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'Hoops for Hope' Showcase Preview (Ursinus College, Jan. 15)

01/12/2023, 3:30pm EST
By CoBL Staff

Josh Verlin (@jmverlin)

The 16th annual ‘Hoops for Hope’ girls basketball classic takes place this Sunday, Jan. 15 at Ursinus College. The five-game affair features nine squads from southeastern Pennsylvania and one from Delaware, the proceeds raising money for Coaches vs. Cancer. 

Here’s the schedule and a brief look at all five games; admissions will be $10 for adults, and the games will all be streamed on YouTube @FordsSportmedia. 

Mt. St. Joseph vs. Sanford (Del.) (11:00 AM)
Haverford High vs. Notre Dame (12:30 PM)
Villa Maria vs. Neshaminy (2 PM)
Archbishop Carroll vs. West Chester Rustin (3:30 PM)
Archbishop Wood vs. Penn Charter (5 PM) 

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UMass commit Dallas Pierce (above) and a talented Sanford squad get the 16th annual Hoops for Hope showcase underway. (Photo: Owen McCue/CoBL)

Mount St. Joseph vs. Sanford (Del.) (11:00 AM)
Sanford, which thumped Audenried last weekend at the Blue Star HSI, is led by UMass commit Dallas Pierce, a 5-10 guard who can really shoot it from deep. Speedy point guard Azareya Kilgoe can create and score with the ball in her hands. Sophomore forward Jada Snow is versatile as well, able to play inside and outside and run with the rest of her team in transition, while playing strong defense as well.

The Magic (7-5) have already played "up" to plenty of good competition in the PIAA's Class 6A this season, but are still looking for a signature win to pair with their early season victory against Methacton. Senior leadership sets the pace for the Mount, with 5-foot-11 senior forward Georgia Pickett usually in the middle of things at both ends. On the perimeter, senior Lauren Hoffman is a lights-out shooter who can get herself or others open. Seniors Kirsten Pumilia and Chloe McGrorty have plenty of experience at the guard spots as well.

Haverford High vs. Notre Dame (12:30 PM)
This game pits one of the Inter-Ac’s top programs against one of the best from District 1 this season. Haverford’s 12-0 on the season and 8-0 in the Central League, currently No. 3 in the district’s unofficial 6A rankings, having won all but two of their games by 18 points or more. Head coach Lauren Pellicane, who organized the Hoops for Hope event, have a terrific frontcourt in 6-2 Caroline Dotsey, a Maine commit, and 6-1 Mollie Carpenter, both four-year varsity players, while 5-9 junior guard Aniya Eberhart and 6-1 sophomore Rian Dotsey, Caroline’s younger sister, have both really stepped up this season. 

They’ll present a significant challenge for the Irish (7-8, 3-2) , who aren’t quite as tall up front, though 5-11 senior Katie Halligan gives them a great effort inside on a regular basis; her sister, junior wing Lizzie Halligan, is one of the team’s featured scorers, while senior Annie Greek and sophomore point guard Chloe Knox add additional punch. Lauren Power’s squad will need to limit their turnovers and stay even on the glass to give themselves a chance to pull the upset.


Carly Catania (above) and Villa Maria play one of the deepest rotations around. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

Villa Maria vs. Neshaminy (2 PM)
As the day goes on, the games just get better and better. Villa Maria (11-0), atop the 5A rankings, is another one of the four schools unbeaten in District 1 play, while Neshaminy (9-2) is in the top 10 of the district’s 6A rankings, coming in on an eight-game win streak. The Hurricanes won some tight ones early over quality programs in the likes of Bishop Shanahan, Notre Dame and Archbishop Carroll, but this might just be their toughest test yet. Neshaminy is led by junior forward Reese Zemitis, a 6-1 sharpshooter with more than a handful of D-I offers, plus senior wing Taylor Gurysh (Kutztown) and junior point guard Lola Ibarrondo, another scholarship-level hooper. 

Villa Maria, under the guidance of 34th-year head coach Kathy McCartney, relies on its depth as its biggest weapon, the Hurricanes rolling out double-digit girls with all sorts of substitutions and lineup changes, making them tough to guard — and tough to run with — for 32 minutes. Senior wing Marah McHugh, a Gettysburg commit, is one of four starters back from a year ago, along with senior guard Ava Irvine, senior wing Ella Iacone and senior point guard Elaina Guerzon; wing Carly Catania and guards Emma O’Hara and Alice Nash, all juniors tend to be the most productive off the bench. It’s a lineup filled with shooters, and so far nobody’s found a way to stop them all at once.

Archbishop Carroll vs. West Chester Rustin (3:30 PM)
Last year, Rustin played Carroll at O’Hara and got put in its place, losing by 31 points to that powerhouse Patriots squad, which featured the current Drexel starting point guard (Grace O’Neill) in its lineup. So you can bet the Golden Knights (10-2) want to show how much progress they’ve made in the last year, something that’s already been made clear in wins against the likes of Springfield (Delco.) and Germantown Academy, not to mention taking Cardinal O’Hara to double OT and losing on a buzzer-beater. Drexel commit Lane McGurk, an athletic 5-11 wing guard, draws much of the defensive attention, but the pieces around her — including sister Elizabeth McGurk, guards Lola Flynn and Ava Panetta, all seniors, and junior wing Riley Stackhouse — have all taken a big step forward.

Carroll (4-6, 2-0) has taken some lumps against high-level competition this season, including Paul VI (Va.), Manasquan (N.J.) and Clovis West (Cali.), but the Patriots also have quality wins in Abington and Germantown Academy. Senior wing forward Taylor Wilson (West Point) and her junior sister, D-I recruit Brooke Wilson, are the two primary names to know, and senior guards Courtland Schumacher and Meg Sheridan are both multi-year contributors who can hit open shots. Freshman guard Alexis Eberz and sophomore Kate O’Neill, Grace’s younger sister, are two bright spots in the underclassman ranks.


Albany commit Deja Evans (above) and Archbishop Wood help close it out against Penn Charter. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

Archbishop Wood vs. Penn Charter (5 PM)
As good as the first four games have been, there’s no doubt the highest-profile matchup finishes it out. Wood (6-2), which will be playing the second of three games within a 48-hour span, including games in New York on both Saturday and Monday, has played only high-level competition this season, mostly from the DC/Maryland/Virginia region. But now the Vikings will be playing one of the Philly-area’s best in Penn Charter, the Inter-Ac favorites, much more dangerous than their 6-7 record implies. The Quakers feature a pair of Division I committed seniors in Bella Toomey (Fairleigh Dickinson) and Aleah Snead (St. Joe’s), the latter of whom just went over the 1,000-point mark for her career. Eighth grader Ryan Carter is one of the brightest young talents around, with multiple high-major offers, and sophomore guard Kaylinn Bethea is a D-I target as well.

Archbishop Wood is one of the area’s top defensive squads, having smothered Manasquan (N.J.) to a 0-point first first quarter in a 55-26 win at the Blue Star Invitational last weekend, and is fresh off a 76-15 win over Ryan, though it came at a cost, as senior guard and leading scorer Allie Fleming went down with a season-ending injury. They do have the depth to still be plenty dangerous: senior forward Deja Evans (Albany), senior wing Kara Meredith (Holy Family), senior wing Delaney Finnegan and sophomore wing Emily Knouse give them a deep group with height, and they can bring all sorts of useful pieces off the bench too. It wouldn’t be a surprise if this takes more than 32 minutes to settle.


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