Cherry Hill: St. Thomas vs. St. Luke – Win and You’re In

In the opening game, the girls from St. Thomas got back to their winning ways, knocking off a tough St. Luke’s team 41-22. The win puts Cherry Hill’s girls atop the standings, and with a win vs. St. George’s B-team on January 19th, they will clinch the top seed in the DVGOBL playoffs. The loss drops St. Luke’s to a record of 2-4, which is good enough to cling to a tie for the 6th and final spot in the playoffs, with the all-important tie breaker versus St. George Media in their pockets.

On the boy’s side, with huge playoff implications on the line, the St. Thomas boys knocked off St. Luke’s boys by a score of 47-34. The win gives St. Thomas their second of the year, and having now earned the primary tiebreaker with the win over Broomall, they appear to be firmly solidified as the 6th and final seed. The loss drops St. Luke’s to a record of 1-5, and has them on the outside looking in for the playoffs. A must-win game versus St. D’s, along with some help from the tiebreaking procedures, is the only hope left to snag a playoff spot.

Egg Harbor: Holy Trinity vs. Evangelismos – The Battle for the Byes

Down in Egg Harbor, the boys and girls teams from Evangelismos and Holy Trinity squared off in four games, three of which having direct playoff implications. For the girls, Evangelismos split the day, defeating Holy Trinity’s B team by a score of 22-19 but coming up short versus the A team by a score of 30-19. This puts the girls from Philadelphia at a record of 5-2, which should be enough to secure them the third seed in the DVYC. The victory for the A girls of Egg Harbor earns them a guaranteed first-round bye in the playoffs, while the loss for the B girls drops them to a record of 3-4, still good enough to hold onto the 5th seed as of right now. The B girls gave Evangelismos all they could handle, and with the playoffs shaping up as they are, this could very well be a quarterfinal preview to come.

The boy’s result was far less exciting, with the Egg Harbor boys “winning” by forfeit. The loss drops Evangelismos to a final record of 5-2, which clinches them the third seed in the playoffs, while the “win” leaves Egg Harbor with a record of 6-1 and a first round bye going forward. Based on the seedings for both boys and girls, it appears as though these teams will not have seen the last of each other, and may again clash in the league semifinals if everything goes as seeded. These two teams have met in two of the last three DVGOBL playoffs, with Evangelismos winning both contests, so it should be a huge game to watch.

Upper Darby: St. Demetrios vs. St. George – Setting Up the Rematches

Last year’s quarterfinals provided some of the most intense action of the playoffs, largely due to the two games played between St. D’s and St. George. This year it looks as though we may be on for an encore performance, after the results of this weekend’s action.

On the girls side it was all St. George on the day, winning two games over the St. D’s A and B teams, the former being the more competitive of the two with a score of 19-7. The wins vault St. George up to a record of 2-4, and with games left against Holy Trinity and St. George’s B-teams, it is fair to say that a .500 record and a playoff spot are not out of the question. The loss for St. D’s drops them to a record of 4-3, and with the standings the way they are, it looks as though we could see a rematch of that thrilling, down-to-the-wire quarterfinal matchup from last year.

The boy’s from Media also emerged victorious on the day, with a 46-40 victory over St. D’s. The win all-but locks up the 4-seed for St. George, while the loss leaves St. D’s with a little work left to be done in order to secure a playoff spot. St. George will close out their season by trying to spoil Annunciation’s bid for a second undefeated season in three years next week. As it stands right now these teams are seeded to, like their church sisters, square off in a rematch of last year’s equally-exciting quarterfinal matchup.

Looking Forward: This weekend in Broomall

While the playoff picture became a lot less cloudy this past weekend, this coming week’s action will tell us even more about where the teams will stand come February:

  1. Annunciation Elkins Park can clinch the top seed in the boy’s playoffs with a win versus St. George Media A or Media B. They can also clinch an undefeated regular season with wins versus both.
  2. Evangelismos Girls can clinch the 3rd seed in the DVYC playoffs with a win over St. Demetrios’s B-Girls.
  3. St. Luke’s Girls face an important game vs. St. George’s B Girls as they try to fight for that final playoff spot.
  4. St. George’s A Girls and Holy Trinity’s B Girls face off in a game where the winner would clinch a playoff spot.

Stay tuned to Cosmos Philly for all the action!

 

Written by Mr. GOYA

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