Top Ranked Hempfield Dominant Over Norwin
The Hempfield Spartans are the #1 ranked team in the WPIAL and they looked like it tonight. From the opening tip they stormed out of the gate and there was little the Norwin Knights could do to keep up. Two Division I athletes would steal the show on senior night and they alone outscored the entire Norwin team.
Hempfield seniors Kason Harrell and Tony Pilato were the only two Spartans to post double digits on the score sheet. Harrell scored early and often leading the Spartan attack with 29 points. As a result of his dominance, Norwin tried to contain him with a double team but that only opened the door for Pilato. Time and again Pilato found himself with open looks under the basket as he tallied 17 points in the contest. That gave the duo a total of 46 points while Norwin as a team only mustered 44 on the night.
Senior Knight Curtis Perz scored the first basket of the contest which was a fade away three but he was held in check by a tough Spartan defense. Perz led all Norwin scorers with 13 points however that was far below his 23.5 ppg average. Credit Harrel and Logan Swann as they did the dirty work defensively against Division I recruit Perz. Senior Knight Zeke Kljucaric was the only other player in double digits as he finished the night with 10 points all in the second half.
Harrel dominated the contest from the opening tip and was named the Quad A Conference Player of the Game. The Hempfield Spartans have clinched at least a share of the Section 1 crown for the fourth consecutive season as they improved to 19-1 overall and 11-0 in section play. They will travel to Latrobe on Friday with the outright title on the line. Latrobe boasts a 10-1 section record and will look to avenge their only section loss and grab a share of the crown. Norwin has clinched the third seed from Section 1 though they fall to 14-7 overall and 7-4 in conference play. They will host Penn Trafford this Friday night.