Lola Ibarrondo photos courtesy of Jesse Garber: https://jsgarber.zenfolio.com (Lola Ibarrondo graphic courtesy of Trish Sexton/Dom Beecher) Josiah Hutson & Dom Vacchiano photos provided by Cheltenham & Wissahickon basketball.
In what might have been an unprecedented day in SOL basketball, three players reached the 1,000-point milestone on Tuesday night. Below are recaps of each player’s big night.
Josiah Hutson, Cheltenham High School
Scoring a thousand points was the last thing on Josiah Hutson’s mind on Tuesday night.
The Cheltenham junior actually had no idea he needed 15 points to reach the milestone, and he was all but unfazed after he scored the historic basket on a right-handed floater with two minutes remaining.
It turns out the standout guard was far more concerned about the outcome of his team’s nail biter against William Tennent, a game where every point mattered and the Panthers – who are atop the SOL Freedom standings – edged Tennent 82-79.
“I knew I was near it, but I didn’t know I was that close,” Hutson said. “I really didn’t have any emotions. It was an exciting moment, but I couldn’t really do too much because I wanted to still be locked into the game.
“I was proud, but I wanted my teammates to know that the job still wasn’t done. I didn’t really show too much excitement. I just wanted to get the job done, and we could celebrate it afterwards.”
The junior point guard has been a three-year varsity starter for the Panthers.
“He came in as a ninth grader and was on our most successful – at least from a win standpoint – 30-2 team, and he was a starter on that team,” Cheltenham coach Patrick Fleury said. “He’s held a lot of different positions, he’s been through the ups and downs. These last two years have been the most challenging years. We accept the challenge, and we run towards it and not run from it, and he’s learned that.
“Josiah just has a knack for the moment. Yes, he can shoot, but it’s more heart than anything. Emotionally, he has come 180,000 miles from what he was as a 13-14-year-old kid. His birthday is coming up, so this is a great birthday present.”
Hutson acknowledged that his coaches had told him he could reach the coveted milestone this season.
“This is definitely an achievement, but it’s not really where I want to be at,” he said. “That’s not my main focus.
“I didn’t really care too much about that. I want to make it deep in the playoffs because last year we lost in the first round, and I wasn’t too happy with that.”
That’s not to say he never considered the possibility of adding his name on the banner. He did.
“Coming in ninth grade year, I always wanted to be one of those who scored a thousand points to have that feeling, but I definitely couldn’t do it without my teammates,” Hutson said. “Coming into the game, they were just telling me – ‘You’re going to hit it, don’t worry – we’ll find you,’ and that’s exactly what they did.”
The fact that Hutson’s first thoughts were of gratitude to his teammates did not surprise his coach.
“This is a team accomplishment,” Fleury said. “Anybody that sees it any differently doesn’t know what a team sport is. Nobody can get that on their own. I’m proud of the team for helping him get that mile mark.
“He’s the first in my tenure. It was good to see him do that. It was good for the Suburban One League for him to get to that mark with the help of his team because it continues to shine a light on a league that is very special to the state and to the fabric of high school basketball. This is a community thing that’s something to be celebrated. Congratulations to the community and his family.”
With aspiring young players in the stands on Tuesday night, Hutson understands the importance of being a role model.
“When I was in seventh grade, Cheltenham had a nice point guard Zahree (Harrison) and I looked up to him,” the junior point guard said. “So, from there, I always wanted to be in his shoes, have the ball and be one of them at Cheltenham.”
Hutson is doing just that
“It’s good when you have kids go all the way from kindergarten up and look to inspire other kids that follow that path,” Fluery said. “I will forever have respect and love for Josiah and all of the kids that go through our program.
“His mother and father will tell you – when I saw him in seventh grade, these were some of the things I told him that if he stuck with it and was consistent would happen for him. I’m elated at the fact that he had the moment at home. That he can get this mile mark is also a testament to everyone around him on the team that was able to work with him to make sure that they led him to this. This is very special. I’m very proud of him.”
Hutson is the eighth male player in program history to reach the 1,000-point milestone, the third to do it in their junior year. Hutson joins Harris Mansell (’05) and Patrick Mansell (’06) to have that distinction. Fleury has ties to all three, coaching Hutson and playing with both Mansells (and assisting on the basket that vaulted Harris to the milestone).
Lola Ibarrondo, Neshaminy High School
It was the perfect scenario.
Lola Ibarrondo hit nothing but net on a corner 3-pointer, turning a pass from teammate Reese Zemitis into history. The basket – scored at the 5:07 mark of the first quarter of Wednesday’s home game against Truman - vaulted the Neshaminy senior to the 1,000-point plateau. Zemitis was the first to reach Ibarrondo, who was lost in a mob of
ecstatic teammates.
In many ways, Zemitis was returning the favor. Earlier this season, Ibarrando passed the ball to Zemitis for the basket that vaulted her to the milestone.
“When I figured that out after the game - honestly, to me that’s amazing because it sums up our careers together,” Ibarrondo said. “We fed off each other our whole careers, and it’s the perfect way to end it.”
The senior captain’s emotions could be summed up in one word - relief.
“It was so much relief,” Ibarrondo said. “Once I hit it – honestly, I don’t know how I felt. I remember I just walked away.”
After the game, she entered the locker room to the cheers of her teammates while a pair of youngsters held a Big Head cutout of Iabarrondo, who hugged them both. They were two of many aspiring young players in attendance who have worked with the Holy Family University-bound senior.
“It felt amazing to have their support and to know I’ve had an impact on them,” Ibarrondo said. “My coaches told me before the game – ‘Not only have you impacted the program, but you’re impacted the younger kids as well without realizing it.’”
Ibarrando knew she had a shot at putting her name on the banner this season, but getting wins trumped any thoughts of reaching the milestone. After the Redskins returned from their successful trip to Florida over the
holiday break, she knew she was getting closer.
Heading into Tuesday’s game, the senior point guard needed just three points.
“I was definitely nervous – I was very nervous,” Ibarrondo said.
There was no mistaking the genuine joy of Ibarrondo’s teammates when she scored the historic basket.
“Lola Ibarrondo is loved by her teammates and coaches,” Gallagher said. “I am not afraid to use that word to describe the way our team embraces Lola for the person she is and how she leads our team. Our players have grown to understand that teammates who grind the hardest, radiate positivity, embrace coaching, and put the team first will always stand out. If you are one of the best players on your team, you have great influence as a leader. If you work hard and put the team first, your teammates will follow you, and that is Lola Ibarrondo.
“Lola holds herself accountable every day. When a team has no accountability at the leadership level, it weakens culture, entitlement is fostered, selfishness is promoted, coaches are undermined and standards become meaningless. Ain’t happening with Lola leading us.”
The Redskins’ coach – who also coached both Ibarrondo and Reese on their Mid-Atlantic Heat AAU team - goes on to describe her development as a player.
“Lola was a one-trick pony and easier to defend as teams would focus on taking away her ability to get to the rim during her freshman season,” Gallagher said. “The stigma was that she couldn't shoot and to play off her.
“This was brought to her attention during her sophomore season, and instead of an eye roll and thinking she is fine, she worked very hard to improve her shot. Lola again spent hours this offseason going from an improved standstill jumper to adding a pullup jumper and has grown more comfortable shooting off the dribble.”
Making Ibarrondo’s accomplishment even more remarkable is the fact that it came a year-and-a-half after the senior standout seriously considered walking away from the game after the crushing passing of her best friend, Gabbie Devine, who lost her courageous battle with leukemia on May 3, 2022.
In Tuesday’s postgame meeting, assistant coach Meg Gallagher mentioned that the team had almost lost Ibarrondo – something the senior captain will not deny.
“I told Meg this as well – I’m so thankful for her because the main reason I stayed was because of her – because I reached out to her,” Ibarrondo said. “So, hitting this milestone…I’m having trouble describing my emotions right now, but I’m just proud of how far I’ve come. I do it for (Gabbie), the person that I lost, and that’s what really motivates me.”
And it's a safe bet Devine was watching and smiling, nodding her approval.
“That’s the goal always – honestly, it’s doing it for her,” Ibarrondo said. “It’s the most motivating thing in my life.”
Dom Vacchiano, Wissahickon High School
Roll back the calendar to Feb. 27, 2021, the COVID-shortened season.
Dom Vacchiano – then a freshman – watched from the bench as teammate Matt Compas scored a basket that vaulted him to the 1000-point milestone.
Fast forward to Jan. 30, 2024, almost three years later. Vacchiano stepped to the foul line in his team’s home game against Quakertown and buried the first of two foul
shots, a basket that put him in the company of Compas on the banner of 1,000-point scorers in Wissahickon’s gym.
“I knew I was close, but I didn’t know exactly how many I had, but I heard the student section chanting that I needed one more, so that was when I knew I needed one,” he said.
There’s a back story to the night Compas put his name in the record books in 2021.
“When I was in eighth grade, coming into ninth grade, Matt was a very good mentor to me,” Vacchiano said. “He’s now one of my best friends. I’ve followed in his footsteps ever since he was a senior and I was a freshman.
“The day he hit it was the day he told me I was next, and ever since that point, I’ve just worked early mornings, late nights, unseen hours, and it finally paid off.”
While Compas - now playing for Dalton State College in Georgia - was almost 800 miles away, Chase Wilson was in the gym Tuesday night. Now an assistant at his alma mater, Wilson scored his 1,000th point in Wissahickon’s 79-77 non-league win over Perkiomen Valley on Feb. 10, 2014, as part of a 34-point performance.
“Chase Wilson is another mentor to me,” Vacchiano said. “He’s been my coach for four years now, and just me being able to be on the banner with him and Matt is something really special to me.
“I couldn’t be here without the support of my teammates, my family and all my friends and fans.”
The senior standout - whose brother Nico is also on the team - needed 380 points entering his final season and knew he had a chance to reach the elusive milestone. Entering Tuesday game, he needed 21 points – he finished with 23.
“Dom still is very good friends with Matt Compas, who was our last guy to go on the banner,” Wissahickon coach Kyle Wilson said. “While Dom wanted to have a successful season, he knew he wanted to reach that plateau of getting to a thousand points, so he’s worked his butt off.
“He’s been durable, he’s been hardworking, and he finds ways to get points. The things that he does well – he’s relentless at doing them. He’s a very, very good outside shooter, and if you come up on him, he’ll take it a step back further, and he can hit it.”
The Trojans’ coach remembers Vacchiano coming on board as a freshman.
“He was the first kid since my son Chase that could shoot from deep at a very comfortable level,” Wilson said. “You don’t see kids with such a comfortable release that they can shoot it at the foul line and 10 feet back from the foul line. He’s always had that ability, so when teams come that far out, the big 6-4 kid puts his shoulder down, he drives hard, and he finds ways to draw contact.
“He’s also very good – when he’s not scoring (from the outside) – at getting points around the basket by grabbing a rebound and getting a putback. He just works hard. I’ve even said to Dom, ‘You don’t always take some of the best shots, but I trust you’ll find a way to get us the points we need, to make a play we need.’ It’s a way we’ve worked together. I trust him to go out and make plays.”
A four-year varsity letterwinner, Vacchiano – the ninth male Wissahickon player to reach the 1,000-point plateau - has been a fixture in the starting lineup since he was a sophomore.
He plans to continue his basketball career at the next level and is deciding between Chestnut Hill, DeSales and Shippensburg.
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