FARRELL, Pa. – In the blink of an eye, Kennedy Catholic went from down four to up 13, the latter number marking the number of District 10 championships they have now won in a row following a 73-33 win in the 2A title game over Maplewood.
Maplewood led 15-11 with a Savannah O’Hara bucket early in the second quarter, but Kennedy Catholic went on a 17-0 run to close the half, sparked by birthday girl Izzy Bianco, who scored 11 of her 21 points in the run.
“We really just had to make an adjustment because things weren’t going our way,” Bianco said. “We were able to bring up the energy and intensity and I think that’s what helped us out a lot.”
See Bianco’s full interview:
From the time it was 15-11, the Golden Eagles (21-4) outscored the Tigers (21-5) 62-18 the rest of the game, including scoring 30 points in the third quarter.
It was Bianco in the second quarter and Layke Fields doing most of the damage in the third, as she matched Bianco with 21 points, 12 of which came in the third quarter.
“It was totally a team effort,” said Kennedy Catholic coach Justin Magestro. “We always rely on our defense. We struggled early in the game shooting and scoring and we turned it up in the second half. It’s amazing when you do one thing really well, everything else goes well. I thought that defensively we turned it up and mysteriously the ball started dropping for us.”
Maplewood was able to do much of its damage early on without senior 1,000-point scorer Sadie Thomas, who picked up her second foul midway through the first quarter and sat the rest of the half.
The Tigers actually went on a 9-0 run after trailing 11-4 to take a two-point lead after the first quarter, with Bailey Varndell hitting a 3 in the run and buckets from Maddie Eimer and Madison O’Hara.
It was all Kennedy in the second half, however, as Bella Magestro, who finished with 12 points, knocked down a pair of third-quarter 3s as well.
“Their (Maplewood’s) strategy was pretty simple, where they packed it in on Layke (Fields),” Magestro said. “If you don’t pack it in against Layke you’re going to be in trouble. They dared our shooters to make shots and in the first half, we struggled to do that. But we told them at halftime that shooters shoot and we started making 3s in the second half, they had to come out and Layke was able to dominate.”
Cassie Dancak and Monique Vincent added eight points each in the win for Kennedy.
Varndell and Thomas finished with eight points apiece to pace Maplewood.
Both teams advance to the PIAA playoffs beginning on March 10, with Kennedy playing the No. 7 team from the WPIAL, Brentwood, while Maplewood gets WPIAL No. 4 Aliquippa.
It’s been quite the run Kennedy is on after an 0-3 start with losses to North Catholic and West Virginia powerhouses Morgantown and University High, they have 20-1, including wins over Blackhawk Indiana, Mercyhurst Prep and McDowell.
“It was immensely beneficial,” Magestro said. “It’s OK to get punched in the mouth. We knew that it would bode well for us. Those teams all prepare you for this time of year.”
KENNEDY CATHOLIC 73, MAPLEWOOD 33
Score By Quarters
Maplewood 13 2 10 8 – 33
Kennedy Catholic 13 15 30 15 – 73
MAPLEWOOD – 33
Bailey Varndell 3 0-0 8, Sadie Thomas 3 2-4 8, Savannah O’Hara 3 0-0 6, Madison O’Hara 3 0-0 6, Madison Eimer 1 1-2 3, Maggie Means 1 0-0 2, Rhaelynn Koelle 0 0-0 0, Sehlia Despenes 0 0-0 0, Madison Vergona 0 0-0 0, Megan Woge 0 1-2 1, Alannah Kelly 0 0-0 0, Madyson Banik 0 0-0 0, Totals 13 4-8 33
KENNEDY CATHOLIC – 73
Monique Vincent 3 0-0 8, Isabella Bianco 7 7-9 21, Hayden Keith 1 0-0 3, Cassie Dancak 4 0-2 8, Layke Fields 8 5-8 21, Bella Magestro 4 2-5 12, Madison ‘Pfeleger 0 0-0 0, Ka’Mya Thompkins 0 0-0 0, Lochlyn Shimrack 0 0-0 0, Clarise Connor 0 0-0 0, Totals 27 14-24 73
Three-pointers: Maplewood 3 (Varndell 2, M. O’Hara); Kennedy Catholic 5 (Vincent 2, Magestro 2, Keith).
CLASS 1A CHAMPIONSHIP
(1) JAMESTOWN 53, (2) COMMODORE PERRY 21
FARRELL, Pa. – Freshman Alayna Cadman poured in 23 points to lead Jamestown to its first District 10 title in program history, 53-21 over Commodore Perry.
“We really wanted to win because this is something we had never done before,” Cadman said.
It was all Cadman right from the get-go, as she scored all eight of the Muskies’ points in an 8-1 first quarter. Cadman (5) and Taylor Keener (3) combined to hit eight 3s, as Keener was also in double figures with 11 points.
The Jamestown Muskies, Class 1A champions.
“We were definitely nervous to start, but once we started scoring, I think we settled down a little bit,” said senior Kiley Matters, who finished with five points.
See Cadman and Matters’ full interview:
The Muskies (5-18) led 18-8 at halftime, and after a bucket by Commodore Perry’s (2-20) Marley Meyer made it 18-10, Jamestown outscored CP 35-11 the remainder of the game.
It was the third win for Jamestown over Commodore Perry this season.
“We’re ecstatic,” said Jamestown coach Jen McElhinney. “You have two small schools here today that have both worked really hard. Statistically, everybody knows it’s really hard to beat a team three times in a row. The girls didn’t give up. They kept fighting I started four years ago with two of the three seniors, and they wanted this.”
Keener knocked down a pair of third-quarter triples and Cadman one as the lead swelled to 33-18
McElhinney also praised the defensive effort of her team, which ended the game by allowing just three points in the fourth quarter.
“We worked so hard on defense,” McElhinney said. “Nerves, in the beginning, played a factor. But we were able to fine-tune some things, play effectively and force some turnovers. We focused on that a lot.”
With the win, Jamestown moves to play DuBois Central Catholic, the No. 3 finisher from District 9 on March 11.
JAMESTOWN 53, COMMODORE PERRY 21
Score By Quarters
Commodore Perry 1 7 10 3 – 21
Jamestown 8 10 15 20 – 53
COMMODORE PERRY – 21
Melissa Streets 0 0-0 0, Abigail Eber 0 0-1 0, Marley Meyer 5 1-2 13, Skyleigh McCloskey 0 2-4 2, Helena Dillaman 1 0-0 2, Lilly Walef 1 2-2 4, Totals 7 5-9 21
JAMESTOWN – 53
Alayna Cadman 9 0-4 23, Taylor Keener 4 0-0 11, Kiley Matters 2 1-1 5, Savannah Thurber 0 2-2 2, Hannah Hart 0 0-0 0, McKayla Williams 1 2-2 4, Maddy Varano 2 0-0 4, Brianna Shetter 2 0-0 4, Totals 20 5-9 53
Three-pointers: Commodore Perry 2 (Meyer 2); Jamestown 8 (Cadman 5, Keener 3).
CLASS 3A THIRD-PLACE
(4) SHARPSVILLE 42, (3) GREENVILLE 44
FARRELL, Pa. – Chasie Fry and Lily Palko scored 12 points each as Sharpsville punched its ticket to the PIAA tournament with a 42-34 win over Greenville in the D10 3A third-place game.
“We were really able to control the game today,” Palko said. “We’re really excited. We haven’t been there (to the state playoffs) since 2013 and it’s just really exciting for the whole team.”
See Palko’s full interview:
Greenville, the defending 3A champion, held a 10-9 lead in the early stages of the second quarter, but Sharpville (14-11) was able to take control with a 13-4 run to close the half, capped by a Palko banked 3 at the buzzer.
Greenville (18-7) got within five 27-22 and were as close as three, 37-34 on a pair of Josie Lewis free throws with 1:05 to play. The final five points of the game belonged to Sharpsville, however, including a Breanna Hanley layup.
Palko scored all five Sharpsville points in the third quarter, while Fry knocked down a couple of big 3s in the fourth to help the Blue Devils extend the lead.
Fry’s 12 points came on four 3s, while Tori Kimpan was also in double figures for Sharpsville with 10 points, seven of which came in the first half.
Lewis, Greenville’s 1,000-point scorer, finished with a team-high 10 points, while freshman Preslie Kirila provided a spark in the second half, scoring all nine of her points in the final two quarters. Grace Cano also added eight points for Greenville.
Sharpsville moves on to face WPIAL runner-up Laurel in the first round of the PIAA tournament on March 10. The two teams actually met back on Dec. 17, a 50-37 win for Laurel.
CLASS 4A THIRD-PLACE
(4) LAKEVIEW 36, (3) CAMBRIDGE SPRINGS 33
MEADVILLE, Pa. – Lakeview built a 10-point halftime advantage and held off Cambridge Springs to secure the final state playoff berth out of District 10 with a 36-33 win.
Emma Marsteller and Kelsey Seddon both knocked down second-quarter 3s to help stake Lakeview to the 19-9 halftime advantage.
Cambridge Springs came storming back thanks to the strong play of Makenzie Yanc, who scored eight of her game-high 12 points in the third quarter.
Hailee Rodgers knocked down a fourth-quarter 3 for Cambridge, but Lakeview was able to hold them off, with Marsteller and Seddon scoring three points each in the fourth.
Seddon finished with 11 points, Marsteller nine, and Alaina Peterson eight.
Rodgers added eight points for Cambridge Springs.
With the win, Lakeview moves on to face District 9 runner-up Moniteau on Friday, March 10.
