McKeesport fights off upset-minded Latrobe girls

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Monday, January 22, 2024 | 9:38 PM

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Latrobe sold merchandise in the gym lobby Monday night. Hats, shirts, you name it. There were deals on orange-and-black Wildcats gear everywhere.

The girls basketball team took an upset special deep into the second half against No. 3 McKeesport but couldn’t finish the deal in a 51-43 loss in Section 3-5A.

It was a far cry from the teams’ first section meeting when McKeesport won, 71-45.

Latrobe (7-10, 3-5) was the aggressor early and clung to the Tigers for the better part of 28 minutes. It led 13-9 after the first quarter and pulled even 18-18 at halftime.

The Tigers (13-2, 6-1), who have won eight of nine, took a slim 32-31 edge into the fourth before the Wildcats faded late and dropped their fourth in a row after a five-game winning streak.

“We played pretty good defense,” Latrobe senior guard Elle Snyder said. “We picked it up. They were bigger than us and we drew some fouls against them. We came out strong and were ready to take it.”

Kaylee Charles led four double-figure scorers for McKeesport with 14 points. Rachael Manfredo added 13, while Brooke Evans and Madeline Cherepko had 10 apiece.

Manfredo had nine in the first half.

“We started out slow and the energy wasn’t there,” McKeesport coach Amy Gumbert said. “We had to pick it up. Latrobe played a great game.”

McKeesport picked up a solid win over South Fayette (62-44) after losing to first-place Oakland Catholic (16-0, 7-0), 58-49.

But the momentum took some time to kick in.

Cherepko scored six points down the stretch, making four straight clutch free throws to help the Tigers build their largest lead at eight points.

Carley Berk missed a 3-pointer with 20 seconds left and Latrobe trailing 49-43.

Latrobe was beating Oakland Catholic early on Thursday but fell 66-47.

“We were there the whole time, until the fourth quarter,” Latrobe coach Mackenzie Livingston said. “We have a good team. We just aren’t finishing games. I am still learning about WPIAL basketball. Teams are more prepared when they play (section opponents) the second time around.”

Berk led Latrobe with 13 points and Snyder had 12.

“We slowed the game down and we were more patient this time,” Snyder said.

Livingston said Latrobe had some unforced errors.

“Our girls wanted to win,” she said. “That was the best (first) half we played all year. We have to clean up our defense. We made some dumb mistakes.

“We’re going to have to run the table now.”

Gumbert said the victory was a team effort.

“Our bigs, Rachael and Charles played well,” she said. “And Brooke was consistent. Cherepko was clutch and she played great defense. She had 10 or 11 points against South Fayette, too.”

Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.

Tags: Latrobe, McKeesport