Month: January 2022

By: Joseph Santoliquito

Izaiah Pasha sat there and stewed last summer. It was the first time in the 6-foot-5 Cardinal O’Hara junior wing guard’s life that he ever sat. He thought the Nike EYBL Peach Jam Basketball would be his coming-out party, where his skills would dazzle the gathered Division I coaches and doors would fly open.

Instead, he did far more watching than playing. His team was in Georgia for a week, played eight games. Pasha saw five minutes. He questioned himself. He blamed himself for the lack of playing time. He vowed that it would never happen again. He had to break through his personal threshold and come out the other side with a new mindset—looking to kill on the court.

It’s been this new attitude that’s continued to manifest this season in games like Wednesday night when O’Hara held off visiting La Salle for a 60-51 Catholic League victory.

(click on this link for the full story)

Nadir Myers scored 22 points as Upper Darby rallied to defeat Strath Haven, 64-56, in Central League action.

Upper Darby trailed by five points after one quarter and eight after three but outscored the Panthers, 22-6, in the final eight minutes. Niymire Brown added 20 points, and Khyshir Slaughter chipped in 11 points for UD.

Jack Edwards hit four 3-pointers to lead Strath Haven with 21 points.

RADNOR 60, CONESTOGA 46 » Jackson Hicke went off for 27 points and grabbed seven rebounds for the Raptors. Cooper Mueller went 7-for-8 from the line in the fourth quarter to ice the game. Both he and Charlie Thornton scored 11 points, Mueller adding five assists and four steals.

HAVERFORD 62, PENNCREST 34 » Nick Colucci scored 16 points and JR Newman added 12 as the Fords spread the scoring to four double-figure scorers. Googie Seidman contributed 11 points and Tommy Wright 10 in the victory.

LOWER MERION 62, MARPLE NEWTOWN 32 » Eric McKee scored all of his team-high six points in the first half, but the Tigers had no answer for Demetrius Lilley, who scored 24 points in the win.

In the Bicentennial League:

DELCO CHRISTIAN 62, MAST CHARTER 55» There was no stopping Josh Parks, who hit five 3-pointers and went off for 34 points in the win. Josh Dell’Arciprete added 11 points,

and Beau Lyren chipped in 10.

In the Inter-Ac League:

HAVERFORD SCHOOL 52, PENN CHARTER 46 » Dave Kearney scored eight of his game-high 22 points in the fourth quarter as the Fords pulled away. Billy Rayer added seven points for Haverford.

MALVERN PREP 69, EPISCOPAL ACADEMY 55 » TJ Lamb scored 14 of his 20 points in the second half, and Kevin McCarthy added 16 points, but the Churchmen fell in the league opener.

By Matthew DeGeorge

Neither Penn Wood nor Chester had much of a blueprint to follow Tuesday night, not for how to recover from the dead stop of a midseason COVID-19 stoppage in what should be a fluid run of January games.

Chester hadn’t been in action since Dec. 19, Penn Wood since Dec. 16. It showed, slightly, early on. Later, however, Qadir Lowrie showed that some things shine through no matter the rust.

Lowrie hit a big 3-pointer near the end of regulation to nudge Chester in front, then he knocked down the two free throws in double overtime that iced a 70-66 win for Chester.

All things considered, the teams didn’t exactly look like they’d been waiting around since before Christmas, unable to even practice for some stretches. The players may have felt that time off, but they didn’t always show it.

“It’s definitely restless, especially for the guys getting out there,” Chester guard Isaiah Freeman said. “Especially early, you could tell. We came out here, we turned the ball over early, we let them hang around and we just were careless with the basketball.”

(click on this link for the full story)

Sydni Scott can put her name among the best basketball players in Cardinal O’Hara’s storied history.

The Marshall-bound senior guard eclipsed the 1,000 career points mark in the Lions’ 68-43 Catholic League victory over St. Hubert Tuesday.

Scott, who finished with a game-high 16 points, needed 14 points coming into the game to become the 16th member in the program’s history to accomplish the feat. Eleven O’Hara players got on the scoreboard, including Maggie Doogan with 13, Molly Rullo with 12 points and Annie Welde with seven.

Elsewhere in the Catholic League:

ARCHBISHOP CARROLL 63, WEST CATHOLIC 13 » The Patriots (8-3) raced out to a 16-0 lead after one quarter. Taylor Wilson poured in 24 points and her sister Brooke had seven points, 12 rebounds, five assists and two steals.

Maggie Grant pitched in with 11 points and Grace O’Neill managed 10 points, five assists and five steals.

(click on this link for the full story and more game scores)

Girls Basketball

Seven players scored at least five points, but it was defense that led Academy Park to its first win of the season with a 56-24 nonleague romp over Renaissance Academy in nonleague girls basketball action Monday.

Academy Park held Renaissance to single digits in every quarter and put the game away with a 25-point outburst in the third period.

Semaji Young led the balanced attacked with nine points. Akirah Hill added eight points. Avianna Williams and Emani Banks pitched in with seven points apiece. Jada Kinlaw and Halayjah Solis-Morgan tallied six points each and Zaira Taylor had five points.

In other nonleague action: Sun Valley 47, Upper Merion 25 >> The Vanguards (5-5) scored 20 points in the third period to turn an 18-10 advantage into a commanding 38-16 lead.

Melana Timmes collected 14 points and 13 rebounds despite being in foul trouble. Jaina Preuhs contributed nine points, three assists and three steals. Aliceia Whitfield pitched in with eight points, four steals and two assists while Brielle Wright paired seven points with five boards and two assists.

Boys Basketball

Chris Kwaidah and Noah Griffin combined for 34 points to help Sun Valley snap a two-game losing streak with a 68-44 victory over Chester Charter Scholars Academy.

Kwaidah drilled four 3-pointers to lead all scorers with 18 points. Griffin pitched in with 16 and Todd Harper and Evan Richardson added 11 points each for the Vanguards, who outscored the Sabers, 3617, in the second and third quarters to blow the game open.

Kevin Miller tallied 15 points for CCSA.

 

By Bruce Adams

The 6-foot-1 junior forward is averaging 15.5 ppg and 10.3 rpg for the Fords (7-3 as of Jan. 10). Last winter, she was a strong presence underneath for the Fords, scoring 12.3 points per game, pulling down more than eight rebounds per contest, and blocking an average of one shot a game, and receiving first team All-Central League and All-Main Line recognition. Dotsey will play lacrosse for the Fords in the spring, and outside of Haverford, she plays basketball for the 2023 Lady Runnin’ Rebels. Off the court, she is a member of the National Honor Society and Student Senate at Haverford.

Q: What do you think is the strongest aspect of your game? What part of your game are you working on the most currently?

A: I feel a major strength of my game is my ability to see the floor. My court vision has really helped me grow as a player when attacking the rim and setting my teammates up for shots. I’m always focusing on becoming a more versatile player.  So ball handling and post-play are constant points of focus. 

(click on this link for the full story)

By Josh Verlin

Brooke Wilson’s clutch performance at the free-throw line helped Archbishop Carroll seal a 4330 victory over Montclair Immaculate (N.J.) at the Blue Star Invitational at the Riverwinds Community Center in New Jersey.

Wilson made eight fouls shots in the fourth quarter and finished with a game-high 16 points and seven rebounds for the Patriots (7-3), who have won four straight decisions.

Grace O’Neill was named game MVP. The All-Delco guard and Drexel recruit added 13 points, three assists and six rebounds. Taylor Wilson chipped in with 11 points, two assists and six boards in the winning effort.

In other action from the Blue Star Invitational:

NOTRE DAME 46, SPRINGFORD 43 » The Irish survived a closely contested battle with last year’s PIAA Class 6A runnersup.

All-Delco guard Maeve McErlane, a DePaul commit, earned game MVP honors after scoring a gamehigh 22 points.

Katie Halligan contributed nine points and Julia Dever ended with six for the Irish (6-2).

PAUL VI 54, CARDINAL O’HARA 46 » The Lions lost a close decision to the No. 22-ranked team in the nation, according to ESPN.com.

Reigning Daily Times Player of the Year Maggie Doogan, a Richmond commit, poured in 18 points for the Lions. Sydni Scott, who is bound for Marshall, finished with 17 and made three 3-point field goals.

Bridie McCann had a game to remember Saturday.

The senior guard scored a career-high 30 points in Bonner-Prendergast’s 55-46 loss to West Catholic in both teams’ Catholic League opener. McCann couldn’t be stopped in the second half, scoring 14 points in the third quarter and nine in the fourth. She also shot 7-for-7 at the foul line.

Laila Farmer added 11 points for the Pandas.

In the Central League:

MARPLE NEWTOWN 36, HAVERFORD 31 » The Tigers (6-2, 5-1) rallied past the host Fords (72) for their fourth straight win. Down seven points at halftime, the Tigers closed the game on a 23-11 run. Ellie DiBona delivered a clutch 3-pointer to give the Tigers a two-point lead with a minute to go. Brooke Impriano produced a game-high 18 points and Nikki Mostardi poured in all 12 of her points in the second half.

(click on this link for the full story and more game scores)

By Matt Smith

No one on the Ridley girls basketball team needs to be told twice. They know if they play more like they did Saturday night against Penncrest, they can make a run in the Central League.

The Green Raiders have been searching for consistency. One night they look solid, but the next night there can be a significant drop-off. Yet Saturday’s 4528 victory was one of Ridley’s better performances of the 2021-22 season.

“I think we started off on a little bit of a rough patch, but I think we’re definitely learning from all of our games we’ve played so far,” said senior guard Emily Liberio, a Temple lacrosse commit and four-year member of the varsity team. “I think we are finally coming together, and I think tonight’s game really proved that we shouldn’t be considered out for the count yet.”

Ridley (4-5, 4-2 Central), which had lost three of its prior four games, entered Saturday ranked 31st in the District 1 Class 6A power rankings. Coach Roe Falcone hopes the victory is the turning point moment of their season.

(click on this link for the full article)