High school roundup for Jan. 22, 2019: No. 1 Ambridge rallies past Central Valley

By: HSSN Staff
Tuesday, January 22, 2019 | 11:33 PM

The excitement continued for Section 2-4A boys basketball teams Tuesday night.

A week after knocking off then-top-ranked Quaker Valley, new No. 1 Ambridge managed to rally past Central Valley, 61-58, on Tuesday.

Aaron Hiltzendeger had 21 points for the Bridgers (11-5, 6-1), who outscored the Warriors, 24-17, in the fourth quarter. Haydon Johnston had 15 points for Central Valley (5-10, 3-5).

New Castle 77, Blackhawk 66 — Michael Wells had 20 points, and Drew Cox added 15 to lead No. 3 New Castle (12-3, 6-1) to a Section 2-4A win. The Red Hurricanes rallied from a 17-9 first-quarter deficit.

Quaker Valley 68, Beaver 43 — Ryan Stowers had 19 points, and Danny Conlan added 18 as No. 2 Quaker Valley (11-2, 5-2) won a Section 2-4A game.

North Hills 71, Central Catholic 68 (OT) — Jordan Albright’s 25 points guided North Hills (5-10, 1-5) to a Section 1-6A win.

Mt. Lebanon 50, Baldwin 32 — Seth Loughran scored 15 points as No. 3 Mt. Lebanon (14-2, 6-0) won a Section 2-6A game.

Upper St. Clair 58, Peters Township 45 — Luke Gensler had 15 points, including three 3-pointers, as No. 4 Upper St. Clair (16-1, 5-1) won in Section 2-6A.

Penn Hills 78, Gateway 51 — Tyree Spencer scored 24 points, and Wes Kropp added 21 as No. 3 Penn Hills (13-3, 7-0) won in Section 1-5A. Nate Roper scored 20 points for Gateway (3-11, 1-7).

Chartiers Valley 52, South Fayette 35 — Griffin Beattie had 16 points as Chartiers Valley (11-3, 7-2) picked up a Section 2-5A win.

Montour 59, Trinity 53 (OT) — James Eubanks had 22 points to lead Montour (9-7, 6-3) to a Section 2-5A victory in overtime. Dylan King, who had 20 points for Trinty (7-8, 4-4), had a tip in at the buzzer to send the game into overtime.

Moon 75, West Mifflin 57 — Connor Ryan scored 28 points, and Donovan Johnson added 24 as No. 2 Moon (15-0, 8-0) captured a Section 2-5A victory.

Hampton 66, Indiana 45 — Ben Ringeisen had 24 points as Hampton (9-6, 5-4) rolled to a Section 3-5A win.

Uniontown 72, South Park 52 — Led by Billy Deshields’ 30 points, No. 4 Uniontown (11-3, 6-0) earned a Section 3-4A win. Uniontown made a 22-9 run in the second quarter to take control.

Ellwood City 55, New Brighton 46 — Ryan Gibbons scored 16 points to lead Ellwood City (6-9, 2-6) to a Section 1-3A win.

Fort Cherry 50, Avonworth 41 — Zach Vincenti had 14 points and 10 rebounds as Fort Cherry (4-11, 1-7) won in Section 2-3A.

Seton LaSalle 78, Freedom 55 — Michael Bigley had 28 points as No. 3 Seton LaSalle (13-1, 8-0) won a Section 2-3A game.

Serra Catholic 81, Carmichaels 43 — In Section 2-2A, Jimmy Moon had 30 points and 10 rebounds to guide No. 3 Serra Catholic (12-2, 8-0) to victory.

Laurel 72, Burgettstown 64 — Luke Barker had 22 points, and Sam Haswell added 20 as Laurel (4-10, 3-5) won in Section 3-2A.

OLSH 76, South Side 65 — Dante Spadafora and Jake DiMichele each had 18 points as No. 1 OLSH (14-1, 8-0) won in Section 3-2A. Jake McDougal had 20 points for No. 4 South Side (11-5, 5-3).

Cornell 81, Western Beaver 41 — Kaden Divito had 31 points and 12 rebounds to guide no. 1 Cornell (14-2, 7-1) to a Section 1-A win.

Brashear 73, Perry 54 — Cheron Collington had 40 points, including six 3-pointers, to lift Brashear (6-7, 5-1) to a City League victory. He was 10 of 11 from the free throw line.

Southmoreland 63, Beth-Center 61 — Cade Richter had 17 points to lead the Scotties to a Section 4-3A win for coach Frank Muccino’s 100th career victory.

Zach Cernuto and Riley Comforti each added 14 points for the Scotties (10-6, 5-2).

Penn-Trafford 67, Connellsville 48 — Zach Rocco had 27 points, including seven 3-pointers, as Penn-Trafford (9-6, 4-2) secured a Section 3-6A win. Josh Maher added 12 points for the Warriors, who led 32-17 at halftime.

McKeesport 72, Greensburg Salem 61 — Deamontae Diggs had 26 points to lift McKeesport (9-7, 6-2) to a win in Section 1-5A. The Tigers opened a 23-6 lead in the first quarter.

Ryan Thomas had 19 points to lead Greensburg Salem (8-7, 3-5).

Franklin Regional 67, Armstrong 30 — Mike Klingensmith and Nick Leopold each had 13 points to lift No. 5 Franklin Regional (13-4, 8-1) to a Section 3-5A win. The Panthers held Armstrong (5-10, 3-6) to 13 second-half points.

Knoch 54, Mt. Pleasant 42 — Brady McKee scored 12 points and connected on a trio of 3-pointers to help Class 4A No. 5 Knoch (12-3, 6-0) top Mt. Pleasant (4-12, 1-5). Jacob Johnson and Nate Kubasky scored 11 points apiece for Mt. Pleasant.

Highlands 66, Yough 44 — Luke Cochran scored 23 points to go with 11 assists, and Johnny Crise tacked on 15 points and 11 rebounds as Highlands rolled past Section 1-4A rival Yough for its fifth straight win. Kory Myers connected on five 3-pointers to finish with 17 points for Highlands (10-4, 5-1). Jarret Bach led Yough (4-11, 0-6) with 14 points, Josh O’Bradovich added 13 and Gamal Marballie chipped in with 11.

Belle Vernon 75, Waynesburg 65 — Larry Callaway had 21 points, and Cam Nusser added 19 as Belle Vernon (5-12, 2-4) won a Section 3-4A game. Hunter Ruokonen had 10 points and 10 rebounds in the win.

Monessen 89, Jefferson-Morgan 57 — Marquell Smith scored 16 points, and Jalen Brice and Marcus Tansmore each had 15 as No. 5 Monessen (8-6, 7-0) won in Section 2-A.

Burrell 49, South Allegheny 42 (OT) — With their backs against the wall late in Tuesday’s Section 3-3A game against South Allegheny, the Burrell boys basketball players mounted a dramatic rally.

The Bucs came back from an eight-point deficit with less than a minute remaining in regulation to force overtime before finishing off a victory.

Logan Bitar, who led Burrell with a career-high 39 points, connected on a 3-pointer with three seconds remaining to send the game to the extra session.

The Bucs (5-9, 4-4) recovered from a scoreless first quarter.

Antonio Epps finished with 17 points for South Allegheny (5-11, 1-7).

St. Joseph 60, Propel Andrew Street 59 — The Spartans (12-5, 6-2) trailed by 11 with four minutes remaining but outscored Propel, 14-2, to close out the game in a Section 3-A victory that snapped a three-game losing streak. C.J. Singleton drained a 3-pointer with just over a minute remaining to give St. Joseph its first lead of the game. Andrew Sullivan led the Spartans with 18 points, Grant Bendis scored 10 of his 17 points in the fourth quarter, and Matt Arvay had 16 points with four 3-pointers. Sayvon Knight led Propel (8-7, 3-5) with 20 points.

Springdale 65, Sto-Rox 56 — Mike Zolnierczyk scored a 22 points and surpassed 1,000 points for his career in a Section 1-2A victory for Springdale (9-5, 5-4). Zolnierczyk also had eight rebounds. Ben Myford had a career-high 19 points for the Dynamos, and Demitri Fritch added 13 points. Malik Smith led Sto-Rox (8-7, 6-3) with 17 points.

Deer Lakes 57, East Allegheny 49 — Brad Perrotte had 21 points to lead Class 3A No. 5 Deer Lakes (11-4, 8-0) to a Section 3 victory at East Allegheny (2-13, 1-6). Zac Herbinko added 13 points for the Lancers. Tyler Padezan scored 14 points for East Allegheny.

Leechburg 76, Trinity Christian 24 — Jake Blumer had a career-high 28 points and pulled down 17 rebounds as the Blue Devils got back in the win column against Trinity Christian (2-8, 0-7) in Section 3-A action. John Miskinis added 12 points, and Eli Rich chipped in with 11 for Leechburg (10-6, 6-2).

Plum 56, Kiski Area 52 — Connor Moss tallied 20 points as the Mustangs earned a Section 3-5A victory. Ryne Wallace led Kiski Area (3-13, 2-7) with 14 points, and Kyrell Hutcherson finished with 12. Lamar Whiting added 18 points for Plum (3-12, 3-6).

Hillcrest Christian Academy 57, Cheswick Christian Academy 48 — Jerry Vargo’s 24 points wasn’t enough as the Chargers fell in nonsection play. Jesse Radvansky added 10 for Cheswick Christian (3-11).

Girls basketball

Norwin 64, North Hills 26 — Emily Brozeski had 13 points to guide No. 4 Norwin (14-1, 8-1) to a Section 1-6A victory. The Knights opened a 22-7 lead in the first quarter.

Franklin Regional 64, Plum 54 — Jordan Yaniga had 30 points and 14 rebounds as No. 5 Franklin Regional (10-4, 6-2) scored a Section 2-5A victory. Cali Konek added 13 points for the Panthers. Kennedie Montue had 18 points to lead Plum (7-9, 3-4).

Penn-Trafford 52, Albert Gallatin 38 — Bella Long scored 15 points, and MacKenzie Powell and Allie Prady each had 13 as Penn-Trafford (8-7, 5-4) won in Section 3-5A.

Long set Penn-Trafford’s all-time 3-point record with 92 career made 3-pointers in the victory.

Greensburg Salem 62, Burrell 40 — In Section 1-4A, Megan Kallock scored 33 points to guide Greensburg Salem (8-7, 4-5) to a victory. The Golden Lions opened the game on a 20-2 run. Nikki Mellinger and Abby Mankins each had 12 points in the win. Kaylen Sharrow scored 15 points for Burrell (4-10, 2-7).

Southmoreland 39, McKeesport 37 — No. 5-ranked Southmoreland opened an 11-5 lead and held on for a Section 3-4A win. Carlie Collins and Bailey Kuhns each had 10 points for the Scotties (14-2, 8-1).

Deer Lakes 46, Knoch 41 — The Lancers (12-3) led 22-10 at halftime en route to a nonsection victory over the Knights (8-8). Anna Solomon fronted Deer Lakes with 14 points, and Reese Hasley added 12. The win was the Lancers’ seventh in their past eight games. Knoch’s Skyler Burkett led all scorers with 16 points, and Lauren Cihonski added 12.

Fox Chapel 46, Pine-Richland 26 — Domenica Delaney led four Fox Chapel players in double figures in a Section 1-6A victory over Pine-Richland (3-13, 1-8). Megan Friday had 12 points for Fox Chapel (11-4, 6-3), and Grace Ritter and Alaina Kalin scored 10 apiece.

Ellis School 46, Springdale 24 — Katlyn Nagy led Springdale (0-15, 0-8) with 14 points in a Section 2-2A loss at Ellis School (12-4, 5-3). Natalie Jasper led the Tigers with 17 points, and Katharine Ference scored 14.

Rochester 49, Sewickley Academy 48 — Corynne Houser hit a free throw with four seconds left, and Jasmine Mack and Alysha Martin each had 11 points to lead No. 3 Rochester (13-3, 8-0) to a Section 1-A win over No. 4 Sewickley Academy (8-3, 5-2).

Hampton 49, Montour 48 — Kayla Hoehler had 11 points to lead Hampton (2-13) to a nonsection win. Ava Tambellini had 26 points for Montour (5-10).