Two of the most successful programs in Lehigh Valley athletics added more titles to their impressive resumes on Saturday at Easton Area Middle School.<\/p>\n
Allentown Central Catholic\u2019s girls basketball team won their fourth straight District 11 championship and 26th overall with a 46-31 win over Blue Mountain for the Class 4A crown and Bethlehem Catholic\u2019s girls extended their remarkable streak to 10 straight D11 championships, 13 in 14 seasons and 17 overall with a 67-27 rout of Southern Lehigh.<\/p>\n
And while those perennial powers collected more gold medals, Bethlehem Christian got its first championship as the program, in just its fifth year, defeated Weatherly 28-18 for the Class A title.<\/p>\n
All of the teams are moving on to state tournament compeition beginning on Saturday.<\/p>\n
Green and golden Vikettes<\/p>\n
Allentown Central Catholic bolted to a 19-5 lead early in the second quarter and never looked back in its win over Blue Mountain. Skylar Taylor triggered the good start with six points in the first quarter and Shamiya Roberts added five.<\/p>\n
The Vikettes (14-12) entered the tournament as the No. 7 seed, but never looked like anything but a No. 1 as they defeated Northwestern Lehigh 46-42, Palmerton and 55-37 and completed the road to gold with a solid outing against Blue Mountain.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s kind of special because we struggled so much early in the season,\u201d said ACCHS coach Kathy Davidowich, who has now won four championships in as many seasons since replacing coaching legend Mike Kopp.\u00a0 \u201cWe were 0-4 and you could get down on yourself and wonder what you\u2019re doing wrong. We were up and down and up and down, but at the end of the season we started putting things together defensively and that put us in position to start winning.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Vikettes were 4-9 after a 50-29 loss to Liberty on Jan. 3, but won seven of their last nine to qualify for districts and they have bounced back again after a lopsided loss to Emmaus in the EPC quarterfinals.<\/p>\n
Central held Blue Mountain to just 11 points in the first half in building a 15-point halftime lead.<\/p>\n
The Eagles (14-12) played better in the third quarter and got within 32-23 entering the fourth period but never seriously threatened. A steal and layup by Roberts made it 38-25 with 5 minutes left and Central made seven of nine at the line in the final quarter to put it away.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe had to box out today because watching them they were very good at crashing the boards,\u201d Davidowich said. \u201cWe wanted to make sure we boxed them out and also do a good job with help defense and have good communication.\u201d<\/p>\n
Morgan Seagreaves, a senior forward, scored eight points and had 10 rebounds.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis feels amazing,\u201d she said. \u201cI couldn\u2019t do this without my team and my coaches. We all worked hard and it all paid off. Today it was about the defense and staying confident and together as a team. We didn\u2019t give up on each other. We kept playing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Seagreaves said her team benefits from playing in the EPC.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s so hard and competitive, but it helps us so much,\u201d she said. \u201cIt gets us ready for this tournament. We want to try to get to Hershey. The goal is to win everything. We have the next two days off to rest and that\u2019s good because some of us are sick and injured, but we\u2019ll be ready to go.\u201d<\/p>\n
Roberts and Taylor finished with 14 and 13 points respectively.<\/p>\n
\u201cPlaying in the EPC really prepares us because we play better competition,\u201d Taylor, a sophomore, said. \u201cThat\u2019s why being the seventh seed is OK.\u201d<\/p>\n
Taylor said it was great to send the seniors out with a fourth straight district title, and now the team wants more.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve just got to keep doing the game prep and believing in ourselves,\u201d she said. \u201cWe\u2019ve got to play to the best of our ability.\u201d<\/p>\n
Central\u2019s PIAA tournament action begins at 1 p.m. Saturday when the Vikettes host Mifflinburg Area, District 4\u2019s runner-up with a record of 15-10. At the same time Blue Mountain will host Valley View from District 2.<\/p>\n
Becahi\u2019s Golden Girls<\/p>\n
Bethlehem Catholic\u2019s fullcourt pressure rattled Southern Lehigh and the offense clicked on all cylinders in its mercy-rule win over Southern Lehigh.<\/p>\n
The Golden Hawks led 33-12 after one quarter and 56-18 at halftime.<\/p>\n
Senior guard Leah Ault led the early surge with 10 points and four assists in the first half and added three more assists in the third quarter.<\/p>\n
Aliyah Brame, another senior, scored 10 points and Camryn Gallis, a freshman who has been injured most of the season, delivered 12 of her 14 points in the first half.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m proud of the girls,\u201d said Becahi coach Arnold Alleyne. \u201cTo be able to get 10 straight titles means a lot for the program and shows what the girls have done over the years. We take nothing for granted and take no one lightly. We play our style of basketball.\u201d<\/p>\n
Alleyne, whose team improved to 23-4, said it\u2019s difficult to compare one team to the next in Becahi\u2019s decade-long run.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe just try to keep the culture the same with hard-working kids; kids with grit,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd kids who come to practice and work hard each day and let the chips fall where they may. Today they stuck to the game and played tough defense together. When we do that, great things happen.\u201d<\/p>\n
Alleyne is hoping for more great things in the upcoming PIAA tournament.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe got to the quarterfinals last year and this year we want it all,\u201d he said. \u201cWe want the whole thing. We need to have that kind of a defensive effort and we can do it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brame would like nothing better to go out with a state championship. She said it\u2019s not by accident the program has won 10 straight district championships.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s the sisterhood,\u201d she said. \u201cGrowing up watching Becahi and seeing them when some of their first district titles was amazing to see and that\u2019s exactly why I personally joined the program. It\u2019s an amazing thing to witness and an amazing thing to be apart of as a player.\u201d<\/p>\n
Southern Lehigh (12-13) was led by junior Eliana Marques, who scored 16 points.<\/p>\n
The Golden Hawks will continue hope PIAA play with a home game against Bishop Shanahan, District 1\u2019s No. 6 team with a 12-13 record, at 1 p.m. Saturday.<\/p>\n
Bethlehem Christian gets one<\/p>\n
While the Bethlehem Christian boys have won back-to-back Class A titles, the girls got their own hardware with a defensive-oriented win over Weatherly.<\/p>\n
Senior Paige Kreidler led the way with 12 points and Elyse Khachadourian, another senior, added nine. Weatherly went just 4-for-12 from the foul line had only seven field goals.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt feels incredible,\u201d Kreidler said. \u201cI couldn\u2019t sleep the night before. I was praying and saying \u2018Please God, we\u2019ve waited so long for this.\u2019 I love my team so much and I was so happy for the opportunity. On defense, we talk a lot and try to contain and close out on the shooters. This program has had some growing pains and it feels really good to bring it home.\u201d<\/p>\n
Coach Greg Duff, whose 24-3 team will play Phil-Mont Christian at 1 p.m. Saturday at Liberty\u2019s Memorial Gym in its state opener, said, \u201cThis has been a long time coming and I am really proud of them. We had been here the last two years and it was heartbreak for us. I\u2019m so proud of these girls because they have worked hard and they have bought in to the hard work and our goals. It\u2019s always defense first for us. Sometimes the ball isn\u2019t going to go in the whole, but we work hard all on defense all the time and that wins games.\u201d<\/p>\n
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