BENSALEM, Pa. – Three high school events, including two inaugural ones, will highlight Blue Star’s girls’ basketball schedule during the 2013-14 season.
The first of three events, Blue Star High School Elite Invitational series, will tip off on Sunday, December, 22 at Central Dauphin High in Harrisburg, Pa., with local flavor The opening game of the tripleheader pits Middleburg (Va.) Academy and Bishop Shanahan (Downingtown, Pa.) at 12 p.m. That’s followed by Central Dauphin East (Harrisburg, Pa.) and Episcopal Academy (Newtown Square, Pa.) at 2 p.m.; and the nightcap features Neumann-Goretti (Philadelphia) tangling with Capitol Christian Academy (Landover, Md.) at 4 p.m. Central Dauphin bowed out of the event after it was discovered the Rams scheduled too many games.
“We’re branching out during the high school to enhance our brand,” says Blue Star president Mike Flynn. “You always want to have a presence all during the year. Several players from our program will be competing for their high school teams against some of the country’s top talent.
“These are exciting time for girls basketball and Blue Star is honored to showcase the future talent today,” he added.
Here’s a breakdown of the three games at Central Dauphin (located at 437 Piketown Road, Harrisburg, Pa., 17112):
Middleburg Academy vs. Bishop Shanahan, 12 p.m.: Shanahan will be competitive under legendary coach Fran Burbidge, who inherits a team that finished second last season the Ches-Mont League. Burbidge coached Elena Delle Donne when she prepped at Ursuline Academy in Delaware and helped the program reach the national rankings. This time his team revolves around Kristin Habbel and Kelly Drieling. Middleburg Academy was a last minute replacement for the host school.
Central Dauphin East vs. Episcopal Academy, 2 p.m.: Episcopal, the defending Inter-Ac and Independent School State champions, rely on senior guard Sarah Abbonzio and a juniors Maria Kilcullen and Meghan Pickell. CDE’s Lexi Lemelle is a lockdown defender, Brittany Robinson is a ferocious rebounds and Michaela Gelbaugh is a dependable scorer.
Neumann-Goretti vs. Capitol Christian Academy: This is one of the feature games in the series as two teams with national reputations square off. Neumann-Goretti return a strong nucleus with 5-11 senior Tanesha Sutton and junior transfers Ciani Cryor and A.J. Timber, who previously attended Prep Charter in Philadelphia. Additionally, 6-9 sophomore Felicia Ajyeotan and 6-foot Ella Awobajo—via Nigerian—are promising, young talents. Henry Anglin coaches Capitol Christian (he was previously at H.D. Woodson in Washington, D.C.) . At 5-3, Breonn Hughey (18.0 ppg), a Towson University recruit, orchestrates the offense; 5-8 Auteaonna Gilmore (14.8 ppg) is headed to Old Dominion University; and 6-1 junior Therese Gilmore (9.8 ppg) are top scorers for CCA (4-2), whose losses were to teams from out of state.
The series shifts to the final two events over the Dr. Martin Luther King weekend in January.
On Saturday January 18, four games will be contested at the Blue Star Elite Invitational at Long Island Lutheran High School in Brookville, N.Y.: St. John the Baptist (West Islip, N.Y.) vs. Boys and Girls (Brooklyn, N.Y.), 12 p.m.; Sachem (N.Y.) East vs. Monsignor Scanlon (East Elmhurst, N.Y.), 2 p.m.; Long Island Lutheran vs. an opponent to be determined, 4 p.m.; and St. Mary’s (Manhasset, N.Y.), 6 p.m. This event’s lineup could change in the coming weeks, according to Blue Star.
Five more games are scheduled for Sunday, January 19 at Upper Dublin High School in Fort Washington, Pa.: University (Newark, N.J.) vs. The Hill School (Pottstown, Pa.), 11 a.m.; Germantown Academy (Fort Washington, Pa.) vs. Cicero (N.Y.) North, 1 p.m.; Bishop Shanahan vs. Rutgers Prep (Somerset, N.J.), 3 p.m.; Penn Charter School (Philadelphia) vs. Wissahickon (Ambler, Pa.), 5 p.m.; and Upper Dublin vs. Central Bucks West (Doylestown, Pa.), 7 p.m.
