By Lee Goodwin

 

Greencastle-Antrim's Jenay Faulkner (4) threads the needle during the District 3-AAA semifinals against then-undefeated West York in Hershey.

 

It’s the irresistable force vs. the immovable object. Speed vs. size. Grit vs. determination. Greencastle-Antrim vs. Berks Catholic.

Tonight’s the night for the Blue Devils and Saints to put on their A-game and show what they have. At stake is a berth in the PIAA Class AAA tournament quarterfinals. But for these two teams, it’s a unique scenario — both are from District 3. And, though neither team played each other during the season, they do have something in common: Conrad Weiser.

The Saints and Scouts played four times this season, with Conrad Weiser winning the final meeting to advance to the District 3 semifinals. Berks Catholic ended up placing fifth in the district, while G-A defeated the Scouts in the district championship game.

The body of work from both teams is impressive. And, at this point in the season, it usually takes a complete game — including the things you can’t see — to advance beyond the second round.

“At this point in the season, all the teams are talented,” said Berks Catholic head coach Bob Birmingham. “The intangibles definitely will make a difference.

“I think our kids were upset at being a five seed. They thought they did not play well in the beginning of districts. I think they feel we are better than a five seed.”

The Saints, seeded second in the district tournament (G-A was seeded fourth), are making a return trip to the state tournament. Last year, they lost to Archbishop Wood in the first round. The Blue Devils are playing in the state playoffs for the first time in school history.

It’s hard to say that this season’s Blue Devils are making an improbable run through the postseason. After all, they are 25-3, a game better than Berks Catholic (24-4). G-A knifed through league competition with a 12-0 record, while the Saints won the Berks II title with a 9-1 record (losing to Conrad Weiser, 61-58, on Jan. 15).

G-A and Berks Catholic also both played Delone Catholic this season. The Blue Devils lost 51-31 for its second loss of the season. The Saints edged the Squirettes, 42-40. Both teams also beat Trinity during the regular season and Lancaster Catholic in the district playoffs. Berks Catholic downed Lancaster Catholic, 53-18, in the fifth-place game.

Speed vs. size

Now back to the speed vs. size theme of tonight’s game. G-A’s tallest starting player is senior Katie Gelsinger (5-foot-10). Berks Catholic’s phenom Devon Merritt, a junior who has already scored 1,300 points and led all of Berks County in scoring this season with 501 points, is 6-2. Brooke Wensel is 5-11 and Courtney Wensel is 6-foot.

“We’re going to have to rebound,” said G-A coach Mike Rhine. “We have to have effort and desire. (Berks) is taller, so we have to hit them low and hard. We’re not the best offensive rebounding team in the world, and they’re really big.”

The unofficial consensus surrounding this game is the necessity of G-A, which is going to be outsized, to be active in rebounding. Shooting the ball is another matter at this stage in the scouting report, because if the Blue Devils can’t limit the Saints to one shot, or at least limit the number of shots, it’s going to be a long and tiring night for G-A.

“(Merritt) can score 17 a game,” Rhine said. “We have to get her below her average. We have to limit their chances and pressure the guards to turn the ball over.”

On the other hand, if the Blue Devils can force Berks Catholic into taking uncharacteristic shots by pressuring the Saints with its quick lineup, G-A would be better able to focus on the offensive side of the court with Faulkner, Jane Herman, Hannah Crist, Megan Herneisen and Gelsinger.

“We have had some success shooting the ball,” Rhine said. “We just have to run our offense and get looks at the basket and convert them. If we can convert — play our game offensively — we can score.”

Execution is key

The short answer to the quandry for G-A is, in the words of Rhine, “Speed can beat size with execution.”

Rhine said the Blue Devils know what the Saints want to do. He said a key to success is mixing zones and coverages and not get into a situation where G-A is worried about a foul-fest trying to attack Berks Catholic in the paint with its taller players going to the basket.

“Most people around will say Berks is going to beat us,” Rhine said. “We kind of thrive on this underdog role. It’s been an unbelievable ride, but we really don’t have time to enjoy the ride. We’re working hard and don’t get a lot of sleep.”

Birmingham knows his team has a height advantage but has respect for G-A’s relentlessness on both ends of the floor, especially its perimeter offense where the three-poitn shot is one of the Blue Devils’ best weapons to counter opposing team’s post presence..

“We gotta rebound, because they go after it real hard,” Birmingham said. “They run a really good offense, so we’ll need to tend to the defensive glass.”