PA – Central Athletic League | Archive | April, 2018

PHILADELPHIA >> The goal for Strath Haven’s Grace Forbes, Maggie Forbes, Abby Loiselle and Taylor Barkdoll was simple, Friday.

All they wanted to do in the high school girls 4 x 800 Championship of America at the 124th Penn Relays was run a little faster than in Thursday’s qualifying race.

To that end, the Panthers accomplished their mission with a time of 9 minutes, 18.30 seconds. That was good enough for ninth place and better than they ran a day earlier (9:19.84). It wasn’t a vast improvement, but the Panthers will take it.

Grace Forbes summed up Strath Haven’s performance in one word.

“Content,” the junior said.

Strath Haven coach Bill Coren changed the lineup to accomplish that goal. Maggie Forbes ran the leadoff leg Thursday, followed by Loiselle, Barkdoll and then Grace Forbes. This time, Grace Forbes led off, followed by her younger sister, Loiselle and Barkdoll.

“You ran great,” Coren told the team afterward. “Every one of you ran your hearts out.”

The toughest part for the Panthers was the wait. The meet was running 10 minutes ahead of schedule when the group went to warm up. By the time they finished getting loose the carnival was 20 minutes behind schedule.

“It just messes you up psychologically,” Loiselle said. “You finish your warmup and mentally you’re ready to run, then you have to stand around and wait. That’s tough.”

“You’re loose and then you tighten up,” Maggie Forbes said. “It takes you a little while to get loose again.”

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Radnor >> The Conestoga High School girls’ squad celebrated the 18th annual Katie Samson Foundation Lacrosse Festival in style Saturday, scoring a season-high 21 goals in a 21-13 win against a strong Downingtown West team.
Conestoga dominated in the draw control, as four Pioneers – senior midfielder Amelia Kienzle, junior attack Maddie Wood, sophomore midfielder Cam Evitts and junior midfielder Sydney Sloan – combined to win 19 draw controls.
Kienzle, who won seven of them, said, “On the draw control, I try to spot what the other player’s tendencies are, see what they do on the first draw, and adjust from there. It’s a challenge, and it’s what makes (draw controls) fun.
“The great thing about today was that everyone was involved in our offense, we communicated well, and the give-and-gos worked well. Winning here at the (Katie Samson Foundation) Festival means everything to me – it’s for a great cause, there’s a lot of strong teams here, and every year the weather is great.”
The victory improves Conestoga’s record to 9-5 (which includes four one-goal defeats).
“Our offense was really clicking today,” said Conestoga head coach Amy Orcutt. “We were moving the ball well.”
Conestoga freshman Rachel Clark led the scoring with six goals (on 6-for-6 shooting). Pioneer junior midfielder Nia Scott tallied five goals (on 5-for-7 shooting) and dished out three assists, while Evitts scored four goals and Wood had a hat trick. Kienzle and Sloan each dished out two assists and scored once.
Downingtown West, which had entered the game with a 9-3 record, battled the Pioneers toe-to-toe for the first 17 minutes of the game, and held a 6-5 lead with eight minutes to play before halftime, thanks to two goals each from junior midfielder Corrine Bednarik, senior midfielder Tabitha Rodriguez and junior attack Emily Feeney. Later in the first half, junior midfielder Peyton Mottice, who along with Bednarik has been the 1-2 offensive punch for the Whippets this season, contributed a couple of goals and finished the game with a team-high four scores.
“We have a lot of scoring threats on our team,” said Downingtown West head coach Brittney Conzentino. “When we were on the attack today, we scored; but we haven’t been performing on the draw the last couple of games.”

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SPRINGFIELD >> Springfield’s path to back-to-back PIAA titles has been paved with stingy defense and All-American goaltending. But this season, the Cougars find themselves in an unusual position.

It’s not replacing a slew of college players who’ve graduated. It’s not the process of peaking late in the season, which coach Tom Lemieux has elevated to a science. It’s that as the Cougars head for the homestretch, they’re in the unusual spot of the defense trying to catch up with a more potent offense.

It showed Tuesday, the Cougars sprinting out to a seven-goal lead early in the third quarter, then hanging on to get past Central League and District 1 Class 2A rival Radnor, 11-9.

The offense got humming early, thanks to five goals from Mike Tulskie and four assists — three in the first six minutes of the game — from Kyle Long. Those figures who’ve returned to the attack mean that the reigning PIAA and District 1 champs are aren’t winning games 5-4 or 6-3 as in years past, when these veteran attackers were up-and-comers given space to flourish by a seasoned defense.

Now they have the chance to return the favor.

“We have to make sure we’re not turning it over too quick,” Tulskie said. “When we had that other defense, we could afford to get some more turnovers early, kind of force it a little, try to get it going early. But the best defense is long possessions.”

The biggest defection from last year is James Spence, the three-time All-Delco goalie and 2017 Daily Times Player of the Year. His heir apparent, Jimmy Donegan, has played well and did so again Tuesday with seven first-half saves. But he didn’t get his stick on a shot in the second half, when Springfield was outscored 6-2. Even the saves he makes aren’t exactly like Spence’s, which is no criticism given the Lehigh freshman’s deft ability to control the ball and generate extra possessions by covering shots.

The defense in front of Donegan is also sorting itself out in new ways, led by All-Delco Pat Clemens. And when the Raiders hit Springfield with four straight goals between the third and fourth quarters, Clemens was the loudest one in the huddle to make sure things were cleaned up.

“We were just talking about being calm and when we’re under pressure, doing our fundamentals, what we do day in and day out,” Clemens said. “They started coming back toward the end there, but we stood our ground.”

Shortly after the confab, forced by two straight Ryan Peter goals to cut the deficit to 10-8, Liam DiFonzo scored to stop the bleeding and restore enough of a cushion to see out the result.

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Springfield’s Mike Tulskie, left, looks for a shot as Radnor defender Kyle Addis pursues Tuesday. Tulskie scored five goals in an 11-9 Central League win for the Cougars. (Digital First Media/Pete Bannan

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RIDLEY TWP. >> Strath Haven’s Evan Atsaves unleashed a breaking pitch in the first inning Monday that had some nasty spin to it. It then fell off the plate and the batter flailed away for strike three. It was an unhittable pitch. What was it, exactly?

“That’s the slider — well, more like a slurve,” the junior righty said. “It comes out a little faster.”

With a steady diet of fastball, circle change, curveball and, yes, a filthy slider, Atsaves had Ridley guessing at the plate. He chucked four strong innings with seven strikeouts as Strath Haven rolled to a 14-1 Central League win. With a deliberate, albeit smooth delivery, Atsaves once again gave the Panthers another strong start. That’s pretty much been the story of the season for Strath Haven baseball. They’re going to be in a lot of games because the starting pitching — led by Atsaves, Henry Dawes, Anthony Viggiano — has been sensational. Atsaves, with an ERA close to 1.30, carries himself with a cool confidence when he’s dealing, which was the case Monday. He has a lot of trust in his stuff.

“We’re working with four pitches and I feel I can use any one of them at any time,” Atsaves said. “It’s hard to guess what’s coming. Throwing a slider and a traditional 12-to-6 curveball, if you don’t see it coming right out of the hand, then you’re left guessing.”

Atsaves was the beneficiary of plenty of run support. In a 20-minute top of the first inning, the Panthers struck for eight runs on five hits. Brady Multz and Chase Davis drove in a combined three runs with back-to-back doubles, while Justin Malley hammered a three-run triple down the left-field line. With their lineup cooking, the Panthers (9-2, 7-2 Central League) have pieced together an impressive six-game winning streak. After getting shut out at home to first-place Marple Newtown, the Panthers have been unbeatable.

“Since then, we’ve been rolling,” Atsaves said. “We’ve 10-runned three or four teams and our batting average has skyrocketed. We have been hitting very well, and that’s the key to our success.”

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Noah Atsaves dominated on the mound and Strath Haven’s bats stayed hot in a 14-1 win over Ridley Monday.

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MIDDLETOWN >> Dom Picone’s most recent start on the mound prior to Friday is one he would like to forget. “He hit a few guys and lost his composure a little. It was very unlike him, too,” Garnet Valley coach Rudy Schiller said. “I know he was feeling down on himself after that start and was looking forward to get back out there.”

The 5-10 junior right-hander lasted only one inning and gave up two runs against Lower Merion on April 9. Friday afternoon at Penncrest, Picone was ready to redeem himself.

“We know what he is capable of,” said senior Mason Miller, the Jags’ All-Delco center fielder. “He’s got great stuff … and had it today.”

Picone was masterful in a five-inning Central League contest Friday. He authored a perfect game, striking out 11 of the 15 batters he faced, as Garnet Valley cruised to victory, 14-0. Of the 62 pitches Picone threw, 47 went for strikes. He had an eight-pitch third inning and struck out the side on 10 pitches in the fourth.

“It feels good,” Picone said. “I’ve thrown a no-hitter before, but I never threw a perfect game.”

Picone used a three-pitch mix to keep the Lions guessing: Fastball, curveball and change. But what made Picone really stand out was his fast pace. Needless to say, he is a get-the-ball-and-go pitcher. He trusts catcher Steve Caruso, with help from his coaches on the bench, to call the best pitch in any situation.

“I’ve always done that, working fast,” Picone said. “I’m anxious to get the next pitch, and I like for us to go quick.”

When the Lions were lucky to make contact, they grounded out three times weakly and hit a soft liner to second baseman Reece Malek.

“He is usually very quick to the plate and has a (good idea) of where to pitch,” Schiller said. “The kids were right behind him 100 percent. That is great to see.”

Picone’s teammates appreciate how quickly he works, especially during a season plagued by cold temperatures.

“It’s definitely great as a fielder,” Miller said. “He’s always in the zone with his pitches and likes to work fast. You have to always be ready.”

It didn’t hurt Picone’s cause that Garnet Valley’s lineup was blistering the ball all afternoon, either. Penncrest starter Dylan Bittle will have better days, too. He began the game by plunking leadoff hitter Cole Palis, who scored on the first of Miller’s three base knocks, an RBI triple smoked to the left-center gap. Braydon Morandini, the son of Phillies legend Mickey Morandini, hit a bomb to center field for an RBI double to give GV a 2-0 cushion.

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Garnet Valley’s Dom Picone delivers a pitch against Penncrest Friday afternoon. Picone retired all 15 batters he faced in a perfect game, a 14-0 win for the Jaguars.

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HAVERFORD >> When the weather is hovering around 45 degrees and the sun is nowhere in sight, softball hitters tend to have a difficult time hitting the ball. “It’s a lot harder in the cold,” said Ali Murphy, Haverford High’s All-Delco center fielder/speed demon. Amber Moscoe put that theory to test when she belted a pitch over the left-field fence at Haverford Reserve Field, an estimate distance of 230 feet.

“That was my first home run like that,” said the Fords’ junior second baseman.

Haverford’s Twitter profile includes the line, “catch of rippin’ dingers.” Well, the Fords sure aren’t pretending to be something they’re not on social media. Moscoe smashed one into another zip code Thursday. Murphy and Moscoe highlighted a 10-hit attack by the Fords, who defeated Central League foe Strath Haven 13-3 in five innings on a miserable, so-called spring afternoon. Murphy was the tablesetter, going 4 for 4 with four singles, three RBIs and three runs scored. She took second base on three of her knocks, showcasing awe-inspiring blazing speed and athleticism. Tess Smiley’s two-run knock in the fifth inning enacted the 10-run rule and sealed Haverford’s second straight win.

“I want to hit the ball wherever I can and whatever it takes for the team,” Murphy said. “I see where the fielders are (positioned) and I’ll keep running if I have to.”

Murphy is one of those players who is her own base coach. She has confidence in her ability to take the extra bag and cause havoc. Infield hits turn into adventures, and when defenses play her in, good luck because Murphy knows exactly how hard she has to barrel the ball to put it in the outfield grass.

“She hypes up the whole team,” Moscoe noted.

Murphy is one of the better players around, period.

“In my opinion, she is a contender for Central League player of the year. She’s been all-league two years in a row,” Haverford coach Jill Marshall said. “She goes all-out, all the time and she is a threat in every aspect of the game.”

The Fords (4-3 overall, 4-2 Central League) are in the process of figuring out exactly how good they can be. The reigning Central League champions have endured a few tough losses in the opening month of the season — don’t ever bring up Monday’s game against Upper Darby — but the pieces are there to make another run at the league title.

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Amber Moscoe is greeted by teammates after she hit a hom erun against Strath Haven Thursday at Haverford Reserve. The Fords won 13-3.

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TREDYFFRIN >> The eye gravitates toward the precise details of Conestoga’s roster — the standouts in goal and on faceoffs, plus the small drop-off between poles one and four — that spell the difference between a good and a great team. In that appraisal, it can be easy to overlook the attack, one that lacks a marquee scorer. In the Pioneers’ stiffest Central League test yet, the offense made sure that it demanded attention. Nick Cost led the way with four goals and two assists, keying an explosive 17-9 win over Strath Haven in a collision of league unbeatens.

Cost was the orchestrator Tuesday night under intermittent snow flurries. It’s been a revolving cast for Conestoga (6-4, 5-0 Central), which lost its top two scorers, Tommy Sopko and Henry Berg, from last season, then saw senior attackman Drew Mullen go down with an injury. That has left plenty of openings, and Cost is one of many eager and able to fill the void.

“I think the first couple of games, we didn’t know really what our attack was going to be, and then we switched it around, we threw Tate (Kienzle) down there, and now I think we’ve really found our attackmen that work really well together, they’ve really shown up,” Cost said. “The scoring, we’re really spreading the ball around, and it’s awesome. I love sharing the ball with everybody. Everyone’s contributing on a big level.”

Kienzle is no doubt a huge piece. He tallied twice and added three assists Tuesday. Nominally a midfielder who was a big part of the Pioneers’ run to the PIAA Class 3A final a year ago, he’s taken on a larger role in the offense. For all the contributors up top — a hat trick from Kent Hjelm, two goals apiece from 6-7 junior Will Schnorr and senior Sean Bailey — so much of the offense begins at the X with James Reilly. The senior Georgetown commit dominated on draws, going 20-for-26 at the X as Conestoga won 22 of 30 draws. He added a goal and an assist, but his momentum-flipping contributions greatly exceed his direct contributions to the scoresheet.

Conestoga seized control with six goals in 6:23 in the first quarter, staking a 7-2 lead that the Panthers never managed to challenge. That included quick-strike tallies, with Reilly finding Kienzle 10 seconds after Ibo Pio had knotted the game at 1, then Reilly piggy-backing a Kienzle tally within nine seconds to make it 4-1 Conestoga five minutes in.

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Conestoga’s Nick Cost celebrates one of his four goals in Tuesday’s 17-9 win over Strath Haven. (Digital First Media/Pete Bannan)

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The following basketball players have been named to the All Delco Teams:

FIRST TEAM

Emily McAteer, Garnet Valley: Quite simply, the junior guard was the best player in the Central League. Last year’s league MVP was denied a second straight award, despite averaging 15.3 points, 6.8 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 2.0 steals per game. A three-year starter for the Jaguars, McAteer became the latest player at Garnet Valley to surpass the 1,000-point plateau. She could become the girls basketball program’s all-time leading scorer next season. With McAteer showing the way, the Jaguars went undefeated in the Central League regular season for a second consecutive year and advanced to the final four of the District 1 Class 6A tournament. McAteer had one 30-point game and poured in 28 points to lead the Jaguars past Elizabethtown in the opening round of the PIAA Class 6A playoffs.

SECOND TEAM

Brianne Borcky, Jr. F, Garnet Valley

Jordan D’Ambrosio, Jr. G, Springfield

THIRD TEAM

Alexa Abbonizio, Fr. G, Springfield
Belle Mastropietro Jr. G/F, Springfield
Emma Blewett, Sr. G, Upper Darby

HONORABLE MENTION
Garnet Valley: Nicole Barnes, Morgan Falcone, Jill Nagy.
Haverford: Erin Doherty, Lindsey Lane, Annalena O’Reilly.
Marple Newtown: Devon Adams, Halle Robinson.
Penncrest: Megan Arndt, Grace Harding.
Radnor: Ellie Mueller, Brienne Williams.
Ridley: Dana D’Ambrosio.
Springfield: Alyssa Long.
Strath Haven: Olivia Fender.
Upper Darby: Gabby Liberio.

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The following basketball players have been named to the All Delco Teams:

FIRST TEAM

Tyler Norwood, Penncrest: The senior guard and 2016-17 Player of the Year capped a brilliant career with 1,716 points, a program record and 10th most in Delaware County history. As a senior, Norwood led Penncrest to a program-record 26 wins, a Central League regular-season title and a second consecutive District 1 Class 5A crown. The Lions also advanced to the second round of the PIAA tournament. Norwood averaged 21.6 points, 6.1 assists and 3.0 rebounds per game. The Central League MVP scored in double-figures in every game, including three 30-point outings. He led the team with 58 3-pointers, the only Lion with more than 10 makes from beyond the arc. Norwood was at his best with 27 points in a 50-29 win over Bishop Shanahan in the District 1 final; he scored 83 points in four districts games in a tournament where the Lions never trailed and only surrendered 127 total points. Norwood scored 27 points in a heartbreaking loss to Northeastern in the second round of states. Norwood is considering low Division I and Division II interest to play collegiately.

Penncrest’s Tyler Norwood looks for a teammate underneath the hoop during the PIAA Class 5A second-round state playoff game at Garden Spot High School in New Holland on Tuesday, March 13, 2018. KIRK NEIDERMYER | PA Prep Live

SECOND TEAM

Austin Laughlin, Sr. G, Garnet Valley

HONORABLE MENTION

Garnet Valley: Cade Brennan, Connor O’Brien, Cole Palis, Greg Vlassopoulos
Haverford: Canaan Curry, Dan Roe, John Seidman, JT Smyth
Marple Newtown: Tommy Gardler, Mike May, Anthony Paoletti, Matt Peel
Penncrest: Matt Arbogast, Justin Heidig, Chris Mills, Malcolm Williams
Radnor: Vernon Harper, Zahir Lee, Lewis Robinson
Ridley: Enoch Clark, Kyree Capers, John Mastella, Malachi Williams
Springfield: Kevin Deal, Frank Durham, Kyle Long, Ja’Den McKenzie
Strath Haven: Cooper Driscoll, Jordan Graves, Ryan Morris, Chris Rosini
Upper Darby: Diby Keita, Kymir Roper, Mamadou Toure, Jalun Trent, Floyd Wedderburn

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The following basketball players have been named to the All Main Line teams:

FIRST TEAM

Katie Mayock, Conestoga – Senior 6-foot-4 center, the Central League Most Valuable Player. The St. Joseph’s University commit averaged 16.4 points per game, and more than 11 rebounds and three blocked shots per contest.

Christina Brown, Harriton – 5-foot-10 junior guard, an All-Central League selection, was a prolific scorer (18.1 ppg) and playmaker for the Rams, racking up nearly 400 points during the season.
Erin Doherty, Haverford High – Junior guard, a first team All-Central League selection, was a standout all-around player, averaging 10.3 ppg and 3.8 rpg, while nailing 34 treys.
Ellie Mueller, Radnor – Sophomore forward, an All-Central League selection, was a potent presence in the middle for a strong Raider squad, averaging 15.9 ppg and 8.0 rpg.

SECOND TEAM

Harriton – Meg Willcox, senior guard.
Haverford High – Lindsey Lane, junior guard; Annalena O’Reilly, junior guard.
Lower Merion – Sarah FitzPatrick, senior guard.
HONORABLE MENTION
Harriton – Lexy Calhoun, freshman guard.
Radnor – Brienne Williams, freshman guard; Holly Holtsberg, junior forward; Audrey Rosenblum, junior guard.

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