PIAA Class 5A girls basketball: Bethlehem Catholic falls to four-time defending state champions Archbishop Wood 

Archbishop Wood’s girls basketball team didn’t win or appear in a state championship until 2010, but the Vikings are up to nine titles since then with four straight dating back to 2021.

Shooting performances like the one they put on over the weekend make that ridiculous feat far less surprising as the Vikings buried 12 first-half 3-pointers and 17 for the game to end another special season for Bethlehem Catholic.

St. Joe’s commit and Archbishop Wood senior Emily Knouse drilled four in the opening four minutes and five on the night to lift her team to a 69-35 victory over the Golden Hawks on Saturday at Reading High School. Ryan Carter, the nation’s eighth-ranked recruit per 247 sports, added 12 points for the Vikings who advanced to the PIAA 5A semifinal next Saturday against Crestwood.

Bethlehem Catholic ended the season 19-11 with a ninth consecutive district championship and an appearance in the EPC Championship.

“We’ve had a lot of ups and downs as a team, collectively,” junior guard Leah Ault said. “It was a big, rough journey, and I’m just so proud of us for pulling it together and making it this far. We’re so much better than what we showed out there this game, but it was a good season.”

The Golden Hawks struck first when Aliyah Brame sunk a straightaway 3-pointer, but that ended up being their only lead of the game as Knouse sparked a subsequent 19-0 run in just over three minutes. Sophia Topakas got the Vikings on the board with a triple before Carter drove for two and Knouse drained 3’s on four of the next five possessions.

Wood’s lead ballooned up to 16 in a matter of moments, but Ault led an 11-2 run with two impressive buckets that brought it down to seven in the closing moments of the opening quarter.

The only problem was the Vikings had willing and able shooters ready to go off the bench in Emma Yogis and Sophia McDonald.

Yogis splashed two straight triples to extend the advantage back to 11 after one and McDonald caught fire in the second with three of her four treys on the night setting up a 45-26 lead at the half.

The second half brought more of the same struggles as the Vikings quickly figured out Alleyne’s defensive adjustment to a 1-3-1 zone as Emma Seckinger knocked down a baseline jumper and the Golden Hawks resorted to fouling Knouse on a 3-point jumper instead of letting her bury it.

She made all three from the charity stripe and added a traditional trey moments later just for good measure to give the Vikings a 53-26 lead early in the third to cruise to the state semifinals.

Becahi’s lone seniors, Daviana Jones and Mekhyla Britt, cherished those final minutes in a Bethlehem Catholic uniform.

“Coach Arnold has been like a father to me the past six years since I met him in seventh grade and even Coach Medina helped shape me into who I am,” Jones said. “Looking back, I’m always going to remember the people and how much they meant to me.”

“This team kind of brought me all my friends, everyone I talk to daily and everyone I’m around,” Britt. “I just feel grateful that it happened all the people that I met. It really shaped me into the person I am and who I’ll continue to be.”

While they both showed gratitude for the program and him, Alleyne passed it right back to his two seniors who paved the way for next season that will be filled with optimism for the Golden Hawks.

“I’m really proud of them. They have been competing for years, and they’ve been giving their sweat equity. I can’t want any better kids to coach and I’m very grateful,” Alleyne said. “We’re going to get better. We have some shooters coming up, too. And we’re going to compete. I’m excited for our group.”

Derek Bast is a freelance writer who can be found on Twitter/X at @derek_bast or reached via email at derekbast11@gmail.com.

ARCHBISHOP WOOD 69, BETHLEHEM CATHOLIC 35

Archbishop Wood – 27; 18; 17; 7 – 69;Becahi – 16; 10; 7; 2 – 35

ARCHBISHOP WOOD (69)

Knouse 7 3-3 24; Carter 3 7-8 14; McDonald 4 0-0 12; Yogis 4 0-0 12; Topakas 1 0-0 3; Seckinger 1 0-0 2; Thompson 1 0-0 2; Przepioski 0 0-0 0; Payne 0 0-0 0; Rogers 0 0-0 0; Finnegan 0 0-0 0; Kelly 0 0-0 0. Totals 21 10-11 69.

BETHLEHEM CATHOLIC (35)

Ault 4 2-2 10; Brame 2 2-2 8; Coleman 3 1-2 7; Brooks 2 0-0 4; Jones 1 0-0 3; Tryanski 1 0-0 3; Nickisher 0 0-0 0; Lewis 0 0-0 0; Britt 0 0-0 0. Totals 13 5-6 35.3-pointers: Archbishop Wood (17) Knouse 7, McDonald 4, Yogis 4, Carter, Topakas; Becahi (4) Brame 2, Tryanski, Jones.