1/31/23 RECAP

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Photo Credit @MoonTigersBB (Twitter)

BOYS BASKETBALL

6A SECTION 1

New Castle 64, Butler 49

New Castle (16-2, 6-1) used an 18-8 second quarter to get separation from Butler (13-5, 4-3) and finish off a 64-49 victory. Da’juan Young led New Castle with 22 points. Nick Wallace and Jonathan Anderson each had 18 points.

Central Catholic 55, Seneca Valley 43

The defense clamped down for Central Catholic (11-7, 5-2) as they only allowed six points in the fourth quarter leading to a 55-43 victory over Seneca Valley (2-5, 7-10). With the win, Central Catholic jumps into second place in the section and is only one game behind New Castle for the top spot. Dante DePante had 16 points for Central Catholic. Connor Oros led all scorers with 22 points for Seneca Valley. Luke Lawson added 11 points.

North Allegheny 61, Pine-Richland 54 (3OT)

North Allegheny (8-9, 3-4) was down six heading into the fourth quarter but was able to tie the game and take it to three extra frames before pulling out the 61-54 victory over Pine-Richland (5-13, 1-6). The victory was big for North Allegheny because with the Seneca Valley loss, the Tigers now hold a one-game lead over Seneca Valley for the final playoff spot. Ty Iwanokiw led North Allegheny with 19 points. Joey Dopirak pitched in 18 points. Emery Moye had 22 points for Pine-Richland while Owen Luellen added 14 points.

6A SECTION 2

Upper St. Clair 63, Norwin 33

The second half defense was lights out for Upper St. Clair (11-8, 6-1) as they only allowed 14 points in the second half en route to a 63-33 win over Norwin (11-7, 3-4). Nick Sukernek had 12 points for Upper St. Clair while Adam Bilinsky had 11 points for Norwin.

Mt. Lebanon 49, Hempfield 30

It was only a 7-point game heading into the fourth quarter but Mt. Lebanon (13-5, 7-0) went on a 17-5 run in the fourth quarter to pull away from Hempfield (6-13, 1-6) 49-30. The win keeps Mt. Lebanon a game up on Upper St. Clair for the section lead. Tanner Donati and Michael Pfeuffer each had 13 points for Mt. Lebanon.

Baldwin 77, Canon-McMillan 68

Canon-McMillan (3-16, 0-7) made a fierce run in the fourth quarter scoring 26 points but Baldwin (11-7, 4-3) was able to fend the Big Macs off for a 77-68 victoy. Nate Wesling led all scorers with 21 points. Nathan Richards had 17 points while Joey Carr and James Wesling each added 14 points. Ryan Galicic led Canon-McMillan with 20 points while Michael Dixson pitched in 12.

5A SECTION 1

Bethel Park 62, Trinity 53

Bethel Park (11-6, 6-1) got out to a 38-18 halftime lead and was able to hang on for a 62-53 win over Trinity (8-10, 3-4). The win keeps Bethel Park tied atop Section 1-5A with Peters Township. Ben Guffey had 29 points for Bethel Park while Shawn Davis added 12 points. Dante DeRubbo led Trinity with 14 points and Owen Wayman had 11.

Thomas Jefferson 58, Ringgold 45

Thomas Jefferson (12-7, 5-2) used a big third quarter to pull away from Ringgold (3-16, 1-6) and come away with the 58-45 victory. Thomas Jefferson stays one game back of Bethel Park and Peters Township for the top spot. Brody Evans pitched in 17 points for Thomas Jefferson while Evan Berger had 14 points. Ringgold was led by Jake Pehowic who had 21 points. Aidan Angotti added 10.

Peters Township 90, Connellsville 42

Peters Township (15-3, 6-1) used a first half offensive explosion to roll Connellsville (0-19, 0-7) 90-42. The Indians had 59 points at halftime. The win helps Peters Township stay tied for first place in the section with Bethel Park. Brendan McCullough scored 25 points for Peters Township. Jack Dunbar had 24 points and Nick Baccarello added 12 points. Kace Shearer led Connellsville with 10 points.

5A SECTION 2

Penn Hills 50, Armstrong 33

Penn Hills (14-2, 7-0) held Armstrong (11-7, 2-5) to 15 points in the second half leading to a 50-33 victory. The win helps Penn Hills keep their 2-game lead in the section. Armstrong and Woodland Hills stay tied for the final playoff spot. Noah Barren had 16 points for Penn Hills. Robert Thomas added 11 points and Julian Dugger added 10 points. Cadin Olsen had 14 points for Armstrong.

Fox Chapel 55, Plum 43

Fox Chapel (12-6, 4-3) jumped on Plum (6-13, 1-6) with a 15-4 first quarter and broke away for a 55-43 victory. Erik Wilson led all scorers with 17 points for Fox Chapel while Will Siegel had 11 points. Will Beckner had 14 points for Plum and Adam Kotvas pitched in 10 points.

Shaler 53, Woodland Hills 44

Shaler (14-5, 5-2) used a 14-3 second quarter to propel themselves to a 53-44 win over Woodland Hills (11-8, 2-5). The good news for Woodland Hills is that Armstrong also lost so they stay tied for the final playoff spot. Brandon London led Shaler with 14 points. Kaden Orga and Keegan Smetanka each had 11 points. Chaz Cobbs had 19 points for Woodland Hills.

5A SECTION 3

McKeesport 69, Latrobe 64

A back-and-forth game with numerous lead changes was finally taken control of and won by McKeesport (8-8, 5-2) 69-64 over Latrobe (7-12, 2-5). Aemond Knight had 21 points for McKeesport. Travarese Rowe added 15 points while Shayne McGraw pitched in 11. Landon Butler led Latrobe with 18 points. Jatawn Williams, Alex Tatsch and Max Butler all had 10 points each.

Gateway 67, Penn-Trafford 50

A 9-point halftime lead ballooned to 19 as Gateway (12-5, 6-1) was dominant in the second half and defeated Penn-Trafford (4-15, 1-6) 67-50. The win kept Gateway’s one-game lead in the section. Jaydon Carr had 21 points for Gateway. Leonard Sherrod and Kaleb Pryor each had 12 points while M.J. Stevenson added 10 points. Tyler Feras pitched in 14 points for Penn-Trafford and Ian Temple had 10.

5A SECTION 4

South Fayette 56, Chartiers Valley 34

South Fayette (9-9, 2-5) stymied Chartiers Valley’s (14-5, 3-4) offense in the first half holding them to 10 points en route to a 56-34 victory. It was a big win for South Fayette as now they are only a game back of Chartiers Valley for the final playoff spot. Elijah Hill led all scorers with 23 points for South Fayette while Michael Plasko had 17. Jayden Davis had 15 points for Chartiers Valley.

North Hills 63, Moon 62

In a game with a lot of section implications involved, it lived up to the hype. Moon (9-8, 4-3) battled back from being down 9 heading into the fourth quarter but North Hills (15-4, 6-1) was able to hold Moon off for a 63-62 victory. The win kept North Hills in sole possession of first place. Royce Parham had 26 points for North Hills. Jake Pollaro had 16 points and Zach Pollaro added 14. Elijah Guillroy led all scorers with 32 points for Moon. Michael Santicola added 14 points and Carter Tumulty pitched in 11 points.

Mars 64, West Allegheny 34

Mars (13-5, 5-2) only held a 3-point lead at halftime but exploded in the second half leading to a 64-34 victory over West Allegheny (8-11, 1-6). The win coupled with the Moon loss puts Mars in second place by themselves and only a game back of North Hills. Remi Black had 21 points for Mars while Tasso Safanos had 20. Justin Manns led West Allegheny with 20 points.

GIRLS BASKETBALL

6A SECTION 2

Canon-McMillan 48, Bethel Park 41

Canon-McMillan (5-12, 1-8) played great defense for the first three quarters and held off a ferocious Bethel Park (6-11, 3-6) comeback attempt to win their first section game of the year 48-41. The loss pushes Bethel Park a half game behind Baldwin for the last playoff spot. Nadia Davis had 18 points points for Canon-McMillan while Lauren Borella added 10 points. Ella Harmon had 11 points for Bethel Park.

5A SECTION 3

McKeesport 71, Albert Gallatin 38

McKeesport (16-3, 8-1) led 49-20 at halftime and rolled to a 71-38 victory over Albert Gallatin (9-10, 3-7). McKeesport stays 1.5 games behind Oakland Catholic for the section lead. Rachael Manfredo led all scorers with 31 points for McKeesport. Malina Boord had 12 points. Mya Glisan had 16 points for Albert Gallatin while Courtlyn Tunrer added 11.

NON-CONFERENCE

Penn-Trafford 45, Montour 42

In a game that was tight all night long, it was Penn-Trafford (13-4) who was able to hang on and defeat Montour (6-12) 45-42. Olivia Pepple led the way for Penn-Trafford with 17 points. Lauren Marton added 11 points. Jordyn Wolfe led Montour with 14 points while Lauren Marton scored 11 points.

Connellsville 60, Ringgold 50

Connellsville (4-16) used a big fourth quarter to pull away from Ringgold (4-14) 60-50 in non-section action. Hillary Claycomb led the way for Connellsville dropping 18 points. Whitney Bobish had 12 points and Bailey Liska pitched in 11 points. Abbey Whaley had 22 points for Ringgold while Angelina Massey added 20 points.