Abington was the lone SOL team to earn a win in Tuesday’s SOL District One AAAA action. Check out all the results.
#5 ABINGTON 66, #12 PENN WOOD 52
The Ghosts sprinted to a 17-7 lead in the opening frame of their district playoff game in front of an enthusiastic home crowd and headed into halftime with a 34-16 lead.
“We think we have the best fans in Suburban One,” said head coach Charles Grasty. “We played well in the first half. We shot the ball well early, got some rebounds, and pressured them, but (Penn Wood) is a good team.”
Grasty expected the Patriots to make a second half run, and that’s exactly what happened. The Patriots were able to trim the Ghosts’ lead to 44-36 as they outscored the Ghosts 20-10 in the third quarter.
“They play extremely hard, and they came out and made a run that was more than we expected,” said Grasty. “They hit some three’s, got to the basket, and played their style ball in third quarter.”
The Ghosts knew they needed a better performance in the third quarter, and led by a player Grasty calls his ‘do-it-all guy’ – 6-2 sophomore Matt Pencale, who had a career-high 21 points for the day, they got just that. The Ghosts outscored the Patriots 22-16 in the final frame.
“I wanted to come out confident, aggressive and be ready to shoot,” said Penecale. “I try to help the team out any way I can - defensively, offensively, rebounding. I try to be an all-around player.”
Penecale’s performance – which included four three-pointers and seven rebounds – as well as his composure on the court helped the Ghosts finish the job.
“We started off turning ball over in the fourth quarter, but we settled down and we attacked the basket,” said Grasty. “We got to the rim and got some foul shots and layups instead of holding the ball. We did a good job attacking the (basket).”
Anthony Durham (15 points) and Jordan Simmons (12 points) also had big performances for the Ghosts. Grasty also credited his team’s effort under the backboards where Anthony Lee (five points) led the way with eight rebounds.
The Patriots (16-8) will face fourth-seeded Norristown in a playback game while the Ghosts (20-4) advanced to Friday’s quarterfinals where they will host 13th-seeded Ridley on Friday.
The Ghosts are not newcomers to the playoffs, and according to Penecale, they have a definite goal this season.
“Last year it was more about getting to the final four,” he said. “This year it’s definitely to win it.”
#10 COATESVILLE 65, #7 HATBORO-HORSHAM 57
The Red Raiders opened up with a 14-9 lead in the first quarter and stretched that lead to 33-25 heading into intermission, thanks to a flurry of seven three-pointers.
Hatter’s standout Zach Quattro found himself in early foul trouble and was out most of the first half. The Hatters would continue to struggle to find their rhythm in the third quarter, even with Quattro back on the court, as the Raiders outscored them again 18-14.
“We thought we would be able to cut into the lead in the third quarter,” said head coach Dennis Steinly. “But we didn’t defend well and we had chances but we couldn’t make shots.”
The Hatters didn’t get to be the seventh seed without having some fight in them, and they rallied in the final frame, outscoring the Raiders 18-14, but couldn’t dig themselves out of their first half hole even after an outstanding 30-point effort from Mike Brown.
The Red Raiders (18-6) will move into the quarterfinals to face second-seeded Lower Merion, which toppled 15th-seeded Penncrest 75-42 on Tuesday. The Hatters will host Penncrest in a playback game Friday as they try to keep their season alive in front of their home crowd.
“I think the guys will bounce back,” said Steinly. “We have a lot of good strong leaders and they are not ready for the season to end.”
#13 RIDLEY 64, #4 NORRISTOWN EAGLES 61 (OT)
The Green Raiders pulled off the biggest upset of the second round as they stunned the Eagles in an overtime thriller. The Raiders staked out an early 19-15 lead after one quarter and upped that lead to 27-21 by intermission. The Raiders continued added to their lead in the third quarter, outscoring the Eagles 16-12. But the Eagles showed they were not going to give up and rallied from a 43-33 deficit to outscore the Raiders 23-13 in the final frame, knotting the score 56-56 and setting the stage for overtime where the Green Raiders outscored the Eagles 8-5.
Luke Kelley led the Eagles offensively with 21 points, while BJ Gordon (12 points) and Josh Johnson (10 points) each chipped in double figures.
The season is not over for the Eagles (20-4) who will host 12th-seeded Penn Wood for a playback game on Friday while the Green Raiders (18-6) will face fifth-seeded Abington in the quarterfinal round.
#6 METHACTON 54, #11 SOUDERTON 45
The Indians opened up 13-12 lead over the Warriors at the end of one quarter but saw that lead erased as the Warriors claimed a 25-20 advantage at halftime. The Indians reclaimed the lead in the third quarter and headed into the final frame ahead 37-31. However, the final quarter belonged to the Warriors (22-4), who went on a 23-8 scoring surge to earn the win and clinch a spot in states for the first time in their school history.
John Kanas scored a game-high 23 points for the Indians.
The Indians (16-8) will host Continental Conference rival Central Bucks South in a playback game on Friday. In the regular season, the Titans and the Indians split their two games.
#3 GREAT VALLEY 60 (23-1), # 14 CENTRAL BUCKS SOUTH 57 (OT)
The Titans extended the third-seeded Patriots to the limit before losing a heartbreaker in overtime. The opening frame belonged to the Patriots who led 14-5, but the Titans cut the lead to 22-17 heading into the second half. The Titans edged the Patriots 17-15 in the third quarter but still trailed by three heading into the final frame. The Patriots were able to stretch their lead to double digits in the fourth quarter, but the Titans rallied to knot the score 48-48, sending the heated battle into overtime. The Patriots, who were led by the 22-point effort of Mikael Bridges, edged the Titans in overtime 12-9 in OT to claim the big win.
The Titans were led by the efforts of Chase Vonder Schmalz (16 points) and Kevin Raymond (15 points).
Great Valley upped its impressive record to 24-1 as they advance to the quarterfinals to face sixth-seeded Methacton while the Titans (15-9) will travel to Souderton for a rematch with the Indians. The two teams split their regular season games.
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