Photos/Videos: Donna Eckert, John Knebels, Lou Rabito, Brett Rehak & James Williamson

By: John Knebels

PHILADELPHIA – One more game. One tremendous opportunity to bring back some handsome hardware to a celebratory campus. One more chance to make an impression for the numerous college representatives in attendance.

Regardless of what occurs this weekend in Hershey, PA, aka Chocolate Land, the four Philadelphia Catholic League basketball teams that will vie for a PIAA girls’ state basketball championship have already constructed an outstanding season.

“The Philadelphia Catholic League is one of the toughest leagues in the country and is obviously the toughest in the state, so it is not shocking that the most battle-tested teams have found a way to make it to Hershey,” said Archbishop Wood coach Mike McDonald. “Playing a challenging schedule forces coaches and players to find a new level of urgency when doing anything required in a basketball game.”

The defending state champion Vikings will take on Lansdale Catholic in the Class 4A contest Thursday at 5:00. In a much-anticipated PCL meeting in front of a ramped-up Lansdale Catholic crowd on Feb. 8, Archbishop Wood defeated the Crusaders, 78-54.

McDonald, however, warns everyone that the Crusaders’ team from the regular season is not the same that is one win from their first state title.

“Lansdale Catholic is playing good basketball and their young players are growing more and more confident,” said McDonald. “We will have to defend really well as a team to win this championship.”

Both teams have woven different paths to the marquee event. While the Vikings have won their four PIAA games by a collective 103 points, including a 57-44 semifinal win over Jim Thorpe behind junior Allie Fleming’s career-high 17 points, senior league Most Valuable Player Ryanne Allen (11 points), junior double-double specialist Deja Evans (10 points, 20 rebounds), and senior Bri Bowen (eight points, trademark strong defense), Lansdale Catholic has captured each of its four wins by single digits for an average margin of 6.75 points.

On Friday at 5 PM, Cardinal O’Hara (24-5 overall) will defend its Class 5A title against rugged Chartiers Valley (28-2 record). The Lions have won their four games by an average of 24 points.

“Molly (Rullo) has been our leading scorer in the state tournament and our seniors could care less," added Coach Doogan. "We are all on the same page and are only concerned with getting wins."

In a Class 3A final on Saturday at noon, Neumann-Goretti will face Freedom Area (22-5 record). With an 8-1 record down the stretch, the Saints have been playing inspired ball over the six weeks.

In their 46-28 win over Imhotep, senior Mihjae Hayes (16 points, five rebounds, three assists’), senior D’Ayzha Atkinson (nine points, six rebounds, six steals), junior Amirah Hackney (eight points), freshman Carryn Easley (five points, two assists, two steals), freshman Amya Scott (five points, four rebounds, four steals), and sophomore Brooke Barnes (three points) established game-long balance.

“It’s always a good feeling to be back again,” said Neumann-Goretti coach Andrea Peterson. “This group is special and they are ready to bring it back to N-G.

“They are playing together. We have a really good leader in Mihjae, and she’s done a good job of keeping them together. We are doing all the little things that need to be done to win. They are fun to watch, and I believe we finally hit our stride.”

In the quarterfinals, the Saints defeated Conwell-Egan, 72-47. In defeat, the Eagles displayed their overall improvement since losing to the Saints by 80-44 on Feb. 7, though Conwell-Egan was missing junior guard Kyliyah Carmichael.

Freshman Lily Milewski (11 points, seven rebounds), sophomore Brianna McFadden (10 points), sophomore Mya Aizen (seven points, five rebounds), and sophomore Saniyah Spell (nine points) kept the Eagles to within 10 in the third quarter before foul trouble and a dominant fourth quarter by the Saints proved too much to overcome. 

“I am proud with what we were able to accomplish together,” said Spell. “With our determination, we know what we have to focus on and work towards for next season.

“In a lot of moments we beat ourselves, which resulted in close games or losses. Cleaning up turnovers and maintaining a reasonable pace during the entire game would work well in our favor, and could be a potential game changer in the future.”

Conwell-Egan was the only team in the Catholic League that did not have a single senior on the roster. So many underclassmen receiving significant playing time should provide significant dividends next season. 

“We saw varying degrees of growth across the board,” said C-E coach Chris Brennan.  “Collectively, we absolutely grew from November to March. Some specific games along the way, I would say that we took steps backwards, but that’s somewhat expected in this incredibly unforgiving league that we are honored and privileged to play in.”
 

(Contact John Knebels at jknebels@gmail.com or on Twitter @johnknebels.)