Check out the recaps for SOL girls’ basketball teams in action Friday. CB East/CB South photo provided courtesy of Diane Barry/CB East basketball. (Taylor Hinkle photo provided by CB South basketball)
SOL Colonial Division
CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 45, CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 44
Taylor Hinkle had herself a Senior Night to remember.
The senior captain surpassed the 1,000-point milestone in the first quarter, and for good measure, she scored the game-winner as time was about to expire, allowing the Titans to escape with the hard fought win.
Hinkle took the suspense out of her 1,000-point pursuit in a hurry, scoring her team’s first eight points. She scored the historic basket on a layup at the end of a fast break.
“Taylor had a great game tonight, but just overall, scoring a thousand points is a great accomplishment,” South coach Beth Mattern said. “She’s our fifth 1,000-point scorer in CB South history.
“She’s just a dynamic player – she can post, she can shoot, she runs the floor well. When she decides she’s turning it on, she can really turn it on, and she did that to end the game for us, which was huge.”
Sparked by Hinkle’s eight points, the Titans led 12-6 after one quarter and took a 21-15 lead into halftime. Jenna McMartin gave the Titans a huge lift in the second quarter, scoring seven of her team’s nine points.
The Titans added to their lead with an 11-5 third quarter to open up a seemingly insurmountable 32-20 lead. The Patriots, however had other ideas, erupting for 24 points in the final eight minutes. Anna Barry – stymied through three quarters – buried a pair of 3s and scored 10 points in the quarter. Elise Duffy added six points and Erin LeRay had five, but it wasn’t quite enough as Hinkle saved the day for the Titans.
“East just turned it on,” Mattern said. “They came on like gangbusters in the fourth quarter and just really outworked us. They put a little bit of pressure on us, and we ended up giving up the lead.”
With 10 seconds remaining and the Titans trailing by one, Hinkle crossed midcourt.
“I was out of timeouts, so she just made a hard drive to the basket, it went in, and basically, the buzzer went off,” Mattern said. “We’ve had a real tough week with Mack (Erb) going down and then Alyssa (D’Orazio) going down, emotionally we’ve just been really drained. A couple other players are fighting injuries, and I know we’re not the only team with that. It’s the time of the year.
“Tonight – the whole positive vibe of Seniors Night. East was gracious enough to do an opening tap for Alyssa and Mack to have one more start. It was just a really nice night that we really as a group needed. Who knows what tomorrow will bring, but today was a good day for us.”
The Titans’ coach went on to credit the Patriots for their help in making the night special.
“CB East came in tonight – it was Senior Night, we had a player eight points from a thousand, and they just showed such great sportsmanship during that time in the beginning, and I really appreciated that,” Mattern said. “East was just so classy about everything. Then they came out and played a fantastic game, and I feel really grateful that we were able to walk out of there with a W.”
Hinkle finished with a game-high 21 points. McCartin and Yoyo Samayoa both added seven points.
For the Patriots, Duffy led the way with 15 points while Barry had 10.
Central Bucks South (11-7, 7-7 SOL) will travel to Owen J Roberts on Saturday for a non-league game at 4:30 p.m. Central Bucks East (8-10, 6-8) will host Villa Joseph Marie in a non-league game Saturday at 1 p.m.
Central Bucks East 6-9-5-24 44
Central Bucks South 12-9-11-13 45
Central Bucks East (44) – Erin LeRay 2 0-0 5; Chantal Van Dongeren 0 2-2 2; Shayne LeRay 1 1-2 4; Anna Barry 4 0-0 10; Elise Duffy 6 3-5 15; Kendall Gregor 1 2-2 5; Emily Curran 0 2-2 2; Bella Haurin 0 1-3 1. TOTALS 14 11-16 44.
Central Bucks South (45) – Taylor Hinkle 8 4-6 21; Jenna McCartin 3 0-0 7; Maddie Tantum 1 2-2 4; Sam Schiesser 0 2-2 2; Allison Sauers 1 0-0 2; Yoyo Samayoa 2 3-4 7; Kristen Conway 1 0-0 2. TOTALS 16 11-14 45.
3-point goals: CBE – Anna Barry 2, Shayne LeRay, Erin LeRay, Kendall Gregor; CBS – Taylor Hinkle, Jenna McCartin.
CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 57, PENNRIDGE 54 (OT)
The Bucks – who trailed by eight at halftime – used a 20-12 third quarter burst to even the score. They went on to win in overtime.
Emily Spratt’s 18-point effort led the Bucks, but it was the double-digit efforts of Tai Henkels (14 points) and Katie Finnan (13 points) that allowed the Bucks to escape with the win.
“That’s what we’re looking for,” West coach Zach Sibel said. “Emily’s been playing at such a high level. Tai did it at the beginning of the season, and Katie has definitely shown spurts, but we were waiting for multiple girls to step up and score in double figures and balance out the scoring.
“So to get those girls at that level and playing with that kind of confidence is exactly what we need as we turn the corner to the last week of the season and into the district run.”
In the opening quarter, the Rams rode the hot hand of Katie Yoder – who buried three 3s – to a 15-12 lead. Yoder added five points in the second quarter, and Anna Croyle had six as the Rams added to their lead and went into halftime on top 29-21.
The tide turned in the Bucks’ favor in the third quarter. Henkels, who had a pair of 3-pointers in the first half, connected on a pair of treys, and Finnan had seven points as the Bucks evened the score 41-41 heading into the final quarter. Finnan scored all 13 of her points in the second half.
“Coach Jen (Fabian) got into her ear before the half and just said, ‘Don’t play this game like every game’s your last possession. Know that we’re going to get 50 possessions, and you just have to play them well,’” Sibel said. “I think that allowed her to keep things in front of her, which is something we’ve been talking about this last week. It gave her a chance to take a deep breath. She does so many things well, and she’s lightening quick, and I think taking a deep breath is what she needed to do.
“That allowed her to get to the foul line, and when that happened, it forced Pennridge to help on her, and then she was able to find some people. Henkels made some big shots, and Spratt made a big three in the fourth to tie the game up. The girls really made plays when they needed to.”
Late in the fourth period, the Bucks led by one, but a Yoder three gave the Rams a two-point advantage. Henkels buried a pair at the line to knot the score, and the stage was set for overtime.
In overtime, the Bucks – who scored all their points at the foul line – had a three-point lead with 6.8 seconds left and the Rams in possession of the ball out of bounds at midcourt.
“We decided we would have Gabbi Senior foul the ball handler after two seconds, so it put them at four seconds sideline out of bounds on the other side,” Sibel said. “Yoder had a shot – every time Yoder touches the ball, I get nervous because magical things happen when she shoots it. She had a decent look from about half court, but we were able to get out of there with an overtime win.”
For the Rams, Yoder connected on five 3s and led all scorers with 21 points. Croyle finished with 10 points while Grace Rosica and Emma Pyne both had seven.
In addition to the Bucks’ three double-digit performances, Ava Longo added seven points. Spratt also had eight rebounds, four steals and a crucial block. Henkels had five rebounds.
“It’s a fun team to coach – it’s taken years off my life with these close games, but if there’s any group to do it, I don’t mind it being this group,” Sibel said.
Central Bucks West (15-4, 10-4 SOL) will travel to Central Bucks East on Tuesday, and Pennridge (11-10, 6-8) will be on the road at Souderton on Tuesday.
Central Bucks West 12-9-20-11-5 57
Pennridge 15-14-12-11-2 54
Central Bucks West (57) – Tai Henkels 4 2-3 14; Katie Finnan 4 4-7 13; Nia Perry 1 0-0 3; Emily Spratt 5 7-12 18; Alexis Castro 1 0-0 2; Ava Longo 2 3-4 7; Gabi Senior 0 0-2 0. TOTALS 17 16-27 57.
Pennridge (54) – Grace Rosica 2 3-6 7; Anna Croyle 4 2-2 10; Katie Yoder 8 0-0 21; Ava Fantaskey 2 0-0 5; Emma Pyne 3 0-0 7; Ryan Hodder 1 2-2 4. TOTALS 20 7-10 54.
3-point goals: CBW – Tai Henkels 4, Katie Finnan, Nia Perry, Emily Spratt; Pennridge – Katie Yoder 5, Ava Fantaskey, Emma Pyne.
SOUDERTON 45, NORTH PENN 27
They cut down the nets at Souderton on Friday.
The Indians, as a result of their win over the Knights, clinched sole possession of the SOL Colonial title, the program’s third crown in the last five years. It was reason to celebrate.
“I wanted it to be a surprise,” coach Lynn Carroll said of cutting down the net. “But they asked me at practice yesterday if we were going to do it, so I told them that we were.
“I’m so happy for them, so proud of them. To do it with a few games to go makes it even more special. The way that we played in the second half – it’s why we are where we are – especially on the defensive side but really all of it. Just determined defense and a willingness to make the extra pass on offense was the definition of our team in the second half tonight.”
The Knights, who trailed 10-5 after one quarter, made things interesting with a 16-10 second quarter that sent them into halftime with a 21-20 lead over the Indians.
“In the first half, our defense was actually very good,” Carroll said. “We had a bunch of blocked shots but then didn’t get possession of the ball. They scored a couple of times that way. They had a kid come off the bench (Maddus Murphy) to hit a shot for them at the buzzer to end the half. They played well, they played really hard, and they were getting some second chances. We just weren’t finishing possessions on defense.”
That changed in a second half that saw the Indians allow just six points. They outscored the Knights 17-2 in a third quarter that featured a whole lot of Teya McConnaha, who scored nine points.
“At halftime, we made very small adjustments defensively, and offensively, the girls asked if we could run fewer plays and just play basketball, so we did that with a ton of success in the third quarter,” Carroll said. “They’re very bright, and I’m smart enough to listen to them, so we just kept with that, and they were making really, really good decisions. At the end of the second quarter, we started to get the ball down low a little bit with some success. We wanted to continue that in the second half, but the girls just kind of did it on their own.
“Teya (McConnaha) just had a monster third quarter. Her teammates were getting her the ball. There were a few possessions in a row where Teya and Mikayla (McGillian) both scored in the paint. The girls were just really, really making good decisions. They were very unselfish.”
That unselfishness was underscored by the fact that the Indians assisted on 15 of 17 field goals.
“When you have kids who can score and also don’t care who scores, that makes for some good basketball,” Carroll said. “And defensively, we gave up six points in the second half. We were just great defensively. We made things difficult for them.”
Casey Harter’s 13 points led a balanced Souderton attack and included a 5-for-6 effort at the foul line. The junior point guard also had four rebounds and five assists. McConnaha added 12 points and six rebounds. McGillian and Brooke Fenchel both had six points. Fenchel also contributed five assists. Erin Bohmueller had four blocked shots.
For the Knights, Abby Plaugher had seven points, and Olivia Stone added six points.
Souderton (17-2, 13-1 SOL) will travel to Reading for a non-league game on Saturday at 3 p.m. North Penn (7-11, 5-9) will be on the road at Villa Joseph Marie for a non-league game on Sunday at 1 p.m.
North Penn 5-16-2-4 27
Souderton 10-10-17-8 45
North Penn (27) – Caleigh Sperling 1 1-2 3; Cam Crowley 1 0-0 3; Abby Plaugher 3 0-0 7; Leah Mikulski 1 1-2 3; Olivia Stone 2 1-2 6; Maddux Murphy 2 0-0 5. TOTALS 10 3-6 27.
Souderton (45) – Brooke Fenchel 3 0-0 6; Erin Bohmueller 2 0-0 5; Mikayla McGillian 2 2-2 6; Casey Harter 4 5-6 13; Grace McDonough 1 1-1 3; Teya McConnaha 5 1-4 12; Avery Carroll 0 0-1 0. TOTALS 17 9-14 45.
3-point goals: NP – Cam Crowley, Abby Plaugher, Oliva Stone, Maddux Murphy; Souderton – Erin Bohmueller, Teya McConnaha.
SOL Freedom Division
LOWER MORELAND 42, CHELTENHAM 34
The Lions found themselves on the short end of an 18-12 score at halftime. They responded with a big second half, outscoring their visitors 30-16 to earn the come-from-behind win.
“This game was exactly what I expected,” LM coach Rich Becker said. “Cheltenham has been playing very well lately, and their defensive style seems to match up well against us. They have good quickness on the perimeter and some size inside.
“For the first half, they had us playing back on our heels offensively, and it showed as we only scored 12 points. At the half, I got after the girls a little bit because they were letting their shooting influence every other facet of our game. We challenged them to pick up their intensity on defense and they responded.”
In the third quarter, the Lions were ignited by a pair of Liz Neeld 3-pointers. Ameila Brown also had a three in a quarter that saw the Lions outscore the Lady Panthers 16-10, knotting the score 28-28 heading into the final quarter. Sparked by seven points from freshman Briana McFerran, the Lions outscored the Lady Panthers 14-6 in the final frame to earn the win.
“To start the fourth quarter, Cheltenham scored the first two baskets, and I was finally smart enough to listen to the suggestion Ceili Courduff (former player, now an assistant coach) had, and we were able to outscore them 14-2 the rest of the way to win by eight,” Becker said. “Teams are continuing to focus their defense on Jess Dugo, and I thought she did a nice job of finding other ways to score.
“Most importantly, the other girls are stepping up on offense. Amelia Brown came off the bench and hit some timely 3’s for us and did a great job down the stretch defending Mikahila Leighton. She’s such a tough match-up, and Amelia being able to limit her touches was what turned the game for us.
“Liz Neeld once again came through for us, scoring all eight of her points in the second half, and Tori Finnegan is starting to score again. With four games in the next six days, we’re hoping to build off tonight and finish strong.”
McFerran’s 10 points – nine in the second half – led the Lions. Dugo added nine points while Finnegan and Neeld both had eight. Brown contributed seven points to round out a balanced scoring effort by the Lions.
The Lady Panthers were led by the 10-point effort of Arianna Davis, who scored all her points in the first half. Leighton added nine points, and Tyrina Ragsdale had seven.
“We lost a tough one,” Cheltenham coach Ben Bowman said. “This game was almost the same thing as last night. We competed and battled, but second half pressure and being careless with the ball did us in.
“I do see growth because a couple of weeks ago this was a blowout loss for us. To compete and give ourselves a chance to win is a step in the right direction.”
Lower Moreland (14-4, 11-3 SOL) will travel to Sacred Heart Academy for a non-league game Saturday at noon. Cheltenham (4-15, 1-12) will be on the road at Springfield Township on Monday.
Cheltenham 9-9-10-6 34
Lower Moreland 7-5-16-14 42
Cheltenham (34) – Mikahila Leighton 3 3-4 9; Arianna Davis 5 1-2 10; Tyrina Ragsdale 2 3-4 7; Cassie Bugg 1 0-0 2; Amelia Yevoli 2 0-0 4; Ljeoma Ojukwu 1 0-0 2. TOTALS 14 6-9 34.
Lower Moreland (42) – Tori Finnegan 3 2-6 8; Amelia Brown 2 1-3 7; Jess Shein 0 0-2 0; Liz Neeld 3 0-0 8; Jess Dugo 2 5-5 9; Briana McFerran 3 3-6 10. TOTALS 13 11-22 42.
3-point goals: LM – Amelia Brown 2, Liz Neeld 2, Briana McFerran.
UPPER MORELAND 52, SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP 29
Three players finished in double figures for the Golden Bears, who led 24-16 at halftime and then blew the game wide open with a 28-13 second half.
“Springfield came out really strong, and we came out a little lackadaisical defensively and rightfully so,” UM coach Matt Carroll said. “It’s been a bit of a grind this week as this is our fourth game with one more tomorrow.
“The early start made things a little tricky for our players and coaches prior to the game, and it showed a little bit early on. When you get out of your normal game day routine, these types of things can happen.”
EmmyFaith Wood’s 15 points, which included three 3-pointers, led the Golden Bears. Wood jumpstarted the Bears with seven first-quarter points. Holly Gohl added 14 points, nine in the first half, and Kiera Coyle contributed 12 points on four 3-pointers – two in the opening quarter.
“We were able to get some breathing room behind Kiera’s three-point shooting and got some tired players some rest,” Carroll said. “We go to Gwynedd tomorrow for a 12:00 game. We know how good they are, but we scheduled them late in the season for a reason. We need tough competition to get us ready for the playoffs and we are looking forward to the challenge.”
For the Spartans, Annie Coll and Jayla Daniels each had seven points, and Samiyyah Thompson added six points.
Upper Moreland (14-4, 11-3 SOL) will travel to Gwynedd Mercy Saturday for a non-league game at noon. Springfield Township (3-14, 0-13) will host Cheltenham on Monday.
Upper Moreland 18-6-15-13 52
Springfield Township 14-2-6-7 29
Upper Moreland (52) – Alyssa Wiley 2 0-1 5; Kylie Gaul 1 0-0 2; EmmyFaith Wood 6 0-0 15; Kiera Coyle 4 0-0 12; Holly Gohl 6 1-2 14; Emma Hurley 0 1-2 1; Mikel Lancit 1 0-0 2; Allie LaRocco 0 1-3 1. TOTALS 20 3-5 52.
Springfield Township (29) – Annie Coll 2 3-8 7; Amma Yoder 0 0-2 0; Samiyyah Thompson 3 0-0 6; Jayla Daniels 3 0-0 7; Delaney Lake 1 0-0 2; Alana Decker 1 0-0 2; Ashley Jenkins 2 0-0 4; Paige Robinson 0 1-2 1. TOTALS 12 4-10 29.
3-point goals: UM – Kiera Coyle 4, EmmyFaith Wood 3, Alyssa Wiley, Holly Gohl; Springfield Twp – Jayla Daniels.
SOL Patriot Division
NESHAMINY 51, HARRY S TRUMAN 29
Nine players put their names in the scoring column for the Redskins, who opened up a 14-6 lead after one quarter and led wire to wire.
“This is the first time we started the same lineup back to back since Pennridge on Jan. 14,” Neshaminy coach John Gallagher said. “We welcomed Mimi Smith back who played limited minutes as she works her way back from injury.
“Frosh Alena Cofield scored her first varsity points. Alena has sparkled as a jayvee player, and her varsity teammates were really happy to see her get her first points in a varsity game.”
Taylor Gurysh led the Redskins with 15 points, which included three 3-pointers. She also had eight rebounds, five assists and one steal in a solid all-around outing. Sophomore Lola Ibarrondo added 13 points, which included a three and a 4-for-4 effort at the foul line. The sophomore point guard also had five rebounds, four assists and five steals. Reese Zemitis added seven points, four rebounds, two assists and two steals. Anna Soska had three blocks, three rebounds and two steals.
For the Tigers, Mayah Alford led the way with eight points, and Saniya Blount had seven. Dahlia Gumaa added six points.
“Truman is much improved since we played them on Dec. 20,” Gallagher said.
Neshaminy (14-5, 11-3 SOL) will travel to Methacton for a non-league game on Monday (6:45 p.m.). and Harry S Truman (0-17, 014 SOL) will host Academy Park in a non-league game on Saturday at 12:30 p.m.
Neshaminy 14-14-13-10 51
Harry S Truman 6-8-6-9 29
Neshaminy (51) – Alena Cofield 1 1-2 3; Maddie Stockunas 1 1-2 4; Taylor Gurysh 5 2-2 15; Emma Candy 1 0-0 2; Anna Soska 1 1-2 3; Jess Purdy 1 0-0 3; Mimi Smith 0 1-2 1; Lola Ibarrondo 4 4-4 13; Reese Zemitis 3 0-0 7. TOTALS 17 10-16 51.
Harry S Truman (29) – Mayah Alford 4 0-0 8; Saniya Blount 2 0-0 4; Hannah Smith 3 1-1 7; Patricia Monroe; Shylah McCleve 1 0-0 2; Dahlia Gumaa. TOTALS 14 1-1 29.
3-point goals: Neshaminy – Taylor Gurysh 3, Maddie Stockunas Jess Purdy, Lola Ibarrondo, Reese Zemitis.
About the Author
