Neshaminy girls’ basketball leans on senior leaders to get back to playoff contention

Neshaminy girls’ basketball has the pieces to put together a strong season, though, it’ll be up to its leaders to get there.

“We have to lead,” said senior Lola Ibarrondo. “Everything we do is being watched by the freshmen. We have to set a good example for them, but also help them to grow. That’s pretty much the goal this year and then they can carry that into their next seasons ahead of them.”

Ibarrondo, who’s committed to play basketball at Holy Family, and senior Reese Zemitis, committed to Bucknell, return off back-to-back First Team All-SOL Patriot seasons after leading Neshaminy to the division title last season. Neshaminy made a state playoff appearance the last two years, but has yet to advance past the first round in the Class 6A.

Ava Irizarry, a gritty guard who served as a key reserve last season, rounds out the senior class. Junior Alena Cofield is Neshaminy’s other returning starter.

Outside of that, Neshaminy will be relying on a number of inexperienced and new players, but that doesn’t mean they won’t make an immediate impact.

“Lola and Reese could not be doing a better job as captains taking these young kids under their arms,” said Neshaminy coach John Gallagher. “They know I’m not going to get on the young kids for making mistakes, so they’re taking them off to the side and coaching them. It’s our best incoming class, we’re lucky to have them and they couldn’t be luckier to have Lola and Reese as their leaders.”

Zemitis remembers her freshman year. She was put into the starting lineup on an experienced team. The 6-foot forward started out as a perimeter shooting option, and spent the last three years growing and developing her game that culminated as a third team all-state selection following last season.

“They’ll learn it’s not all about scoring,” Zemitis said. “You can affect a game in so many other ways, whether it’s getting a rebound, a big defensive stop or even hitting one or two threes in a game can be huge.”

Despite Neshaminy bringing back three starters, there are other spots to fill in the rotation.

“We’re going to attack more this year,” Ibarrondo said. “We have more guards with that attack-heavy mindset. We lost some shooters who were comfortable on the perimeter, but I’ve noticed the freshmen want to go in, so we’ll be able to do that and hopefully, it opens up even more shots for us.”

Neshaminy hasn’t played with a full deck yet with a handful of athletes busy with their fall sports, but the defending SOL Patriot champions have still got some solid reps in. Among the group playing this fall are five of the team’s freshmen in Grace Weyler, Ashlynn Duffy, Mia Raivitch, Auslyn Wilkins, and Hayley Kolk.

Kolk, a 6-foot forward, has shown a well-rounded approach on the offensive end. There are still moments where the seniors have to direct her to the right spot, but Kolk hasn’t been afraid to take opportunities, and that hasn’t escaped the eyes of her teammates.

» READ MORE: The story behind this Perkiomen Valley senior’s ‘miracle’ scholarship to Kutztown

“For her to come in and have the confidence to take those shots is really big,” Zemitis said. “We are so young, we need them to come in and not be scared. All the freshmen, they’re new to this but they’ve been playing really well.”

Winning the SOL Patriot title last year was a big step for this group. Zemitis and Ibarrondo are aiming bigger this year. Neshaminy should be a contender for the SOL tournament title but beyond that, the two senior captains have yet to win a state playoff game and want to change that before they move on to college.

“We’re very skilled,” Ibarrondo said. “All the freshmen that are coming up are very skilled and once they get the offense down, we’re going to be a pretty good team with the skill level we have.”

This story was produced as part of a partnership between The Inquirer and City of Basketball Love, a nonprofit news organization that covers high school and college basketball in the Philadelphia area while also helping mentor the next generation of sportswriters. This collaboration will help boost coverage of the city’s vibrant amateur basketball scene, from the high school ranks up through the Big 5 and beyond.