Roman, Mastern North boys set for state title games

D'Andre Vilmar has a pretty good idea of how long it takes to run across the Ben Franklin Bridge.

As Roman Catholic prepares to defend its PIAA Class 4A title against District 8's Allderdice in Hershey Saturday night, the Pennsauken, N.J., resident promises he won't have to make that trek again.

Before the Cahillites (26-4) departed for the Giant Center last season, Vilmar said he was on a bus that broke down near the bridge, which meant he could have waited for the replacement bus that was en route or take matters into his own . . . feet.

"I was like, 'What am I going to do?' " the 6-foot-3 junior wing said.

What he did was hoof it - black backpack holding his jersey and sneakers on his back - across the 9,573-foot bridge, which, he said, took about 10 minutes.

"I've seen people run across that bridge all the time," he said. "Nobody probably even noticed me."

Later, he added, "I don't like being late, and I don't like making excuses."

Instead of being dropped off via bus near Hahnemann University Hospital, a few hundred feet from Roman's Broad Street campus, Vilmar ran. He arrived - drenched in sweat - in what he guessed was about five or 10 minutes late.

According to Google, the distance he covered on foot was about two miles.

My teammates "were all waiting on the bus, and when I got on I was all sweaty they were like, 'Bro, where have you been? What were you doing?' " Vilmar said.

Vilmar, a key defensive piece for the Cahillites, will need to conserve energy for Allderdice (28-1). Senior guard James Jackson led the Dragons' semifinal win against Reading with 32 points.

So, instead of catching the 11:38 a.m. bus that failed him last year, Vilmar said he will catch the 10:38 a.m. bus on Saturday.

"No chance [I'll be late this time]," he said. "No chance."

When Daeqwon Plowden was in eighth grade at Mastery Charter (Pickett), nervous energy nearly caused an embarrassing gaffe.

Now Plowden is a 6-foot-3 junior for Mastery North (29-3), which plays District 7's Aliquippa (29-0) in Hershey for the Class 2A title Saturday at 2 p.m.

Back then, however, Plowden was a skittish eighth grader who once rebounded an opponent's miss and tried to put it back in his own basket.

"I was so nervous that when I got the rebound, I put it back up," he said, laughing. "But I'm glad I missed."

After advancing to the quarterfinals last season, Plowden's Pumas hope to calm their nerves at the Giant Center.

"We weren't used to the environment [last year]," Plowden said. "It was something that was new to us, and it caught us off guard and rattled us. This year, we're used to the environment, tempo and different styles of play, so it's more expected for us to perform better."

Senior guard Benford Jones, who Plowden called the team's leader, is another major contributor.

Plowden is an inside-outside threat who will be needed against the Quips, who were also 29-0 when they lost to Conwell-Egan in last year's 2A title game.

"I'm pretty sure it's going to be nerve-racking at first," Plowden said. "But after warm-ups and the first couple minutes of the game, the jitters will be out."

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