Author: delcohoops

PIAA 6A: ‘Underdog’ Cardinal O’Hara girls power past Perkiomen Valley in quarterfinals

Cardinal O’Hara’s Megan Rullo drills a 3-pointer as part of a critical four-point play Friday in the PIAA Class 6A quarterfinal win over Perkiomen Valley. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

By Andrew Robinson

It was some of the very first advice Carly Coleman got when she started playing basketball, and it served her well over and over again Friday night.

The Cardinal O’Hara girls basketball senior has always believed, thanks to her dad’s direction, there’s no better way to get the ball than to rebound it. When those rebounds come off her own teammates’ misses, it’s all the better, especially during a PIAA quarterfinal game against a top team in the state.

O’Hara’s relentless rebound, dogged defense, opportunistic offense and general toughness powered the Lions as they ended Perkiomen Valley’s season, 49-35 in the Class 6A quarterfinals at Norristown High School.

“It’s the heart for me,” Coleman said. “My dad always tells me to go up for rebounds because you never know. Nobody’s going to make every shot they take, so I think knowing there are extra possessions and extra points you can get is a huge deal.”

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PIAA Tournament: Girls State Quarterfinal Previews (Friday, March 15)

Carly Coleman (above) and O’Hara have to play big against Perkiomen Valley. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

By CoBL Staff

All the local participants in the girls’ 2A and 3A state playoff brackets have been eliminated — but the 6A field is more than picking up the slack. 

Six of the eight state quarterfinalists are from the Philly ‘burbs, including four teams from District 1 — Perkiomen Valley, Spring-Ford, North Penn and Garnet Valley — and two from District 12, Archbishop Carroll and Cardinal O’Hara. That means each of the four quarterfinals feature at least one local squad, including two all-local matchups.

Here’s a close look at all four:

Girls 6A: 1-1 Perkiomen Valley vs. 12-2 Cardinal O’Hara (6 PM, Norristown)

This year’s 6A bracket is a little strange: typically Catholic League squads wouldn’t be both the first and second seed out of District 12 6A; the District 12 championship game is usually Catholic League vs. Public League, but a forfeit by Northeast High bumped O’Hara up from the 12-3 spot into 12-2, Dobbins sliding up to take the final spot in the state tournament. So instead of a PV/O’Hara matchup taking place in the second round, it comes in the quarterfinals, PV having beaten Manheim Township and then Haverford High to advance a round further than it did a year ago.

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PIAA Tournament: Boys State Quarterfinal Previews (Friday, March 15)

By CoBL Staff

Boys 4A: 12-3 Archbishop Carroll vs. 12-2 Eng. & Sciences (6:00 PM, Pottstown)

The two District 12 schools met up by back on Dec. 11 when the Catholic League’s Archbishop Carroll took down the Public League’s Engineering & Sciences, 61-27. The Engineers, who wone the Public League ‘B’ Division and reached the league quarterfinals before falling to Neumann-Goretti in the District 12 title game, will hope to change that result.

This is the deepest run in program history for E&S, which had just one state playoff win in 2006 heading into this season. Senior 6-4 forward Tali Simpkins and classmates like Lut Young have been waiting for season like this. Sophomore 5-7 point guard Fareed Brown was a second team All-Public League selection and classmate and backcourt Matthew McField is another promising guard. However, it’s been others like sophomore Sahin Rodriguez, junior Aaron Williams and most recently junior reserve Teon Smith also stepping up during the state run.

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BOYS: Spring-Ford puts an end to Springfield’s magical run

Spring-Ford senior E.J. Campbell scored 12 points on Wednesday. (Photo: CoBL File)

By Owen McCue

The Spring-Ford boys basketball team moved into unprecedented territory with each state playoff win last season.

Prior to the 2022-23 campaign, the Rams had just one PIAA victory in program history. They quadrupled that number to four with last season’s run to state semis. 

A 45-32 win over Springfield (Delco.) in Wednesday’s PIAA 6A second round gave the Rams a sixth state playoff victory and a second straight run to the quarterfinal round — something they are not taking lightly even though they made it look routine.

“Tomorrow’s not promised,” Spring-Ford senior guard E.J. Campbell said. “We could have lost this game. We could have not had practice tomorrow. I’m thankful we have practice tomorrow. We just want to keep having practices and having games. … I’m one of two seniors, so I just go into each game going this could be my last game, so I’m going to give it everything I’ve got.” 

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Webmaster’s note: If you missed the game or would like to watch it again go to our Archived Broadcast page.

PIAA Class 6A Boys: Spring-Ford’s active zone defense keeps Springfield at bay

By Matthew DeGeorge

Spring-Ford did not have the District 1 Class 6A tournament it had anticipated this year.

A state semifinalist last year with most of its squad back, winner of 17 games in the regular season and the third seed from district – a quarterfinal exit was not what a team harboring title aspirations had hoped for.

The results in states are better, if the basketball remains laborious given the Rams’ talent.

Against a Springfield team that had battled tooth and nail in de facto elimination games since the end of January, Spring-Ford rode the brake pedal in neutral to a 45-32 win in a PIAA Class 6A quarterfinal game at Norristown High School Wednesday night.

Springfield (14-15) stuck within single digits until early in the fourth quarter despite not scoring in double figures in any quarter until the fourth. Spring-Ford got zero made field goals from Jacob Nguyen, one of two Rams with Division I offers, and Springfield hustled to the tune of 15 offensive rebounds out of sheer determination.

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Webmaster’s note: If you missed the game or would like to watch it again go to our Archived Broadcast page.

PIAA Class 6A Girls: Garnet Valley opens eyes in state tourney, aiming for more in quarterfinal round

Garnet Valley's Kylie Mulholland, here taking a shot against Upper Dublin during a district game last month, has had a hot hand of late in state tourney play. (Mike Cabrey - MediaNews Group)

Garnet Valley’s Kylie Mulholland, here taking a shot against Upper Dublin during a district game last month, has had a hot hand of late in state tourney play. (Mike Cabrey – MediaNews Group)

By Matt Smith

Those who follow the Garnet Valley girls basketball team are not surprised to see it have success in the PIAA playoffs.

Under longtime coach Joe Woods, the Jaguars have competed for, and won, a District 1 championship in the state’s highest classification. They win a lot of games and make a run in states every season. Five years ago the program played for a Class 6A title in Hershey.

So here the Jags are preparing for a Class 6A quarterfinal round matchup with North Penn Friday night at Bensalem. They are one of three girls teams from Delco left standing, alongside Archbishop Carroll and Cardinal O’Hara.

As the sixth-place team from District 1 the Jags have survived this long while their two Central League rivals Haverford and Conestoga were eliminated in the second round. All of Garnet Valley’s six losses came courtesy of those two squads.

The Jags are on the opposite side of the state bracket and began the tourney traveling to unfamiliar territory. In their first-round game at Easton, District 11’s second-place team, the Jags found themselves trailing 16-2 after one quarter, but clawed all the way back and won in overtime.

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PIAA-4A BOYS: Dominant second half sends Archbishop Carroll past Allentown Central Catholic

Archbishop Carroll’s Luca Foster gets a basket with Allentown Central Catholic’s David Fridia defending. (Tom Silknitter/For MediaNews Group)

Archbishop Carroll’s Luca Foster gets a basket with Allentown Central Catholic’s David Fridia defending. (Tom Silknitter/For MediaNews Group)

By Ed Morlock

None of the nine players on Archbishop Carroll’s roster were on the team in 2021 that blew a 17-point lead against Allentown Central Catholic in the PIAA-4A state quarterfinals. The six sophomores and three freshmen weren’t even in eighth grade when that game was played.

But they were on the court Tuesday night and got revenge.

(12-3) Archbishop Carroll overcame a 15-point deficit and rallied to beat (11-1) Allentown Central Catholic, 62-56, in the second round of the PIAA-4A state playoffs at Norristown Area High School.

“Apparently Allentown Central Catholic is our rival now,” Carroll coach Francis Bowe joked, “because I’ve played them now three times in states. One year they beat us, they came back from (17) and they won a state championship. It was like, we’re down … we can come back and hopefully pray to get the same result.

“It’s always a tale of two stories with our guys. We’re freshmen and sophomores, so you’re going to go through these moments where they’re in a fog and then you’re going to be super locked in, turn it on, turn it off… They’re just great kids. They’re competitive. They are what I would call ‘one through nine hoopers.’ They just want to play basketball.”

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PIAA Class 6A Girls: Timeout error helps Carroll advance, Garnet Valley also moves on

Carroll's Bridget Archbold, left, is all smiles with Alexis Eberz after the postgame handshake with Conestoga. The PIAA Class 6A tourney game was won by the Patriots in overtime. (Tom Silknitter - For MediaNews Group)

Carroll’s Bridget Archbold, left, is all smiles with Alexis Eberz after the postgame handshake with Conestoga. The PIAA Class 6A tourney game was won by the Patriots in overtime. (Tom Silknitter – For MediaNews Group)

By Bryan Davis

A crucial mistake from the Conestoga girls basketball team in overtime provided Archbishop Carroll the breathing space the Patriots were hoping for Tuesday night, and they took advantage to eke out a 37-33 victory in the second round of the PIAA Class 6A girls basketball tournament at Norristown Area High School.

Holding on to a 34-33 lead, Carroll was trying to run out the clock, but senior Marisa Francione made her second fantastic defensive play in a short span, knocking the ball away and causing a held ball with the possession arrow pointing the Pioneers’ way.

Conestoga coach AJ Thompson called a timeout, but it was determined that the Pioneers didn’t have any timeouts remaining. That resulted in a technical foul and the Patriots retaining possession.

Alexis Eberz made one of two for a 35-33 lead with 28.9 seconds left. Brooke Wilson was fouled and calmly hit both from the line for a 37-33 advantage. That proved to be the final margin as the Pioneers (24-4) were held scoreless in the extra session, missing all five field goal attempts.

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PIAA 5A Boys: Archbishop Ryan survive Radnor scare in second round

By Jared Leveson

Darren Williams hadn’t played basketball in nearly a week. 

He fell ill Wednesday, suffering from chills and aches associated with strep throat that forced him to miss school and Archbishop Ryan boys basketball’s PIAA Class 5A tournament first-round game Friday. 

However, the Florida Gulf Coast Commit didn’t miss a step during Tuesday night’s second-round game. Williams guided the Raiders through a hard-fought first half and helped them take control in the second, defeating Radnor 66-46 at Bensalem High School. 

Archbishop Ryan, looking for its first PIAA title, advances to the state quarterfinal for the second straight season with the win.

“I made sure I got in the gym. I made sure I got shots up before practice and coming into this game,” Williams said. “I knew I had to get back to it and get back in the groove. 

“I was excited to come back, like ready to go [and] anxious to get on the floor and be back with my guys.”

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PIAA Class 6A Girls: Molly Rullo, Carly Coleman help O’Hara turn it up, cruise past Hazleton

Cardinal O'Hara junior Molly Rullo, shown taking a shot against Archbishop Wood in a January game, scored 17 points Tuesday night in a PIAA Class 6A second-round win over Hazleton. (Pete Bannan - MediaNews Group)

Cardinal O’Hara junior Molly Rullo, shown taking a shot against Archbishop Wood in a January game, scored 17 points Tuesday night in a PIAA Class 6A second-round win over Hazleton. (Pete Bannan – MediaNews Group)

By Matt Smith

Cardinal O’Hara’s Molly Rullo and Carly Coleman weren’t about to let Hazleton Area pull off a major upset in the second round of the PIAA Class 6A tournament Tuesday night, so they decided to take control in the second half.

Rullo scored 13 of her game-high 17 points and Coleman added eight of her 13 after the break, leading O’Hara to a 55-46 win over the District 2 champion Cougars at Liberty High.

The junior Rullo and senior Coleman each drilled a 3-point field goal on successive possessions in the third quarter after Hazleton had trimmed its deficit to three and four points, respectively. O’Hara (23-4) had led by as many as nine points in the first half.

“I think that’s the difference between us and Hazleton, who are going to be back in this situation,” Lions coach Chrissie Doogan said. “We have a senior-laden team. Molly is basically a senior at this point; she’s played since she was a freshman. They embrace the moment. Molly struggled to put the ball in the basket early … but shooters shoot. She’s got a lot of confidence and did a great job.”

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