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District 1 champ Sun Valley boys ready for Class 5A state basketball tournament; Villa Maria leads charge for girls

Vinny DeAngelo helped lead the Vanguards to their first PIAA state playoff appearance since 1990.

Sun Valley teammates (from left) Lance Stone, Marvin Freeman, Dominic Valente (top), Vinny DeAngelo and Isaac Kennon celebrate after the Vanguards won the District 1 Class 5A boys basketball championship game on Saturday, March 2, 2019 Sun Valley defeated West Chester East in the final, 65-54.
Sun Valley teammates (from left) Lance Stone, Marvin Freeman, Dominic Valente (top), Vinny DeAngelo and Isaac Kennon celebrate after the Vanguards won the District 1 Class 5A boys basketball championship game on Saturday, March 2, 2019 Sun Valley defeated West Chester East in the final, 65-54.Read moreLOU RABITO / Staff
    by Jaiden Campana
    Published 

The Sun Valley boys’ basketball team went 32-167 from 2005 to 2014 and opted for change. After going 18-48 in new coach Steve Maloney’s first three years, the team needed a spark. Vinny DeAngelo provided it.

Last season, DeAngelo put up 22.7 points per-game, scored his 1,000th point, and helped lead the Vanguards to their first PIAA state playoff appearance since 1990. Now, Sun Valley is the top District 1 seed in the Class 5A state playoffs and will play Garden Spot on Friday.

All boys games are on Friday. The girls will play Saturday.

In the girls’ bracket, Abby Walheim led Villa Maria over Mount St. Joseph for the fourth time this season, including the District 1 5A title game. Villa will open the state tournament against Elizabethtown. The Hurricanes and Magic can meet for a fifth time this season -- in the championship.

Staying in the girls’ bracket, District 12 champion Archbishop Carroll plays Spring Grove as winner of 15 straight. In the district title game, Erin Sweeney scored 33 points against Mastery North.

Both Archbishop Wood programs will play in the first round of states. Rahsool Diggins’ monster performance in the District 12 Class 5A championship secured a top seed for the boys, who face Holy Ghost Prep. Wood’s girls come in as the third seed and play Springfield (Delco).

Back to the boys’ side, it took two overtimes for Penncrest to be eliminated by West Chester Rustin in the District 1 Class 5A quarterfinals. The Lions will play Wallenpaupack in the PIAA first round.

If both teams make it to the second round, Pottsgrove has a chance to go 2-0 in the postseason against Holy Ghost Prep. The Falcons beat the Firebirds in the district quarterfinals. First, Pottsgrove will face District 2 top seed Abington Heights, which goes into the tournament on a 20-game win streak, 12 of which have been decided by 20 points or more.

Both Mastery North programs will see first-round action. The boys’ team fell victim to Archbishop Wood in the District 12 Class 5A championship. The girls beat Palumbo in the Public League 5A final but lost to Archbishop Carroll in the District 12 title game.

Frankford’s boys (13-13) will face District 2′s Crestwood. West Chester East plays Archbishop Ryan.

For the girls, West Chester Henderson plays District 3 second seed Gettysburg, which is 12-1 in games in which it allows fewer than 40 points. Pope John Paul II meets District 3 champion Palmyra, which won the title as a No. 12 seed. Palumbo will play Twin Valley.

Radnor will have a tough first round matchup against District 11′s Southern Lehigh. The Spartans go into the tournament having won their fourth consecutive district title and are winners of 18 straight games.