To view action photos of the Pennridge/Methacton, CB East/William Tennent and North Penn/Unionvill games, visit the Photo Gallery by clicking on the following link: http://photos.suburbanonesports.com/
TOWAMENCIN – Taylour Alston was in the midst of a post-game interview when she was joined by sophomore Steph Knauer.
‘Sista,’ Knauer said with a smile as she draped her arm around the Maidens’ senior captain.
The two ‘sistas’ had just had themselves quite a day in North Penn’s 50-25 opening round District One AAAA Tournament win over Unionville on Saturday afternoon.Alston established the early tone for the game with six points, four rebounds and two blocked shots, and that was just in the first quarter. She finished the game with 16 points, 14 rebounds and five blocked shots in a stellar outing.
“She played terrific,” North Penn coach Maggie deMarteleire said. “She played a wonderful game.”
Opposite Alston under the basket was Knauer. The sophomore forward put up some dazzling numbers of her own, contributing 16 points, 12 rebounds and two blocked shots.
In the closing minutes of the second quarter, the duo delivered a highlight reel play when Alston – from the foul line – found Knauer under the basket, and then it was Knauer hitting a cutting Alston for the easy deuce.
“Our chemistry is huge – we’re sistas on and off the court,” Knauer said. “It was exciting because we always pass well in practice, and we come into the game, and it worked out.”
Credit the Maidens’ teamwork, credit whatever you like. All that mattered to the players was that their team had come out on top, effectively erasing memories of early district playoff exits past.
“After three years – we’ve always come out and lost, and I feel like finally the monkey is off our back, and we won,” Alston said. “It feels amazing. I know everyone on our team feels amazing, particularly our seniors.
“We’re ready to go. This isn’t the end.”
The feeling was decidedly different than it was one year earlier when the Maidens were upset by Bensalem on their home court 36-31 in an opening round game.
“I remember last year coming in – we were confident, but we came out with a loss,” Knauer said. “I remember the locker room after the game – all of us crying, and it was so upsetting.
“I think all of us had the mentality to come in here and work hard, come out fast, so we wouldn’t have to go through that again.”According to both Knauer and Alston, there’s a decidedly different feel about this year’s team.
“Our chemistry is real good,” Knauer said. “We work hard, but we have a lot of fun. We’re all friends. We hang out outside of practice.”
“We have inside jokes,” Alston added. “On the court if we mess up, we still smile at each other, and that helps a lot.”
As a result of Saturday’s win, the Maidens, seeded 13th, have earned a second round date with fourth seeded Downingtown East on Wednesday night. The Cougars escaped with a 34-31 overtime win over Neshaminy in another opening round game.
“I really love this time of year, and I really want the kids to experience it,” deMarteleire said. “They deserve it.
“I’m just really happy for them that they got over the hump, and hopefully, they can keep playing.”
The Maidens seized control of this one early. Alston hit nothing but net on a foul line jumper on her team’s first possession, and the senior captain was just getting started. After a Unionville miss, Alston turned a Knauer pass into an easy bucket, and then after another Indian miss, it was Knauer scoring on a putback.
After delivering a block at the defensive end, Alston turned an offensive rebound into a bucket, and the Maidens led 8-0.
“I refused to lose,” Alston said. “I came in here refusing to lose this year. I couldn’t do it for another year.”
The Maidens’ run was interrupted by a Moira McEvoy bucket at the 4:40 mark. It was only a temporary reprieve as the Maidens responded with another 8-0 run. This one began with a Shannon Knauer jumper, and then – after an Indian miss – Shannon Knauer came up with a loose ball and found sister Steph for an easy bucket.
Mary Ward sank a pair from the foul line, and after another Unionville miss, freshman Lauren Crisler scored on a strong drive, putting the Maidens on top 16-2.
“That’s exciting because the beginning is the most important part of the game,” Steph Knauer said. “We have to come out strong, come out hard and show the other team who we really are.”
By halftime, the Maidens led 31-12, and this one was over for all intents and purposes.
“That was the best half we played all year,” deMarteleire said. “I was really, really pleased. We hardly had any turnovers, we rebounded the ball, and we executed what we went over at practice.
“We needed this. Let’s face it – last year against Bensalem was like a Murphy’s Law day. It was one of the saddest days of my life. It was very depressing. Now we’ll all be smiling, and we’ll get back to work on Monday.”
Redskins come oh so close – Joanne McVey couldn’t be any prouder of her Neshaminy squad.
With good reason.
The Redskins came within inches of pulling off the upset of the tournament, but their shot as time expired in regulation rimmed out. The Cougars came back to notch a 34-31 win in overtime.
“I was never so proud of our kids,” McVey said. “Before the game, I put on the board the score we wanted – 30-27.
“Had we made the last shot, the final score would have been 30-28.”The Redskins used a matchup zone to keep the Cougars out of sync offensively.
“It was a contained matchup,” McVey said. “They just played it to a ‘t.’ We practiced it all week knowing we couldn’t play them man because they’re so patient.
“The other thing we told our kids – there was no pressure on us, and there was tons of pressure on them.”
The score was tied 9-9 at the end of one quarter and 17-17 at the half. The Cougars took a 22-21 lead into the final quarter, and the two teams were deadlocked 28-28 when the Redskins’ shot for the win came up just short.
“We asked our kids all week to be patient, to not force anything, and they really played the way we asked them to play,” McVey said. “There were tears in the locker room because we were right there, but I was never so proud of our kids. I’m heartbroken for the kids.”
Kelsey Ryan, who led the Redskins with 11 points, surpassed the magical 1,000-point plateau in the loss, but this day was about a 29th seed coming oh so close to eliminating the defending district champs and the tournament’s number four seed.
“I told the kids, ‘This is a memory. You created a memory,’” McVey said. “You were the 29th seed, and you went in and played toe to tie with the fourth seed.
“That doesn’t happen much, and it’s something you can remember and tell your kids. I said, ‘You just made a story for yourselves.’ They’re upset now, but ultimately, they made a great memory.”
Victoria Mazzeo added seven points for the Redskins, Amanda Lally, six points, and freshman Lori Paulits, five points.
“Unless you’re the state champions, you have lose your last game,” McVey said. “If you have to pick a way to go down, this is it.
“There were lots of tears in the locker room because we were right there, but the kids know they have accomplished something tonight. They know they have.”
Rams fall just short in upset bid – Pennridge exchanged baskets with Methacton for the better part of 32 minutes, but it was the veteran Warriors prevailing in the end, earning a 48-43 win over a gutsy Pennridge squad.
“Our game was neck-in-neck until the last minute and 50 seconds,” coach Brooke Martin said. “We were up two, they were up two. We kept rotating leads.”The Rams led 13-12 at the end of one quarter, but the Warriors took a 24-21 lead into halftime. Katie Frachois connected on a three to open the third quarter, knotting the score.
“It seemed as though every time we hit a big shot, they had an answer for it,” Martin said. “It was a very physical game, and in the second half, all of a sudden the refs didn’t give us any calls.
“The fouls in the second half were 10-4, and we didn’t start fouling until the last minute when we fouled twice intentionally. It’s a shame because the girls played hard. They really gave it their all. I couldn’t have asked for anything more, and it’s kind of heartbreaking when you know you could have won.”
Sam Simononis led the Rams with 20 points, which included the thousandth point of a stellar career. Jordan Dominic added 14. Seniors Mel Ordway (13 points) and Lauren Ruhl (11 points) led Methacton.
The Warriors, according to Martin, won the battle of the boards.
“The way they go after offensive rebounds – they have a lot of guards who go after the boards,” Martin said. “We need to be more physical. We’re just not a physical team.”
Despite the outcome, Martin was pleased to see her team finish the season strong after a lackluster performance in a loss to Central Bucks West.
“That was our reality check – if we didn’t start playing better, our season was going to be over sooner than we wanted it to be,” Martin said.
Goff leads Cardinals into second round – Curtrena Goff is a freshman in name only.
A starter since the first time Upper Dublin took the court this winter, the gifted freshman stood tall in Upper Dublin’s 57-41 win over Chester on Saturday. Goff finished the game with a season-high 18 points on 7-of-8 shooting from the field. She also had eight rebounds, four assists and two steals.
“Tuga was phenomenal,” coach Vince Catanzaro said of his freshman point guard. “It was her first district game ever.
“She had a great day. We didn’t know what to expect coming in her first (playoff game). She did a tremendous job of breaking their press. They pressured us the whole game.”
Taylor Bryant added 11 points, which included a perfect six-for-six effort at the foul line. Lauren Rothfeld added seven points and contained Chester’s go-to player Karen Flagg, who was held to just nine points.
“We just made very good shots,” Catanzaro said. “We were very patient on offense.
“At one point in the third period we hit three three’s in a row, and that’s what put the game out.”
Goff connected on a pair of three’s in that run while Jen Myers had the third.“We were on fire today,” said Catanzaro, whose team was 4-of-6 from beyond the arc. “I wish I could see that all the time.
“Overall, it was just a real good game defensively. I got all my seniors in. It was just a fun game.”
Tori Waters had a big game under the boards for the Flying Cardinals, pulling down a team-high nine rebounds. Kristen Fuery made her return to the lineup after sitting out three weeks with an ankle injury and contributed six points.
“She did a good job,” Catanzaro said. “She played the middle very well for us on offense. Hopefully, she’s getting acclimated to getting in there and playing.”
Upper Dublin will travel to Council Rock North for a second round game against the second-seeded Indians.
Golden Hawks survive scare – Council Rock South found itself in a most unexpected position in Saturday’s District One AAAA opener against Perkiomen Valley. The Golden Hawks were on the short end of a 20-17 score at halftime. They recuperated to outscore the Vikings 19-9 in the third quarter as Rock South went on to earn a 47-37 win.
“They played well,” coach Monica Young said of the Vikings. “They came out and gave everything they had, and our girls weren’t prepared for that.”
What changed in the third quarter?
“Our transition started kicking in,” Young said.
Alex Wheatley led the Golden Hawks with 19 points and 10 rebounds while Jackie Weber had nine points – three three’s, but points didn’t come easily for Rock South on this day.
“We shot horrendous from the foul line – we were 6-of-17, which was uncharacteristic of us,” Young said. “I don’t know if it was nerves or whatever.
“I said to them in the locker room after the game – ‘Good second half.’ I told them if we play like this on Wednesday (against Methacton), we’ll be playing for the 9th seed in states. We can’t play like this on Wednesday, but give PV all the credit.”
Indians fall short to Aces – Souderton turned in a solid outing, but it wasn’t quite enough as Lower Merion earned a 36-29 win.
“I thought we really played well,” coach Lynn Carroll said. “They’re very good. They have two players that are better than any two players we played all year.
“The low score really has more to do with their style of play. They’ll hold the ball for two minutes before they take a shot. We played well. I was really, really happy with how we played on both ends. They were better than we were.”
Senior Emily Price led the Indians with 11 points while Brittany Sandone added seven and Carley Kendall, six points.
The two teams were deadlocked 10-10 at the end of one quarter, but the Aces held a 22-18 lead at the intermission and maintained a lead the rest of the way.
“Our kids stepped up and made plays,” Carroll said. “When they started to pull away, we would make a play. They would try to pull away, and we would make a defensive stop or a big shot on the offensive end, but it just wasn’t enough.
“I’m proud of our kids. I’m not at all disappointed in losing the way we lost and who we lost to. I feel really bad for the seniors. I wanted them to finish their careers with a playoff win, but it didn’t end up that way.
“I really felt they deserved it. They put in so much time and energy and had sacrificed a lot. I would have loved for them to get a win today, but it wasn’t for lack of effort or focus. We had a great week of practice. It didn’t end up with us being on top today.”
Carroll bids farewell to Price, Sandone, Averie Brittin and Jess Bard.
- Log in to post comments
0
