North Penn deals Cheltenham first loss

The opposition facing the North Penn girls' basketball team, 17-0 Cheltenham, was imposing enough Saturday.

But the challenges kept piling on: The stench of the Maidens' double-overtime, Friday night loss to Central Bucks West still lingered in the Lansdale gym, and the Panthers appeared unstoppable early.

"Visitors 10, North Penn 0," the scoreboard read after just 2 minutes, 43 seconds had elapsed. From the sideline, North Penn coach Maggie deMarteleire could see last year's nightmare - when Cheltenham led, 21-7, after the first quarter of a 21-point win - reoccurring. She called a timeout.

"Our heads were down from [Friday] night and there were definitely jitters because we knew what happened last year," North Penn senior forward Steph Knauer said. "Thank God we got over it."

Suddenly, the passes became crisper and the shots found their arc. The Maidens scored on their next five possessions on their way to a table-turning, 56-43 upset of coach Bob Schaefer's perennial powerhouse.

"It's one of the most satisfying wins I've been a part of," deMarteleire said. "[Schaefer] is a great coach. They're a great team with a great tradition. So for us, this is a big thing."

The rumbling in the stands throughout the game, the standing ovation as time expired, and the celebratory screams from the home locker room showed how big, and surprising, the outcome was.

But while many might view the final score with raised eyebrows, Schaefer said he could see it coming. Never once did he mention the unblemished record to his players, focusing on how they played rather than the end result.

"We've been playing sloppy the whole last month, really," Schaefer said. ". . . We've been a little too comfortable with 17 wins in a row."

The Panthers, ranked No. 4 in Southeastern Pennsylvania by The Inquirer, had won all but four of the 17 games by double digits. Saturday, weaknesses that had been masked by Ws were exposed.

Cheltenham couldn't find much offense outside of terrific one-on-one play from senior guard Ciara Andrews, who connected on jumper after jumper during a 17-point first half. Swarmed by traps and double teams after the break, Andrews missed 10 of her last 12 shots and finished with 25.

Three North Penn players scored at least 15 points. The 6-foot Knauer led the way with 17, joining with 6-2 junior Lauren Crisler to dominate inside.

"I always say I worry about teams where their best players are their big girls, and that lived true today," Schaefer said.

The setback will have ripple effects, Schaefer added, because teams will "believe they can beat us."

For the Maidens (13-5), one win meant a whole lot to a feisty group of players.

"I can't say enough about them. I don't even have words," deMarteleire said. "I'm just so happy and so proud of the kids."

Cheltenham   18 10 9 6 – 43

North Penn   11 13 14 18 – 56

C: Ciara Andrews 25, Christina Coleman 7, Shayla Peoples 5, Jiana Clark 4, Sabrina Casseus 2.

NP: Steph Knauer 17, Erin Maher 16, Lauren Crisler 15, Brenda McDermott 4, Vicky Tumasz 4.