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It’s just past the halfway point of division play in the Catholic League. Here’s a summary of how each team has fared so far, and some unofficial first-half MVPs.
In the Southern Division, Roman Catholic is simply on fire. It’s not just the Cahillites’ overall record of 19-2 that’s impressive; rather, it’s been who they’ve defeated.

On Sunday, Roman traveled to the court of defending champion Neumann-Goretti, and for the second time this season, the Cahillites defeated the Saints, 60-55. Junior Bradley Wanamaker’s 20 points, senior Mike Ringgold’s 16 points and 10 rebounds, and senior Ray Sims’ clutch shooting late in the game proved too much for Neumann-Goretti.

Add those two wins to an earlier victory over St. Joseph’s Prep, and it’s little wonder that Roman fans are quickly envisioning winning their first league championship since 2000. First-half MVP: The aforementioned Ringgold, whose average of 17 points per game is fourth best in the division.

Of course, Neumann-Goretti will point out that last year, it lost to St. Joseph’s Prep during the regular season, but then took care of business in the league final. In other words, no one should count the Saints out of contention just because they lost twice to a Roman Catholic team that is now a cinch to win the regular-season title in the Southern Division.

The first-half MVP for a Neumann-Goretti team that is 13-6 overall and 7-2 in the division? Here’s a surprise: Junior Rick Jackson.

For St. Joseph’s Prep, a 16-3 overall record is tainted by consecutive losses this weekend to both Roman Catholic and Neumann-Goretti. Still, the Hawks are capable of making major noise come March. First-half MVP: No, not Villanova-bound Reggie Redding, who has been struggling to find his game. Instead, sophomore Larry Loughery, with his 15-point average, gets the nod.

Msgr. Bonner is 11-8 overall and, thanks to consecutive wins this weekend, 4-4 in the division, with a very real possibility to reach the post-season in coach Brian Daly’s rookie season. The Friars’ first-half MVP is easy: league-leading scorer Jeff Jones, a junior who has averaged 23.4 points per game and has scored 23 or more in five of eight league games.

Cardinal O’Hara looked like the obvious fourth playoff team following a 3-0 start in the division. But four losses in five games, the most pivotal a setback against Bonner, has the Lions tied for fourth with Bonner. First-half MVP? Senior Pat Kirby, who arguably has been the most consistent Friar.

There used to be a time when a league win was an anomaly at Kennedy-Kenrick. Not anymore. The Wolverines’ 74-game league losing streak came to an end two weeks ago with a victory over Archbishop Carroll; two games later, they won again, defeating West Catholic. First-half MVP is a tough pick, but junior Tim Bowman scored a combined 27 points in the two wins and receives a wink.

Archbishop Carroll has a terrific non-league mark of 9-2, but a 1-7 stretch has been disappointing for the Patriots. First-half MVP? Senior Darrell Floyd.

At West Catholic, senior Chris Mayo has averaged 19.4 points per game and is definitely the first-half MVP. However, the Burrs are 1-7 in the league after a strong 6-5 non-league start.

The Northern Division is worse — or better, depending on your perspective — than a 6 p.m. traffic jam on the Schuylkill Expressway.

Cardinal Dougherty (15-4 overall) is on top with a 7-1 record, but then four teams — Conwell-Egan, Father Judge, North Catholic (four-game winning streak), and Archbishop Ryan (five wins in its last six games) — are 5-3. Then comes surprising LaSalle at 5-4 (and the only team to beat Dougherty in the North), followed by 1-7 Bishop McDevitt and 0-9 Archbishop Wood.

First-half MVPs are as follows: Senior Wilson Acevedo at Conwell-Egan; senior Vinny Simpson at Cardinal Dougherty; senior James Franklin at Father Judge; sophomore Clay Penecale at LaSalle; senior Nate Edwards (barely over junior Andrew Pomager) at North Catholic; senior Mike Varanavage at Archbishop Ryan; Bill Murphy (division’s leading scorer with 17.7 points per game) at Bishop McDevitt, and Chris Crawford (a little more consistent than leading scorer Jim Malatesta) at Wood.

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