Boys 5A First Round Recap (Springfield 49, Abington Heights 47)

Written by: Jon K on March 8, 2026

March 6, 2026

Comets lose Heartbreaker to Springfield (Delco) in Boys 5A

Springfield (Delco) 49, Abington Heights 47

CLARKS SUMMIT – Abington Heights managed to battle back from 15 turnovers. Number 16 ended their season.

Riding a 15-game winning streak and coming off a Lackawanna League Division1 and District 2 Championship, Abington Heights was soaring coming into their PIAA Class 5A First Round game. But, drawing the 4-seed from talent-filled District 1 combined with a season-ending wrist injury to sophomore starter Cooper Manning (5.8 ppg, 25 triples) had the near-capacity crowd expecting a close game. And that’s exactly what this tilt delivered. Despite being frustrated all night by an impressively swift and crafty defensive effort by Springfield (Delco), the Comets rallied to erase a 10-point deficit and grabbed a 49-47 lead in the closing half-minute. The Cougars, a very well-coached team, did not panic and tied the game from the charity stripe before stealing the inbound pass following a timeout. Another pair of free throws gave them the lead with 3.9 ticks left. Abington Heights got a game-winning opportunity but Jordan Shaffer’s long triple bounced off the back of the rim to give Springfield (Delco) the highly-emotional victory, 49-47.

Abington Heights got off to a strong start erasing a 4-0 deficit and grabbing an 8-4 lead off triples by Andrew Kettel and Jordan Shaffer. Kettel later electrified the crowd with a behind-the-back feed into Carter Plantz for a layup. Teams traded triples (Tom Toomey for SD and Shaffer for AH) to give the Comets a 15-9 lead after the first period.

Springfield (Delco) began to show glimpses of their quick-strike ability to create turnovers as the second frame got underway. While the Comets were not getting any shots off, the Cougars weren’t connecting on anything until a triple by TJ Valletti cut the gap to 15-12 at the 5-minute mark. A steal by Peter Altes cut it to 15-14 before AH got inside scores by Finn Goldberg and Shaffer. Valletti continued to display his ability to get to the basket and his agility was showcased when he somehow got a reverse tip-in off a missed shot. Altes scored on a fast break to bring the Cougars within a single point, 21-20, at the break.

Teams exchanged free throws over the opening two minutes of the second half before the Cougars grabbed a 26-23 lead off a driving score by Toomey plus a steal and layup by Valletti. Kettel tied it, 26-26, at the 3:20 mark but Springfield (Delco) found their shooting touch to net a trio of triples, a pair from Toomey and one from Will Carr to outscore AH 9-2 and take a 35-28 lead into the final quarter.

The Cougar fans were celebrating as their team extended their lead to ten points, 38-28, to open the final period, but Comets responded quickly to cut the deficit in half (38-33) with a score by Shaffer and triple by Kettel. Another triple, this one by Shaffer and a free throw by Goldberg brought AH within one score, 39-37, midday through the quarter. Thomas Reese connected on a trey for Abington Heights to knot things up at 40 before Valletti again maneuvered to the bucket to get a nifty reverse layup to give Springfield (Delco) a 42-40 edge. Billy Johnson cut it to 42-41 with a free throw at the 2:25 mark. Emotions swung quickly as teams again traded triples (Toomey for SD and Shaffer for AH) before Shaffer netted yet another one to give the Comets a 47-45 lead. Valletti calmly tied it at 47 with a pair of FTs with 26 seconds left. Inbounding after a timeout, Springfield (Delco) immediately intercepted the AH pass and began to run their offense, running down the clock and once again getting a pair of FTs from Valletti with 3.9 ticks on the clock. The Cougars used their 4th foul with 2.3 left to keep the Comets from getting the ball downcourt. The inbound pass was taken by Shaffer who got an open look at the basket, but his long triple bounced off the back of the rim sending Springfield (Delco) into the next round amid a wild celebration on the other end of the court.

Abington Heights was led by Jordan Shaffer with 19 points and Andrew Kettel with 11 points. Finn Goldberg, Carter Plantz, Thomas Reese, Gavin Corwin, and Billy Johnson combined for 17 points. The Comets hit 9 triples and made 4 of 6 free throws.

Springfield (Delco) was paced by TJ Valletti with 20 points and Tom Toomey with 16 points. The pair had an outstanding game. Will Carr and Peter Altes combined for 13 points. The Cougars netted 7 triples and converted 10 of 12 free throws. Springfield (22-4) advances to the PIAA Boys Class 5A Second Round to face Octorara (3-4, 23-4) on Tuesday evening (Coatesville, 7:30 pm).