Plum girls grab section lead with win against Fox Chapel

By: Michael Love
Monday, January 12, 2026 | 10:13 PM

The Plum girls basketball team is alone in first place in Section 1-5A as the first half of section play concluded Monday evening.

Senior Riley Stephans scored a team-best 26 points, and junior Tamia West added 19 points and 14 rebounds as the Mustangs topped Fox Chapel, 65-49, at Plum High School in a battle for the outright lead in the section.

The Mustangs led by as much as 20 points in the second quarter. Fox Chapel had the lead trimmed to 10 early in the fourth before Plum made plays down the stretch to put the win on ice.

“We said at halftime that Fox Chapel works hard and will keep coming at us,” Plum coach Rich Mull said.

“We had to be ready for that push that we expected. There’s a reason why you play four quarters. It definitely is not over at halftime. Our kids, for the most part, stayed focused, made plays and worked to maintain what we built in the first half.”

Plum won its fourth straight and improved to 10-3 overall and 5-1 in the section, whereas Fox Chapel slipped to 7-7 overall, 4-2 in league play.

The Mustangs hope to keep it going Thursday at home against Franklin Regional in a rematch of a 33-31 Plum win Dec. 11.

“It will be a tough game Thursday,” Mull said. “The section is so competitive. There is nothing easy. We just have to be as prepared as possible. You can never rest.”

Fox Chapel came in winner of three in a row. It hoped to build on last Friday’s 18-point win over Shaler. The Foxes outscored the Mustangs by four over the game’s final 22 minutes, but the deficit was too much.

“I was proud of the girls’ effort to come back,” said Foxes coach Marty Matvey, who saw his team fall behind 13-0 at the midway point of the first quarter.

“We just didn’t play with the type of urgency and desperation we needed in the first few minutes of the first quarter. That sets the tone. We had good opportunities and missed a couple of layups and then missed free throws collectively throughout the game which would’ve helped us get even closer. Against Shaler, we came out and hunted and set that tone. If we would’ve done that tonight, we would’ve done OK.”

Fox Chapel hopes to bounce back Wednesday in nonsection play at Kiski Area before returning to section action Thursday at Penn Hills.

The Foxes topped the Indians, 45-44, on Dec. 12.

“Penn Hills is playing very well,” Matvey said. “We barely beat them at home the first time, so they are going to want some payback.”

Stephans scored nine of her points in the third quarter and added six more down the stretch in the fourth.

“I am not surprised that she was able to keep it up and lead us in that second half,” Mull said.

“She played the whole game and was dialed in. That was important because Tamia had those cramping issues.”

West went 3 for 4 from the free-throw line in the fourth quarter and added a layup as she exited and returned to the court a couple times over the final 10 minutes of play. She was on fire early and finished the first quarter with 11 of her 19 points and eight of her 14 rebounds.

“You just couldn’t hold her out,” Mull said. “She went in and gave everything she could until she couldn’t. She is so tough. Overall, at times, we were physically tough, but we also were mentally tough. That is something we are always working on.”

Plum struggled at times making layups and missed nine.

Fox Chapel didn’t fare well at the free-throw line. The Foxes missed 14 of their 21 from the lin.

Senior Lyla Jablon fronted Fox Chapel with 26 points. She was shut out in the first quarter but scored eight in the second, 12 in the third and six in the fourth in the midst of the Foxes’ rally attempt.

“That’s a sign of a true leader. We just need others to come along,” Matvey said. “Lyla is the only player on the team with that senior-level experience.”

Sophomore Nina Kulikowski added eight points and seven rebounds for the Foxes.

Junior Taylie Auth came up big for Plum with all seven of her points in the fourth quarter. Freshman Tori Glogowski came off the bench to drain a pair of 3-pointers and also finish with seven points.

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

Tags: Fox Chapel, Plum