Philly Women's Summer League: Crunch Time for Playoffs Sees Narrow Wins Across the Board

Guru’s note: This report was delayed due to the Guru traveling on ground transportation to Knoxville, Tenn., for the public celebration of life service for the late Tennessee coaching legend Pat Summitt. But we are now up to date with Bob providing coverage from the games and the Guru doing the data work. Seeds here on out are official.

  By Mel Greenberg - @womhoopsguru

And Bob Heller

 HATBORO, Pa. – Gold needed a late rally to hold off Royal Blue and remain in sole possession of first place with a 55-51 win Thursday night in the Philadelphia/Suburban NCAA Certified Women’s Summer League at Kelly Bolish Gym, home of the AAU Renegades.

The night was one of the more competitive ones of the season overall.

 Trailing by five with just under five minutes remaining in the game, Gold, powered by Adaisha Franklin, the Saint Joseph’s junior and daughter of Temple great Marilyn Stephens, outscored Royal 14-5 to pull out the win, their fourth straight since a forfeit loss to Purple on June 23.

 The battle for second place saw Maroon, otherwise known as University of the Sciences jump out to a big lead in the first half against Pink only to have to hold off a huge second half rally to win their second straight 56-46 and take over sole possession of second place with a 6-2 record.  Pink falls into a three-way tie for third at 5-3 with the loss.

 Purple and White both won on Thursday to join Pink at 5-3 on the season. 

Tiebreaks as they stand right now are in a special section below.

  White held off Sky Blue, 59-56 with Taylor Thames hitting two free throws in the final 30 seconds to seal the win.  

 St. Joseph’s University junior Chelsea Woods scored 39 points as Purple built a big lead in the third quarter and held off a comeback by a determined Kelly Green team to snap a two-game skid and record their fifth win of the season, 85-78.  

For Woods, it’s her fifth game scoring 30 or more points this season. Kelly Green remains winless at 0-8.

 Royal Blue and Sky Blue fall back to three-way tie for sixth place with Orange who dropped 72-64 decision to Black in overtime. 

Trailing by seven with just under four minutes remaining Black, otherwise known as Philadelphia University, rallied to take a two point lead before Kendall Grasela’s basket with 13 seconds left tied the game and forced overtime. Alynna Williams paced the comeback scoring with two three-point field goals and finished the game with 24 points, one of three players on the evening to reach the 20-point pleateau.  Black converted seven free throws in the extra period to secure the win and move into a tie for ninth place with their second consecutive victory, improving to 3-5 overall.

 The predominantly West Chester University Red team is now tied with Black for ninth place, losing 54-46 to Hunter Green, dropping their record to 3-5.  Alexis Roman scored 22 points to pace the Hunter Green squad who had only five players suiting up for the game.  Hunter used a 13-0 run to start the fourth quarter to overcome a four point Red lead to earn their second win of the season.

Hunter Green at 2-6 is in 11th place while Kelly Green in 12th with an 0-8 record.

Recaps: 

 Gold 55, Royal Blue 51 -   Gold placed three players in double figures as they overcame a five point deficit midway through the fourth quarter to defeat Royal Blue 55-51.  Adaisha Franklin led all players with 15 points while Alex Smith and Shira Newman had 10 points apiece.  Royal Blue was led by Katie Armstrong’s 14 points.  Amanda Fiorvanti added 12.

 Royal led throughout much of the game and held a six point lead 39-33 after three quarters of play. 

 Gold opened the final period with an 8-2 spurt, tying the game on a jumper from Danielle Derr at 41-41.  A three point basket by Noelle Powell followed by a basket from Meghan Pickell pushed Royal’s lead back up to five points, 46-41 with 5:17 left in the game.   Gold scored six of the next seven points to pull even again at 47-47. Fiorvanti’s layup at the 2:48 mark put Royal on top 49-47 before Gold ran off eight straight points to take the lead for good.

 Black 72, Orange 64 (OT) – Black rallied from a seven point deficit late in the fourth quarter and went on two defeat Orange by eight in overtime, 72-64 to earn their second straight win.  Alynna Williams led the Black team with four three point field goals and 24 points.  Rachel Day and Jess Kaminski added 11 and ten points respectively.   Kendall Grasela and Lauren Killion led Orange with 11 points apiece.

 Neither team could pull away from the other throughout the game and Black held a slim 45-44 lead after three quarters. 

Orange regained the upper hand with an 8-2 run to start the fourth quarter to take a 52-47 lead. Two baskets from Black’s Valez Jackson closed the gap back to one, 52-51 and Orange countered with six straight to open up their biggest lead of the game at 58-51 with just 3:48 left. 

 A triple from Williams and a basket from Kaminski  closed the gap to two.  After both teams exchanged three-point baskets,  Kaminski sank one of two free throws to cut the gap to one 61-60 with 1:17 in regulation.  Day then put Black on top with a three-pointer with 54 ticks left.  Grasela then tied the game with a driving layup with 12 seconds remaining, forcing overtime.

 Day opened the scoring in the overtime with a basket at the 1:42 mark followed by single free throws from Kelsey Jones and Kaminski to give the Black squad a 67-63 lead. Williams added three more free throws and Jackie McCarron two in the final minute of the overtime to seal the 72-64 win.

 Purple 85, Kelly Green 78 -   Chelsea Woods scored 39 points to help Purple snap a two game losing streak with an eight point win over winless Kelly Green. 

Jaryn Garner added 19 for Purple while the predominantly Delaware Valley University Kelly Green squad put four players in double figures led by Danielle Skedzielewski’s 17 points. Elizabeth Radley added 16 points while Sam Foy and Nicole Smythe chipped in 14 and 13 respectively.

 A battling Kelly Green squad scored 31 points in the fourth and final quarter, cutting a once 24 point Purple lead to single digits before falling short, with the eight point final deficit marking the closest the Kelly Green squad would come in the second half of the game.

 The two teams battled for the first 18 minutes with Purple holding just a three-point lead with 1:43 to go in the second quarter.  Purple then rattled off the last 11 points of the period to open a 42-28 lead at the break. Purple expanded the margin to 24, 71-47.

 For Woods, her 39 points is her second consecutive game scoring 35 or more points and marks the fifth time she has scored 30 or more points in a game this season.

 Maroon 56, Pink 46 - The battle for second place was won by the Maroon squad, also known as the University of the Sciences, 56-46 as they held off the tough Pink squad to earn their second consecutive win and their fourth victory in their last five games.  The win puts Maroon in sole possession of second place with a 6-2 record. 

Laura Trisch and Alex Thomas led the Maroon squad with 16 and 10 points respectively.  Hannah Fox had 14 points to pace the Pink squad. 

 Maroon jumped out to an early 10-3 lead and held an 18-7 lead after the first quarter.  The lead expanded to 22 by halftime as Maroon outscored Pink 23-12 to lead 41-19 at the break.  Trisch led the way with nine second quarter points.

 The second half was a different story as Pink turned up the pressure on defense while their offense started to click.  A 10-1 Pink run to open the third quarter cut the lead to 42-29 before Maroon pushed the lead  back to 16 47-31 as they entered the fourth quarter.

 Fox scored eight straight points to open the fourth quarter, cutting the Maroon lead in half,47-39.  She added a three-pointer with 2:10 left to bring Pink within seven 51-44 with just 2:10 remaining.  Five straight free throws in the final 1:33 pushed Maroon’s leads back up to double digits and helped seal the 10 point win.

 The game marks the fourth time this season the Marroon has held an opponent under 50 points. 

 Hunter Green 54, Red 45 -  Hunter Green had just five players suited for the game and recorded their second win of the season, defeating Red 54-45.   Alexis Roman led the Hunter Green squad with 22 points while Katherine Feehery adeded 15 and Abby Breyer 11.  The Red squad of predominantly West Chester University players, were paced by Jean Williams, Victoria Smick and Mariah Traywick who scored 10 points apiece.

 Neither team held more than a two possession lead throughout the first half with Red holding a slim 27-25 lead at halftime.  

Red expanded the lead to four by the end of the quarter, 41-37.  Hunter opened the final stanza with a 13-0 run to take their biggest lead of the game, 50-41, with Roman and Feehery scoring four points apiece during the run.   Both teams exchanged baskets over the final three minutes as the Hunter Green squad held on for the nine-point win.

 White 59, SkyBlue 56 – Taylor Thames broke a tie game with two free throws in the final 30     seconds of the game as White held off Sky Blue 59-56 to move into a three way tie for third place with the win. 

 Kaitlyn Kelly scored 12 points to lead the White squad while Thames and Michala Clay added nine points apiece.  Ciara Andrews led Sky blue with 17 points. Samantha Stipa added 12 for the Sky Blue squad, who dropped their second straight game.

 White used a 7-2 run to open up the early lead in the first quarter, limiting the Sky Blue team to just four points in the period and producing a 13-4 lead.  They extended the lead to 18-6  in the second quarter. Sky Blue, fueled by Andrews and Jessica Gerber, closed the gap with a 12-7 run to close out the period, trailing by seven at the break 25-18.

 White pushed the lead to ten points after three quarters before the Sky Blue squad came all the way back to tie the game late in the fourth period. With the game tied at 56-56 Thasmes sank a pair of free throws  and Sierra Taylor later added another with less than a second on the clock to seal  the win.

 White has now won five of their last six games after starting the season 0-2.

Looking Ahead

With seeds still up in the air, so to speak, all games have at least one element of suspense as teams try to position themselves for the championship run.

Orange (4-4) looks to try to better itself Tuesday when it meets Maroon (6-2) at 8:15 p.m. on Court 2. Likewise, Red has a tough one to overcome for a playoff spot with top-seeded Gold just ahead on Court 2 at 7 p.m.

Black, which is making late season statement, though it may not be enough, when it meets Sky Blue at 7 p.m. on Court 3. Another key meeting has White battling Royal Blue at 8:15 p.m. on court 3.

Bomber Woods

Chelsea Woods, the Saint Joseph’s junior who plays on Purple and was voted Most Improved  Player in the Big Five women’s competition last season followed up her league-record 46 points – not 48 the Guru typoed in the headline on the last post – with 39 points Thursday night and holds the top five positions – all above 30 points – in the 20 points or more category.

She has hit the standard of excellence seven times this summer out of a possible eight.

  Breaking Ties

Like last time out, the eight playoff teams if the season ended today are clearcut though there are several sets of logjams within the eight with just three game nights remaining in the regular season to determine the seeds.

Gold and Maroon have clinched playoff berths while winless Kelly Green has been eliminated.

Black and Red are one game out of the postseason behind the sixth place gridlock of Orange, Sky Blue, and Royal Blue, all at .500.

Hunter Green needs to win and hope things get messy just above the squad.

In terms of how the standings got set after Thursday, Gold and Maroon, which both clinched the postseason, are alone in the 1-2 spots.

The three-way third-place tie yielded Pink to the third spot at 1-0 within the group, while Purple at 1-1 took fourth and White fifth at 0-1.

 The three-way taffy pull for sixth saw Orange at 2-0 within the group take the sixth spot, followed by Sky Blue at seventh at 1-1 and Royal Blue at eighth at 0-2 within the group.

Black and Red each beat the same premium teams to force the abandonment of that tiebreak so in the end Black got an edge by not yet seeing Purple while Red fell. Black and Red, though, still have a head-to-head that could determine both seed and playoff fates.

 Standings

(Thru July 18)

Team,  W-L, Pct., G.B., PF, PA

^@-Gold, 7-1, .875, ---, 463 381

^Maroon, 6-2, .750, 1.0, 476 406

Pink, 5-3, .625, 2.0, 503 470

%-Purple, 5-3, .625, 2.0, 517 464

White, 5-3, .625, 2.0 407 508

@-Orange, 4-4, .500, 3.0 422 449

Sky Blue, 4-4, .500, 3.0, 508 536

Royal Blue, 4-4, .500, 3.0, 485 454

%-Black, 3-5, .375, 4.0, 376 434

%-Red,3-5, .375, 4.0 , 393 434

@-Hunter Green, 2-6, .250, 5.0, 377 437

#-Kelly Green, 0-8, .000, 7.0, 469 585

%-includes forfeit win

@-includes forfeit loss

^-Clinched playoff berth

#-Eliminated from playoffs

Schedule

Tuesday, July 19

7 p.m.

Kelly Green (0-8) vs. Pink (5-3), Court 1

Gold (7-1) vs. Red  (3-5), Court 2

Sky Blue (4-4), vs. Black (3-5), Court 3

8:15 p.m.

Orange (4-4) vs. Maroon (6-2), Court 1

Hunter Green (2-6) vs. Purple (5-3), Court 2

Royal Blue (4-4)  vs. White (5-3), Court 3

Thursday, July 21

7 p.m.

White vs. Pink, Court 1

Hunter Green vs. Maroon, Court 2

Red vs. Royal Blue, Court 3

8:15 p.m.

Gold vs. Orange, Court 1

Sky Blue vs. Purple, Court 2

Kelly Green vs. Black, Court 3

Results

Thursday, July 14

Hunter Green 54, Red 45

Black 72, Orange 64, OT

Maroon 56, Pink 46

Gold 55, Royal Blue 51

White 59, Sky Blue 56

Purple 85, Kelly Green 78

Tuesday, July 12

Black 69, Purple 65

Orange 56, Royal Blue 48

White 66,  Kelly Green 55

Pink 62, Red 37

Maroon 60, Sky Blue 40

 Gold 62, Hunter Green 43 

Thursday, June 30

Gold 90, Kelly Green 52

White 67, Maroon 65

Red 67, Purple 65, OT

Royal Blue 69, Pink 56

Orange 69, Sky Blue 57

Black 2, Hunter Green 0, forfeit

Tuesday, June 28

Purple 90, White 81

Gold 76, Pink 59

Maroon 58, Kelly Green 47

Royal Blue 55, Black 45

Orange 67, Hunter Green 42

Sky Blue 61, Red 56

Thursday, June 23

Sky Blue 78, Royal Blue 71

Orange 71,  Kelly Green 65

Purple 2,  Gold 0, forfeit

Maroon 64, Black 41

White 67, Red 64, OT

Pink 70, Hunter Green 66, OT

Tuesday, June 21

Purple 57, Maroon 52

Royal Blue 80, Hunter Green 58

Red 69, Kelly Green 66

White 60, Black 44

Gold 89, Sky Blue 59

Pink 75, Orange 50

Thursday, June 16

Sky Blue 67, Hunter Green 66

Pink 63, Black 51

Maroon 59, Red 53, OT

Purple 88, Orange 45

Gold 90, White 63

Royal Blue 56, Kelly Green 44

Wednesday, June 15

Hunter Green 48, White 44

Sky Blue 90, Kelly Green 66

Pink 72, Purple 65

Gold 63. Black 52

Maroon 62, Royal Blue 55

Red 2, Orange 0, forfeit

Individual Scoring 20 Or More Points

46 Chelsea Woods, Purple, L, vs. Black, July 12

43-Chelsea Woods, Purple, W, vs. White, June 28

39-Chelsea Woods, Purple, W, vs. Kelly Green, July 14

33-Chelsea Woods, Purple, W, vs. Maroon, June 22

32-Chelsea Woods, Purple, L, vs. Pink, June 15

28-Alex Smith, Gold, W, vs. Sky Blue, June 22

28-Alex Smith, Gold, W, vs. White, June 16

26-Chelsea Woods, Purple, L, vs. Red, June 30 

26-Alexix Roman, Hunter Green, L, vs. Sky Blue, June 16

25-Ciara Andrews, Sky Blue, W, vs. Hunter Green, June 16

25-Ciara Andrews, Sky Blue, W, vs. Kelly Green, June 15

24-Alynna Williams, Black, W-OT, vs Orange, July 14. 

23-Alynna Williams, Black, L, vs. Pink, June 23

23-Kelsey Watson, White, L, vs. Gold, June 16

23-Chelsea Woods, Purple, W, vs. Orange, June 16

22-Alexix Roman, Hunter Green, W, vs. Red, July 14

22-Mia Hopkins, Gold, W, vs. Sky Blue, June 22

22-Adaisha Franklyn, Gold, W, vs. White, June 16

21-Ciara Andrews, Sky Blue, L, vs. Orange, June 30

21-Lauren Rothfeld, Pink, L, Royal Blue, June 30

21-Tori Smick, Red, L, vs. Sky Blue, June 28

21-Julia Glantz, Hunter Green, W, vs. White, June 15

21-Jessica Gerber, Sky Blue, W, vs. Kelly Green, June 15

21-K.T. (Katie) Armstrong, Royal Blue, L, vs. Maroon, June 15

20-Taylor Thames, White, W, vs. Maroon, June 30

20-Ciara Andrews, Sky Blue, W, vs. Royal Blue, June 23

20-Lauren Rothfeld, Pink, W-OT, vs. Hunter Green, June 23

20-Mackenzie Rule, Orange, L, vs. vs. Pink, June 22

20-Micah Morgan, Maroon, W-OT, vs. Red, June 16

Seed Tracker (In order)

^-Gold (7-1) vs. Bk (W), vs. Wh (W), vs. SB (W), vs. Pur (L-@), vs. Pnk (W) ,vs. KG (W), vs. HG (W),

RB(W), 

^-Maroon (6-2) vs. RB (W), vs. Red (W-OT), vs. Pur(L), vs. Bk (W), KG (W), vs. Wh (L), vs. SB(W),

vs. Pnk(W)

Pink (5-3) vs. Pur (W), vs. Bk (W), vs. Orge, (W), vs. HG (W-OT), Gold (L), vs. RB(L), vs. Rd(W),

 vs. M(L),

Purple (5-3) vs. Pk (L), vs. Org (W), vs. M(W), vs. Gd (W-%), vs. W (W) vs. Red (W-OT), vs. Bk(L), 

 vs. KG(W) 

White (5-3) vs. HG (L), vs. Gd (L), vs. Bk (W), vs. Red (W-OT), vs. Pur (L), vs. M (W), vs. KG(W)

 Vs. SB(W),  

Orange (4-4) vs. Red (@-L), vs. Pur (L), vs. Pnk (L), vs. KG (W), vs. HG (W), vs. SB (W), vs. RB(W),

 vs Bk (L-OT)

Sky Blue (4-4) vs. KG (W), vs. HG (W), vs. Gold (L), vs. RB (W), vs. Red (W), Ornge(L), vs. M(L),

  vs. Wh(L)

Royal Blue (4-4) vs. M (L), vs. KG (W), vs. HG (W), vs, SB (L), vs. Black (W), Pnk(W), vs. Orng(L), vs. Gold(L),

Black (3-5) vs. Gd (L), vs. Pk (L), vs. Wh (L), vs. M (L), vs. RB (L), vs. HG (W-%), vs. Pur(W), vs. Or(W-OT)

Red (3-5) vs. Org (%-W), vs. M (L-OT), vs. KG (W), vs. Wh (L-OT), vs. SB (L), Pur (W-OT), vs. Pk(L), vs. HG(L),

Hunter Green (2-6) vs. Wh (W), vs. SB (L), vs RB (L), vs. Pk (L-OT), vs. Org (L),vs. Blk (L-@) vs. Gd(L), vs. Red(W),

#-Kelly Green (0-8) vs. SB (L), vs. RB (L), vs Red (L), vs. Orange (L), vs. M(L), vs. Gold (L), vs. Wh(L), vs. Pur(L)

%-forfeit win

@-forfeit loss

^-Clinched playoff berth

#-Eliminated from playoffs