Three advance

Three basketball teams from the Archdiocese will head to Happy Valley this weekend to play in the state finals in their respective divisions. The defending state champ and current Catholic league champion girls of Archbishop Wood will play Mercyhurst on Saturday for the AAA title. Archbishop Carroll's girls (who lost to Wood in the Catholic League final) will play Mount Lebanon in the AAAA final Friday night. And the defending state champion boys of Neumann-Goretti will play Montour in the AAA final Friday night. Good luck to all teams!

Deja vu?

This Monday night's Catholic League basketball championships seem like they happened already? Oh yeah, they did last year!

In the girls rematch, defending Catholic League champ Archbishop Carroll (Radnor) will take on defending state champ Archbishop Wood (Warminster) at 6:30 at the Palestra. Immediately following, in what's sure to be another exciting do-over, Carroll's boys will battle defending Catholic League and state champion Neumann-Gorretti (South Phila.).

Will the two state champs reign again? We'll see soon enough. This year's state finals will be held at Penn State's Bryce Jordan Center March 25-26 in University Park.

Weekend basketball

Our Catholic high schools are involved in tons of great basketball matchups all weekend. Here's the schedule for girls and boys hoops, representing various schools and leagues within the Archdiocese:

FRIDAY, FEB. 4
Boys
Devon Prep @ MaST Charter, 5:30
Father Judge @ La Salle, 7:00
Lansdale Catholic @ Ryan, 7:00
Holy ghost Prep @ Lower Moreland, 7:00
West Catholic @ O'Hara, 7:00
Bonner @ McDevitt, 7:00
Neumann-Goretti @ Wood, 7:00
Roman Catholic @ St. Joe's Prep, 7:00
Pottstown @ Pope John Paul II, 7:30
Malvern Prep @ Penn Charter, 7:30
Conwell-Egan @ Carroll, 7:30

Girls
West Catholic @ Hallahan, 5:00
Wood @ Lansdale Catholic, 7:00
O'Hara @ St. Hubert, 7:00
Ryan @ Conwell-Egan, 7:00

SATURDAY, FEB. 5
Boys
New Beginnings @ Malvern Prep, 2:00
O'Hara @ Haverford, 6:00
Pottsgrove @ Pope John Paul II, 7:30

Girls
Ryan @ Carroll, 2:30
Notre Dame @ Haverford, 2:30
Chichester @ Merion Mercy, 3:30
Pope John Paul II @ Pottsgrove, 7:30

SUNDAY, FEB. 6
Boys
Carroll @ Roman Catholic, 1:30
Bonner @ Neumann-Goretti, 2:30
Ryan @ Father Judge, 2:30
La Salle @ Wood, 3:00

Girls
McDevitt @ Conwell-Egan, 7:00

Hoop action

There are TONS of basketball games this weekend throughout the Archdiocese, including Catholic League and non-league play. Have a couple hours? Catch a game below. I'm sure there's one in your area. (All game times are PM, unless otherwise noted. * = AM.)

Friday, Jan. 14
BOYS
Wood @ St. Joe's Prep, 3:30
La Salle @ West, 6:30
McDevitt @ Lansdale Catholic, 7:00
Roman Catholic @ Conwell-Egan, 7:00
Carroll@ Judge, 7:30
Chestnut Hill @ Malvern Prep, 7:30
O'Hara @ Bonner, 7:30
Shanahan @ PJPII, 7:30
Ryan @ Neumann-Goretti, 8:00

GIRLS
Baldwin @ Notre Dame, 3:45
Gwynedd-Mercy @ Villa Joe Maria, 5:15
Sacred Heart @ Merion Mercy, 5:15
McDevitt @ Carroll, 7:00
Hallahan @ Ryan, 7:00
PJPII @ Shanahan, 7:30

Saturday, Jan. 15
GIRLS
Neumann-Goretti @ Cherokee (NJ), noon
Springfield @ Prendie, 1:00
Gwynedd-Mercy @ Quakertown, 1:30
St. Basil vs. Notre Dame @ Phila. U., 1:30
Villa Joe Maria @ Conwell-Egan, 1:30
Springford vs. Mount St. Joe @ Phila. U., 2:00
Shanahan @ West Chester East, 2:30
Nazareth Academy @ Trenton Catholic, 2:30
PJPII @ Marian Catholic (Tamaqua, PA), 2:30
Allentown Central Catholic @ Villa Maria, 2:30
O'Hara @ Smyrna (DE), 3:00
Springside @ St. Hubert, 3:30
Mt. Lebanon vs. Carroll @ Phila. U., 4:30
Council Rock South vs. Ryan @ Phila. U., 5:00
George School @ McDevitt, 6:00
Rutgers Prep (NJ) vs. Wood @ Phila. U., 7:30

Sunday, Jan. 16
BOYS
St. Joe's Prep @ McDevitt, 2:30
Neumann-Goretti @ Carroll, 2:30
Wood @ O'Hara, 2:30
Conwell-Egan @ Ryan, 2:30
Judge @ Lansdale Catholic, 2:30
West Catholic @ Bonner, 2:30

GIRLS
Notre Dame vs. Prendie @ Upper Dublin HS, 10:30*
West Catholic @ Ryan, 1:00

Championship on Chestnut

What better gift than a state championship?

I'm sure West Catholic (located on Chestnut Street in West Philly) is still basking in the glow of its AA state football title. The Burrs (named for the seeds that fell of the Chestnut trees that once lined Chesnut Street) defeated South Fayette 50-14 last Saturday in Hershey. Way to represent to the Catholic League, boys! You ended the 2010 high school football season in the best possible way!

Read the CS&T article here: http://cst-phl.com/index87.htm

Check out photos from the game here: www.burrsfootball.com


Merry Christmas!

State quarterfinals

Football season continues for three teams in the Catholic League.

AA Division Quarterfinals
West Catholic vs. Northern Lehigh
7 p.m., Friday, Dec. 3 @ J. Birney Crum Stadium, Allentown

AAA Quarterfinals
Archbishop Wood vs. Strath Haven
7 p.m., Friday, Dec. 3 @ Coatesville Area HS

AAAA Quartfinals
La Salle College HS vs. Easton
1 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 4 @ Northeast HS

While the turkey's in the oven ...

This year, the great pigskin Thanksgiving Day rivalries continue, minus two long-time favorites, North vs. Frankford and St. Pius X vs. Pottsgrove. However, I'm sure old memories from those decades-long rivalries will be brought up at many dinner tables throughout the area tomorrow, just as new ones are being made.

Here's tomorrow's football schedule:

Ryan @ Washington, 10 a.m.
Judge @ Lincoln, 10 a.m.
Neumann-Goretti @ Southern, 10 a.m.
Conwell-Egan @ Truman, 10 a.m.
Roman @ Roxborough, 10:30 a.m.
St. Joe's Prep vs. Malvern Prep @ Plymouth-Whitemarsh HS, 10:30 a.m.