Council Rock South won a thriller against Abington. Check out all of Friday’s results. To view photos of the CB West/CB East game, please visit the Photo Gallery.
National Conference
COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 36, ABINGTON 34
Friday’s showdown between the two National Conference powers was not without its share of drama. And controversy.
The Golden Hawks were celebrating their win after an Abington desperation shot at the buzzer fell short, but that celebration turned out to be premature as the officials ruled that the clock – which showed 3.4 seconds when Abington prepared to inbound under the Golden Hawks’ basket – had started too soon, beginning when the ball was passed behind the end line to Aiyannah Peal instead of when it was touched in play.
“They started the clock when Aiyannah was out of bounds,” Abington coach Dan Marsh said. “Long story short, we did the 3.4 seconds again. Deja (Rawls) got a wide open shot from about 15 feet. It literally went in and out.”
The Golden Hawks led 12-8 at the end of one quarter and stretched that lead to 19-10 by halftime. They took a 30-20 lead into the final quarter, but the Ghosts came roaring back, pulling to within one (35-34) before Alexis Hofstaedter sank one-of-two to give the Golden Hawks their final advantage.
“It was a defensive battle,” Rock South coach Monica Stolic said. “We did not play well offensively at all. We shot 7-for-19 from the foul line.
“We didn’t rebound too well. We didn’t shoot well, and we still get a win, so I guess I have to give credit to the girls somewhere.”
Alex Wheatley led the Golden Hawks with 18 points, but the 75 percent free throw shooter was just 1-for-7 from the charity stripe.
“Michael Harris did a great job on Wheatley,” Marsh said of his sophomore center. “She still had 18 points, but she did a great job. She executed our game plan very well. Wheatley broke out in the second quarter where she had a couple of breakaways and offensive rebounds – those are things we can’t let her do.”
Hofstaedter added 10 points and gave the Golden Hawks a solid floor game.
“She played a great transition game,” Stolic said of her junior point guard. “Taylor Dillon only scored four points, but she hit two key foul shots on a one-and-one when we were in our stall.”
The win was the first at Abington in Stolic’s four years at the helm.
“Last year we had an eight-point lead in the fourth quarter and we lost,” the Golden Hawks’ coach said. 
“They’re a good team, we’re a good team, but we’ve got to play better. We’re lucky to get out of there with a win considering how we played.”
While the Ghosts fell to 3-1 in SOL play (6-4 overall), the Golden Hawks upped their record to 4-0 in the league and 9-0 overall.
“Our kids were disappointed,” Marsh said. “If they’re the best team in the district, we’re right there, and we’ll only get better.”
To read Dan Dunkin’s complete game story on PhillyBurbs.com, please click on the following link: http://www.phillyburbs.com/sports/basketball/south-survives-furious-abington-finish/article_c99b4b81-81fe-5514-938f-8cb4ed9ff91b.html
NESHAMINY 44, BENSALEM 39
The Redskins found themselves on the short end of a 33-26 score heading into the final quarter but rallied to outscore the Owls 18-6.
“Their big kid really gave us problems because we’re small,” Neshaminy coach Joanne McVey said of Bensalem center Tyra Roberts. “We had a plan going in to front her and back her, but they did a good job getting her the ball, and she hurt us.”
Roberts led all scorers with 14 points while teammate Ashley Schneider had 10 points and Ashley Spence, eight points. The Redskins received a balanced scoring effort, led by Meghan Schafer (11 points), Lori Paulits (10 points) and Sarah Oliveira (10 points), but the unsung hero, according to McVey, was sophomore Stephanie Donohue.
“In crunch time, she really played pretty big,” the Redskins’ coach said. “She had five points, but she had eight rebounds, and she just gave us a floor presence that we have been looking for.
“This was her first game with any quality minutes, and she played really poised at point where a young kid normally doesn’t. There were so many people that contributed. Meghan had 11, Lori had 10, Sarah had 10, and a number of kids scored, but this kid came out of nowhere and really helped us when the game was in the balance.”
The win was the first of the league season for the Redskins, who improved to 1-3 in the league (3-8 overall).
“It was really important,” McVey said. “We have been talking to them about character and facing adversity and how it’s easy when you’re winning to be all that and more.
“When adversity hits is when people step up, and I couldn’t be more proud of this team tonight. Not just one or two players – they really rallied around one another. We were down by five or six points with six minutes left, and we’re not a big scoring team. For them to stay with it given where we were record-wise, I couldn’t be more proud of them.”
The Owls saw their record drop to 2-2 in league play and 4-3 overall.
COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 36, PENNSBURY 29
Helena Gemmell turned in a big game for the Indians, contributing 17 points and also playing a key role defensively.
“Gemmell was their money player,” Pennsbury coach Donna Nicholson said. “She had 11 in the first half and six in the fourth quarter.”
The Indians closed out the game with a 9-3 fourth quarter to earn the win.
“Defensively, we were doing a great job,” Rock North coach Liz Potash said. “Helena did a great job at the top of our trap. She was getting a bunch of steals.
“My freshman point guard – Jess Garber – had a nice overall all game.”
The Indians led 10-7 at the end of one quarter and took a three-point lead into halftime (19-16). The Falcons outscored the Indians 10-8 in the third quarter to make it a 27-26 game heading into the final quarter.
“Alyssa Dumont hit a huge three with about four minutes to go to put us up five, and they couldn’t come back from that,” Potash said. “Pennsbury is tough. It’s always a battle with them, and it was nice to come out with a win.”
Emily Grundman added seven points and Alyssa Dumont, six points, for the Indians. Sophomore Sajanna Bethea led the Falcons with eight points while Jae Jackson added seven and Lindsay Bolger, six.
“They seemed a lot bigger in person than when I watched them on tape,” Potash said of the Falcons. “They are athletic, and they’re a scrappy little team.”
While the Falcons fell to 1-3 in the league (4-5 overall), the Indians improved to 3-1 in the league and 6-3 overall.
WILLIAM TENNENT 65, HARRY S. TRUMAN 51
The Panthers put four players in double figures, led by Emily O’Donnell’s 21-point effort. Teammates Nikki Alden, Ally Fenner and Angie Pomponio all added 11 points.
Truman was led by the 18-point effort of Neiyana Brooks while Khristaijah Jackson added 18 points and Taylor Gaspari, nine points.
The Panthers evened their league record at 2-2 (6-2 overall) while the Tigers fell to 0-4 in the league (1-7 overall).
Continental Conference
PENNRIDGE 56, HATBORO-HORSHAM 41
Alyssa Marchunsky had a big performance, scoring a game-high 21 points while pulling down 10 rebounds to lead the Rams to their first SOL win.
“She hit a couple of early shots, and late in the game, we just gave her the ball,” coach David Martin said. “They couldn’t foul her because they knew she would make all of her foul shots. She was 4-for-4 (from the foul line) in the fourth quarter. She’s our best shooter, so we definitely want the ball in her hands.
“She’s someone who can definitely score for us, so we have to figure out ways to get her into the scoring column. The last couple of games we didn’t do that.”
Jen Cooley also had a big day on the boards, pulling down a game-high 11 rebounds to go along with five points. Shannon Chynoweth added nine points, six rebounds and six steals.
“If you’re looking for unsung heroes, Jen (Cooley) played a great game for us,” Martin said. “You don’t see it in the boxscore, but she had 11 rebounds. What she would do is she would get a great defensive rebound and push it up the court.
“They were too busy pressuring our guards, and our big men – Shannon, Jen and Alyssa – had a ton of rebounds and got it up the court before they could press us.”
The key, according to Martin, was foul shots.
“We knew they would play tough man-to-man defense, and we knew we would get to the foul line,” he said. “We didn’t really shoot great foul shots, but we were 20-for-32.”
The Rams sprinted to a 17-10 lead at the end of one quarter only to watch the Hatters go on a 14-5 tear in the second quarter to go into halftime with a 24-22 lead. The Rams regrouped at halftime, outscoring the Hatters 17-8 in the third quarter and 34-17 in the second half.
“We definitely needed this,” Martin said. “This was a good win.
“The last two days we worked hard. After our CB East game, we had a team meeting, and on Wednesday we worked hard and worked on foul shots. On Thursday, we worked on foul shots and breaking the press. They worked hard, and it showed.”
Nici Bonacci and Jessie Dominic both added seven points for the Rams. The Hatters were led by Carly Bixler (14 points) and Chrissy James (nine points).
While the Hatters fell to 1-3 in league play (3-6 overall), the Rams are 1-3 in the league and 2-7 overall.
CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 44, NORTH PENN 41
The Titans’ aggressive defense tormented the Maidens into one costly turnover after another, forcing nine second-quarter turnovers that allowed South to stretch a one-point lead after the first quarter into a 26-18 halftime lead.
“They rattled our kids, particularly in the first half,” Maiden coach Maggie deMarteleire said. “I said to the girls – the energy in the first half was all negative energy from us. We just let them take us out of our game.
“It’s inexplicable to me when I’m sitting here watching us throw the ball all over the place or forcing the ball into Steph (Knauer) when she has three people on her. We’re just so much better than that, and that’s what’s frustrating.”
Interestingly, the Titans had turnover woes of their own in the early going. They had six turnovers in the first four and a half minutes of the game but found themselves deadlocked 2-2.
“Sometimes we come out frazzled,” senior Kate McMenamin said. “It’s a bad habit we have to break, but all of us – we come together as a team, and we need to relax. We listen to each other, and we support each other.”
The Titans led 11-10 at the end of one quarter, thanks to Alysha Lofton’s trey at the buzzer. Lofton, who scored a team-high 12 points, had four steals in the pivotal second quarter.
“Alysha played her usual solid defense,” Titan coach Beth Mattern said. “She anticipated well in that second quarter, she finished when we needed her to, and overall, she just carried us on the defensive end.”
The Titans edged the Maidens 10-9 in the third quarter to go into the final frame with a 36-27 lead. The Maidens looked as though they might have a chance for their second late-game comeback in as many contests when the Titans misfired on the front end of three consecutive one-and-one’s.
The Maidens made it a 42-39 game after a baseline shot by Emily Hagan, but Tori Steinberg – who had nine points – buried a pair from the foul line with 19 seconds remaining to give the Titans a five-point edge as they held on for the win.
“This was a big game,” Steinberg said. “We’re trying to keep on a roll – we’re 9-2, and we just want to keep it going.”
Madi Vitelli also scored nine points for the Titans. North Penn senior Steph Knauer led all scorers with 13 points, which included a perfect 7-for-7 effort from the foul line. She also dominated the backboard with 12 rebounds.
“We work really hard on defense, we work really hard on the boards,” deMarteleire said. “In the third quarter, Steph (Knauer) was getting board after board, steal after steal, blocking people’s shots, and then the ball doesn’t get over halfcourt because we turn it over. That’s frustrating.”
While the Maidens fell to 2-2 in league play (6-4 overall), the Titans improved to 4-0 in the league (9-2 overall).
“North Penn is definitely a big rivalry,” McMenamin said. “They’re a great team, and this year we have one focus – to win the league, and there’s really nothing stopping us, but us. We treat every game the same. We come out and we play hard.”
SOUDERTON 61, QUAKERTOWN 15
Allison Gallagher and Lindsey Kwiatkowski led a balanced Indian attack with 11 points each while Carley Kendall added nine and Bianca Picard, seven. The Indians led 20-2 at the end of one quarter and never looked back.
While the Panthers fell to 0-4 in the league (1-8 overall), the Indians improved to 3-1 in the SOL (6-2 overall).
CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 36, CENTRAL BUCKS WEST 34
American Conference
CHELTENHAM 53, PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 44
The Lady Panthers opened up a 17-8 lead at the end of one quarter but then watched the Colonials go on a 16-7 second-quarter run to make it a 24-24 game at the intermission. Cheltenham outscored PW 16-9 in the third quarter and held a 13-11 edge in the final quarter to earn the win.
“PW played a very hard game,” Cheltenham coach Bob Schaefer said. “I give them a lot of credit. Every time we started to move ahead and get some momentum, they’d come right back.
“They played us tough on the boards. The controlled the rebounds in the first half, and we came back in the second half and did a better job on the boards.”
Senior Christina Coleman led the Lady Panthers with 17 points and 14 rebounds while Ciara ‘CC’ Andrews had 14 points and Jiana Clark added 12.
For the Colonials, Erin Martin had nine points while Simone Jacques and Kayla Wisniewski each added eight.
The Lady Panthers improved 3-0 in league play (10-0 overall) while the Colonials are 2-2 in the league (4-5 overall).
UPPER DUBLIN 50, NORRISTOWN 36
Taylor Bryant scored nine points in the first quarter, propelling the Flying Cardinals to a 16-6 lead. They took a 28-16 lead into halftime and added to that lead with a 15-6 third quarter. Lauren Rothfeld also finished the game in double figures, contributing 11 points.
For the Eagles, Stephanie DiNolfi led the way with 10 points while Briana Hedgepeth added nine and Tyshay Britten, eight points.
Upper Dublin upped its record to 3-1 in league play (11-1 overall) while the Eagles are 2-2 in the league (4-6 overall).
WISSAHICKON 41, UPPER MORELAND 25
UPPER MERION 58, ACADEMY PARK 50 (Thursday, Jan. 5)
The Vikings trailed 13-12 at the end of one quarter and found themselves on the short end of a 28-20 score at halftime of Thursday’s non-league game, but they exploded for 27 third-quarter points while limiting Academy Park to just eight to go on top 47-36.
“We stormed out to a 12-4 lead in the first two minutes, but then we took a couple of early fouls,” coach Tom Schurtz said. “We had to take off our pressure because I couldn’t risk getting in more foul trouble. Once it turned into a halfcourt game, they started making shots and we started missing shots.
“They had a 16-0 run from the middle of the first quarter into the second quarter. It wasn’t that we were playing poorly. We were generating good shots, but they just wouldn’t go down.
“In the third quarter, we were able to get back into a three-quarter trap, and our transition game really took off. When you’re missing shots, the best way to go back on track is to take easy shots.”
Kristina O’Sullivan led the Vikings with 19 points and 11 rebounds while Cassidy Koenig added 16. Jackie Vanloan chipped in with nine points and 13 rebounds.
“She’s really playing strong,” Schurtz said of Vanloan. “She’s giving us some senior leadership, which is good to see.
“We played well all the way around. I was really happy with MJ Valeri. She only had four points, but she played basically the whole game on a rolled ankle. At the half, we talked about mental and physical toughness. I think that’s a good example of a kid who put the team above herself and really gutted one out for us and allowed us to transition and get some easy opportunities.”
As a result of the win, the Vikings improved to 6-4 overall.
- Log in to post comments
