PHILADELPHIA
PA- I always look forward to my annual Martin Luther King weekend trek from the
experience that is the Classic in the Country held in the heart of Amish
country in Berlin OH, on Saturday to the battle of top level eastern teams at
the Blue Star High School Invitational Sunday in Philadelphia… It never fails
to be a solid weekend of girls’ high school basketball.
This year I also
had the occasion to stay over in Philadelphia to witness the match-up of top
Philadelphia Catholic League teams: #3 AAAA (PA) Cardinal O’Hara and the host
#4 Nationally, #1 AA PA Neumann- Goretti.
The Saints
came into this battle for the PCL lead on a 43 game win streak and fresh off a
tough victory against a tough young and improving Ursuline Academy (DE) team
Sunday in the Blue Star High School Invitational. Cardinal O’Hara was knocked off
at home by Ursuline 35-34 last Thursday.
The game was
billed as a contrast in styles with Cardinal O’Hara running a deliberate pass
and cut offense and playing solid defense behind it, while Neumann-Goretti likes
to push and control tempo, run quick hitters and play pressure defense to
highlight their athleticism, not to mention that the Saints run like few teams
in the country can.... Something had to give.
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| Neumann-Goretti guard Morgan Lenahan |
The first quarter
was a feeling out process with both teams doing what they do with each team
seeing some success, with the Lady Lions had a one-point lead at the end of
eight minutes of action. In the second quarter Neumann-Goretti started to propel
the game into their pace, with penetration and put-backs, the lead started to
climb ever so slowly. The Lady Lions were game however, they kept their cool,
were not afraid to run with Goretti and kept pace with the number 4 team in the
country. Both teams switched to zone defenses to counter the other’s offense.
The lead never went higher than five until a late 8-0 run by the Saints closed
the half. With 6 of the 8 points by Kamiah Smalls (2016 - 5-9 - G - James Madison)
the Saints stretched out a two-point game to 10 (33-23) as both teams headed
for the locker rooms… Goretti was winning the battle of styles.
The second
half began like the first quarter and after Cardinal O’Hara’s Mackenzie Gardler
(2018 - 5-9 -G) bombed away a few three pointers from various spots, the Saint’s
coach Andrea Peterson had seen enough. The Saints came from the huddle with a
different defense, a trapping aggressive 2-3 zone confused the Lady Lions and
forced them into a few turnovers and empty trips at the offensive end of the
court. The move kept the Saints lead 9, 46-37 headed into the final stanza.
The way the
third quarter ended, it looked as if the Saints were in control of the outcome
of this
one, and when the lead ballooned to twelve a little bit more than mid-way
through the last quarter, even the Lady Lion’s fans were quiet. After a timeout the Lady Lions turned up the
gas and Neumann-Goretti lit the match… The result was a furious comeback by
Cardinal O’Hara fueled by 7-point quarters each from Lady Lion’s Mackenzie Gardler, who
led all scorers with 19 points and Mary Sheehan (2017 - 5-11 - G). Neumann-Goretti did not help themselves with 5 turnovers, rushing shots and committing several bad fouls in the final 2
minutes of the game. Finally, the Saints used baskets by Alisha Kebbe (2016 -
5-10 - G - Syracuse) who finished with 18 points and Chyna Nixon (2017
- 5 -10 - F) to ultimately put away a very tough Cardinal O’Hara team 62-56.
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| Chyna Nixon attacks the hoop |
“We need
games like this so we don’t become comfortable” said Peterson, “both teams
competed really hard and it’s always good to see two good teams battle it out.”
With this win
the Saints extend their win streak to an impressive 44 games and they have
cemented their lead in the also impressive Philadelphia Catholic League over #3
AAAA PA Cardinal O’Hara and #1 AAA PA Archbishop Wood, who Neumann-Goretti
defeated 45-38 last month. These three will battle it out again later next
month in the PCL playoffs before heading off to States in March.
Game Scoring:
NG- A. Kebbe - 18
NG- K. Smalls - 13
NG- C. Nixon – 9
NG- J. Russell - 8
NG- J. Ingram - 8
NG- M. Lenahan - 4
NG- M. Glenn - 2
CO- M. Gardler - 19
CO- M. Sheehan - 18
CO- M. Hendrixson - 8
CO- H. Nihill - 7
CO- L. Leicht - 2
CO- K. Denoncour - 2
