High school roundup: Penn Hills grabs 1-point WPIAL playoff win

By: HSSN Staff
Saturday, February 17, 2018 | 9:51 PM

Daivon Stephens, who finished with 14 points, made a free throw with 2.8 seconds remaining to expand the No. 5 Penn Hills (20-3) lead to four points as the Indians defeated No. 12 Upper St. Clair (11-12), 52-51, in the first round of the WPIAL Class 6A playoffs at Baldwin.

Cory Fulton led Penn Hills with 15 points, and Upper St. Clair got 22 points from Brett Moore and 21 from Kyle Meinert. Penn Hills will face No. 4 Central Catholic (14-8) in quarterfinal play.

Pine-Richland 66, Bethel Park 62 — Phil Jurkovec recorded 23 points and 10 assists, and Dan Petcash scored 18 points and hit all four of his free throws in the final minute as No. 6 Pine-Richland (18-5) beat No. 11 Bethel Park (13-10) in the first round of the Class 6A playoffs at North Hills. Ryan Meis scored 26 points to pace Bethel Park. Pine-Richland advances to play No. 3 Fox Chapel (17-5) in the quarterfinals.

Canon-McMillan 57, Seneca Valley 52 — Kenyon Lewis scored 16 points to lead No. 7 Canon-McMillan (21-2) to the Class A first-round victory against No. 10 Seneca Valley (14-9) at Baldwin. Seneca Valley led 25-21 at halftime before Canon-McMillan took the lead for good in the third quarter by outscoring the Raiders, 19-9, in that frame. Chris Hart led Seneca Valley with 18 points, and teammate David Ritchie added 17 points. Canon-McMillan will face No. 2 Woodland Hills (19-3) in quarterfinal play.

Girls basketball

Belle Vernon 54, Knoch 45 — Keira Boff, who was 18 of 20 from the free-throw line, finished with 23 points to lead No. 6 Belle Vernon (18-5) to a WPIAL Class 4A first-round win over No. 11 Knoch (11-12) at Baldwin. Belle Vernon will face No. 3 Beaver (16-5) in the quarterfinals.

Ambridge 48, South Park 39 — Dasha Jackson scored a game-high 20 points to lead No. 9 Ambridge (13-10) to a WPIAL Class 4A first-round win over No. 8 South Park (13-10) at West Allegheny. Jackson, who was 8 for 8 from the free-throw line in the fourth quarter, made all 12 of her attempts. Chloe Rabold added 10 points in the win for Ambridge. Cassidy Zandier led South Park with 15 points, and Kasey Kastroll added 12 points. Ambridge will face No. 1 Cardinal Wuerl North Catholic (18-3) in the quarterfinals.

Elizabeth Forward 45, Freeport 33 — In the first round of the Class 4A playoffs at Fox Chapel, the No. 10 Warriors (15-7) kept the No. 7 Yellowjackets (13-9) off the scoreboard for the final 6 minutes, 18 seconds of the first half while going on a 19-2 run. Brianna Spirnak led Elizabeth Forward with 16 points and eight rebounds. Sidney Shemanski had 16 points and 11 rebounds for Freeport.

Aquinas Academy 51, Mapletown 26 — Anni Druschel scored 18 points to lead No. 5 Aquinas Academy (15-5) to the Class A first-round playoff win against No. 12 Mapletown (9-14) at Baldwin. Mary Casamassa added 13 points for Aquinas Academy, which held Mapletown to just 14 points through the first three quarters. Aquinas Academy will face No. 4 Sewickley Academy (13-5) in the quarterfinals.

Cornell 44, Avella 40 — In the first round of the Class A playoffs at West Allegheny, Cy'Moni Harrison scored 16 points to lead No. 9 Cornell (8-15) past No. 8 Avella (13-9). The Raiders will face No. 1 Winchester Thurston (16-5), who had a first-round bye, in the quarterfinals.

Rochester 61, Eden Christian Academy 32 — Alexis Robison scored 14 points as Rochester (13-7) downed Eden Christian Academy (8-14) in the first round of the Class A playoffs at North Hills. Olivia Whiteleather and Jasmine Mack added 12 and 11 points, respectively, for Rochester, which outscored Eden Christian in the second half 38-14. Taylor Haring scored 12 points in the loss. Rochester will play West Greene (20-2) in the quarterfinals.

St. Joseph 76, Geibel 35 — Chloe Kurpakus scored 27 points, and Alex Jones added 22 as No. 6 St. Joseph (14-9) rolled to a Class A first-round win at Fox Chapel. Nevaeh Ewing added 10 points for the Spartans, who will play Quigley Catholic (14-8) in the quarterfinals. Gabby Yourish led Geibel (9-12) with 15 points.

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