Well folks, following the last week of the regular season, there isn’t really a whole lot to write about on the day. The marquee matchup that I had circled on everyone’s calendars was not to be, as the battle for the top seed between St. Thomas of Cherry Hill and Annunciation of Elkins park wound up in a forfeit by Annunciation, leaving St. Thomas atop the standings at 6-1 on the year, while Annunciation, with the loss, forfeits their shot at a first-round bye, as they drop to 5-2 and third place in the overall standings. The result actually results in some history on both ends of the spectrum, as St. Thomas clinches the top overall seed in the boy’s standings for the first time since 1990, while Elkins Park will actually be playing in the quarterfinals for the first time since the playoff format expanded to 6 teams in 2009, which means they will have to win 3 games in order to defend their title. St. Thomas will sit back and watch the quarterfinals to see who they will be playing in the final four, while Annunciation will face off against the youngsters from Broomall, in what is sure to be a fast-paced offensive battle on January 4th.
As far as games that actually took place on Sunday, St. Demetrios played host to two playoff-preview matchups, as the hosts from Upper Darby faced off against Evangelismos, knowing that both the boys and girls teams would be seeing each other in the quarterfinals in two weeks. Evangelismos carried the day, winning both games, but I’ll be most curious to see how all four teams adjust to the game we saw on Sunday in two weeks when they face off with a spot in the GOYA final four on the line. On the girl’s side, Evangelismos finishes their season at 4-2, good enough for the #3 seed, while St. D’s drops to 1-5, but with their tiebreaker over Wilmington, captures the sixth and final spot in the playoffs. On the boy’s side, Evangelismos finishes the year at 4-3, capping off their sixth-straight winning season, while the loss drops St. D’s to 3-4 on the year and the #5 seed heading into January’s playoffs.
With the regular season in the books, Cosmos Philly will be providing a comprehensive playoff preview over the Christmas break. As we head into the New Year, the best is yet to come in the DVGOBL season! Have a very Merry Christmas to all, and as always, check back in with us for all the league’s action.