Penn-Trafford girls hold on for win against rival Norwin

By: Paul Schofield
Tuesday, December 3, 2024 | 10:06 PM

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Two girls teams looking to go places at the end of the season squared off Tuesday in a nonsection game, and they put on a show.

Penn-Trafford (3-0) used 3-pointers by Lauren Marton, Torrie DeStefano and Isabella Klobucar midway through the fourth quarter to build a nine-point lead and held on to defeat rival Norwin, 51-50.

It was Norwin’s first game of the season.

Penn-Trafford led 50-41 after the 3-point barrage, but the Knights, the returning Class 6A champions who returned two starters and two lettermen, didn’t quit and chipped away at the lead.

A 3-pointer by Bella Furno trimmed the lead to 51-50 with 6.1 seconds left. Following a timeout, Norwin forced a turnover and had one shot to win it. But Averi Brozeski’s attempt came up short, and the Warriors celebrated.

“The people who showed up got their money’s worth,” Penn-Trafford coach John Giannikas said. “Norwin is a really good basketball team, and they’re going to be playing once again deep into March.

“It was sort of back and forth, and we were fortunate.”

Giannikas said his girls have been shooting well to open the season.

“We had that nice little streak in the fourth quarter there, but Norwin is a championship team and they’re not going away. We knew they’d make a run.”

Penn-Trafford led 10-8 after a quarter and 23-21 at halftime. It maintained the lead until Norwin tied the score at 36-36 on a basket by Ava Christopher.

Norwin took its first lead, 38-36, on a bucket by Alexis Heller. Penn-Trafford tied the score on a basket by Raya Johnson and took a 41-38 lead on a three-point play by Kamryn Pieper.

Brozeski tied the score at 41-41 on a 3-pointer, but the Warriors hit three consecutive 3-pointers for a 50-41 lead with 3:30 left.

“It was a good game,” Norwin coach Brian Brozeski said. “We had some rust to knock off. Penn-Trafford didn’t give us any room for air. I thought it was critical there.

“Towards the end, when it was tight, we got lost on rotation and they knocked down three big 3s and put us in a bind. But I’m proud how we fought back.”

Kendall Berger led Norwin with 17 points, and Brozeski and Furno had seven.

“We had a chance,” Brozeski said. “We ran a play that we felt would work and came up short.”

DeStefano, who had three 3-pointers, finished with 17 points and Morton added 11.

“Morton is such a tough matchup because she’s capable of beating you from the outside and underneath,” Brozeski said. “This was a learning experience for some of the girls. A lot of girls got quality minutes.”

Giannikas said though the teams aren’t in the same classification, it was a good game for both teams.

“It was a good nonsection game,” Giannikas said. “A lot of the girls are friends, and it was for bragging rights. This game makes both teams better.”

Paul Schofield is a TribLive reporter covering high school and college sports and local golf. He joined the Trib in 1995 after spending 15 years at the Daily Courier in Connellsville, where he served as sports editor for 14 years. He can be reached at pschofield@triblive.com.

Tags: Norwin, Penn-Trafford