Fri. Pa. girls’ roundup: St. Basil advances

Pope John Paul II's basketball team had designs on registering a second postseason upset in the District 1 Class AAA playoff quarterfinals on Friday night.

Host St. Basil Academy had other plans, though, and pulled out a 49-36 win.

In the battle between teams called the Panthers, the regular Panthers outlasted the Golden Panthers behind the scoring of Jackie Thompson, a guard who had 18 points.

Thompson had been averaging double figures over her last 12 games and continued her scoring trend in the win over the Golden Panthers, scoring eight of her points in the fourth quarter. She keyed the defense with nine steals.

Jill Lynch, a forward, added 10 rebounds. Lynch scored all nine of her points during a 16-9 run in the second quarter that pushed a 2-0 lead into an 18-9 halftime advantage.

Pope John Paul II, the 12th seed, came into the game with a surprising win on its resumé, having knocked off fifth-seeded Oxford in a first-round game.

St. Basil, the No. 4 seed, earned a first-round bye awarded to the district's top four seeds.

The Panthers (14-9) now travel to Wissahickon for a Tuesday semifinal against top-seeded Villa Maria.

The Golden Panthers finished their season with a 9-13 record, but they won the Freedom Division of the Pioneer Athletic Conference with a 7-6 mark.

In other quarterfinals:

Host Villa Maria earned its semifinal shot with a 50-35 win over fellow Athletic Association of Catholic Academies member Merion Mercy, the No. 8 seed.

The Hurricanes were led by Lisa Mirarchi, who scored 13 points, and a defense that forced 21 turnovers.

Another league team, sixth-seeded Villa Joseph Marie, surprised host and third-seeded Springfield (Delaware County), 48-45.

The Jems (13-11) were led by Lexi Stershic, who scored 17 points.

The Cougars, who finished their season at 15-8, were led by Tori Grossi's 15 points.

The Cougars finished their season with a 15-8 record. They made only 11 of 22 free throws.

Villa Joseph Marie never trailed in the game, but the Cougars made it close in the final quarter with a 17-11 run.

At Holy Ghost Prep, second-seeded Nazareth Academy held record-setting shooter Cassidy Koenig to just two points in a 42-31 win over seventh-seeded and visiting Upper Merion.

Koenig, a junior guard who came into the game with a school-record 91 three-pointers, had just a pair of three- pointers in the loss.

Meanwhile, at the other end of the floor, Danielle Gaspieri hit a pair of three-pointers and finished with 16 points to lead the Pandas (17-7). Lindsay Fluehr helped Nazareth Academy close out the game by scoring 12 points during a 19-5 run.

Nicole Perri scored only one point for the Pandas, but led the way in rebounding with 12.

Kristina O'Sullivan's 10 points led Upper Merion.

Nazareth Academy will play in the first game of the semifinal doubleheader at Wissahickon High on Tuesday against Villa Joseph Marie.

District 1 Class AAAA. In a playoff quarterfinal at Council Rock South, top-seeded Council Rock North got all it could handle from eighth-seeded Central Bucks East but survived with a 39-38 win.

The Gold sisters, Lauren and Devin, the Indians' two starting guards, once again led the way for Council Rock North, with Lauren scoring 15 and Devin adding 13.

The Indians (24-1) advanced to a Wednesday night game at Norristown (7 p.m.) against the winner of the Cheltenham vs Lower Merion game played on Saturday.