Abington has regularly found itself in the headlines this season for the offensive performances of Villanova-bound Emily Leer.
That - according to coach Dan Marsh after his team’s 57-44 win over Council Rock South - is just part of the story of the Ghosts’ 9-0 start.
“It was defense again,” the Ghosts’ coach said of the key to his team’s big win. “They did not get an uncontested look, and they really struggled against our defense.
“Our girls were really focused and just came in ready to play some defense and defend our house. Everybody was talking about Council Rock South and how good they were, and I think our kids felt like, ‘Hey, we’re not bad either,’ and they said, ‘This is our house, and we’re going to make sure somebody doesn’t use us as a springboard in our house.’”
Leer turned in what has become a routinely stellar outing, scoring a game-high 25 points and also contributing 11 rebounds and five blocks.
“You know what – it was a complete team effort,” Marsh said. “Emily was awesome like she always is, but again it boiled down to defense and ball movement and all that kind of stuff.
“They threw a lot of different looks at us defensively – they went from man to a three-two, but whatever they did, we responded.”
Chynna West contributed four points and, more importantly, six assists in a solid supporting effort.
“Chynna is our unsung hero,” Marsh said. “She’s not going to score a lot, but she guarded their freshman point guard (Alexis Hofstaedter) and really shut her down. She really didn’t get any good looks.
“Chynna is really the key to our defense. She’s a lot longer than she looks, and she causes people problems and is really playing well right now.”
Hofstaedter had just one three and that, according to Marsh, came on a rare open look in transition.
The Golden Hawks were led by Chelsea Allen (14 points) and Alex Wheatley (13 points). For the Ghosts, Aiyannah Peal had 12 points and Jessica Schmidt, seven points.
“When you have a player like Emily, she makes everybody better,” Marsh said. “Peal played another great game.
“Jess Schmidt does the dirty work, and she’s not going to score a lot, but she plays real good defense and that kind of thing.”
The Ghosts led this one from wire to wire, withstanding a third quarter Golden Hawk rally.
“They made a couple of big shots,” Marsh said of the Golden Hawks. “The big thing about that was – and I was so proud of my girls – we didn’t crumble.
“We took their best shot. It was 35-31, and Jamie Schectman hit a big three at the beginning of the fourth quarter, and we never looked back.”
While the Ghosts improve to 4-0 in league play, the Golden Hawks are 3-1 (7-2 overall). Abington’s win sets up a potential National Conference showdown against Council Rock North next Friday.
“I don’t want to look past Truman, but we should be 10-0 going into Council Rock North,” Marsh said. “That’s going to be a very, very difficult game, and we know that.”
South prevails in SOL showdown – In a battle of Continental Conference foes, Central Bucks South survived a slow start to earn a 41-31 win over Souderton on Friday night. The win snapped a six-game winning streak for the Indians.
“This was big,” coach Beth Mattern said. “They have a real nice team.
“It was a battle.”
The Indians – behind six points from sophomore Carley Kendall – led 8-4 at the end of one quarter.
“We really struggled from the floor,” Mattern said. “We missed 11 foul shots, we missed layups, we missed three-point shots. We just weren’t shooting well.”
The Titans’ offense came to life in the second quarter when they outscored the Indians 14-4 to go into halftime with an 18-12 lead.
“We were actually able to connect on some shots in the second quarter,” Mattern said. “We were 3-for-4 from the line, so we were able to build our confidence.”
Gab Vass (12 points) and Kaycee Schaefer (11 points) led a balanced Titan attack.
“I was really happy with everyone we put on the court,” Mattern said. “Caycee Schaefer, my point guard, handled the ball well and controlled the game, and she went 6-for-6 from the foul line in the fourth quarter, which was huge.
“Gab Vass was huge on the offensive boards – keeping things alive and just really grinding it out.”
Defensively, Katelyn Schneider was effective containing Brittany Sandone.
“As a whole, we played real nice defense, and Katelyn did a good job of trying to shut down Sandone and limit her touches on the ball,” Mattern said.
Sandone finished with 10 points to share team scoring honors with Kendall, who managed just four points after the first quarter.
“Nicole Mummert played great defense really helping and adjusting on Kendall,” Mattern said. “I thought she (Kendall) was a real nice player, and we had great weak-side help. It was just really a great team effort.”
While the Indians fell to 3-1 in league play (6-2 overall), the Titans improved to 4-0 (5-4 overall).
Trojans roll to win over Eagles – The Trojans benefitted from six three’s in their 51-31 win over Norristown on Friday night. Senior Jessica Keller did most of the damage, burying five treys and finishing with a team-high 17 points.
“She’s shooting the ball pretty well right now,” coach Jerry Hartman said of Keller. “She was hurt as a sophomore, and she worked hard coming back as a junior, and she’s been playing well for us. She shot the ball well tonight. She has confidence in her shot.”
It was Keller’s eight-point first quarter that – along with Colleen Hinde’s seven points – propelled the Trojans to a 15-11 lead at the end of one quarter. Sparked by Kristy Ragbir’s seven-point second quarter, the Trojans outscored the Eagles 13-9 to go into halftime with a 28-20 lead.
Natasha Matthews kept the Eagles in the game, connecting on 11 of her game-high 18 points in the first half.
The Trojans owned the second half, outscoring the Eagles 23-11.
Three Trojans – Keller, Hinde and Ragbir – finished the game in double figures with Hinde and Ragbir both contributing 13 points.
“The kids have been playing well – passing the ball around and playing well as a team,” Hartman said. “Teams can’t double down on Colleen when you’re making your outside shots.
“When you have three people scoring like that and a couple of girls coming off the bench and contributing, it’s nice because you can’t key on one player. Hopefully, we’ll continue.”
The Trojans improved to 4-0 in league play (6-3 overall).
“They’re a good bunch of kids,” Hartman said. “They work hard, and they have a great attitude.
“They’re feeling confident in themselves, and it’s nice to see them working hard together. We’re taking it one game at a time. I tell them – win or lose, go out and play hard. You can’t do any more than that.”
Panthers edge Falcons – William Tennent withstood a late Pennsbury surge to earn a 39-36 win on Friday night. The Panthers, who led by as many as 10, connected on just 9-of-21 from the foul line.
“That’s one of the reasons why it got close,” coach Paul Veltre said.
Sarah Godfrey sank a pair of foul shots with nine seconds remaining to put the Panthers on top 39-36.
“My message was – we’ll fix the stuff that we didn’t do well, but it was a league game, and in a league game, all you want is a win,” Veltre said. “We’ll worry about it being ugly later.
“Right now we have to accept the win and get ready for (Central Bucks) West tomorrow. We would have liked to have had a stronger outing, but I’d rather be on the winning side than on the short side and making the long ride home.”
Ashley Alden led the Panthers with 15 points, 11 rebounds and five steals. Godfrey had eight points. Melissa Horn had nine rebounds.
Pennsbury was led by the eight-point effort of Molly Phillips, who was a perfect 4-for-4 from the foul line.
Maidens regain winning form – Steph Knauer and Taylour Alston established themselves as a presence in the paint in North Penn’s recent wins.
Knauer had 18 points and 17 rebounds in North Penn’s 49-31 win over Central Bucks West on Thursday night while Alston had 9 points and 11 boards.
One night later, North Penn jumped out to a 27-10 halftime lead and then coasted to a 44-35 non-league win over Perkiomen Valley. Alston had 14 points and 13 rebounds while Knauer had 17 points and 12 boards.
The Maidens used an 18-2 second-quarter scoring explosion to take control of the game.
“It was good for us because they played zone and packed it in, and we actually figured out how to break it,” coach Maggie deMarteleire said.
With the wins, the Maidens improved to 4-5 overall. They are 2-2 in league play.
Around the league: Central Bucks East sprinted to a 16-6 lead at the end of one quarter and rolled to a 62-36 win over Hatboro-Horsham in SOL play on Friday night. Three Patriot players finished the game in double figures. Liz Martin led the way with 19 points while Melissa Remmey and Courtney McManus each scored 12 points. Kate Romano led the Hatters with 19 points. With the win, the Patriots improved to 4-0 in league play (6-1 overall) while the Hatters are 0-4 in the league (2-4 overall).
Upper Merion improved to 3-1 in league play (6-3 overall) with its 36-26 win over Upper Moreland (0-4 SOL, 1-5 overall). Alex Galdi led the Vikings with 10 points while Briana Alvarez added eight. Erin Dixon led the Golden Bears with eight points.
Quakertown won a thriller against neighboring Pennridge, edging the Rams 43-42. Daniella Ciccarone led the Panthers with 22 points and six rebounds. Kristine Jackiewicz had nine points while Chandler Conway added eight points and 11 rebounds. Sam Simononis led the Rams with 22 points while Jordan Dominic added 11. While the Rams fell to 1-3 in league play (3-6 overall), the Panthers improved to 2-2 in the league (5-4 overall).
In other action, Cheltenham defeated Springfield 64-21. Bensalem downed neighboring Harry S. Truman 47-40, and Council Rock North defeated Neshaminy 45-25.
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