PIAA Basketball Championship Recaps

By: HSSN Staff
Thursday, March 23, 2017 | 3:33 PM

While 6 WPIAL teams played for titles, there were other championships handed out this weekend in Hershey. Here are recaps of all of those games.

CLASS 4-A Boys:
Imhotep Charter Panthers 80 – Strong Vincent Colonels 52
The District 10 champions eliminated the number 2 and 3 teams in Class 4-A in New Castle and Quaker Valley on the way to Hershey but ran into a powerhouse in the top ranked Panthers on Saturday afternoon.  Imhotep Charter completed a 31-2 season as the District 12 champions won their fourth state crowd and in a third different classification, winning three 2-A titles in four years from 2009-12 and taking the 3-A crown in 2013. Rhode Island recruit Daron Russell led the Panthers with 25 points and 6 steals as Imhotep looked to improve on their #6 national ranking by USA Today.  The Colonels never led as the Panthers broke a 3-3 tie with an 11-0 run, posting six three-pointers in the opening frame to lead 27-11 after one. Strong Vincent got as close as 12 at 37-25 and had momentum but Imhotep closed out the half with a 11-1 margin and a 48-26 lead at the break. The Panthers never looked back in the second half, Strong Vincent got as close as 17 points in the third, but the outcome was never in doubt.  Imhotep’s two losses came to 3-A champ Neumann-Goretti and 2-A runner up Constitution in a game that was stopped in the second quarter after a fight disqualified several Panthers players.  Dave Beatty added 19 points for the Panthers. The South Carolina recruit said head coach Andre Noble pushed his team all season after losses in the 2015 and 2016 playoffs. Imhotep shot almost 50% from the floor at 27-55 with eight trifectas. The Panthers were 18-25 from the line and forced 24 Strong Vincent turnovers.  Colonels coach Shannon Pullium was very emotional after the game, he told his team to keep their heads up and be proud of what they accomplished. It may have been the final game in the Colonels’ history as the Erie City School District is slated to merge the 5 remaining high schools as soon as next year with only one sports program. Tennessee State recruit David Morris finished with 26 points, he ends his career with 2,270 points, tops all time in Erie County and 4th overall in the district. Aje Gore added 11, the Colonels were 15-37 from the floor with 7 triples and 15-24 from the line. Strong Vincent ends the season at 27-4.  

Imhotep Charter Panthers 27 – 21 – 18 – 14 = 80
Strong Vincent Colonels 11 – 15 – 14 – 12 = 52

CLASS 5-A BOYS:
Archbishop Wood Vikings 73 – Meadville Bulldogs 40
The Vikings are known for their girls basketball team, who have won four PIAA titles and make their fourth straight trip to Hershey. But the spotlight shined on the boys team on Friday night as they claimed their first PIAA title in a big way.  Wood placed four players in double figures and made 11 three-pointers in the rout. Junior Tyree Pickron led the balanced attack with 18 points, going 5 of 9 from downtown. Villinova recruit Collin Gillespie added 15 points. The Vikings finished 28-3 with 22 wins in a row, including the coveted Philly Catholic League crown.  Archbishop Wood also used good defense to hold Meadville’s all-time leading scorer in senior Armoni Foster to just 17 points, nine below his season average of 26. The Vikings blocked 10 shots with Gillespie having five on the night.  The Vikings started with runs of 5 and 12 straight to lead 17-2 late in the first quarter. On the flip side, the Bulldogs missed their first 11 shots and committed 5 turnovers until a Foster old fashioned three point play put a small band-aid on the bleeding.  But the bandage was not nearly big enough for the cut, as Pickron drained two more trifectas(4 for the half) and Seth Pinkney chipped in with 6 in the quarter, including a two-handed jam.  The third quarter started the same way as Gillespie and Pickron drained back to back triples for a 6 straight points as any hope for a Meadville comeback was quickly dashed.  Junior Seth Pinkney and his 6-11 frame had 11 points and rebounds each with 4 blocks. Junior Andrew Funk added 10 points from the bench. Gillespie also had 10 boards. Wood was 29-71 from the field and 4-6 from the line.  Senior Simeal Wofford had 14 points for the District 10 champs, who had won 13 straight entering the title game. Meadville finishes 26-2 with their only other loss coming to 4A finalist Strong Vincent. The Bulldogs were 13-59 shooting and 5-23 from three-point land. 

Archbishop Wood Vikings : 17 – 23 – 18 – 15 = 73 
Meadville Bulldogs : 5 – 16 – 8 – 11 = 40

GIRLS CLASS 1-A
Lebanon Catholic Beaver 55 – Juniata Valley Hornets 43
The Beavers had won their 4 previous state tournament games by an average margin of 21 points. This victory was a little closer but just as sweet for legendary coach Patti Hower and her 700 plus wins. Lebanon Catholic survived a 7 minute scoreless stretch and poor foul shooting in the final quarter to claim the third state title in the program’s history and the first since 1995.  Junior Alexis Hill scored 20 points to lead the Beavers, right on her season average of 19..3. Lebanon Catholic led 13-7 after the first quarter, both teams struggled into the second. The Hornets went scoreless for 8:19 until freshman Hayden Taylor hit a three in the final 90 seconds of the half. The Beavers used a 9-0 run during that period but then went frigid, not scoring till the third quarter a 7:16 stretch. Juniata Valley got as close as 4 points in that quarter, but a 6-0 run dimmed their hopes heading to the fourth.  The Beavers were 6 of 8 from the line thru three, but finished 14 of 24 in the final stanza and allowed the Hornets to stick around. Poor shooting did in the Hornets as a 3 for 27 first half led to just 23 % for the game (14-61) and 4 of 22 from downtown.  The District 3 champions(24-8) got 14 rebounds from Hill and 14 points from junior Celine Mars. Another junior, Neesha Pierre was one shy of a double-double with 9 points and 12 rebounds. Lebanon Catholic was 17-40 from the field and won the rebounding battle 42-35.  Juniata Valley(24-6), the District 6 runner up, was making their first title game appearance. Junior Maddie Mattas scored 11 points and had 8 rebounds. Freshman Hailee Smith also missed out with 10 rebounds to go with 9 points.   

Lebanon Catholic Beavers : 13 – 7 – 11 – 24 = 55
Juniata Valley Hornets : 7 – 3 – 11 – 22 = 43

GIRLS CLASS 4-A:
Bethlehem Catholic Hawks 46 –  Villa Maria Victors 27
It was a nightmare a year ago for the Victors, who fell to Archbishop Wood 46-29 in the AAA title game. Well, the nightmare continued at the Giant Center as Villa Maria was held to 2 points less in the loss Thursday night.  Bethlehem Catholic, the District 11 champ, picks up their first gold basketball in school history. Tailyah Medina led the way for the Hawks (30-2) with 13 points. The Hawks had come up empty in 1993 and 2013 in previous trips to Hershey.  The Victors started out cold at 2 for 10 from the floor in the 1st quarter. 6-2 Madison Demski, who has 12 Division offers as a junior, scored 7 of her team high 11 points in the 2nd to cut the deficit to 7 points at the half.  The Hawks used a pair of threes from junior Hope Brown to help build the lead again to 16 with 243 left in the 3rd, but 5 straight empty possessions allowed the Victors to cut into the lead at 32-22 heading to the final stanza. But Medina started a 9-0 run in the 4th to steer Bethlehem Catholic to the title.  Brown finished with 11 points, with 3 triples, her only blemish was a 3-8 night at the line. George Washington recruit Neila Luma had 8 points and 9 rebounds. The Hawks were 13-33 from the floor, 4 three-pointers and were 16-24 from the line.  For Villa Maria, Richmond recruit Molly Mraz was held scoreless and Columbia bound Andrea McCormick was held to her season average of 7 points. The Victors are 22-6 and shot 11-33 from the field with 1 of 13 from behind the arc. 

Bethlehem Catholic Hawks : 12 – 7 – 13 – 14 = 46
Villa Maria Victors : 4 – 8 – 10 – 5 = 27

BOYS CLASS 1-A:
Kennedy Catholic Golden Eagles 73 – Girard College Cavaliers 56
The Golden Eagles lived up to a part of the nickname as they picked up their 8th PIAA crown, going back to back in Hershey.  The District 10 champions did not get off to a great start. As the designated home team, they were required to wear white uniforms, but only the grey road uniforms made the trip from Mercer County, bringing a technical foul and forcing head coach Rick Mancino to sit the entire game.  Kennedy led 16-9 after one quarter, helped by back to back three-pointers by sophomore Maceo Austin. The Eagles were up by 10 at the break at 30-20 and it would have been worse if not for Mikeal Jones, who had 11 of his 16 points in the first half. That included a two-handed slam late in the second quarter. Jones already has an offer from Penn State as a freshman.  Girard College got as close as 6 points in the 3rd quarter but Kennedy Catholic started to pull away again. Jones picked up his 4th foul with 4 seconds left in the frame  as the Golden Eagles led by 12, 46-34 and held a double-digit advantage through out the fourth.  Senior Marcin Wiszomirsky led Kennedy with 19 points and 13 rebounds. Austin added 16 and 9 boards. Mancino said Wiszomirsky had lots of sucess inside, that he has goteen better and better with every week. One-thousand point scorer and UPJ recruit Drew Magestro was cold from the field, with only 5 points after three quarters, he finished with 15. Mohamed Konate added 11. The Golden Eagles were 26 of 60 from the field and 17-25 at the line.  KC finished 26-2, Mancino said he knew the challenge of defending would be great, he loaded up the schedule with wins over Lincoln Park, Constitution and Strong Vincent, all also here in Hershey this weekend.  Junior Daiquan Copelan led the Cavaliers with 25 points, 18 in the 2nd half. Girard College (24-9) was 22 of 49 from the field but only 2-12 on three-pointers. The Golden Eagles avenged a loss to Girard College in the 2009 title game.

Kennedy Catholic Golden Eagles : 16 – 14 – 16 – 27 = 73
Girard College Cavaliers : 9  – 11 – 14 – 22 = 56
 

GIRLS CLASS 2-A:
Minersville Battlin Minors 63 – Bishop McCort Crimson Crushers 49
111 wins, that’s the number posted by the senior class at Minersville over the last 4 seasons and it was capped off by a perfect 31-0 record by the District 11 champs and a PIAA title on Thursday afternoon.  The Miners took control in the 2nd quarter and rode a 37-21 lead into the break. A 10-0 run in the 3rd upped their advantage to 22 points and a state championship. Junior Maggie Wigoda pumped in 20 points, going 9 of 10 from the field. Senior Emily Mealy added 17 points and dominated the glass with 17 boards while fellow senior Adrienne Kroznuskie had 11 points with 3 trifectas. The Miners were 23-51 from the field with 5 three-pointers and 14 of 24 from the line. Minersville posted a 42-29 rebounding edge and with senior Abby Schoffstall dished out 14 of the Miners 20 assists.  Bishop McCort finished 25-5. St. Francis(Pa) recruit Haley Thomas posted 13 points. Fellow senior Aunna Yingling also scored 13 while freshman Isabella Hunt scored 10 off the bench.  The Crimson Crushers were 17 of 53 from the field and 14-20 from the line. Thomas led with 8 rebounds and junior Clara Wilson grabbed 7 off the glass. Bishop McCort was 1 of 10 from behind the arc.

Minersville Battlin Miners : 12 – 25 – 19 – 7 = 63
Bishop McCort Crimson Crushers:  6 – 15 – 11 – 17 = 49