By Matt Corbett
For Shikellamy and Greenwood, it’s one down and as many as four to go. But the road only gets tougher in the second round of the PIAA girls baskebtall tournament.
The Braves and Wildcats will be back in action this evening after very different first-round victories.
District 4 Class AAA champion Shikellamy is coming off a dramatic (and historic) 50-46 win over Northern Lehigh, a game in which the Braves squandered a 17-point third-quarter lead, then regrouped down the stretch to pull it out. Shikellamy went 6-for-6 from the free throw line in the final minute to prevail, marking the Braves’ first PIAA tournament victory in program history.
This evening, the Braves take on District 12 third-place team Archbishop Wood (22-5) at Milton Hershey High School. Tip-off is slated for 6 p.m.
Meanwhile, District 3 Class A runner-up Greenwood (22-5) is coming off a considerably easier opener, in which the Wildcats routed District 1 runner-up Faith Christian 55-19. Tonight’s second-round matchup has Greenwood taking on District 2 champion Old Forge (17-6) at 7 p.m. at Danville High School.
Shikellamy coach Lew Dellegrotti says he knows little about Archbishop Wood, but it’s certainly a red flag that the Vikings hail from the powerful Philadelphia Catholic League.
“I made some phone calls (and learned that) they play pressure man-to-man (defense). Basically, we’ve prepared for everthing,” Dellegrotti said. “At this stage, you just have to do what you do well. You can’t pull any rabbits out of the hat.
“We’ll be ready for a lot of pressure and hope we can get them to play our game. Hopefully it’ll be an up-tempo game. We’ll try to make it that way and see how it works out.”
Shikellamy is led in scoring by senior guard Kelly Bickel at 16.2 points per game, while senior forward Megan Slonaker is at 10.3 and senior swing-player Dana Reed averages 9.7 points.
“I’m sure (Archbishop Wood) will have pretty good size on the front line, but I’ll put up Megan, Dana and Emily (Daddario) against anybody. They’ve been doing a good job.
“The major key will be to stay out of foul trouble. From what we’ve heard they have a lot of depth, so we’ll have to stay out of foul trouble.”
Despite Shikellamy’s momentum, the Braves won’t be the favorite in tonight’s game.
“I would say we’re probably the underdog, because the (Philadelphia Catholic League) has been pretty successful. But it’s a great thing for our program to be playing them. I think we can can compete with them if we play the way we’re capable of playing.”
For Greenwood, it will be the Wildcats’ height versus the Blue Devils’ experience.
“They’re very senior-oriented, they have four (seniors) who start, so they’re very poised,” said Greenwood coach T.J. Weller. “We’ll be the bigger team, which we can’t say often. They’ll try to pressure our young guards, so (sophomore guard) Salene (Shaffer) will have her hands full. We’re young compared to them.”
The Wildcats will look to work their offense inside out, with an entry pass usually going to leading scorer Autumn Pellman, who will decide to drive or dish back to the perimeter.
“If they pack it in, we can hit the 3-pointer,” Weller said. “Salene, Sarah Howell, Kiana Stephens, they can all hit the three.”
Greenwood may have another advantage in that Weller is a native of the Scranton area, has contacts there, and is familar with the quality of ball played in District 2.
“I graduated from Montrose, and we played a lot of Scranton schools. So I know the type of play up there,” he said.
Junior forward Pellman leads the Wildcats in scoring at 19.3 points per game, while Shaffer averages 8.8 points. Junior forward Bekah Goodling averages 7.6 points and 7.0 rebounds per contest.
Officiating may also play a role in tonight’s contest.
“I think we’re a little deeper,” Weller said. “They have five kids who have the stats, but if they get into foul trouble, they’re looking at putting in younger, more inexperienced players. We’ll definitely pound the ball inside, and if we can get them out of their game, our defense is tough. It’s just a matter of trying to get them into a little foul trouble.”
Greenwood’s man-to-man defense has been stalwart all season, allowing just 33.1 points per game. Weller likes his chances with that sort of statistic.
“I think it’s a pretty even match, but it’s a game we can win. We’ll show up ready to play.”
n E-mail comments to mcorbett@dailyitem.com
