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Abington girls grab first win over Plymouth Whitemarsh since 2019

12/09/2022, 12:15am EST
By Owen McCue

Owen McCue (@Owen_McCue)
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Abington’s seniors Cire Worley and Abril Bowser didn’t have too much fun in their first three seasons against rival Plymouth Whitemarsh.

Dating back to a drubbing in their first matchup with the Colonials in 2019-20, they were 0-7 against PW entering Thursday night. 

“They beat us bad,” Bowser recalled of an 84-52 home loss back in 2020 that started the string of losses. 


Abington senior Abril Bowser had 17 point in a win over PW on Thursday. (Photo: Owen McCue/CoBL)

Of course that’s been the fate for most teams to match up against the Colonials over the past three seasons. Last year’s undefeated state champions haven’t had too many blemishes and seniors Erin Daley and Abby Sharpe had just one division loss  — a defeat to Upper Dublin in February 2020 — in the last three seasons.

Abington’s come close a few times. There was a one-point loss in 2020-21, and the Ghosts’ seven-point loss to PW last season was the Colonials’ closest contest of the regular season.

The Ghosts finally broke through Thursday.

Bowser and fellow senior Maura Day stepped in to successfully defend PW senior Angelina Balcer’s game-tying attempt in the final seconds for a 55-53 Suburban One Liberty Division win to stay a perfect 3-0 this season.

“This one was personal,” Bowser said. “I took this one real personal because I feel like they walked in here like they owned this gym. I’m just glad we took our name back. I’m glad we took control of the game. We stayed composed, we stayed together and we won as a team.”

Worley, a UMass-Lowell commit, had 21 points (her third straight game with that total) and 10 boards. Bowser poured in 17 points of her own. Sharpe, a Penn commit, had a game-high 26 points and grabbed seven rebounds. Daley added 11 points and 13 boards.

After 34 straight wins last season and two more to start this season, the end of a 36-game win streak was an unfamiliar feeling for the Colonials.

“It definitely has (been a while),” Sharpe said. “We knew coming in here, it was going to be an intense environment. There was going to be a lot of energy surrounding both teams. It felt good to be back in a game like that with that type of intensity. We fell short, but I think it was a really good learning experience game, good momentum going forward.”


Abington's Cire Worley, left, drives on PW's Erin Daley. (Photo: Owen McCue/CoBL)

The gym wasn’t jam-packed on Thursday night, but it was loud and the crowd was engaged from the start. That was thanks to Bowser who had 11 points in the opening minutes as the Ghosts opened up a 13-3 lead and led 17-10 after a quarter of play. Bowser added two more threes in the second, scoring all 17 of her points in the first half.

While Bowser started hot, Sharpe started slow with just one bucket in the first quarter. That didn’t last for long as she scored 11 in the second quarter to tighten things up, 27-23, at the break.

The game teetered in the third quarter with Abington having a chance to extend its lead back to double digits and PW spoiling a few of its own opportunities to make it a one-possession contest. Instead, the Ghosts clung to a 42-36 advantage heading to the fourth.

That’s when the stars for both teams shined. 

Sharpe scored her team’s first seven points of the fourth, drilling a three to pull the Colonials within  two, 44-42, with about six minutes left. 

Worley, who had just four points in the first half, followed up a nine-point third quarter with eight in the fourth, answering several PW buckets with one of her own.

The two have been battling for years and had the chance to play for the same Chosen League team this summer.

“She’s a great player, really respect her and she did great tonight,” Sharpe said. “It’s nice to be able to play against that competition. It’s just making us all better.”

The Ghosts led by four with 35.4 seconds left after a pair of clutch free throws by junior Piper McGinley. Then a couple of PW youngsters felt it was their time to make a play.

Freshman Kenna Winland, who was just recently inserted into the game, tossed a crosscourt pass to classmate AJ Avery for a corner three with 16.5 seconds left to pull the Colonials within one, 53-52. 


Plymouth Whitemarsh senior Abby Sharpe scored 26 points in a loss to Abington on Thursday. (Photo: Owen McCue/CoBL)

McGinley knocked down another pair of foul shots and the Ghosts fouled instead of letting the Colonials get off a potential game-tying three. Balcer made the first and missed the second, the rebound going off an Abington player and out of bounds with 3.5 seconds left.

Sharpe inbounded to Balcer and she looked like she might have had a step on Day as she drove to the basket before Bowser slid over and knocked the ball loose as the clock wound down.

The Ghosts might be one of the best-equipped teams to come up with game-clinching stop as defense is their bread-and-butter.

“I think with our team, nobody really has the speed or the defense that we have,” Worley said. “I think we play some of the best defense and that’s what leads us through most of our games. And we’re one of the only teams that has most of our people in double figures. The first game we had three different people in double figures. Most teams, they look at the statsheet and they have one or two.”

The two-point Abington win followed a 69-62 overtime win over West Chester Rustin in the Ghosts’ opener and a 39-38 win over Souderton in the Jim Church Classic title game. That’s three big victories in three games to start the season.

“You can’t pay for that kind of experience,” Abington coach Dan Marsh said. “This is getting us prepared for the rest of the season in December and it’s great. Normally, it’s pretty sloppy but this was a well played basketball game. I was impressed by them. They handled our pressure a little bit better than I thought they would and we were fortunate enough to come out on top."

The Colonials won’t harp too much on the loss. They have wins over perennial powers Berks Catholic and Delon Catholic already this season and proved once again Thursday night they won’t be fading away this season. Their newcomers seem ready for the big moments too.

“We’re a completely different team this year, obviously, a lot of young players,” Sharpe said. “AJ really stepped up in the end, making that big three. That was huge. Kenna, coming off the bench with 40 seconds I think. She really stepped up for us. Definitely having these younger players ready to step up is really helping us.”

Sophomore guard Maya Johnson added nine points and six assists for the Ghosts, who haven’t won a league title since 2019.

Abington has the inside track on the division for now, but there’s plenty of time to focus on that later this season, however, as plenty still stands in the way, including a Jan. 24 road trip to PW.

“Getting this one under our belt prepares us for the second one,” Worley said.

“It feels real good to take this win at our home, and now we gotta do it at theirs,” Bowser said.

Abington 55, Plymouth Whitemarsh 53

By Quarter
Plymouth Whitemarsh: 10 | 13 | 13 | 17 || 53
Abington: 17 | 10 | 15 | 13 || 55

Scorers
Plymouth Whitemarsh: Abby Sharpe 26, Erin Daley 11, Angelina Balcer 6, Azzy Crumpton 5, AJ Avery 5.

Abington: Cire Worley 21, Abril Bowser 17, Maya Johnson 9, Piper McGinley 6, Sara O'Leary 2.


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