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Hopewell HS Girls Basketball

Hopewell HS Girls Basketball

Blosnick and Boyd Lead Hopewell to Convincing Win Over New Castle in Home Opener

by Lillian Otto
written by Lillian Otto 2 minutes read

HOPEWELL TWP– The Hopewell High School Girls Basketball team had a dominant win tonight over the New Castle Hurricanes in their first home game of the season. Led by key performances from Avery Boyd, 24 points and Addison Blosnick, 24 points, the Vikings stomped the Hurricanes 66-32.

In the first quarter. The Vikings got off to an impressive 14-0 start, converting their aggressive defense into explosive offense. A lot of action from Boyd led the Vikings to a 21-3 lead in the first quarter.

In the second quarter, our offense continued its explosiveness even though they gave up more points than the first quarter. The Vikings took advantage of their many trips to the free throw line, making 6 of 9 free throws in the second quarter. They finished this quarter leading 39-14.

After the halftime break where the Hopewell Little Dribblers and Little Lady Vikings Youth program was recognized, the Vikings offense yet again kept the momentum rolling, outscoring the Hurricanes 15 to 12 in the third quarter. Boyd and Blosnick combined for 11 of the Vikings 15 points. Hopewell led 54-26, and the end of the third.

In the final quarter of the game, Cici Smetana and Blosnick shined, scoring 8 of the Vikings 12 points. The Vikings’ defense showed off, allowing the Hurricanes to score only 6 points in the fourth. The final score of the game was Hopewell 66, New Castle 32.

Next up, the Vikings head to Moon for the Moon Tipoff Tournament. They play Franklin Regional at 6:00 PM tomorrow night, and Moon, Saturday night at 6:30 PM. Their next home game is Tuesday, December 9th vs Beaver Falls.

PLAYER STATS:

Addison Blosnick: 24 points

Avery Boyd: 24 points 

Cici Smetana: 11 points

Hannah McDowell: 5 points

Abby Kovell: 2 points

GAME RECAP:

1st Quarter-

2-0 – Avery Boyd with a steal leading to a layup

4-0 – Hannah McDowell to Addison Blosnick in the post for a layup

6-0 – Boyd to McDowell for a layup

8-0 – Blosnick coast to coast for 2

10-0 – Boyd to Blosnick on the fast break for another layup. Timeout New Castle

12-0 – Block by McDowell leading to a Blosnick fast break

14-0 – Boyd with a fast break layup

15-3 – Cici Smetana free throw

17-3 – Smetana with a jump shot

19-3 – Boyd with another fast break layup

21-3 – Boyd another layup after a nice pump fake

2nd Quarter-

23-3 — Lob from Ava Ray to Blosnick for a layup

25-3 – Boyd scores a layup with a pass from Ray

26-3 – Blosnick makes one of two free throws

28-5 – Another layup for Boyd off a crossover

30-5 – Boyd with a layup plus the foul

32-7 – Smetana with a nice floater

34-9 – Arching jump shot from Abby Kovell

36-11 – Blosnick makes two of two free throws

38-14 — Blosnick makes two of two free throws

39-14 – McDowell makes one of two free throws

3rd Quarter-

41-14 – Blosnick layup after nice feed from Boyd

43-16 – Another layup from Blosnick

45-16 – Pull-up jumper by Boyd

48-21 – Blosnick makes one of two free throws

50-26 – Smetana with a two-point jumper

52-26 – Boyd with a nice take up the middle for a layup

54-26 – Layup off a steal for Boyd

4th Quarter-

56-31 – Blosnick with the spin move for a side layup

58 -31 – Smetana makes two of two free throws

60-31 – Bounce pass from Blosnick for Boyd layup

62-31 – Layup off of an offensive rebound for Blosnick

64-31 – Pull-up jumper for Smetana

66-31 – Basket by McDowell

Final Score: Hopewell 66, New Castle 32

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Hopewell HS Girls Basketball

Hopewell HS Girls Basketball Lose to WA in Opener, Smetana Shines

by Mike Vukovcan
written by Mike Vukovcan 2 minutes read

The 2025-26 Hopewell HS Girls Basketball season tipped off Monday night as the Vikings traveled to take on West Allegheny in a non-section game.

The reality of things is that the upcoming season will be very challenging for the Lady Vikings as they’re trying to overcome a lot of obstacles.

First and foremost, senior Caylee Sundy will miss the entire season after suffering a knee injury in the off-season. That’s devasting for Coach Homziak’s squad because Sundy is Hopewell’s most talented players and one of the best players in Beaver County.

Caylee was Hopewell’s point guard, leading scorer and team leader.

Hopewell also has another starter from last season not playing this season so the depth and after losing others to graduation, the depth on this 2025-26 team is challenged.

Despite all that, the season must go on, and it will. Hopewell will show up, will be prepared and will compete as they did last night against West Allegheny.

Although they’ll try and win every game, the theme of this season will be about the development of young players on the roster.  The underclassman, Avery Boyd, Ava Ray, Addison Blosnick, Cici Smetana, Hannah McDowell, Abbey Kovell, Lili Enders have talent but they’re all young, which means they’ll be growing pains.

Taking the glass half full mentality, with a year of on-court experience and the addition next year of talented players from the 8th grade roster, the results could look much different next season for Hopewell.

It’ll be fun this season to watch the development of the players on the roster and as the season goes on, the team will get better.

Last night in the season opener, Hopewell took on a tough opponent in West Allegheny and lost 63-35.

WA got off to a strong start, leading 20-11 after the 1st quarter and 37-14 at halftime.

The biggest bright spot for the Vikings was the play of sophomore guard Cici Smetana, who scored a career-high 16 points. Smetana was particularly strong from outside as she connected on 4 3-pointers.

Smetana received a lot of varsity playing time last season as a freshman and has the opportunity to develop into one of the on-court leaders of this team for the next few seasons.

Sophomore Addison Blosnick, coming off a strong freshman season, scored 7 points, while Avery Boyd scored 6 points. Other Vikings on the scoresheet were Hannah McDowell with 4 and freshman guard Ava Ray, who scored her first varsity field goal. Congrats Ava.

Hopewell will return to the court on Thursday for their home opener as they’ll host New Castle at 6:30 PM. Thursday will also be Youth Basketball Night at Hopewell. All Little Lady Vikings in-house players grades 3-6 will be recognized with their team during halftime. Free entry for all youth players.

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Hopewell HS Girls Basketball

Best of Luck to 2 Hopewell Girls Volleyball Players

by Mike Vukovcan
written by Mike Vukovcan 1 minutes read

Vikings Sports Now would like to wish the best of luck to two members of the Hopewell Girls Volleyball team.

Hopewell senior Briana Inderelst and junior Mikayla Kurta will be competing in the ‘Queens of the Burgh’ Event on Saturday at the All-American Fieldhouse in Monroeville. This event starts at 9:15 AM till 3 PM and it is free to the public.

If you enjoy the sport of volleyball, the “Queens of the Burgh’ Event will showcase some of the best high school volleyball players in Pittsburgh.

Hopefully some of the college volleyball coaches in Western Pennsylvania and elsewhere stop by to check out some of this talent.

Speaking of volleyball, HC Terry Borkovic and the 2025 Hopewell Girls Volleyball team’s season will be getting underway.

Here’s a look at Hopewell’s 2025 Schedule:

August 25th: vs. Central Valley
August 28th: at Blackhawk
September 2nd: at Quaker Valley
September 4th: vs. Northgate
September 9th: vs. Avonworth
September 11th: at New Brighton
September 16th: vs. Freedom
September 18th: vs. Aliquippa
September 23rd: at OLSH
September 25th: vs. Quaker Valley
September 29th: at Avonworth
September 30th: at Northgate
October 7th: vs. New Brighton
October 9th: at Freedom
October 14th: at Aliquippa
October 16th: vs. OLSH

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The Shell Legacy at Hopewell Continues!

by Rich Donahue
written by Rich Donahue 4 minutes read

When you mention the last name Shell to residents of the Hopewell community, they immediately think of former Vikings standout running back Rushel Shell. During his high school career, Shell became one of the most prolific running backs in the history of the PIAA.

Not only did Shell set the state record for rushing yards, a mark that still stands, he was one of the most highly recruited athletes in the WPIAL in the last 15 years, committing to Pitt before finishing his collegiate career at West Virginia.

Shell also led the Vikings to their last WPIAL Championship appearance, losing to Mike Caputo and West Allegheny in one of the most hyped WPIAL Championship games ever.

But now there are some different Shells poised to continue the family legacy at Hopewell: Rushel’s twin daughters Amiyah and Arionna.

Amiyah and Arionna are currently 7th graders at Hopewell Junior High School. The twins just finished their first season playing basketball for the Vikings and currently, they are beginning their first season playing volleyball.

For Rushel, it is thrilling to see his daughters play for the same school where he stared at.

“It’s a proud moment,” Rushel said. “Kind of makes me reflect on my past and just makes me excited for the future.”

For his daughters, their dad is just that and not one of the best and accomplished football players in Pennsylvania history.

“I handle it very well and I don’t think anything special about it,” said Amiyah. “I just see him as my dad and that’s it and I sometimes feel pressured because my dad is very attached to sports, and I have to try hard.”

“I don’t feel any sort of pressure and actually, I think one day I could have a good legacy if I put in work,” said Arionna.

Despite only being in 7th grade, the pair contributed in a big way, with Amiyah playing point guard and Arionna playing small forward. The duo helped lead the Vikings to a 9-4 record this past season.

The connection they have is pretty clear to their dad and the fact that they get to enjoy these moments in athletics together is special to the entire Shell family.

“Playing with my sisters is very stressful but we make a good duo, and I know us playing together make each other better,” said Amiyah.

“Playing with my sister is the best knowing I always have someone to be rely on, also knowing we are one of the best duos in the Beaver County,” says Arionna.

“They’re like a union, ying and yang,” Rushel tells Vikings Sports Now. “One is a really good dribble and shooter, and one’s good at getting rebounds and playing defense. She guards like a big man.”

Aggressiveness is another reason the twins are excelling at such a young age, something that they’ve inherited from their dad. That trait helped Rushel rush for over 100 yards in 39 straight games in high school, breaking a mark set by former Detroit Lions great Billy Simms in 1975.

Being the daughters of a former standout athlete, doesn’t mean their dad is going to go easy on them.

“I’m pretty tough on them,” Rushel said. “I always tell them if they can deal with me, they’ll be able to deal with any coach they ever run across. I tell them what it takes, the sacrifice, the stuff you gotta put into it to get to that destination.”

“We yell at each other a lot (laughing), but it helps us to get motivated,” said Arionna. ” He’s training me to be one of the best and he’s a tough coach but not to be mean just to show it takes a lot to be the best.”

“My dad coaching me is very hard, but he trains me to be the best and tells me not to give up,” says Amiyah. “One of the best memories we had is when we beat Central Valley twice in the playoffs last year and he was very excited, and I was happy to see him that excited.”

The Shell sisters have one more year in the junior high before they take their talents to the high school level, where they plan on making basketball their primary sport.

“Basketball is my main sport and love it a lot,” says Amiyah. “Basketball teaches me that everyone is an equal part of good. Some players are good are shooters and some are good at taking it to the hoop, etc. But I am looking forward to playing high school basketball and after that hopefully college basketball and I’m working to become one of the best.”

“My passion is playing basketball, which is definitely one of the best things. I can’t wait to play in high school on a big stage trying to be the best and show people who I really am.”

“They both have aspirations to play at the next level,” said Rushel. “The dream scenario would be they both go to the same school and have a good career, killing it and getting a degree. That would be mission complete for me.”

You can expect big things from the Shell Twins in the coming years, Hopewell’s version of the Cavinder Twins.

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Hopewell HS Girls Basketball

With the End of the Season, What’s Ahead for Hopewell HS Girls Basketball?

by Mike Vukovcan
written by Mike Vukovcan 3 minutes read

Unfortunately, the high school basketball season is officially over in Hopewell.

Monday night, the Hopewell Girls basketball team took on No. 3 seed Elizabeth Forward and were defeated, 69-42.

Despite the loss, there are plenty of reasons to have optimism when looking at the future of the Lady Vikings basketball program and that begins and ends with the talent.

In fact, an argument can definitely be made that the Hopewell HS Girls basketball program has the best chance of immediate and SUSTAINED, LONG-TERM success of all the teams in the district.

My opinion on that is because of the pipeline of talent Hopewell currently has in their youth, junior high and high school programs. That’s how you’re able to have sustained winning.

Unless you win a championship, the end of a season is disappointing for every team, but the good news is that the vast majority of the team is scheduled to return next season. In fact, Alyssa Spang is the only player that the Lady Vikings are scheduled to lose.

That means, Allison Ramaley, Avery Boyd, Maya Richburg, Caylee Sundy, Cici Smetana, Aubrey Cumpston, Hannah McDowell, Addison Blosnick, Harley Hample, Layla Biller, Marlee Page and Amelia McCloskey all could be back.

Sundy, Boyd, Ramaley and Richburg are a nice nucleus to return, plus Blosnick and Smetana saw plenty of varsity time and will be better. McDowell has the height and skill level to be a valuable piece.

Plus, the quality depth will improve with the addition of 8th graders like Ava Ray, Lillian Otto, Lilly Enders and Abby Babinsak. In particular, Enders and Otto will be players that Hopewell can build around because of their size and talent they possess in the paint. Ray is a scrappy point guard that can defend, get the ball to her teammates and has the quickness to dribble into the paint and make things happen.

It doesn’t stop there because the following year, the high school program will then add talent such as Ellie McCoy, Amiyah Shell, Arionna Shell and Dallas Boyd. Being at many of the junior high games this past year, the sky is the limit for the Shell sisters and McCoy.

While this is a long time to project, it sure looks like 6th grader Rilynn Davis is a player with a very bright future in basketball.

So, the point I’m making should be pretty obvious, the Hopewell Vikings girls basketball program has a long wave of talent coming through the program over the next 5-6 years and possibly beyond.

While last night was disappointing, basketball fans and players should remain optimistic because they should a mainstay in the WPIAL playoff field for years to come.

The question the coaching staff is no doubt thinking about is how can they get over the hurdle of finally winning a first-round game? Last night was the third consecutive year in which they bowed out in the opening round.

One way would be individual year-to-year individual improvement, but a huge way would be to have a better seeding in the playoffs.

Last night against Elizabeth Forward, Hopewell entered as the No. 13 seed and the year prior, they were the No. 14 seed. Anytime you’re a double-digit seed, you’re going to be playing a low seed in the 1st round and it’s going to be difficult.

Hopewell finished the regular season as the 4th place team in their conference, which is why they received the No. 13 seeding. Next year, the goal has to be having a better regular season and trying to move up a spot or two in the regular season standings, which would get them a better playoff seeding.

The offseason for the Lady Vikings begins today, let’s hope it’s a beneficial one because if it is, the conversation a year from now about this program could be a lot different.

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Hopewell HS Girls Basketball

Hopewell HS Girls Basketball Open WPIAL Playoffs Tonight

by Mike Vukovcan
written by Mike Vukovcan 2 minutes read

Following some time off to rest, get healthy and prepare, the Hopewell High School Girls basketball team begins the second season tonight.

Head coach Jeff Homziak and his team open up the WPIAL playoffs as they go on the road to take on Elizabeth Forward.

The Lady Vikings qualified for the playoffs as the 4th place team in Section 2, but the opposition tonight will be tough.

The Elizabeth Forward Warriors finished the regular season with a record of 17-5 and 13-1 in Section 3. Taking a look at Elizabeth Forward’s season, they started by losing 3 of their first 4 games, falling to Avonworth, Bethel Park and Thomas Jefferson. After that, EJ went on to win 16 consecutive games before losing their final two games of the season against South Park (47-37) and Baldwin (77-50).

Elizabeth Forward enters the playoffs as the No. 4 seed in Class 4A, while Hopewell is No. 13.

Due to a variety of injuries and a young roster, Hopewell struggled for the majority of the first half of the season. However, things changed in the home stretch as the Lady Vikings finished the season winning 7 of their last 10 games.

The question now is can they keep this up tonight as they’ll be under the bright lights of the playoffs against a quality opponent.

Vikings Sports Now had the opportunity to catch up this morning with Coach Homziak to get his thoughts prior to tonight’s playoff opener.

“We had some injuries at the beginning of the season which required players to play at different positions and some of the younger players to play more significant minutes than they normally would have if we were healthy,” said Homziak. “Once we were able to get players back, those playing out of position were able to return positions they were most comfortable, which helped our team both offensively and defensively and has led to us playing our best games the last couple weeks of the season.”

If Hopewell is to advance to the second round, they’ll need to play their best game of the season against a team that Homziak knows is very talented.

“Elizabeth Forward, who is the Section 3 champion, has experience throughout their lineup. They all can shoot the 3 and have a formidable post presence with senior #14 Jellison.”

If the Lady Vikings are to pull the upset, Homziak lays out the keys to victory.

“Two keys to us being successful will be rebounding on both sides of the floor and making layups and free throws. Those two factors are what we have been working on improving as the season has progressed. If we can finish, we can be successful tonight.”

Vikings Sports Now wishes Hopewell the best of luck tonight. Tipoff from Elizabeth Forward High School is set for 7 PM.

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Hopewell HS Girls Basketball

Hopewell HS Girls Basketball Gets WPIAL Playoff 1st Round Matchup

by Mike Vukovcan
written by Mike Vukovcan 1 minutes read

The second season of the high school basketball seasons starts this week with the opening of the WPIAL Basketball Playoffs.

After qualifying on Thursday, Section 2, the Hopewell Lady Vikings will start action later this week.

The WPIAL basketball committee unveiled the playoff brackets for both the Boys and Girls, and it comes as no surprise that Hopewell has received a tough draw.

Since they entered the playoffs as a 4th place team, Hopewell was expecting to take on one of the top teams in Class 4A and that’s exactly what was decided on.

Coach Homziak and Hopewell will open up the playoffs by taking on 1st place Elizabeth Forward, which finished the regular season with a record of 17-4 and 13-1 in conference.

The game between Hopewell and Elizabeth Forward will be played on Monday, February 17th at Elizabeth Forward High School.

This is the third consecutive season that they Lady Vikings have qualified for the WPIAL playoffs. Last season as the 9th seed, Hopewell took on 8th seed Greensburg Salem and lost.

The WPIAL Basketball Championships will take place at the Peterson Events Center from Feb 27th thru March 1st. The defending Girls 4A champion is North Catholic who defeated Blackhawk in OT, 40-37.

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Hopewell HS Girls Basketball

Hopewell Loses to CV But Still Qualifies For Playoffs

by Mike Vukovcan
written by Mike Vukovcan 3 minutes read

Hopewell Township- The Hopewell Girls entered tonights game Central Valley with two ways to make the playoffs- 1) beat Central Valley and they’d qualify 2) Beaver beats Hampton.

The first option didn’t happen as Hopewell competes hard but lost 53-47. Luckily for the Lady Vikings, they received help from Beaver as they defeated Hampton, 61-36.

That means Hopewell has qualified for the WPIAL Playoffs and will find out their opponent this weekend.

In terms of tonight’s game, the game was pretty much decided in the first quarter.

When you’re going up a CV head coach Chris Raso, one of the best basketball coaches (boys or girls) in the WPIAL, you need to take advantage of opportunities and Hopewell didn’t do that.

In the first quarter alone, Hopewell missed at least 6 wide open shots from the paint and missed 10 free throws in the first half.

Instead of trailing by 14 points at halftime, this very easily could’ve been a 2/3 point game which would’ve made the 2nd half much more interesting where Hopewell outscored CV, 29-21.

Credit to CV for being the better team for the length of the game and that’s why they came out on top tonight.

Two players for Hopewell that really stood out to me tonight were Alyssa Spang and Maya Richburg. Spang was a monster on the boards and competed hard in the paint and defensively.

Although she didn’t lead them in scoring, Richburg was one of the best players on the floor tonight for Hopewell.  She was completely locked in physically, emotionally and played with a great passion making a number of winning plays for the Lady Vikings.

1st Quarter Recap-

*Off the opening tip, Richburg got the tip and drove the left wing for a layup, Hopewell 2-0.

*After a defensive rebound, Caylee Sundy raced up the court and fed Avery Boyd with a perfect bounce pass for a layup, CV 15-6.

End of 1st Quarter: CV 15 Hopewell 7

2nd Quarter Recap- 

*As she did a lot tonight, Boyd drove to the paint for 2, CV 15-9.

*Sundy with a great across the block pass to Boyd for a layup, CV 26-14.

*Boyd with a nice steal at half court as she jumped up to intercept a pass, she then fed Sundy for a layup, CV 28-16

*Sundy with a rebound, pushes it up court, finds Richburg , who was fouled shooting. Maya went 2-for-2 at the line, 18-28.

Halftime: CV 32 Hopewell 18

3rd Quarter Recap:

*Sundy with a rebound, takes it to other end and finds Boyd for 2, as she drives the wing, CV 35-20

*A few minutes later same exact thing, Boyd 2 more, CV 35-24

*Nice passing at top of key for Hopewell as Richburg eventually gets it to Sundy, who drains a 3, CV 41-29.

*Once again more ball movement, this time the ball eventually gets inside to Spang, who finishes, CV 45-31.

*Then a true buzzer beater as Sundy throws up a shot from midcourt and it goes in!

End of 3rd Quarter- CV 47 Hopewell 34

4th Quarter Recap-

*Hopewell transition, Sundy to Addison Blosnick for 2, CV 47-36.

*With 4:19 left, ball goes inside to Blosnick who gets it out to Sundy for 3, CV 49-40.

*After that shot, Hopewell had 3 or 4 possessions to get closer but couldn’t.

*With 1:16 left, Richburg converts a 3, CV 51-43.

*With :30 left, Hopewell got it to 6 on a Boyd layup but that’s as close as they got.

Final Score: Central Valley 53 Hopewell 47

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Hopewell HS Girls Basketball

Hustle From Hopewell Leads to Vikings Win on Senior Night

by Lillian Otto
written by Lillian Otto 2 minutes read

HOPEWELL TOWNSHIP– As the High School Girls basketball regular season winds down, the Hopewell Lady Vikings are still working towards earning their spot in the playoffs. But tonight’s win against Lincoln Park brings them one step closer to meeting their goal.

Tonight was also Senior Night, so we recognized Alyssa Spang, one of the leaders on this team.

GAME RECAP-

1ST QUARTER:
Hopewell started out with a booming 1st quarter. Early points from Spang, Maya Richburg, Caylee Sundy, and a 3-pointer from Avery Boyd quickly put them ahead with a 12-4 lead. Fast breaks were a huge part of the first quarter as eight points were scored off fast breaks. Assists also had a major role, with seven in the first quarter. The Lady Vikings had a very strong opening quarter on defense too, allowing Lincoln Park to score just six points. The quarter ended with Hopewell leading 22-6.

2ND QUARTER:
Unlike the first quarter, the scoring pace in the second quarter slowed down due to first half foul trouble and Lincoln Park adjusting their defense to eliminate Hopewell’s fast breaks. Through the struggles, the Lady Vikings remained patient on defense, only allowing 9 points to the Leopards. Hopewell entered halftime with a 28-15 lead.

3RD QUARTER:
Things got tight in the third quarter when Lincoln Park climbed their way back to make it a one-point game at 28-27. The Vikings only had four points in the 3rd quarter, which were pivotal free throws from Sundy to close it out. The 3rd quarter finished with Hopewell lead 32-28.

4TH QUARTER:
Hopewell came out with intensity in the 4th quarter both on offense and defense. They raced out to a 14-0 run to start the 4th, with contributions from Boyd, Spang, Richburg, and Sundy. Just like the first quarter, the final period was filled with lots of hustle which separated them from Lincoln Park. The night ended with senior Spang knocking down two free throws and exiting the game to a standing ovation from the crowd.

FINAL SCORE: Hopewell 50 Lincoln Park 33

After the game, I was able to catch up with Spang to discuss the game tonight and her final season with Hopewell.

GAME STATS

Caylee Sundy: 18 points, 5 assists, and 4 rebounds

Alyssa Spang: 12 points and 7 rebounds

Avery Boyd: 11 points and 5 rebounds

Maya Richburg: 5 points, 5 rebounds, 5 steals, and 4 assists

Addison Blosnick: 4 points and 3 rebounds

Up next the Lady Vikings play Central Valley at home on Thursday in a huge game, where a victory will secure another district playoff berth. Make sure to come out and support these girls who have been working extremely hard this season.

There is a possibility they clinch that berth before Thursday’s matchup so stay tuned to Vikings Sports Now where we’ll keep you updated as we find out any new information.

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Hopewell HS Girls Basketball

Finally Healthy, Hopewell HS Girls Basketball Hope to Start 2nd Half Charge Towards Playoffs

by Mike Vukovcan
written by Mike Vukovcan 2 minutes read

With just 7 games left in the regular season, the Hopewell Vikings High School Girls basketball team is looking to start a winning streak.

That’s going to be needed if they hope to continue their streak of participating in the WPIAL Playoffs.

Unfortunately, because of a slow start, the Vikings are hoping to climb out a hole caused by an early season losing streak. Not to make excuses, but a big part of that losing streak was due to injuries up and down the roster, particularly to last season’s leading scorer Caylee Sundy.

The good news for Coach Jeff Homziak’s squad is that for practically the first time this season, they are completely healthy, which is great news and gives the team optimism.

This morning, Vikings Sports Now had the chance to catch up with Coach Homziak and asked him the impact of not having Sundy for the majority of the season and what her recent return has meant.

“Anytime a team is without a player who provides leadership on the floor or playing field, it forces other players to have to assume roles that they may not be ready for at the time, but it forces them to develop skills that will benefit themselves and the team further in the season and their playing careers,” said Homziak.

While it may have negatively impacted the record, plenty of young players benefited as they saw their minutes and responsibilities increase with the absence of Sundy. Addison Blosnick and Cici Smetana, in particular, are playing a lot more than maybe they expected considering they’re just in 9th grade.

“Over the last five-six weeks, younger players have been provided opportunities to display their abilities against varsity competition which otherwise may not have been available,” said Homziak. “It has also helped our coaching staff evaluate our strengths and weaknesses going forward. This has made our total number of players who can provide varsity minutes greater in terms of bench depth.”

The coaching staff is hoping that this depth and playing time will pay dividends down the stretch as Hopewell looks to sneak into 4th place, which would get them in the playoffs.

“We currently are in 5th place in the section standings halfway through,” said Homziak. “On Monday we have the opportunity to earn a season split with Hampton and move into a tie for 4th place.  Four teams and ties qualify for the playoffs from our section, so Monday’s game is critical for us trying to earn a season split and the second half of section play.”

The game tomorrow is at Hopewell High School with a tipoff set for 7:30 PM. It’s a big game so if your schedule allows you to, showing up and supporting this team would be appreciated.

Here’s a look at the current standings and Hopewell’s remaining schedule.

Class 4A, Section 2:
Blackhawk: 6-0
Beaver: 5-2
Central Valley: 4-2
Hampton: 3-3
Hopewell 2-4
Lincoln Park: 1-4
Ambridge: 0-6

Hopewell’s Remaining Schedule- 
1/20: vs. Hampton
1/23: vs. Blackhawk
1/27: at Beaver
1/30: at Ambridge
2/1: at Rochester
2/6: vs. Central Valley
2/10: at Mohawk

*Need to reschedule a postponed game against Lincoln Park

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