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CB South downs short-handed Cedar Crest, 65-42


PLYMOUTH MEETING – Down a point guard, Cedar Crest suffered with ball control in its PIAA Class AAAA girls basketball playoff opener at Colonial Elementary School in Montgomery County.

Central Bucks South, the third seed out of District 1, heavily pressured Jim Donmoyer’s Falcons, and the ensuing turnovers fueled a 65-42 first-round victory Friday night.

Crest (22-6), the fourth seed out of District 3, coughed it up 26 times, and a 14-0 run by Beth Mattern’s Titans (22-6) closed the first half and tilted this late-evening contest significantly in their favor.

“It came down to we couldn’t handle the pressure,” Donmoyer said of the turnovers. CB South turned it over just 12 times. “We needed other people to handle the ball, and we just didn’t do that very well.”

Jordan Vitelli knocked down four 3-pointers – three in the decisive second quarter – and finished with a game-high 24 points for CB South. Mackenzie Ehresman added 16 points, going 10-for-10 from the free-throw line, and Meghan Kuypers contributed 13 points off the bench.

Alyssa Austin paced the Falcons with 19 points, five rebounds and four blocked shots, but the absence of starting point guard Ariel Jones proved costly.

Donmoyer would only say Jones, who was with the team Friday, was “unavailable” and stressed that she was “a great kid.”

Without Jones, and with Austin scoring all 12 of her team’s points in the opening frame, the Falcons were hanging tight with the Titans through the game’s first 11 minutes.

Then a three-point play by Ehresman kick-started a 14-0 run over the final three minutes of the second stanza, with Kuypers bucketing seven of her points during that span.

The CB South advantage was 37-19 at halftime, and the Falcons got no closer than 17 in the second half.

The victors were also 20 of 22 at the foul line, compared to 9 of 22 for the Falcons.

It was the final game for Crest seniors Caitlynn Albright, Skyanne Yancey and Alaze Merkey, all of whom contributed not only in the season finale, but in helping the Falcons win a Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 1 title and reach the semifinals in both the L-L and District 3-AAAA tournaments.

“I have no complaints about the season,” Donmoyer said. “We lost six seniors last year, so for us to (achieve what we did), the program is going in the right direction. I can’t ask much more than that.”

Geoff Morrow can be followed on Twitter: @RageAgainstGMo

CB South 65, Cedar Crest 42  

Cedar Crest (42)

Jade Rolon 0-1 0-2 0, Gracen Donmoyer 1-3 0-0 2, Skyanne Yancey 3-6 0-1 7, Caitlynn Albright 1-1 0-0 2, Alyssa Austin 6-10 6-11 19, Alaze Merkey 0-0 0-2 0, Kelsey Guth 0-0 1-2 1, Sage Bartal 1-1 2-2 4, Rachel Witherite 2-4 0-0 5, Raven Morgan 1-1 0-2 2. Totals — 15-27 9-22 42.

CB South (65)

Taylor Dunn 1-5 0-0 2, Chloe Entenberg 0-4 0-0 0, Jordan Vitelli 6-10 8-8 24, Courtney Dietzel 1-7 0-0 2, Mackenzie Ehresman 3-7 10-10 16, Alexa Brodie 0-5 0-0 0, Lindsay Scott 0-0 0-0 0, Courtney Taylor 0-0 0-0 0, Melissa Veal 1-1 0-0 2, Meghan Kuypers 5-9 1-2 13, Tricia Decesare 1-2 0-0 3, Haley Meinel 1-2 0-0 2, Maddie McShane 0-0 1-2 1. Totals — 19-52 20-22 65.

Cedar Crest_ 12 _ 7 _ 12 _ 11 _ — _ 42 

CB South _ 14 _ 23 _ 13 _ 15 _ — _ 65 

3-point goals — CC 3-7 (Yancey, Witherite, Austin, CBS 7-20 (Vitelli 4, Kuypers 2, Decesare).