Archbishop Carroll Stops SF's Road to PSU

The longest of roads for girls basketball... A 26-game win streak... A PAC-10 Championship... A District title... A trip to the PIAA State Semifinals... All ended on Tuesday night at the hands of Chuck Creighton's Archbishop Carroll squad. They defeated the Rams 65-43.

"They’re upset," head coach Jeff Rinehimer said of his girls. "They wanted more and maybe to put on a better performance. The kids over there [at Archbishop Carroll] have a lot of experience. They turn on the jets, saying ‘This is our night.’ They were tough."

The game opened up with a lot of energy. The stands were filled on both sides of the large Norristown High School gym, and both crowds showed support for each team. Carroll's first point was scored on a free throw by senior guard Rachel Pearson.

Spring-Ford's Courtney Hinnant (junior forward) answered with a bucket and drew the foul in the process, much to the delight of the roaring Spring-Ford crowd. Hinnant made the foul shot, and went on to score nine points in the game. She grabbed seven rebounds, and had one assist.

From there, the two teams battled through the first quarter, both showing aggression on the court. The first quarter ended with Spring-Ford leading 18-16.

The second quarter began the Lady Rams' demise. Opening the quarter by scoring four in the first three minutes, Spring-Ford lost its lead to an 11-0 Archbishop Carroll run. The Rams were only able to score two more points in the half, and would head to the locker room with a seven-point deficit at halftime.

"Their shooting was amazing," said senior captain . "They’re fast, they were hustling, they were playing with heart. They just played really well."

Traywick led the Rams in points in the game with 11, along with three rebounds and a block.

Defensively, the Rams forced 13 turnovers, but was not really able to overpower the Patriots like they have other teams this season.

"That was our downfall," said senior captain . "That little hesitation we had in our defense. They took it and ran with it. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to come back from that."

Lynch had five points and a rebound in the contest.

The third quarter proved to be the proverbial nail in the coffin for Rinehimer's Rams. The girls were outscored 22-10 in the third quarter. Coming out, the girls thought they might have been on to something with a Traywick layup and one. However, it was the Patriots' ability to hit the open shots that buried Spring-Ford.

"I thought okay, maybe we could get back," Rinehimer said. "I was impressed. Their defense – I thought we could take advantage of some things – but they played really cranked up. We started to chase and they hit their open shots. They passed the ball well and their guards did a nice job."

Leading the way for the Patriots were Meghan Creighton (22 points), Pearson (14 points) and Sarah Curran (11 points). All three will be playing Division I basketball at the collegiate level.

Spring-Ford couldn't hold on in the game and the supporting fans saw this year's team exit the court with just about four minutes to go in the game, getting a chance to take a look at next year's squad.

Archbishop Carroll will head to Penn State University on Friday to play Oakland Catholic in the PIAA State Final. Overall, this season will go down as the best girls basketball season in Spring-Ford history.

"They did a great job," said Rinehimer. "Thirty wins and 26 in a row. I’m proud about it. Whoever’s on the schedule, we try to get as good of competition as we can get. To win that many games in a row is a great accomplishment. We probably had our best third quarter against Cheltenham since I’ve been here. This third quarter against Carroll – you see how it works like that."

Traywick will go on to play basketball at Shippensburg. She said she will take everything she's learned with this special team to the next level.

"These coaches have taught me about life and basketball," Traywick said. "I’m going to take it to Shipp. They’ve taught me about the offseason. I’m going to work as hard as anything. I never want to feel this again."

Both Traywick and Lynch will compete on the track and field team this spring, but they cannot forget the bonds they've created on the basketball court.

"I wouldn’t trade any one of my teammates for anyone else," said Lynch. "We’ve become so close. We work so well together. We just know how each other plays. We’re there for each other all of the time. I love them. They’re family to me."

LRSC Patch would like to congratulate AND thank the Spring-Ford Girls Basketball Team for a great season. Check back this week for the season recap and a column from the editor's desk.

Spring-Ford Statistics

Points
Mariah Traywick - 11
Courtney Hinnant - 9
Sammi Haas - 8
Nikki Lynch - 5
Sammy Stipa - 4
Sarah Payonk - 4
Brittany Moore - 2

Rebounds
Hinnant - 7
Payonk - 5
Traywick - 3
Haley Puckett - 3
Shelby Mueller - 2
Stipa - 1
Lynch - 1
Maggie Locke - 1

Assists
Stipa - 3
Jaida Burgess - 2
Moore - 1
Hinnant - 1
Payonk - 1
Haas - 1

Blocks
Traywick - 1
Payonk - 1

Steals
Stipa - 1
Payonk - 1