Neshaminy rallies past North Penn in SOL Challenge

TOWAMENCIN >> Persistent defense, along with the inside play of Brooke Mullin coupled with the three-point bombs of Allison Harvey, fueled a 15-2 Neshaminy run in the fourth quarter Saturday, as the Skins pushed past host North Penn, 55-43, at the Suburban One League Challenge.

Mullin scored a game-high 19 points, Harvey had 11, and Emily Tantala chipped in 10 for unbeaten Neshaminy (5-0, 1-0 SOL National), which overcame a four-point deficit heading into the fourth.

North Penn (1-2, 0-1 SOL Continental) had led by as many as eight in the third but saw the Skins go ahead for good when a three pointer by Harvey fell through with 3 minutes, 40 seconds to play.

“I felt like our energy started decreasing,” said the Knights’ Alli Lindsay, who scored a team-high 13. “And we kept turning the ball over more because (the Skins) started face guarding Cayla Sharkey, a good shooter of ours, and they started face guarding me, and they were just all over us.”

A steal and layup by the Skins’ Kelli Kowalick extended Neshaminy’s lead to 43-38. Mullin had a strip underneath the basket, and moments later Kristin Curley hit a pair of free throws to make it 45-38.

The Skins pressed the Knights into another turnover and Emily Tantala capitalized with a layup. A three by Sharkey (10 points) got the Knights back in it, making it 47-41 with under three minutes to play.

But shots like that were hard to come by.

“We couldn’t get the ball to our shooters,” Lindsay said.

Alexa McCoy and Curley each hit free throws to ice the game for the Skins.

North Penn had opened the third quarter with an 8-0 burst. Lindsay hit three of her four 3-pointers in the period, a big reason the Knights led 31-23 before Neshaminy made its run.

“I felt really good,” Lindsay said. “I didn’t shoot very well last game (in a loss to Souderton Area), but I kept practicing and made sure my shots were going in. I focused on setting my feet more and my teammates really got me open a lot.

“I give all the credit to them, because their energy and their hustle to get me open definitely helped me out.”