Central League girls’ basketball: Conestoga’s athletic defense shuts down Radnor

Tredyffrin >> Starting four players 5-9 or taller, host Conestoga unleashed an aggressive defense that forced turnovers en route to a 47-33 win against Radnor Tuesday night in the Central League opener for both teams.
“I haven’t seen that many of our passes tipped in one game since I’ve been here at Radnor,” said Red Raider head coach Mark Jordan, now in his 11th year as Radnor girls’ basketball head coach. “Conestoga’s got size, and when they get their two point guards back [from injury], they’re really going to be tough to beat.”

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The two point guards Jordan was referring to are 5-7 senior Sarah Mascioli and 5-8 junior Maria Koblish, who are out with foot injuries but could be returning within a week. Conestoga head coach Chris Jeffries called them, “our two best shooters and two best ball handlers.”
Even without the two point guards, Conestoga (2-0) was able to wreak havoc Tuesday night with its size. Not only did they force a number of Radnor turnovers, but they won the rebound battle too, led by 6-4 junior center Katie Mayock (10 rebounds), 6-1 junior forward Cat Esbehshade (six rebounds), 5-11 senior forward Emma Powell (six) and 5-9 senior Liz Scott (five).
Jeffries said, “We have a lot of athletic phenoms here at Conestoga, state champion caliber athletes from the soccer team and the lacrosse team, and some of them are on this basketball team. They’re great athletes who can do a lot of things.”
Radnor hung close to Conestoga, particularly in the first half, and trailed by only five points (29-24) late in the third quarter. Radnor senior guard Nicole Massimino, a four-year starter, managed to penetrate the tough Conestoga defense often enough to keep the score close through three periods, and she finished with 15 points on the night.
“[Massimino] always plays hard, and I wish she had more help,” said Jordan. “We were not the aggressors tonight, and we would rather be the punchers than the counter-punchers. We’re a young team, and we’re heading down to Orlando [Florida] for a couple of games {Dec. 15-16], and we’ll fix it down in Florida.”
In the third quarter, Mayock made her presence felt on the inside, and she pulled down several offensive rebounds and scored underneath as the Pioneers gradually lengthened their lead. The 6-foot-4 junior finished with 17 points, second only to Powell for the night (18 points, 10-for-12 from the free-throw line).
“Katie [at 6-4] is tough to guard when she gets deep,” said Jeffries. “Then, with Emma Powell next to her, it’s tough to keep them out of the lane. But Katie could be eight feet tall, and it wouldn’t matter if you don’t get the ball to her in the right places, and [senior guard] Lindsay Erickson (six assists) did a great job tonight getting the ball into Mayock.”
Early in the fourth quarter, as Conestoga was in the middle of an 8-0 run, Scott intercepted a Radnor pass that was quickly followed by a Mayock basket underneath that gave the hosts a 37-24 lead.
“Liz did a great job on defense tonight,” said Jeffries. “She is our glue, she does a little bit of everything, and she really helped us tonight with our [two point guards] being out.”
The Pioneers were proficient from the free throw line, too, hitting 73 percent from the charity stripe (19-for-16).
“We return nine varsity players from last year,” said Jeffries. “We want to [aim high] and see how far [that veteran experience] takes us.”