Central League Championship teams set for final

The Central League Basketball Championship final is set for February 10th @ Marple Newtown High School:

GIRLS

#1 Garnet Valley vs #2 Conestoga- 6:00 PM 

Broadcast begins at 5:45 PM right here on Delcohoops.com

BOYS

#1 Penncrest vs #2 Lower Merion – 7:30 PM

Broadcast begins at 7:15 PM right here on Delcohoops.com

Girls: Garnet Valley comes awake, cruises past Lower Merion

Garnet Valley’s Kylie Mulholland, right, dribbles away from Springfield’s Adi DiTirolio in a game last month. (Pete Bannan – MediaNews Group)

Garnet Valley’s Kylie Mulholland, right, dribbles away from Springfield’s Adi DiTirolio in a game last month. (Pete Bannan – MediaNews Group)

By Matt Smith

Garnet Valley felt a tinge of frustration in the second quarter of Friday’s Central League semifinal against Lower Merion.

Despite being the top seed, and one of the best teams in the area, the Jaguars found themselves trailing the No. 5 Aces, a team that had pulled off a minor upset over fourth-seeded Radnor less than 24 hours earlier. Lower Merion, making its first league semifinal appearance since winning the title in 2010-11, came ready to play and perhaps stun the entire league.

The Aces moved the ball well and took advantage of a cold shooting stretch from Garnet Valley, which had jumped out to a nine-point lead in the first quarter before cooling off late in the first and into the second.

The Jaguars, however, knew they were the better team. And it was time to prove it.

Garnet Valley responded with a dominant run midway through the second quarter and never looked back, rolling to a 59-40 victory. The Jags will face No. 2 Conestoga in the Central League final Monday at Marple Newtown. Tip-off is 6 p.m.

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Central League Semifinals: Conestoga girls get playoff revenge on Haverford

Conestoga’s Maggie Neary passes the ball ahead. (Photo: Owen McCue/CoBL)

By Owen McCue

It would be an understatement to call the Conestoga and Haverford girls basketball teams familiar foes.

The Pioneers and Fords met up for the ninth time in three seasons on Friday night in the Central League semifinals as the matchup that decided the league champion in both of the past two seasons took place a round earlier.

After falling to Haverford in the league title game in each of the past two seasons, second-seed Conestoga broke through for a grind-it-out 28-23 win over the third-seed Fords to book a third straight trip to the Central League title game. Conestoga will face top seed Garnet Valley on Monday at Marple Newtown.

“It’s definitely really exciting because they’ve beat us in the championship twice and we wanted to get our revenge, and we’re not done yet,” Conestoga junior Ryann Jennings said. “We still have the championship Monday, and we’re still going to be prepping for that.”

Conestoga (18-5) entered the season with one win in its last seven games against the Fords (18-5). The Pioneers won both regular season meetings, starting the new year with a 38-32 win on Jan. 3 and closing the regular season with a 36-32 victory on Tuesday.

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Boys: Marple Newtown, Springfield spring upsets in Central League playoffs

Marple Newtown’s Matt Gardler drives in a game against Garnet Valley last season. (PETE BANNAN/MediaNews Group)

Marple Newtown’s Matt Gardler drives in a game against Garnet Valley last season. (PETE BANNAN/MediaNews Group)

By Matthew DeGeorge

In a Central League that has been tight all season, it makes perfect sense that two road teams would prevail in the first round of the league playoffs.

No. 6 seed Marple Newtown knocked off third-seeded Conestoga, 64-60, Thursday night, while No. 5 Springfield overcame fourth seed Garnet Valley, 54-53, in overtime.

It sets up Friday’s semifinals, with the Tigers returning to top-seeded Penncrest – after dropping a double-overtime contest there on Saturday – and the Cougars venturing to No. 2 Lower Merion.

Matt Gardler was a difference maker as usual for Marple Newtown, with 25 points, seven rebounds and seven assists. He went 6-for-6 from the line in the fourth quarter, and the Tigers were 9-for-10 at the charity stripe in the final frame.

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Girls: CL Playoffs Foley sparks Haverford High into semifinals with win over Springfield

Foley (above) and Haverford will play Conestoga for the third time this season on Friday night. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

By Jeremy Goode

In today’s game, you usually have to tell kids to shoot the ball less. This was not the case for Haverford High’s Mya Foley.

Foley knew her role well for the first three years of high school basketball through the Fords’ basketball program: lock down on defense, make several plays through passing, get a rebound, and score occasionally. 

Going into her senior season, Haverford head coach Lauren Pellicane had a different role for the 5-foot-5 defensive-minded guard to embrace: become more offensive in general, especially through moving without the basketball and shooting.

It was not a punishment for Foley. After all, she had been a significant part of some very talented Haverford teams. She was on both championship teams, including sophomore year which Haverford finished 27-0. She just happens to be a good basketball player in an unselfish way.   

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Girls: Haverford’s Wright stuff at foul line pushes Fords into Central League semifinals

Haverford’s Grace Maloney handles the ball as Springfield’s Lil Ditrolio defends in the first half of a Central League quarterfinal game Thursday night. (Pete Bannan – MediaNews Group)

Haverford’s Grace Maloney handles the ball as Springfield’s Lil Ditrolio defends in the first half of a Central League quarterfinal game Thursday night. (Pete Bannan – MediaNews Group)

By Matt Smith

Natalie Wright doesn’t love shooting free throws in high-pressure moments, but she knows how to block out the noise and get the job done.

The Haverford senior forward knocked down 5-of-6 foul shots in the fourth quarter while also coming up with two crucial steals and a key basket off an inbounds play. Wright’s late-game heroics powered the third-seeded Fords to a 43-31 victory over No. 6 Springfield in the Central League quarterfinals Thursday.

With the win, Haverford advances to face No. 2 Conestoga in Friday’s semifinals – a rematch of the last two league championship games.

“I wouldn’t say I liked it, but I was ready to do it,” Wright said. “I had to step up for my team, and that’s all that matters in the moment.”

Haverford coach Lauren Pellicane had complete faith in Wright’s ability in the final quarter. She knew it was only a matter of time before Wright ignited the spark the Fords needed. With Springfield keeping the game tight through three quarters, Pellicane was looking for someone to make a game-changing play and Wright delivered on offense and defense.

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