TUESDAY 2/27
#6 Liberty 32, #2 Easton 52
The Red Rovers were off to the races early in their semifinal match. All of the usual pieces were present: balanced scoring, crisp passing, and suffocating defense. Sisters Elias got things going by each hitting a triple in the first quarter, combined with five points from Kourin Carew. Despite a scoreless quarter from Evalyse Cole, Easton led 13-5 after one. By halftime, Liberty had turned the ball over seven times and shot just 6/21 from the field. Ava Kopetskie was held to just a first quarter 3-pointer. Easton shot 5/10 from range and 12/20 from the field, and that trend continued in the second half.
Down 30-13, Liberty tried to get things going, but was outscored 13-6 in the third. Ava Kopetskie hit again from beyond the arc, however, her 10 point second half would not be enough. Janessa Starling slammed the door on the third quarter with a layup. From there, the final arithmetic was the only thing in doubt. Easton closed strong, making 8 of 10 free throws down the stretch. Megan Elias finished with 13 points, while her sister poured in 11 and Cole scored 12.
#5 Emmaus 34, #1 Parkland 55
In the last two meetings between these two bitter rivals, Talia Zurinskas and Madi Siggins combined for 37 points. The third meeting in 25 days was more of the same for the two 1,000 point scorers, as they totaled 34. Zurinskas got things going early and often, getting inside six times and hitting twice from beyond the arc for 18 points by the half. Isabella Hallal found the scoring column early with a triple. Emmaus, conversely, did not score from the field until the 4:50 mark of the opening quarter, when Gabby Devita sank a bucket. Parkland went up 14-4 after one. Emmaus needed a lift on offense. Olive Whitney, as she did many times in the regular season, provided. The three-point specialist quickly nailed two from range inside a minute, adding to DeVita’s long range shot two minutes prior. Unfortunately, the Hornets could not keep Zurinskas contained. Talia scored 11 in the second quarter, helping the Trojans to a 29-13 halftime lead. In the third, Zurinskas and Taylor Griffith traded treys—Griffith scored nine in the quarter and Zurinskas hit twice, pushing her final game total to 24. “My teammates put a lot of trust in me. Coach Ohlson said to play loose and free,” Zurinskas said, “my teammates were giving me the ball, they were finding me, they were setting screens for me, so props to them.”
On defeating Emmaus for a fourth time on the year, she added: “everytime we play them it’s competitive. I think that in the end, we really focused on our defense and tonight that was a separating factor for us. We’ve had this edge on us; we really want another [district championship].”
Isabella Hallal, who finished the night with seven points, gave her thoughts on what went right for the Trojans: “Our teamwork and chemistry overall. I think we had a lot of energy coming out. Everyone was just in it. It’s always fun to play them. It’s another game we need to work hard and play our best.” Hallal commented on Talia and her 24 point output: “She’s amazing. She’s really talented and puts in so much work. She’s there for everybody.” Both Siggins and Delaney Chilcote finished the game with 10 points.
Other games Tuesday
Northern Lehigh faced a tall task at Martz Hall, going up against the top seeded Marian Catholic Fillies. It would take a full team effort to knock off an opponent that only lost once to a District XI opponent, that being Blue Mountain the Schuylkill League semifinals.
The Bulldogs came out hot. Teegan Simms drained two shots from beyond the arc and Aubrey Pollard got in the paint for four buckets. Katelyn Barthold added five points and Northern Lehigh was up 19-9 after one. The lead was extended to 30-20 at the half, as Pollard hit twice more and yanked down eight rebounds. Marian Catholic was stymied much of the half, with Carly Minchoff held to two points and Addy Fritz limited to six. However, the Fillies were not out of this one by any means. Minchoff and Fritz combined for 15 pointsi in the third quarter and over the first three minutes, the lead was cut to 32-28. Marian turned up the defensive heat on Pollard, as she was unable to get a shot attempt off over the eight minutes. The Bulldogs found themselves down by one entering the fourth. With the score tied at 43 with 4:47 to go, Pollard provided Northern with a huge spark, finding Simms for her fourth triple of the night and then finding Barthold for a bucket to put the Bulldogs up 48-43. However, Marian kept coming back, tying the game at 48, where it remained until 30 seconds left. A Barthold steal and layup on the other end put the Bulldogs back up 50-48 before Addy Fritz hit one of her two free throws. Up one, Teegan Simms was fouled and went to the line where she made one of two. The teams exchanged turnovers and Pollard was fouled. She made the first, building the lead to three. The second shot would not go, but the rebound of the game went to Dekota Barthold, who sealed the victory and berth in the 2A title game. “I am so proud of my team. We played great team ball,” Pollard said, “The feeling of knocking off the #1 seed is the best. We went in as underdogs and came out the winners.” Head coach Chris Heery added, “Our players stayed mentally tough. It was a big win for the program.” Ultimately, four Tigers scored in double figures: Pollard(15), Simms(13), Dakota Barthold(11) and Katelyn Barthold(11).
The Blue Bombers ran the table in the Colonial League and were riding a 15 games winning streak entering the district semifinals. Catasauqua was riding the high of not just beating Executive Education, but getting the program’s first district playoff win in 16 years. While Palmerton had won the two regular season meetings between the teams, they were closely contested and highly entertaining. This was no exception. The Rough Riders got out to a 10-5 lead after one, as Hailey Jenkins scored five points and the team hit three of their first four free throws. Megan Matsko fired back in the second quarter, hitting two of her shots. However, Jordan Soltis hit a triple and Catty extended their lead to 19-13 at the half. The Rough Riders defensive effort was superb to that point, allowing just two points to Hannah Barry and three to Frantz. However, Hannah Barry would not be held down forever. Palmerton came out strong, with Barry hitting twice from beyond the arc and Ella Baumgardt adding a trey. On defense, Palmerton shut the Rough Riders down 14-5 in the third, taking a 27-24 lead. The teams continued back and forth until the final seconds. With the game tied at 37, Hailey Jenkins streaked down the court and was bodied in the paint by Ella Baumgardt. The ball bounced off the backboard and in, giving Catasauqua a berth in the district title game and in states.
Pen Argyl won its first district title in school history last year, defeating Notre Dame Green Pond in the semifinals. Coming into this one, the Green Knights had won 14 in a row before losing to the Crusaders in the Colonial League semifinals 51-43. Colonial League player of the year Ellie Wallbillich had scored 14, 25, and 15 points in the three previous meetings. This time, it was all about the Crusaders and their defense. Notre Dame got out to a 9-0 lead on triples by Skyler Howlett and two buckets from Carly Campbell. Pen Argyl did not score until Wallbillich hit from range with 3:23 to go in the first and was scoreless again for the final 7:30 of the half. The Crusaders held a 16-7 halftime lead and Emily Lessig, in the man defense, held Wallbillich from any further points. Lessig also led her team in scoring with 11 points and Wallbillich only scored once more in the game. Pen Argyl was led by Alex Marshall and her seven points.
WEDNESDAY 2/28
#2 Central Catholic 55, #1 Blue Mountain 46
Central Catholic faced its third consecutive Schuylkill League opponent for a district championship at Martz Hall. After cruising by Tamaqua and North Schuylkill, it seemed the Vikettes would do the same to Blue Mountain. Molly Driscoll got out to a hot start, quickly getting to the 10 points she needed for her 1,000th, which she scored off a rebound and putback. Her 12 in the first quarter propelled the Vikettes to an 18-8 lead. She did not score in the second, but Milly Wolf scored seven of her eight before the half. Blue Mountain tried to keep pace, as Emily Heydt hit from range and went 4/4 from the charity stripe. Frustration set in for Kylie Conway, as she missed all six of her free throw opportunities. The Vikettes built a 19 point third quarter lead before everything changed for Blue Mountain. The Eagles went on a 17-0 run, spurred by sophomore Hailey Place’s 10 points and capped by her triple that cut Central Catholic’s lead to 42-40 5:10 to go in the game.
Coach Kathy Davidowich in the midst of the run calmed her team down. “I said settle down. Spread it out. They have to come to us. We’re in control here. Put the ball in Moly’s hands and let them come after her and just be patient. Which they did, they fouled us.”
After scoring just one bucket since her 12 first quarter points, Driscoll was called upon to stem the tide and keep the Eagles from taking the lead. She did not disappoint, converting a three-point play and hitting two more shots along with two more free throws. These accounted for nine of the team’s 12 in the final stanza. “It’s pretty amazing to be able to win this for the seniors. It’s an unreal experience. Even better that we came out with a win. I knew we had to get[momentum] back. Preparation meant opportunity so I just was able to capitalize.”
She was asked if the 1,000th point or the fourth quarter points meant more: “Definitely the points in the fourth quarter. It’s a team game and team win, so definitely the points in the fourth quarter.” Finally, Driscoll was asked about the timing of returning from injury and if she would change anything on her season: “Missing eleven games made me appreciate the game more and made me appreciate being able to play. If [scoring 1,000] happened it happened, if it didn’t it didn’t, I’m very happy It happened tonight.”
Other games Wednesday
- Bethlehem Catholic had not played a game since being ousted by Emmaus in the opening round of the EPC tournament on February 9th. The long layoff might have been a concern for the Hawks, but any worries were quickly assuaged. Seven players scored in a 21-2 first quarter rout. The three-point shot was once again their friend; Leah Ault, Aliyah Brame, Ella Bincarosky, and Cici Hernandez all hit from range to build the early lead. Akasha Santos added nine points in the second quarter, ballooning the lead to 34-4 at half. The second half was all academic, as Bethlehem Catholic cruised to the 47-8 mercy rule win and berth in the class 5A title game Saturday against Whitehall. Santos finished with 15 points and Brame added 10. Ault, Hernandez, and DJ Jones all contributed five points each.
- Big comebacks and surviving them have been a theme of the postseason in the Lehigh Valley. Bangor and Whitehall was no exception. The two got off to hot starts, with Edrien Lee, Jaylene Wilson, and Abby Kneller all sinking long balls for the Zephyrs. Kaylynn Figurski responded with a 3-ball of her own, and Bangor hit four of their six free throws in the opening quarter. The Zephyrs pulled ahead in the second quarter for a 28-15 lead at the break. Jade Alvarez scored twice and eight Whitehall players got into the act overall. Julia Pinter was the only Slater to score in the second quarter, making a shot from beyond the arc. The second half saw a strong Bangor rally. The Slaters stepped up their defense, giving up just six third quarter points, while five Slaters hit five field goals and went 4/9 at the charity stripe in the third, pulling them within four points. However, Whitehall was able to hang on at the free throw line, going 7/10 down the stretch to secure a 46-44 victory and advance to the 5A championship game against Bethlehem Catholic. On the night, Bangor went 14/25 at the line. Avery Nelson made it a valiant effort, scoring 10 of her 15 in the fourth quarter to lead the Slaters.
FRIDAY 3/1
#4 Catasauqua 26, #2 Notre Dame Green Pond 34
Catasauqua, fresh off a victory over Executive Education and ending Palmerton’s season, was seeking its first district title since 1988. Josh Kopp’s Crusaders had last won the district title in 2019, and Green Pond was coming off holding the Colonial League Player of the Year Ellie Wallbillich to six points in a 19 point victory over Pen Argyl. This setup a defensive battle that played out at William Allen. Coach Mark Seremula stated before the game “we want to speed the game up. We’re going to go right at them.” It was the Crusaders who ended up coming out fast, laying in five buckets and taking a 10-4 first quarter lead. Emily Lessig had two of them at the 4:40 and 2:08 marks. On the defensive side, the Rough Riders were unable to score from the field in the quarter, sinking four of their six free throws. Things changed in the second quarter, as Sophie Becker laid one in just 18 seconds in. Brenna Hammerstone was fouled on a three point attempt, but only made one of the free throws. The Rough Riders held the Crusaders to just one field goal in the quarter, on an Olviia Schweitzer layup with 1:40 left. Notre Dame held a 13-11 halftime edge. Schweitzer took the second half by storm. She opened the second half with a three from the corner and added two layups in the third. Hailey Jenkins scored the only field goal of the third quarter for Catasauqua, laying one in with 2:45 left. Jenkins would finish the night with 16 of her team’s 26 points, similar to the teams’ first meeting, where she scored 20 of Catty’s 30. In the fourth, Schweitzer got two more layups and made three of her four foul shots to help ice the district championship.
“it’s incredible. It’s not just me on the court though. It’s those girls making those extra passes, helping me out to get into the paint, get those open shots. In timeouts, we discussed what would be open. We saw where the openings in the defense would be and just made plays off of that. If we really wanted this, we had to cut down our turnovers and make those big shots and when we got to the foul line we had to make those shots and we did exactly that.” You have to ball fake against this team. They take a lot of chances, so making those extra ball fakes is what’s going to get us open for good shots. In practice, we’ve been spending a lot of time on our defense and that’s why we played such great defense tonight.”
Guarding Jenkins: “she’s a great player and I was proud to guard her. She’s going to go far and I’m happy to see where she goes then ext two years and after. “
“We wanted this really bad, me Skyler, Carly, not only us, but our entire team wanted it. So we put our focus in practice 100% and we really worked hard to get her. Winning districts gives us a lot of momentum. We’re excited and we’re going to stay focused.”
Josh Kopp on his team’s defense: “That’s our strength. There’s going to be nights when we struggle to score a little bit, but especially in playoff time when the stakes are higher and there’s more on the line, your defense needs to travel and I thought it did a fantastic job tonight. We challenged them at halftime to be better; to be more disciplined defensively and trust their abilities. Hailey Jenkins is as tough as any guard in this area—you’re not going to stop her. I thought we did an admirable job of trying to slow her and make her work as much as possible.
“She was a steady force for us all night long. She showed al ot of composure and poise. Wants the ball in her hands, wants to take big shots, stepped up to the foul line for some big foul shots. No one works as hard as her on her game. She stays late, she puts in the extra time. She wanted to take big shots in a championship game. I’ve seen plenty of times where kids would cower away from that situation. She had the eye of the tiger tonight.
“They have been model leaders of this program and we’ve had some really strong leadership come through over the years and these three have really answered the call. They handle themselves with such grave and maturity. They’re so selfless.”
“They’re all sweet. You just want to do the best by your players. You just want to see them do their best. They gave us their best effort. The effort was there. The desire was there. I’m just very proud of this group.
#2 Easton 35, #1 Parkland 47
An early three-point barrage set the tone for Parkland, allowing them to survive a second half rally by the Red Rovers. Midway through the opening quarter in a period of 15 seconds, Aneri McGalla and Talia Zurinakas hit back to back triples. Zurinaksas added one late in the quarter to build up a 12-3 lead. Easton went scoreless for over six minutes until Megan Elias hit from distance with a minute left in the quarter. After trailing 12-8, Easton’s defense flipped the script in the second, keeping the Trojans off the scoreboard for nearly five minutes until Madi Siggins hit her first bucket of the game. A late three by Zurinskas put Parkland up 17-16 at the half.
Evalyse Cole set the tone for the third quarter, hitting an early triple from well beyond the top of the key. Easton took a 29-27 lead to the final quarter, and it seemed things were headed for a photo finish.
Parkland had other ideas. The same Trojans defense that held Easton to single digits in the second half at the PPL Center again reared up and held the Red Rovers scoreless for nearly six minutes. Talia Zurinaks led the charge during a 13-0 run, hitting one shot and making all ten of her free throws. The run was spurred on by a Delaney Chilcote 3-pointer with 6:50 to play after Isabella Hallal opened the quarter with a bucket to tie the game. Chilcote said of her triple, “The coaches have been telling me I’ve got to pull the trigger and shoot. I really practiced that shot in practice so I was pretty confident with it and I just figured I had to get involved offensively and help my team.”
Coach Ohlson concurred, “We were begging Delaney—‘you’ve got to start shooting.’ And she got us going.” Sophie Frank stepped in late in the third quarter after Siggins picked up her fourth foul, and quickly hit a jumper to pull Parkland within two. “That’s the beauty of team. We don’t say to anybody ‘don’t shoot,’ we say to everybody ‘if you’re open and in rhythm, shoot the ball.’” Said Ohlson.
When the dust settled, Parkland had outscored Easton 20-6 in the final quarter and had once again heavily limited the Rovers’ normally very effective three point game and explosive offense. Zurinskas finished with 25 points to lead all scorers. Easton was led by 18 from Cole.
I don’t even know what to say about her. She’s been having such great districts and it’s just always nice to have hero n the team to rely on,” Chilcote said of Zurinskas. She added, regarding playing with her senior teammates, “They deserve it so much this year. They put so much work in and it paid off.”
Siggins agreed: “She’s amazing. I love playing with her. To see her hit those shots and play the way she does, I’m so glad I get to be a teammate with her.” Ohlson added, “I’m going to petition the state to see if I can get for another year. [When she’s at the free throw line], I’m counting my money. You don’t know how hard she works. I leave [practice] at 7:00, and I have to tell her ‘you need to be out of here by 7:30, I don’t want you going much later than that.’ She’s there before practice, after practice; that’s just her working hard every day. It’s the same thing with Madi.”
Madi was asked how special the district title win is: “It’s amazing. I absolutely love my teammates and to be able to take this one away is great and I can’t wait to see what we do in states.”
Ohslon noted that the key to victory was to keep doing what they were doing: “Never say die. At halftime, they felt like they hadn’t played great. We told them, ‘girls, you gave up 16 points. Just keep playing tough defense.’ And we did.”
Other games Friday
- Emmaus’ previous meetings with Liberty have been intense to say the least. The first was an overtime thriller that went the way of the Hurricanes in overtime. The second was at the PPL Center, and nearly resulted in one of the most improbable comebacks by Liberty, after they trailed by as much as 24 in the game. This third and decisive meeting saw Emmaus get out to hot starts in each half and hold on for victory, earning their first state playoff berth since 2007. Leading the way for the Hornets was Gabby DeVita and her 14 points, while freshman standout Kayla Snyder added 12. Emmaus outscored the Hurricanes 14-7 in the first quarter and 13-7 in the third quarter to retain a ten point lead entering the final frame. All seven of Emmaus’ fourth quarter points came from Snyder at the free throw line, as she went 7/8. Ava Kopetskie once again put Liberty on her back, but her 14 points (three field goals and 8/12 at the charity stripe) were not enough to get over the hump. For a full write-up and more on this game, visit EmmausSports.com
- Northern Lehigh remained without a district title, suffering a 55-49 defeat to Minersville at Martz Hall. Despite double doubles by both Katelynn Barthold and Aubrey Pollard, the Bulldogs never led in the game. The Battlin’ Miners were spurred on by Keera Brennan and Brooke Kopinetz, who combined for 34 points. Kopinetz had 18 points and four triples, while Brennan scored 16 and went 10/15 from the charity stripe. A pair of Katelynn Barthold free throws pulled the Bulldogs within 49-46 with 1:58 left, but late turnovers kept Minersville ahead. The Miners’ nine fourth quarter points all came at the line. Aubrey Pollard led the Bulldogs with 15 points and 13 boards. Barthold scored 11 and had 12 rebounds. Tegan Simms hit three times from range and had 11 points. The Bulldogs advance to face Mast Charter II on the road next weekend.
SATURDAY 3/2
#3 Whitehall 24, #1 Bethlehem Catholic 53
The Hawks were flying high once again at Easton, claiming an eighth consecutive District XI 5A title in blowout fashion against the Zephyrs. From the outset, everyone got involved in this victory. Five players scored in the first quarter for Beca, led by Kendall Nickisher and Akasha Santos with their four points apiece. Ella Bincarosky hit a 3-pointer. Morgan Dunbar did the only scoring for Whitehall, making one of two free throws. With a 15-1 lead, the Hawks continued to pour it on in the second quarter. Cici Hernandez hit her first and only triple of the night, while Nickisher added a trey and Santos added six. Nickisher added eight more in the third quarter, finishing her night with a game-leading 17. The Lady Hawks will face a familiar foe from last year, when they meet Gwynedd Mercy Academy in the first round of states next weekend. Whitehall will host West Chester Rustin.
STATE PLAYOFF SCHEDULE
Class A
3/9
Nativity BVM v Meadowbrook Christian; St. John Neumann 6:00
Class AA
3/8
Belmont Charter at Minersville, 7:00
Northern Lehigh v MAST Charter II; Archbishop Wood 6:00
Marian Catholic at Northeast Bradford, 7:00
Class AAA
3/8
Notre Dame Green Pond v Lake-Lehman; Allentown Central Catholic 6:00
Catasauqua v West Catholic; Archbishop Wood 7:30
Class AAAA
3/9
Northern Lebanon at Allentown Central Catholic, 3:00
Neumann-Goretti at Blue Mountain, 3:00
North Schuylkill at Scranton Prep, 4:00
Class AAAAA
3/9
Gwynedd Mercy Academy at Bethlehem Catholic, 3:00
West Chester Rustin at Whitehall, 3:00
Class AAAAAA
3/8
Downingtown East at Parkland, 7:00
Garnet Valley at Easton, 7:00
Emmaus at North Penn, 7:00
LSV Sports 
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