City of Basketball Love

By CoBL Staff (@hooplove215)
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Nearly 60 different high school girls’ basketball teams from the Delaware Valley (and beyond) descending upon Royersford this weekend for the 4th Annual CoBL Girls’ Fall Classic. The region’s largest girls basketball preseason event was stocked with talent from start to finish, with several dozen college coaches checking in over the course of the weekend as well.

CoBL had scouts and writers throughout the gym on both days, trying to catch as many games as we could over the course of the weekend. Here’s who stood out to our writers over the course of Sunday’s games:

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Charlotte Aldridge (2026 | Downingtown East)
The 6-foot senior forward is stronger, faster and more athletic than she was a year ago. She is able to both face the basket, and play with her back to the basket. She has a better handle than she did this time last year, taking the ball out on the perimeter and driving the lane. The UTEP commit has extended her shot and is not afraid to attack the basket. She dropped 10 points in East’s victory over Harriton in the Sunday morning sessions, showing she can defend out on the perimeter and close to the basket. Anyone that tried driving the lane against her got their shot swatted.

Bailey Balkir (2026 | Gwynedd Mercy)
The 5-foot-7 senior guard is a ball of energy each time she plays. The Gettysburg commit has a fast, quick first step, is explosive driving to the basket and is a great ballhandler. She scored a team-high 17 in the Sunday early session in a 50-27 loss to William Tennent. During one sequence, she fired off a no-look pass to a teammate cutting down the lane, in another, she grabbed a defensive rebound and pulled up for a three-pointer. College scouts along the baseline felt Gettysburg was getting a steal in Balkir, the AACA reigning MVP. She plays with an unending motor and displays great leadership qualities, a coach on the floor unafraid to tell her teammates where they should be on the court.

Maura Bellis (2028 | Shamokin Area)
Bellis fought through the distraction of a contact lens problem to lead the combined Shamokin/Lourdes Regional team to the second of its two straight victories while playing back-to-back to end the day. The 6-foot-1 center from Shamokin started the second game with an eye patch, but got rid of it early in a nine-point, nine-rebound, two-block effort during a 33-27 victory over Merion Mercy. Maneuvering close to the basket, she had no trouble catching passes or controlling rebounds while helping her team break away from a halftime tie. Bellis made three of her last four shots and pulled down seven of her rebounds in the second half.

Sophia Benyo (2027 | Hazleton Area)
A gritty 5-10 forward, Benyo registered seven rebounds this Sunday against a skilled York Suburban squad. Both teams didn’t have difficulty offensively; however, it was Benyo’s rebounding and basketball IQ which gave the Cougars a slight edge in their buzzer-beater win. Benyo was gritty down low, and was a key contributor to Hazleton’s second chance point opportunities as she recognized where to put the ball after she came down with it. Benyo’s ability to run the floor from hustling efforts down low will give her team plenty of chances to score. 

Kaitlyn Bindas (2027 | Hazleton Area)
With a late clutch three to give the Cougars a 54-52 lead over an extremely talented Shipley team, Bindas presented as a true point guard in Hazleton’s 58-56 victory. She tallied 13 total points with three triples all in the second half when the game got tight. Bindas also passed the ball at a very high level as she was able to locate teammates like 2026 Alexis Reimold who accumulated 12 points all from 2-pointers in the first half. Bindas’ ability to run the floor and knock down late threes as needed displayed adaptability, which plenty of college coaches need on their roster.

Hayden Blair (2027 | Downingtown West)
Whether out in transition, cutting hard off an in-bounds or other set play or breaking down a defender, Blair continually took the ball strong to the basket. That was particularly the case early in a 38-33 loss to York Suburban. Blair produced the game’s first five points at the line where she went three times in the first 3:05. Despite running clock conditions, she drew another foul in the first four minutes. Blair’s well-rounded game included assertively setting screens and strong ball-handling. Although she did not connect, Blair also showed off a quick release on catch-and-shoot, 3-point attempts. She finished with a team-high 13 points and three steals.

Lily Brown (2027 | North Penn)
The 5-foot-10 junior forward/guard plays with a fearlessness. She is good on the inside, and good on the perimeter. She has great range on her shot, and in playing against Gwynedd Mercy during the Sunday morning sessions, she demanded to defend Gwynedd’s best player, Gettysburg-bound Bailey Balkir (2026). Her length makes it difficult for smaller guards to get by her and her explosive first step makes it hard for bigs to stay with her. North Penn trailed Gwynedd Mercy, 10-1, in the early portion of the game on Sunday, and Brown dugs the Knights out of it with 14 points in a North Penn 36-30 victory. She plays with a fearlessness, is not afraid to do everything on the court, from rebounding, to defending inside and outside, to looking for open teammates, to nailing t3-3inters from distance. 

Kendall Chiavelli (2027 | Downingtown East)
The 5-foot-9 junior guard can score driving inside, or pull up and hit from outside. She plays unselfishly, always with her head up looking for open teammates. Against Harriton in a Sunday morning session, Chiavelli showed a great command of the court, getting her teammates involved, and was willing to defend on the perimeter or down low. She plays with a high motor, and ended her day with a nifty spinning move and layup. She has grown an inch and is more athletic than she was a year ago.

Paityn Debro (2028 | North Penn)
The 5-foot-10 sophomore guard/forward showed great signs of a very bright future ahead in North Penn’s 36-30 victory over Gwynedd Mercy during the Sunday morning session. She’s long and athletic, runs the floor very well, boxes out, and is not afraid to play interior defense. She is still learning the speed of the varsity game, though paired with teammate Lily Brown, she made an impact on a game that looked like a blowout early on. She finished with eight points, many on put backs from offensive rebounds.  

Sammie Faella (2026 | Hill School)
After Merion Mercy converted on a foul shot to bring them up 27-26, it was no surprise that the 5-foot-5 guard was the one to get to the line the other way and send it into overtime. With 12 points in a low-scoring matchup, Faella let her leading abilities be known early. She ran the floor which led to scoring opportunities for herself off of a cut or fade after she located an open teammate. Defensively, she was pure hustle looking for any opportunity to attribute to their impending victory. A win-oriented guard is what any coach needs at the next level, and Faella displayed a strong desire to win the game as a team rather than mark off a win for herself individually.

Teagan Finney (2029 | Spring-Ford)
The 5-foot-9 guard tip toed around defenders to accumulate herself 15 points this weekend during a game at her home gymnasium. A quick, tall, and young slashing guard, Finney’s scoring abilities heavily aided the Rams in their 51-29 conquest over Hill school. Finney showcased an impressive knowledge of cutting while also displaying elite slashing abilities as she repeatedly made tough layups or pulled up for a mid-range jumpshot. The youngster will be an effective addition to the Rams’ squad and will have plenty of opportunities to score and aid the Rams in their 2025-26 campaign.

Abby Garrity (2027 | Bishop Shanahan)
The sniper from Shanahan was extremely effective from beyond the arc as she nailed 4 triples in Bishop Shanahan’s contest against Archbishop Ryan. She displayed little stress when the ball was in her hands as she consistently dribbled by defenders and located open teammates while maintaining composure. Phenomenal ball movement, composure, and shooting abilities all attributed to her 14 point day this Sunday.

Mia Henry (2026 | Penncrest)
Henry’s plan of attack in the Lions win over William Tennent was simply to attack. The senior guard scored 16 points in Penncrest’s win, with all eight of her baskets coming within a few feet of the basket. Once Henry decided to drive, it seemed like she was at the rim in a blink and she did well protecting the ball on the way up to make it a clean finish. She also did a nice job handling the ball and moving it on offense and Henry hit the floor quite often fighting for the ball as part of a scrappy Penncrest defensive effort.

Avery Kocur (2026 | William Tennent)
The Panthers will follow Kocur’s lead this year after their playoff appearance in a decade last season and the Holy Family recruit put up a couple big outings in a 1-1 day on Sunday. The 5-foot-11 Kocur did a little bit of everything from scoring to passing to defending including a chasedown block against Penncrest. Kocur was pretty dialed in from the midrange against Penncrest, knocking down three jumpers inside the arc to go with a trio of threes in a 19-point effort. She also set up teammates and was always looking up for an outlet pass whenever possible.

Hayley Kolk (2027 | Neshaminy)
In her return from knee troubles, Kolk made her first two attempts from long distance and finished 3-for-5 on 3-pointers while scoring a game-high 11 points in Neshaminy’s 36-21 win over Great Valley. More importantly, Kolk ran well and moved well away from the ball to get ready for her shots. She played the first 10 minutes of the second half, when Neshaminy was taking control, hitting two of her 3s during that time.

Zamiya Lowe (2027 | George School)
Lowe, who picked up her first Division I offer last month from Rider, was a catalyst in her team’s two wins on Sunday. The 5-foot-9 guard plays with a downhill approach, using her size and quickness to pressure defenses by attacking the rim and she generated plenty of looks around the rim across both games. She also had a terrific long pass to Liv Viera for a basket against Cherry Hill West and mixed reps on and off the ball. Lowe plays with a lot of energy, a trademark across the board for her team.

Maya Ravindranathan (2027 | George School)
Fresh off a visit to Stony Brook this week - the Seawolves presented the guard her first D-I offer in July - Ravindranathan had her game going in a pair of wins Sunday. The junior is a terrific shooter, she can catch, set and shoot in a flash and is letting that set up the rest of her game. Against West Catholic, that included a sharp off-ball cut for a layup and a couple nice passes to find teammates for scores. Ravindranathan’s game has been improving with each passing year and she looks primed for a strong season on a solid and energetic George School squad.

Nicole Trespalacios (2029 | Neshaminy)
Active perimeter defense, without letting the aggressiveness leave her susceptible to getting beat, was a big part of how Trespalacios contributed to a 36-21, come-from-behind victory over Great Valley. Neshaminy went with a large roster and spread the minutes and shots around, but Trespalacios managed to make her only second-half attempt count, hitting a 3-pointer in the middle of an 18-0 run to a 32-18 lead. She often took on the ballhandler while leading a Neshaminy defense that forced 10 turnovers while allowing Great Valley just eight shots in the second half. 

Gabby Vaughn (2026 | Shipley School)
Already the most effective player on the court in the first half, Vaughn took over to start the second half of a 47-22 win over Lansdale Catholic. She began the half with a mid-court steal and lead pass for an easy Natalie Goldstein basket. The righty then scored on a left-handed hook in the post and hit consecutive 3-pointers to score the next eight points of the 10-2 run. At 6-foot, the description of guard on the roster is generally accurate, but she showed an excellent variety of post moves while scoring there three times on the way to a game-high 20 points. A tall team, Shipley needs some big girls to guard the perimeter and Vaughn looks very comfortable there while also being able to drop down inside and protect the basket. When not scoring, Vaughn passed well, both with effective entries to the post and displaying court awareness in transition.

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Honorable Mention
Caroline Brown (2028 | Harriton), Mia Bonafede (2029 | Lancaster Catholic), Milan Carr (2029 | Abington Friends), Lily Clair (2024 | Lansdale Catholic), Sadie Coleman (2029 | Lansdale Catholic), Julia Gerber (2027 | York Suburban), Amara Gittens (2029 | Merion Mercy), Lizzie Goldstein (2027 | Harriton), Natalie Goldstein (2027 | Shipley School), Milan Harvey (2028 | Agnes Irwin), Natalia Kasmer (2028 | Lower Merion), Samantha Kollock (2029 | Germantown Academy), Anabelle Kushch (2027 | Council Rock South), Vivian Laetsch (2027 | Harriton), Ella Liberatoscioli (2028 | Lower Merion), Chloe McCarthy (2026 | Gwynedd Mercy), Maddux Morgan (2026 | Penncrest), Regan Przepioski (2027 | Archbishop Ryan), Peyton Rapp (2027 | Shamokin), Kylla Sandri (2028 | Shamokin Lourdes Regional), Megan Volz (2027 | William Tennent), Jordyn Williams (2027 | York Suburban), Oceane Yagoli (2027 | George School)