Maria Island Bracket)
CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 53, SEFFNER CHRISTIAN (FL) 48
Seffner Christian Academy was a formidable opponent.
The Crusaders brought a 13-1 record into Saturday’s title game and boast a roster that includes a senior center – Nicole Carrena – committed to play Division 1 basketball at the University of North Florida and a point guard – Nevaeh Lee – who has already earned star status as a freshman.
Saturday’s title game didn’t exactly get off to a scintillating start for either team. The Patriots held an 8-6 edge after one quarter. Lee accounted for all six of her team’s points.
“No excuses, but it was a late game, and we got off to a bit of a sluggish start,” East coach Liz Potash said. “I said all along – this is definitely a team we would have
preferred a practice before and do a full scout. They’ve got some really good pieces, but we didn’t have an opportunity to do it.
“We came in with a plan. They were tough. We played three teams down here that had point guards that were ball handlers that were super quick and could get to the basket and finish. Not only did this team have that, but they had some nice complimentary players. They had a big who was a nice player. We’re so used to all these teams shooting from 3. All these teams here drive and they’re super quick to the basket. It’s an adjustment in terms of how we needed to play them.”
The two teams were deadlocked 24-24 at halftime. While Lee accounted for 12 of Seffner’s points, senior Anna Barry scored 11 points for the Patriots.
The Patriots came out of halftime operating on all cylinders and outscored the Crusaders 19-12 to go into the final quarter with a 43-36 lead. Barry and Natalie Berndt both connected on a 3 and led the Patriots with five points each in the third quarter.
As expected, the game came down to the wire, but the Patriots prevailed.
“We went on a little run and had a seven-point lead going into the fourth, but every time we would get it to eight or nine, they would come back and put some pressure on – get a steal, hit a shot,” Potash said. “I know we won by five, but they scored as time expired. Anna (Barry) hit two foul shots to put us up six, so that iced the game.
“Haley Moran, our freshman, had two really tough finishes in the fourth quarter that were huge and made it a two-possession game. Everyone did their part. Their point guard is very good. She’s very quick, and Syd (Ralph) got into foul trouble, so Nat (Berndt) had to go ahead and play her, and Nat did a really nice job.
“Chantal (van Dongeren) got into a little foul trouble, which is really big for us. She was on their big who was averaging 16 a game, and Chantal held her to nine. We got into trouble, but there were kids coming off the bench that were ready to go who don’t get a ton of minutes, and kind of pieced it all together.”
Barry, whose 16 points led the Patriots, earned MVP honors for East’s eight-team bracket.
“Anna kind of leads the charge,” Potash said. “She does what Anna does for us. There was one play in the first quarter where we were trying to run something, and Anna pulled up for a three and made it. (Assistant coach Lisa Garner) looked at me and said, ‘That will work too.’”
Also for the Patriots, Jess Lockwood added 12 points – nine in the second half, and Berndt was the third East player in double figures with 11. Moran added six points.
“I’m really happy for them, proud of them,” Potash said. “Today we told them they had to be at breakfast by 9:30. We kept them busy all day and kept them awake until 7:50.
“You know what’s fun about these guys too – IMG Academy is in this tournament, and the girls wanted to see them. So, we brought them in at two o’clock for their championship game. They’re sitting there watching in awe. These are basketball kids. They’re fans of the game, so it’s a fun crew to be around.”
East’s game – the final game of the day at 7:50 – made for a long day with a 3 a.m. wake-up call awaiting them to catch an early flight Sunday morning. They’ll undoubtedly have jet lag, but according to Barry, the trip was well worth it.
“It was so fun,” the senior guard said. “It was really great to get to know everyone better, especially the freshmen who I didn’t really know that well.
“I feel like it brought us all really close together. It was just a really fun experience overall. I think we all enjoyed it and would definitely want to do it again.”
It was a fluke
East’s strong showing in Florida was impressive by any standard. Throw in the fact that it came on the heels of a 48-15 loss to Council Rock South in its final game before the holiday break, and it’s a testament to the team’s resiliency as well as the players’ belief in themselves.
“I think that was just a fluke, honestly,” Barry said of the Rock South game. “I don’t even think it was rebounding from it – It was just that one game was a fluke.
“When you look at what we’d done before that, it was all consistent, and just one game was like that, and it was a fluke. We just knew that wasn’t the team we actually are. We just came back from it and did what we needed to do here. We just all decided we were going to look past it.”
Yes, it definitely was a fluke, and it was a safe bet the Patriots – who took a 6-0 record into the Rock South game – would bounce back. But bouncing back to win their bracket at the Tampa Bay Christmas Invitational that features a long list of impressive teams immediately after that outing might have seemed like a stretch, but that’s exactly what the Patriots did.
The key?
“I think it’s just fundamentals, and I think we were more disciplined than any other team down here,” Barry said. “I think we are a really good team looking for each other. We always make the extra pass. We pass up a good shot for a great shot, and I think that’s what helps us do well consistently.”
Potash, for one, was not surprised by her team’s response to the Rock South loss.
“I know how well these kids can shoot,” the East coach said. “We coaches sat there and said, ‘Is this really happening?’ I’ve been doing this a long time, and I’ve been part of all kinds of crazy games.
“We just said, ‘Put it behind us – it’s not the team we were the first six games.’ We told them, ‘You’ve got to be a goldfish – short memory.’”
The Patriots enter the new year atop the SOL Colonial, a spot they share with North Penn.
“After the Council Rock South game – this gives us our confidence back to know that wasn’t actually the team that we are, so now we have our momentum back, and we’re ready for the new year,” Barry said.
Central Bucks East (9-1, 5-1 SOL) will host Bensalem in a crossover game on Friday.
Seffner Christian (FL) 6-18-12-12 48
Central Bucks East 8-16-19-10 53
Seffner Christian (FL) (48) – Jade Thompson 4 2-6 10; Jazz Fasley 2 0-0 5; Nevaeh Lee 9 5-6 23; Mia Hastings 0 1-1 1; Nicole Carrena 3 2-2 9; TOTALS 18 10-15 48.
Central Bucks East (53) – Sydney Ralph 2 0-0 4; Haley Moran 3 0-0 6; Natalie Berndt 5 0-0 11; Anna Barry 4 5-5 16; Jess Lockwood 4 3-4 12; Chantal van Dongeren 2 0-0 4; TOTALS 20 8-9 53.
3-point goals: Seffner Christian – Jazz Fasley, Nicole Carrena; CBE – Anna Barry 3, Natalie Berndt, Jess Lockwood.
(Ben T Davis Beach Bracket)
NESHAMINY 49, EZELL-HARDING (TN) 36
Reese Zemitis and Lola Ibarrondo turned in what are becoming routinely excellent performances, combining for 36 points, and the Redskins closed out their Florida trip on a high note, controlling play from the outset and notching their second win in three games.
“I learned a ton these past five days about our team, and I am extremely proud of how they played and conducted themselves while away on this trip,” Neshaminy coach John Gallagher said. “I admittedly told the team the first half of the trip was to be pleasure, and it was as we visited Clearwater Beach and Busch Gardens. 
“I then asked them to refocus on the business aspect of the trip, and it was like flipping a switch. Their ability to have fun and then bear down on the games was admirable to say the least.”
The Redskins – behind eight points from Ibarrondo – led 11-7 after one quarter and took a 17-12 lead into halftime. A 19-point third quarter put the game out of reach. Zemitis led the charge with nine points, and Mia Raivich buried a pair of 3-pointers. The Redskins took an insurmountable 36-18 lead into the final quarter on their way to the decisive win.
“We got better over the last five days as we got more and more contributions from players other than our seniors,” Gallagher said. “At halftime of the game today, we had only given up 12 points, and I pointed out that Ashlyn Duffy and Mia Raivich were a big part of that with their defense against what I thought was difficult matchups for them. They both took a huge stride forward this week along with Grace Weyler. Grace is fourth on our team in rebounds behind Reese, Lola and Alena and, at the same time, has the second-best field goal shooting percentage behind Reese. As a coaching staff, we need to get her more shots.
“Alena Cofield continues to take the assignment of guarding the other team’s best player and today was no exception. Through three quarters, Alena kept their second leading scorer to only three points and kept her out of the lane, which was a concern for me watching them on film.”
Zemitis led the Redskins with 20 points – 15 in a huge second half. Ibarrondo added 16 points – 10 in the first half. Raivich contributed eight points.
“Mia Ravitch hit two three-pointers in the third quarter to stretch our lead to 16 and kind of took the legs from our opponent,” Gallagher said. “Both Mia and Ashlyn are very good from the three-point line, and a game like this will grow their confidence.
“We utilized Reese in low post for a good part of the second half, and she was very successful in that role by either scoring or drawing a foul. The teams we played did their homework on Reese and she had to work extremely hard for her shot and any points. Reese took the physical aspect teams applied to her and the constant double teams to not only continue to score but also get great looks for her teammates.
“Lola Ibarrondo is playing at her highest level since I have known her. Her stroke from the three-point line is as pretty as can be seen and that is due to the extra work she has put in away from the Neshaminy program to sharpen what was once a weakness other teams could exploit.”
Neshaminy (8-2, 6-0 SOL) is looking to build on its strong showing in Florida and will host North Penn in a crossover game on Friday.
Ezell-Harding (TN) 7-5-6-18 36
Neshaminy 11-6-19-13 49
Ezell-Harding (36) – Brilee Price 4 1-4 11; Tayla Stovall 0 5-8 5; Madison McNeal 2 1-1 6; Tennley Dowdy 1 0-0 2; Reghan Williams 5 0-0 12; TOTALS 12 7-13 36.
Neshaminy (49) – Alena Cofield 1 1-2 3; Lola Ibarrondo 6 2-2 16; Ava Irizarry 1 0-0 2; Mia Raivich 3 0-08; Reese Zemitis 8 3-3 20; TOTALS 19 6-7 49
3-point goals: Ezell-Harding – Brilee Price 2, Reghan Williams 2, Madison McNeal; Neshaminy – Lola Ibarrondo 2, Mia Raivich 2, Reese Zemitis.
Boardwalk Classic (Putt Palmer Memorial Showcase)
HOLY SPIRIT (NJ) 47, CHELTENHAM 30
The Lady Panthers rallied from a five-point deficit after one quarter to outscore the Spartans 16-6 in the second quarter to go into halftime with a 22-17 lead.
Unfortunately for the Lady Panthers, they didn’t have a whole lot to cheer about after that, scoring just eight points in a second half that belonged to the Spartans, who put 30 points on the board.
“We played a good first half but lost composure in the third,” Cheltenham coach Ben Bowman said. “We need to find ways to play through adversity.”
Cassie Bugg’s 10 points led the Lady Panthers. She also was a force under the backboards.
“I thought Cassie Bugg stepped up and played well with 10 points and 19 boards,” Bowman said. “Hopefully, she continues to play with confidence going into next week with three games.”
Also for the Lady Panthers, Paige Powell and Maya Simmons both and eight points.
Cheltenham (5-5, 2-3 SOL) will travel to Plymouth Whitemarsh for a crossover game on Wednesday.
Cheltenham 6-16-4-4 30
Holy Spirit (NJ) 11-6-19-11 47
Cheltenham (30) – Jiah Price 0 0-2 0; Paige Powell 3 2-3 8; Maya Simmons 4 0-2 8; Cassie Bugg 5 0-0 10; Ali Charles 2 0-0 4; Tori Simmons 0 0-2 0; TOTAL 14 2-9 30.
Holy Spirit (NJ) (47) – Kendall Murphy 1 1-4 4; Kieran Brewster 1 0-0 2; Sabrina Little 4 0-0 9; Reilly Brynes 3 0-0 8; Lauren Cella 6 2-3 15; Megan Kane 4 1-2 9; 19 4-9 47.
3-point goals: Holy Spirit (NJ) – Reilly Brynes 2, Kendall Murphy, Sabrina Little, Lauren Cella.
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