ILVGH: District Crowns

Let’s review the district semifinals and titles. Visit our X(@LSVSports) and IG(@LSVSports1) for plenty of videos, interviews, and more!

Class A

• Weatherly entered their district semifinal game with an identical 7-15 record as Notre Dame East Stroudsburg. Much attention had been paid to NDES’ Olivia Protheroe, a standout with several 30+ and even a few 40+ point games to her name. Weatherly was a bit of an unknown commodity coming into this one, but their full team effort got the job done in a 32-19 victory. It was far from a well-played contest, as the teams combined for 60 turnovers, but Kelly Keiner emerged with 14 points and Maci Kane had ten. Despite the Wreckers taking a 19-8 halftime lead, it never felt like NDES was totally out of the game. Protheroe came away with eight steals, numerous rebounds and 11 points, but many of her 3-point attempts missed the rim and the 33 turnovers by Weatherly were not converted into enough points. Weatherly struggled at the foul line, but went 4/4 in the fourth as Alexia Kehler and Reiner each converted a pair. Notre Dame, on the other hand, finished 2/10 at the foul line. The Wreckers advanced to face Bethlehem Christian at Easton on Saturday morning for the class A title.
• Bethlehem Christian met Weatherly Saturday morning at Easton, defeating the Wreckers 28-18. Paige Kreidler was the hero of the day for the Panthers, scoring 12 points. Kreidler scored all eight of the first quarter, putting the Panthers ahead 8-3. Elyse Kachadourian hit a three-pointer in the second and the lead would end up being insurmountable at 15-8. Freshman Maci Kane scored nine for Weatherly.

Class AAA

• Executive Education faced Notre Dame Green Pond in the semifinals. The two met last year, playing to a 29-20 Raptors win. Mariah Hargrove led Executive with 18 points in the Raptors’ 48-33 win. Early 3-pointers by Hargrove and Aiyana Riddick propelled EEACS to a 14-6 first quarter lead. Scoring in the second quarter was at a premium, but Brianna Beani hit three times from the field. The Crusaders trailed 22-16 at the break. Hargrove scored seven in the third quarter, offsetting triples by Riley Boyle and Brenna Hammerstone. A strong 16-point fourth quarter saw the Raptors pull away, as seven different players all scored in the final minutes and were seven of eight at the foul stripe. Riddick finished with 12 points. For Notre Dame, Ava Shonk and Riley Boyle each notched seven.
• Executive Education won its first ever girls District XI crown, 39-33 over Schuylkill Haven at Martz Hall. The Raptors’ victory snapped a 15 game winning streak for the Hurricanes. Executive got out to a 7-1 start, while the Hurricanes did not score until about a minute left in the opening quarter. Mariah Hargrove scored 15 points on the night, including 11 in the first half. She pulled down 11 boards, while Nia Bush pounded the glass for 15 more. Despite that, though, Haven kept the game close throughout, trailing only by three at the break and tying it up at 26 all entering the final eight minutes. Executive only led by two with a minute to play but sank three of their final four foul shots to secure victory. Nia Bush joined Hargrove in double figures with ten points. McKenna Runkle led the Canes with 12 and Audrey Hutchinson put up 11.
• Notre Dame Green Pond edged Pine Grove 44-41, led by a strong second half from Brenna Hammerstone and a 15-point effort by Ava Shonk. After trailing 22-20 at the break, Hammerstone hit twice from deep in the third, totaling eight points for the third quarter. Free throw shooting was grealy improved for the Crusaders over recent games, as the team went 12/18 from the foul line. Seven of their last ten went down, allowing NDGP to overcome 15 points from Lainey Fidler and 11 from Meadow Umbenhauer.

Class AAAA

• Central Catholic has had a lot of ups and downs this season. After losing four straight to open the year and going 1-5 out of the gate, some thought the Vikettes reign at the top of District XI 4A was ending. But head coach Kathy Davidowich and her team kept working hard all season long and reached the semifinal round, eventually pulling away from Palmerton 55-37 and advancing to the title bout. The Vikettes rode the momentum of their comeback victory over Northwestern Lehigh, channeling that energy into a 19-5 first quarter explosion. Alisyn Green was a bright spot for the Bombers in the first half, scoring seven points. However, ACC led 32-16 at the break, keeping their foot on the gas pedal, getting big production for Morgan Seagreaves, Skylar Taylor and nine points from Alyssa Hursh that matched her nine against the Tigers. Palmerton employed a full court press in the second half, turning over the Vikettes numerous times. The Bombers went on a 18-7 run that cut the deficit to five points behind Avery and Hailey Barry, Emma Rex and Cate Morgan. From there, though, Central took momentum back and closed the game on a 16-3 run, breaking the pressure and scoring five times from inside the paint. The #7 seed Vikettes advanced to be the home team in the District XI 4A championship game.
• Eighth seeded Blue Mountain kept their playoff run going, getting past Schuylkill League rival North Schuylkill 44-37. This one was close throughout. Hailey Place bagged five points early on two shots, while Mila Fleagle sank a trey. Mya Conti countered with seven first quarter points and the teams were tied at 12 after one. Conti continued in the second quarter, bringing her game total to 13. Hailey Place hit twice and had nine by the half. The Spartans led 23-20. Place and Fleagle hit two shots each in the third and the defensive effort improved for the Eagles–Conti was held two points for the rest of the night. The Eagles hit six of their eight fourth quarter foul shots, including three of four from Place, to come out on top. Mila Fleagle reached double figures at ten points and Conti’s 15 led the Spartans.
• Central Catholic used another hot start to vault the Vikettes to a fourth straight DXI 4A title, 45-31 over #8 seed Blue Mountain. The Eagles entered the game without one of their standouts in Callie Peel. Skyler Taylor and Shamiya Roberts provided the big points early, with Taylor hitting three layups early and Roberts hitting twice from range in the first half. Defensively, the Vikettes held Blue Mountain to three first half field goals, two of which came from Hailey Place. Leading 16-5 after one and 26-11 at the break, Central was well on its way. The Eagles did attempt a third quarter rally, outscoring Central 12-6 on three Mila Fleagle buckets and two more from Place. The fourth quarter called for solid foul shooting to close it out, and Centrl was up to the task. The Vikettes hit eight of their ten free throws to claim back-to-back district titles.
• Palmerton unleashed a torrent of three-pointers, persevering early and surpassing North Schuylkill 50-42. The Blue Bombers lived up to their name, exploding for ten triples. Sisters Avery and Hailey Barry combined for three in the first quarter, while Mya Conti countered with one of her own and five early points. Palmerton led 14-10 after one. Conti got going again in the second quarter, scoring seven points. After two, the Spartans led 24-21. Cate Morgan had one point at halftime, which is very uncharacteristic for her. She went off in the third, scoring three times from beyond the arc, joined by one more each from both Barrys. Conti got her own deep shot to go, but the 17-7 third quarter put Palmerton ahead 38-31. Hailey and Avery each hit from deep one more time, ensuring North Schuylkill would have no opening for a comeback. Hailey Barry led all Bombers with 13. Avery and Morgan each had 11. Conti finished with a game high 18, followed by ten each from Brianna Capone and Monica Selgrade.

Class AAAAA

• Bethlehem Catholic blitzed Bangor 60-16 on Wednesday night at Founders Hall. The Golden Hawks raced to a 26-0 lead and never looked back. Aliyah Brame led all scoers with 13 points, as ten different Beca players scored. In her first district playoff game, Kam Gallis contributed ten. Brooklyn Lewis added eight.
• Southern Lehigh needed overtime to get past Pottsville 36-32. Eliana Marques led all scorers with 15 points, including four of the Spartans’ six in overtime. Sam Fontanez was held scoreless in the first half but scored all of her seven late, including two in the extra session. Jo Barnhart scored ten for the Crimson Tide, including the only two of overtime on a pair of free throws.
• Bethlehem Catholic dominated Southern Lehigh 67-27. The Hawks built a 56-18 halftime lead and made their first seven triples that they attempted. The title marks the tenth straight for Becahi. Kam Gallis finished with 14 points. Aliyah Brame added 12 and Leah Ault had ten. Eliana Marques scored 14 for the Spartans. Both teams advance to host first round games in the state playoffs.

Class AAAAAA

• Gracie Ervin reached a new career high with 21 points in Emmaus’ 47-44 win over archrival Parkland. Her points and 14 more from Gabby DeVita helped the Hornets hold off a Trojans squad that took a 33-30 lead after three frames. Cherryllana Cunningham provided 11 points in the first half on three treys Aneri McGalla added two more to help Parkland get timely scoring. It looked grim for the Hornets in the third, limited to one made field goal each by Olive Whitney and Ervin, but DeVita and Ervin shined in crunch time for five made shots combined. Emmaus was 11/12 at the foul line, capitalizing on opportunities. Emmaus took an early 8-0 lead in the first quarter, but Parkland battled back all night, putting on their own 11-2 run. As the game wound down, DeVita hit a pair of free throws that gave Emmaus a 47-43 lead. As time expired, the celebration began, but DeVita was called for her fifth foul with :0.4 left. Parkland would’ve needed to hit the first two and get a tip off a miss of the third to tie the game, but the first shot missed and the celebration resumed.
• Easton’s offense came alive in the second half to upend another Nazareth upset bid. Just a couple weeks ago, Nazareth had a 25-3 lead on Parkland before falling. This time, Nazareth poured it on early after a Melina Cole 3-ball opened the scoring for Easton. Nazareth proceeded to go up 17-9 on 3-pointers by Alexa Davis and Karly Leszcynski. Audrey Samsel also converted an and-one opportunity. Easton had now been held to its lowest halftime point total of the year, trailing 19-11. Easton again needed to rely on its balanced scoring–Ava Muhammad provided the shot that got the Rovers within 19-16. Melina Cole’s 3-ball from the corner gave Easton a 22-21 lead. The teams entered the final eight minutes knotted at 31. Easton scored the first four before Leszcynski hit from downtown to bring them within one. But at the final buzzer, Easton emerged victorious, setting up a title game against Emmaus. Melina Cole was the only Rover in double digits, scoring ten. Nat Amato finished with seven and both Muhammad and Elena Brunetti had five. Alexa Davis scored 11 for the Blue Eagles and Leszcynski was limited to eight.
• Easton overcame a 34-23 fourth quarter deficit, including trailing by nine with 6:43 left, to stun Emmaus 45-41. Early three-balls by Nat Amato and Ava Muhammad put Easton up 12-7. But the Emmaus defense took over in the second, holding Easton to one point for the rest of the half. Gabby East showed signs of what’s to come from her, hitting two 3-pointers on the big stage at Allen. Sierra Stevens and Olive Whitney hit long balls in the third, running the Emmaus lead to 11 points. However, to this point, Gabby DeVita was limited to just one made shot from the field and three points overall. And she would not score in the fourth, either, as Easton went on a 22-7 run, including 8-0 down the stretch to take the game out from under the Hornets. In a late sequence, Emmaus turned the ball over three times, with quick layups by Wismer and Muhammad. Twelve second half turnovers did in the Hornets and allowed Nat Amato a strong finish to go with 16 from Muhammad. For Emmaus, no players reached double figures. Whitney led the Hornets with nine.
• Parkland held on against Nazareth late 39-35. The Trojans took an early 8-3 lead, as four different players scored a bucket in the opening quarter. Yana Smoltz, though, got the only bucket of the second quarter for Parkland, as Nazareth turned up the defensive pressure. Sarah Deilly connected twice and Nazareth trailed just 12-11 at halftime. Then the Parkland offense exploded in the third, scoring 18 points. Savannah Gonzalez hit two triples and Isabella Hallal scored six points after being held to nothing at the half. It also took until the third for Karly Leszcynski to hit from the field, as she sank her first trey. Staring down a 30-19 deficit with a quarter to go, Nazareth needed to rally fast. Parkland did not hit another field goal for the game, as Maddie Ott and Alexa Davis led the charge for the Eagles. However, Parkland did enough at the foul line, hitting nine of fourteen shots down the stretch to secure the close win and go to states. Hallal finished with 11 points, leading Parklamd, while Davis paced Nazareth with ten.