Archbishop Carroll freshman Aexis Eberz, left, fires as Neshaminy’s Reesee Zemitis defends. The Patriots went on to a 50-37 victory in the opening round of PIAA Class 6A state playoffs Friday night.(Pete Bannan – MediaNews Group)
By Harry Chaykun
It was a game a coach might have thought she only could dream about.
If someone would have told Renie Shields that her host Archbishop Carroll squad would not commit a turnover in the first half of its PIAA Class 6A opener against Neshaminy Friday night, then would hold the Redskins without a field goal in the fourth period, the veteran coach probably would have brushed such a suggestion off as nothing more than an exaggeration.
“That’s what we would like it to be about,” Shields said after the Patriots (13-13), District 12’s third seed, had no turnovers in the first 16 minutes of play and held Neshaminy (21-8) without a basket in the last eight minutes in claiming a 50-37 decision and advancing to the tournament’s second round.
The teams met in the first round of the state tournament for the second consecutive year. With its Friday night success, Carroll, which also won the 2022 contest against Neshaminy, will be matched with District 1 champion Perkiomen Valley in the Class 6A round of 16 Tuesday night.