Brennan’s bomb scores a first for Garnet Valley

To fulfill its hopes of qualifying for the Central League semifinals, Garnet Valley required something special in the final moments Friday. Cade Brennan stepped to the mark.

The forward laser-beamed home a 3-pointer, just his second of the season, as the buzzer sounded to give Garnet Valley a 53-50 win over Conestoga.

The win earns the Jaguars (16-6, 11-5) the third seed and a date with second-seeded Lower Merion in Sunday’s semifinal. It is Garnet Valley’s first trip to the Central League playoffs. Upper Darby (11-5 in the league) is the fourth seed. Had Conestoga won, it would’ve been the fourth seed and Upper Darby the third with Garnet Valley dropping to fifth.

Brennan scored 11 points, as did Greg Vlassopoulos. Austin Laughlin led the way with 15 points, and Connor O’Brien chipped in eight.

Also in the Central League:

Penncrest 52, Marple Newtown 48 >> Tyler Norwood paired 22 points with six assists, and Justin Heidig notched a season-high of 14 points as Penncrest (20-2, 14-2) clinched the top seed in the playoffs and tied a program mark for most wins in a regular season, evening the number from the 1968 squad.

Anthony Paoletti scored 15 points, and Mike May added 11 for the Tigers (13-9, 9-7). Marple sees an eight-game winning streak halted but is still comfortably in the preliminary District 1 Class 5A field.

Radnor 59, Springfield 54 >> Zahir Lee exploded for a career-high 23 points, including 12 in the fourth quarter, as Radnor registered its first league win of the season to potentially dash Springfield’s hopes of qualifying for the District 1 Class 5A field.

Vernon Harper added 14 points, including a 3-pointer in the final minute to put Radnor (2-18, 1-15) up for good.

Mike Webb led Springfield (8-14, 8-8) with 20 points in the losing effort. Preliminary results Friday night listed the Cougars as unofficially the 17th team in Class 5A with 16 making the tournament.

Strath Haven 59, Harriton 49 >> The Panthers solidified a spot in the District 1 Class 5A tournament behind 17 points from Cooper Driscoll and 12 from Jordan Graves. AJ Santisi and Chris Rosini tossed in eight apiece for the Panthers (10-12, 6-10).

Lower Merion 60, Haverford 46 >> Dan Roe scored 11 points and Matt Gillen added nine for the Fords (8-13, 4-12), who had nine of their 17 baskets come from beyond the 3-point line.