WEST NORRITON — One team was very familiar with where they wanted to get to, the other hadn’t been there in awhile. Familiarity won out.
The Bethlehem Catholic girls basketball team broke open a tight game in the second quarter and went on to post a 51-42 victory over Villa Maria in the second round of the PIAA 5A playoffs Wednesday at Norristown Area High School.
Bethlehem Catholic’s Brooklyn Lewis, left, and Leah Ault celebrate Wednesday’s 51-42 victory over Villa Maria. Tom Silknitter – For MediaNews Group
The win puts the District 11 champions (25-4) into the quarterfinals for the fourth straight season. They will face Archbishop Wood on Saturday for the third consecutive year, losing to them in the quarters last season, and the semifinals in 2024. The Hurricanes were looking to reach the final eight for the first time since 2019.
“We get to play Wood again, so I’m excited about that and can’t wait for that challenge,” said Bethlehem Catholic coach Arnold Alleyne. “Their two best players are gone, so the opportunity is there for us.”
The game was played at frenetic pace all evening as both teams went up and down the court, for better or worse. The Golden Hawks recorded 20 turnovers for the game to 26 for Villa, many of them came because of errant passes.
“Some,” Villa coach Kathy McCartney said when asked if the pace contributed to the miscues. “But, some of ours were like, what were we seeing. Uncharacteristic mistakes that were made.“But I said to them that I’m really proud of the fact that they kept fighting. They could’ve folded. It could have gotten ugly, and they kept battling. They were more athletic than us and they were better shooters than we were, but we hung in and we did some good things.”
The first quarter was a seesaw affair. Villa took its first lead at 7-6 on a three-pointer from Brielle Romeo.
The Golden Hawks came back on baskets from freshmen Kamryn Gallis and Ayva Radande to go ahead, 10-7.
Bethlehem Catholic freshman Kamryn Gallis gets fouled by Villa Maria’s Georgia Spano in the first quarter Wednesday. Tom Silknitter – For MediaNews Group
With Becahi trailing, 15-13, Alleyne called time out and brought back in senior Aliyah Brame just before the end of the quarter. That decision proved to be benefical as Brame swished in a three from about 30 feet as the horn sounded for a 16-15 lead after one.
“I was taking a sip of water and coach put me in real quick,” recalled Brame. “It was something we practiced, game situations like that. Just making sure we’re getting up a shot and Brooklyn (Lewis) set a great screen for me, so I was able to get the shot. I felt like it gave us a lot of momentum.”
BC rode that momentum into second quarter, going on a 7-0 run to open up a 25-15 lead with 3:30 left. Ava Broadhurst broke the scoring drought for Villa with a three at the 1:40 mark.
Avaughna Gordon scored the final basket of the first half with a minute left as the Golden Hawks took a 27-18 advantage into the halftime break.
Villa star Sophia Tray, who went scoreless in the first half, quickly rectified that at the start of the third. She scored five points in the first minute to slice the deficit to 27-23. The Golden Hawks went on a 10-1 spurt, highlighted by by five straight points from Gillis, who celebrated a birthday on Thursday, to jump out to a 37-24 lead.
“We knew they were going to come back, so we stayed calm and stayed composed,” said Gillis. “Just running what we do, if the shots come to me or whoever it comes to, we trust in our teammates to knock it down. We’re aggressive, we trust in each other and let our game take over.”
BC scored six of the quarter’s last eight points and had its largest margin of the game, 43-29, heading into the final stanza.
Villa Maria’s Becca Croft’s shot gets blocked by Bettlehem Catholic’s Kendall Nickischer on Wednesday. Tom Silknitter – For MediaNews Group
Tray had nine of the Hurricanes’ 11 points in the third and McCartney pointed out how Tray has carried the team all season.
“She did and she has all season,” she said. “She’s our go-to person. It did hurt us she didn’t score in the first half, but she refused to give up. The kid’s a beast.”
Villa made things tense as they tried to take advantage of a Becahi dry spell. They scored six straight points — four from Margo Irvine off the bench — to trail, 43-36, with 4:50 left.
But, a huge three from Gillis and a layup from Brooklyn Lewis off a turnover, restored the double-digit margin at 48-36 as the Golden Hawks held firm to advance to another quarterfinal appearance.
The Hurricanes concluded their season at 16-10. McCartney talked about the seniors she will be losing in Tray and Romeo.
“Brielle is the heart and soul of our team, the kid that’s puts it all out there,” she said. “That kind of tenacity and teamwork will serve them well at whatever it is they will be doing. They’re going to be really successful adults and that’s makes my heart happy.
Villa Maria guard Brielle Romeo drives the lane against Bethlehem Catholic on Wednesday. Tom Silknitter – For MediaNews Group
“Sophia is a lacrosse player who play basketball in the winter and is our best player. That tells you something about the kid.”
Bethlehem Catholic 51, Villa Maria 42Villa Maria: Tray 4 3-5 11; Vickers 0 0-0 0; Romeo 1 0-2 3; Croft 3 0-2 6; Troy 2 0-0 4; Urbanski 2 0-0 4; Spano 1 0-0 3; Broadhurst 3 0-0 8; Irvine 1 1-1 3; Del Fra 0 0-0 0. Totals: 17 4 10 42.Bethlehem Catholic: Gallis 5 4-4 16; Ault 0 0-0 0; Brame 6 0-0 15; Lewis 2 1-3 5; Gordon 2 0-0 5; Radande 1 2-6 4; Nickischer 0 3-4 3; Davis 0 0-0 0; Fagan 1 1-2 3. Totals: 18 11-19 51.Villa Maria 15 3 11 13 — 42Bethlehem Catholic 16 11 14 8 — 51Three-point goals: Broadhurst 2, Romeo, Spano, Brame 3, Gallis 2, Gordon.