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GIRLS BASKETBALL: Lansdale Catholic One Win Away From Historic Accomplishment

By John Knebels Photos: Kathy Leister, 03/24/23, 4:45PM EDT

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Photos/Videos: Kathy Leister

By: John Knebels

One more.

One more time to dig deep. One more attempt to avoid the pressure and just play their style of basketball.

And for the seniors, one more game in a Lansdale Catholic uniform.

The Crusaders placed themselves in position to capture their school’s first girls’ basketball PIAA state championship when they overwhelmed District 2 champ Scranton Prep, 60-28, in Tuesday’s Class 4A semifinal. 

The only challenge remaining in their path is District 7 runner-up Blackhawk High School, scheduled for noon tomorrow.

“We are super excited and proud to be able to move onto the state finals,” said junior Olivia Boccella. “Going into this season, a lot of people expected us to get back to the state finals and that was a huge goal for us. Winning last night put us one step closer to achieving an incredible goal of winning a state title and we all are so proud of ourselves and thankful for our fans and coaches for being there for us every step of the way.

“Our coaches keep telling us ‘one more’ because we are not satisfied. We are feeling super confident in each other that we can get the win. The heartbreaking loss from last year (against Archbishop Wood, whom they defeated in this year’s Philadelphia Catholic League championship) has taught us so much about ourselves, and we are ready to use that motivation to get the job done.”

In the win over Scranton Prep, senior Gabby Casey scored 19 of her game-high 25 points in the first half as the Crusaders opened a 35-15 lead. LC didn’t let up in the second half, outscoring the Classics by 25-13.


Lansdale Catholic junior Olivia Boccella - PSD Photo by Kathy Leister

PIAA 4A First Round Highlights - Lansdale Catholic vs. Bishop McDevitt - PSD Video by Kathy Leister

Joining Casey in double figures was senior Jaida Helm (16 points) and sophomore Nadia Yemola. Sophomore Sanyiah Littlejohn added six points. Long range, Casey drained four three’s and Yemola added three more.

 “It’s a testament to everyone’s determination making it to the state finals,” said Helm. “But two years in a row is crazy. I’ve never been this far in states myself, but now I’m doing it with these guys and seeing how they approach every day with the same mentality and focus is great and making everyone better because you never know when your last game is.

“It’s all worth it because that’s what you work towards all year. I feel like we’ve been playing our best basketball lately and really getting after it on defense. We held a team that scores around 60 points a game to less than 30. It’s a collective effort and something we all take pride in. We’ve all just been so locked in on what we want this year, and I’m not sure if we’ve realized how monumental this year has been for the program.

“And as excited as I am for the moment and that we’re finally here, I’m just as sad because it’ll be my last time playing with them and I’ve loved every second of this year and I’d do it all over again the same exact way. We’ll leave it all out on the court for each other one last time and just try to get it done.”

Casey feels the same way.

“We are super excited,” she said. “Just trying to live in the moment and soak it all in.”

 

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