Avon Mack had a challenge for his team after the first quarter of Friday’s Eastern Pennsylvania Conference quarterfinal round home playoff game against rival Central Catholic.
“At the end of the quarter I challenged them,” said Emmaus’ second year head coach after they allowed 17 points in the opening quarter. “I said hey ‘we are playing well but not the best defensively. This is not our standard. Let’s play to our standard and see what we can do’ and I think in that second quarter we went out and only allowed just two free throws. That shows what we can do when we lock in.”
The Hornets were certainly locked in after the opening eight minutes and now they are on to the next round.
The defending EPC champs put on a defensive clinic over the next three quarters allowing just 19 points while their offensive was in high gear in as they dazzled the home crowd with a 74-36 rout of the Vikettes.
It was the third win of the season for Emmaus over Central Catholic and marked the second consecutive year that the Hornets have defeated the Vikettes in the opening round. Last year’s result wasn’t much closer — a 19-point win (54-35).
With the victory, third-seeded Emmaus (18-5) now advances to Tuesday’s semifinal round at 6 p.m. at the PPL Center opposite second-seeded Bethlehem Catholic, which rolled to a 65-13 win over seventh-seeded Pocono Mountain West. The other semifinal at 8 p.m. will pit No. 1 Easton vs No. 4 Parkland.
As has been the case for much of the season, the Hornets once again used a balanced scoring attack in defeating Central Catholic for the sixth straight time.
Senior Gabby DeVita scored 11 points in each half and led all scorers with a game-high 22 points. Classmate Olive Whitney had four 3-pointers and 12 points, sophomore Gracie Ervin also had 12 and fellow sophomore Eva Glover added nine for Emmaus which has won six of its last seven games.
Defensively, the Hornets held CCHS without a field goal in the second quarter as they outscored the visitors 17-2 in building a 37-19 lead at the half.
“In that second quarter we just really locked in defensively,” said Whitney. “We just gave an all-out effort. Everyone was diving on the floor and giving max effort on the defensive end and that led to our offense.”
Emmaus’ advantage grew to 27 points (57-30) after three quarters and with 4:20 left in the game, Mack emptied his bench.
“Effort, will and desire were the three words we put up on the board in the locker room and that is what it was going to take for us to get this win,” said Mack.
Central Catholic was led by senior Morgan Seagreaves who had a team-high 13 points. Classmate Shamiya Roberts added 12 for the Videttes who committed 26 turnovers in the game. CCHS dropped to 11-12 overall after allowing the most points they’ve given up all season. They also lost in the opening round of the league tournament for the third consecutive year.
Up next for Emmaus will be a second meeting against Bethlehem Catholic who defeated the Hornets earlier this season, 50-35.
“That’s a big game,” said Whitney. “We’re excited to go and play at the PPL Center. These playoffs mean a lot to us especially coming off of a big year a season ago.
“We know Becahi is going to be a tough matchup, but we’ll be prepared.”
The game will be carried LIVE on The Eastern Pa. Sports Network beginning with pre-game coverage at 5:45 p.m.
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Emmaus 74, CCHS 36
CC – Shamiya Roberts 4 2-4 12, Annika Spinosa 0, Morgan Seagreaves 3 6-10 13, Skylar Taylor 2 0-0 4, Alyssa Hursh 1 0-0 2, Tatum Kofroth 0, Lena Hartman 1 0-0 3, Jenishiana Pagan 0, Emma Molchany 0, Gianna Menecola 1 0-0 2. Totals: FG 12, FT 8-14, 3s (4 – Roberts 2, Hartman, Seagreaves)
Em – Olive Whitney 4 0-0 12, Gabby DeVita 9 2-4 22, Eva Glover 4 1-2 9, Gracie Ervin 6 0-0 12, Sierra Stevens 3 1-3 7, Gabby East 1 0-0 2, Sophia Shutkufski 0, Olivia Haberl 1 0-0 2, Makayla McGinnis 2 0-0 4, Kaitlyn Grochowski 1 1-2 3. Totals: FG 31, FT 5-11, 3s (7 – Whitney 4, DeVita 2, Grochowski)
CC – 17-2-11-6 – 36
Em – 20-17-20-17 – 74
GAME REPLAY: https://easternpasportsnet1.mixlr.com/recordings/3020376