Philadelphia Races Past Rockland in Maccabi Girls' Hoops Action

Monday afternoon at the , mighty Philadelphia raced out to a 23-3 lead and set down Rockland 57-17 in each team's second game of the girls' basketball segment of the JCC Maccabi Games.

The defensively active Philadelphia girls, the tournament's reigning champions, scored 17 points before Rockland netted their first field goal. The Rockland girls finally hit one with two minutes remaining in the first period.

"It's just great to be out here and compete," said Philadelphia forward Ellie Silverman, who was on last year's championship roster, but missed the games due to an injury. "We're all Jewish and we're all out here to do our best."

The incoming Upper Dublin High School junior provided Philly with a tough interior presence throughout the game, grabbing seemingly every rebound available and turning many of them into points, and along with point guard Jacqueline Krevolin, a soon-to-be senior at Souderton High School, provided the victors with a formidable inside-outside combo.

On the strength of this combo, Philadelphia raced out to leads of 17-1, 23-3, and 53-12. Despite the game's choppy feel--the officials were whistle happy throughout, and each team became exceedingly familiar with the foul stripe--Philly delivered an even performance. They never trailed and expanded their lead in each of the game's four periods.

The game's most exciting period though, and the only point when any outcome was in doubt, came when a basketball got stuck in the mesh netting that hung above the court and two officials tried in vein to knock it loose. Like Rockland, they came up short.

Led by head coach Lindsay Krasna, herself an alum of the Maccabi Games and a former professional player in Israel, the Philadelphia girls hope to repeat as champs. Monday's performance put them one emphatic step closer to that goal.

Philadelphia next plays Aug. 16 at 9:45 a.m. against Charlotte, while Rockland squares off at 8:30 a.m. against Samuel Field.