City of Basketball Love

Ty Daubert (@TyDaubert)
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BENSALEM — At halftime of the PIAA District 1 Class 4A girls’ championship, Gwynedd Mercy Academy found itself in a familiar spot.

In a rematch of this year’s AACA title game, the four-time defending district champs led Villa Joseph Marie by six points and the same score they did in the league final. Looking to replicate that victory, Tom Lonergan’s Monarchs put their focus on the third quarter.

“My son (assistant coach TJ Lonergan) … reminded them that the score at halftime was identical to the score in the Academy League championship,” Lonergan said. “He said it was the third quarter that we took care of business when we played in the Academy championship two weeks ago, so he was trying to emphasize that this was our quarter. The third quarter has always been our quarter.”

Gwynedd Mercy took that encouragement to heart, and the play reflected it on the floor. The Monarchs used the third quarter to build a double-digit lead on their way to a 41-29 win on Saturday evening at Bensalem Township High School to claim their fifth straight District 1-4A title. 

“We just had to regroup, come together and fix what we needed to,” junior guard Hannah Griffin said.

The Monarchs held Villa to only four points in the third, locking in on the defensive end. Their offense didn’t shine, but they got the stops to build a 21-15 lead — the same halftime score as the AACA championship — into a 30-19 advantage going into the fourth.

“The one thing that always jumpstarts our team is how we play defensively,” Lonergan said. “That’s where it really starts for us. It really starts from our ability on the defensive end of the floor to just clamp down.”

Early in the game, Gwynedd Mercy got off to a 9-7 lead behind two first-quarter 3s from Griffin. Senior Sofia Coleman scored eight of her 11 points in the first half as the Monarchs took their six-point lead into the break.

Villa made a short push to start the third, cutting the deficit to 21-18 as Victoria Nigro converted an and-one layup for a three-point play. But the Jems would only score one more point in the period as Gwynedd Mercy separated itself.

Gwynedd Mercy celebrates the 2022 District 1 Class 4A championship. (Photo: Ty Daubert/CoBL)

Carly Austin scored six fourth-quarter points for Villa, but Griffin and Bianca Coleman hit free throws for the Monarchs down the stretch to finish with 15 and seven points, respectively. The game was never in question late as Gwynedd Mercy clinched another district title.

“It’s really nice just to carry on that tradition,” Griffin said.

Reflecting on the five consecutive championships, Lonergan took pride in the strides his team has made on the defensive end.

“We wanted to be the best Gwynedd team defensively,” Lonergan said. “We had a great defensive team back in 2016, and this team has definitely surpassed them.”

After riding the defense to a win in districts, the Monarchs (24-0) will look to keep the intensity up in states. They’ll play the No. 4 team from District 12 in the PIAA Class 4A tournament on March 9, while Villa (19-7) will also advance and take on District’s 12 No. 2 team on the same day.

“I told them the season can end in one of two ways,” Lonergan said. “I’m not even going to talk about the one way. I want to talk about the way it ends in Hershey.”

By quarter
Villa Joseph Maria:  7   |   8   |   4   |  10  ||  29
Gwynedd Mercy:     9   |  12  |   9   |  11  ||  41

Scorers
Villa Joseph Maria: Carly Austin 9, Victoria Nigro 9, Samantha White 5, Emma Hagan 3, Michaela Joniec 3

Gwynedd Mercy Academy: Hannah Griffin 15, Sofia Coleman 11, Bianca Coleman 7, Maddie Newell 5, Dylan Burke 3