Neshaminy girls roll past Abington, 44-28, in District 1 semifinal

Neshaminy had trouble stopping Abington’s Kassondra Brown in the first quarter Wednesday night. The senior center had nine of the Ghosts’ 11 points in the quarter.

But Neshaminy found a way to limit Brown’s touches and she scored only five more points in the District 1 Class 6A semifinal at Bensalem High School. Neshaminy cruised to a 44-28 victory.

Second-seeded Neshaminy will play the Garnet Valley-Spring Ford winner for the district title at 4 p.m. Saturday at the Liacouras Center.

“We definitely tried fronting her, and stayed discipline as to where the help was coming from,” Neshaminy coach Joe Lally said. “They have so many shooters, so if the help comes from the strong side of the ball, it’s an easy kick-out.”

After trailing by three at the end of the first quarter, Neshaminy outscored the Ghosts, 15-3, in the second to take a 23-14 lead at the half. Kristin Curley was the catalyst, capping off her own personal 7-0 run with a three-pointer to give Neshaminy its first lead of the game at 15-13. The junior guard also made a key deflection as Abington was on its way to a layup on a fast break.

Abington came out of halftime hot, scoring the first seven points and trimming the lead to two, thanks to threes from Miranda Liebtag and Tamia Wessels. Neshaminy ended its drought with three minutes left in the quarter as Allison Harvey made a layup off a feed from Kelli Kowalick.

Harvey returned the favor on the next possession, hitting Kowalick for a layup give Neshaminy a six-point lead late in the third.

Kowlick and Curley both took charges on key possessions for the winners when offense became a struggle.

“I think it says a lot about the character of the girls on the team,” Lally said. They’re willing to do what it takes to win."

Neshaminy stepped up the defense in the fourth quarter, allowing just one field goal. It took the Ghosts more than four minutes to record a point. Allison Harvey, who had eight points, hit a three to give the Redskins a 37-24 lead.

Brooke Mullins finished with 14 points for the winners. The senior guard went 7-for-7 from the foul line in the fourth quarter. Curley added 11.

Abington 11 3 10 4 28

Neshaminy 8 15 6 15 44

A: Kassondra Brown 14, Carmryn Lexow 2, Miranda Liebtag 4, Tamia Wessels 3, Khalis Whiting 5.

N: Kristin Curley 11, Allison Harvey 8, Kelly Kowalick 7, Alexis McCoy 2, Brooke Mullin 14, Emily Tantala 2.