City of Basketball Love

By Josh Verlin (@jmverlin)
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For about the last decade, there’s been an obvious place for girls’ basketball fans in Delaware County to go watch some hoops after the holidays. 

Despite its name, the Cardinal O’Hara Christmas Tournament is a showcase of eight area teams, each of whom play one game on Sunday and Monday in preset matchups. Archbishop Carroll, Central Bucks East, Conestoga, Notre Dame, Springfield (Delco.), Upper Dublin and Villa Maria round out the field this year along with the host Lions, every one of which has legitimate league, district, and/or state championship hopes. 

Here’s the schedule, along with a brief look at all eight teams:

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Sun., December 28
Villa Maria vs. Springfield (Delco.) (1:30 PM)
Conestoga vs. Cardinal O’Hara (3:00 PM)
Upper Dublin vs. Notre Dame (4:30 PM)
Central Bucks East vs. Archbishop Carroll (6:00 PM) 

Mon., December 29
Central Bucks East vs. Springfield (Delco.) (1:30 PM)
Upper Dublin vs. Villa Maria (3:00 PM)
Conestoga vs. Archbishop Carroll (4:30 PM)
Cardinal O’Hara vs. Notre Dame (6:00 PM)

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Archbishop Carroll
The Patriots come out of the holidays with a 3-4 record, but don’t let that fool you — Renie Shields has one of the best teams in the region, proved by the fact that they’ve hung with the likes of nationally-ranked St. John’s (D.C.) and Westtown, while beating other high-level teams including Notre Dame and Gloucester Catholic (N.J.). The Carroll attack starts with senior Alexis Eberz, a 5-foot-9 guard and Villanova commit, and her sister Kayla Eberz, a 5-11 wing and high-major target; Kayla’s twin sister Kelsey Eberz, another talented guard, is nearing her own long-awaited return from a knee injury. Junior guard Abbie McFillin is a 5-9 guard and stat-sheet stuffer with all sorts of D-I offers and interest, and they get strong support from 6-0 senior Bridget Grant, 5-8 junior Cate Schumacher and more. 

Cardinal O’Hara
The host Lions expect to be right there with Carroll (and one or two others) at the top of the Catholic League, as head coach Chrissie Doogan has talent in all four classes to rely upon, from senior guard Megan Rullo (Drexel) down through 6-3 freshman center Olivia Craft, who’s got as high a ceiling as any underclassman around. The junior class is fantastic and deep, led by 5-10 guard Brigidanne Donohue, 5-8 guard Leah Hudak and 5-11 wing Carly Wakefield; 6-1 sophomore Catie Doogan, the coach’s daughter and a terrific outside shooter, is a D-I recruit as well. They’re still early on in their season, only 5-0 coming out of the holiday, but they’re already looking like a real contender.

Central Bucks East
The Patriots won 22 games and made the PIAA 6A state tournament last year and look headed for at least as good of a finish, with a perfect 8-0 record (4-0 Suburban One Colonial) through the holiday break. They haven’t had a single-digit game yet, beating Germantown Academy on the road by 15 in their most impressive win of the season, but face their toughest test thus far on Sunday with a game against Carroll. Junior guard Haley Moran has been leading the way offensively with significant help from seniors Natalie Berndt and Jess Lockwood, with senior Emma Penecale the fourth returning starter. And keep an eye on freshman Payton Williams, a versatile 5-10 guard with a bright future.

Conestoga
The Pioneers are one of the top teams in the Central League, under the direction of first-year head coach Ken Doyle, who previously had success as Bishop Shanahan’s boys coach in the 2010s. The ‘Stoga girls lean on senior guard Ryann Jennings, a four-year starter and Lehigh commit who’s a strong overall scorer and rebounder at 5-11. She’s got support from fellow seniors Libby Brown, a 5-4 point guard and Ursinus commit, and 5-8 wing Maggie Neary, who gives them good athleticism, ball-handling and shot-making. Sophomore Maren Gallagher, a 5-10 wing/forward, has also stepped up as a first-year starter. 

Grace Nasr (4) and Notre Dame are the defending Inter-Academic League champions. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

Notre Dame
The Irish are the defending Inter-Ac champs and the favorites to repeat, unless Germantown Academy has anything to say about it. Notre Dame’ coach Terry Mancini has a deep, talented and athletic group led by its junior class, which includes 5-10 guard Riley Davis and 6-3 center Grace Nasr; Davis is the top-ranked lacrosse recruit in the country (Penn State) and would be a D-I hoops recruit if not, while Nasr has all sorts of mid-major offers and high-major interest. Senior guard Alex Gillin (6-0), junior guard Maddie DeFronzo (5-8), senior guard Emma Anthony (5-8) and others find their moments to shine as well. 

Springfield (Delco.)
There’s a long tradition of basketball success with multi-sport athletes in Springfield, and now Ky McNichol’s got a bunch of hoops-first athletes wearing Cougar uniforms. A pair of sisters, senior guard Lil DiTrolio and sophomore Adi DiTrolio, are their two most talented scorers, senior wing Macy Gougler is their top defender and they’re getting quality two-way play from sophomore guard Delaney Kearney and Alice Murphy. The Cougars don’t have anybody taller than 5-8 but they’re well-coached and tenacious defensively, which is why they’re off to a 7-0 (5-0 Central) start. 

Upper Dublin
The Cardinals are a force to be reckoned with this season, coming into the weekend with a 6-1 record after losing to national powerhouse Sidwell Friends (D.C.) by just four points last weekend following six absolute massacres of area programs. Morgan Funsten has an outstanding top six in senior point guard Meg Ngo (Fairleigh Dickinson), senior wing Emilia Coleman (La Salle), junior wings Tamia Clark and Briget DiMartile and sophomore guards Ella Morris and Lexi Ngo. It’s a group that’s as well-tuned as any around, getting terrific guard play from the Ngo sisters, inside-out scoring from Clark and Coleman, and Morris and DiMartile filling in all the gaps. District 1 6A and PIAA 6A championship runs are a realistic goal. 

Villa Maria
Hurricanes coach Kathy McCartney typically schedules a busier December than January, which is why Villa comes into the weekend the most experienced bunch, with a 6-5 record and its regular season already halfway done. She’s got four starters back from the year before, led by senior guard and Loyola (Md.) lacrosse commit Sophia Tray, who’s been their do-everything leader the last three years; senior guard Briella Romeo takes over at point, while junior Becca Croft (5-10) and sophomore Erin Urbanski (5-11) give them good size up front. As usual, McCarthy has a deep group to rely on behind them.