Hurricanes’ momentum slowed by loss to unbeaten Cougars

Malvern >> The Villa Maria Academy basketball squad burst into New Year’s Day with a 7-1 record, its only loss a two-point defeat to unbeaten St. Basil Dec. 15. In the past two weeks, the Hurricanes rolled on, earning three consecutive wins against tough opponents Academy of Notre Dame, Cherokee (N.J.) and Cardinal O’Hara.
But Saturday afternoon, the Hurricanes’ momentum was temporarily stopped by a 50-45 defeat to visiting Springfield (Delco) in front of a packed gym at Villa Maria.
Even while holding a 23-21 halftime lead, the hosts were struggling to score, and converted only five of 10 free throws against Springfield (9-0).
“We didn’t come ready to play today,” said Villa Maria head coach Kathy McCartney. “We didn’t play defense, which is our trademark. We were just a little flat today, we just weren’t ready.”
The Hurricanes maintained a small lead much of the first half. Three consecutive baskets at the end of the first quarter by Hurricane junior guard Myra Warley gave the hosts a 10-9 lead after one period; then Villa Maria junior forward Maddy Ryan scored eight points in the second quarter on a variety of shots to give the hosts a 23-21 halftime lead.
Villa Maria opened the third quarter with a couple of turnovers, and Springfield, coming off a 58-33 win against Penncrest Friday, took advantage, bolting out to a 26-23 lead. By the end of the third period, Springfield put 19 points on the board for a 40-37 lead. The Cougars got a balance of scoring in the third quarter from senior Jordan D’Ambrosio (who scored her 1,000th career point Friday), senior Belle Mastropietro (who could tally her 1,000th point later this winter) and junior Alyssa Long.
Villa Maria senior guard Abby Walheim almost singlehandedly was responsible for all of the Hurricanes’ third-quarter scoring, tallying 10 points and finishing with 17 points for the game.
In the fourth quarter, Springfield limited Villa Maria to just eight points, and shot 10-for-16 at the free throw line in the final period to account for all of its own offense. Four Cougars – Mastropietro, D’Ambrosio, Long and Alexa Abbonizio – accounted for all but four of Springfield’s points Saturday.
“I thought our kids really stuck together in the second half, played with a ton of heart and effort on the defensive end of the floor, and made some huge plays on the offensive end,” said Springfield head coach Ky McNichol. “We had to stop their transition points in the second half, we had to make sure we were sprinting back on defense. I thought Jordan and Belle did a great job guarding [Villa stars] Paige Lauder and Abby Walheim. Alyssa came up with huge steals for us, and did a great job controlling the tempo of the game.
“Last night was a huge milestone for Jordan, and we had a great time celebrating that as a team. I told them today to bring that momentum from the game and the post-game celebration last night onto the court today, and to stick together as a team.”
Villa Maria hung close to Springfield throughout the fourth quarter, never falling behind by more than three points until 10 seconds were left. With 1:14 left, Walheim grabbed an offensive rebound, was fouled and made both free throws to cut Springfield’s lead to 46-45.
But two subsequent unsuccessful Villa drives – ending with a turnover, then a miss from the outside – were quickly followed by Springfield free throws that helped put the game away for the Cougars. Mastropietro hit two free throws with 10.9 seconds left to give Springfield a 50-45 lead.
“Our offensive execution was [lacking] today. We didn’t get off a good shot off in that last trip [downcourt],” said McCartney. “This is a lesson I hope we learn from, that you can’t just show up, that you’ve got to play. If we learn that lesson in January, it will pay off in March.”

Springfield 50, Villa Maria 45
Springfield 9 12 19 10 – 50
Villa Maria 10 13 14 8 – 45
Springfield (50): Long 3 2-4 8, Abbonizio 3 3-4 10, Postiglione 0 0-0 0, Conran 1 1-2 4, D’Ambrosio 4 4-6 13, Johnson 0 0-0 0, Mastropietro 5 5-8 15, Totals 16 15-24 50.
Villa Maria (45): Samar 1 0-0 3, Ryan 4 3-7 11, Warley 4 0-0 8, Walheim 6 4-5 17, Lauder 0 4-6 4, Iacone 0 0-0 0, Ford 1 0-0 2, Totals 16 11-18 45.
Three-point field goals: SPR – Abbonizio, Conran, D’Ambrosio; VMA – Samar, Walheim.