CLARION, Pa. – Trailing by 10 with six minutes to play, Punxsutawney closed on a 17-4 run to beat St. Marys, 44-41 for the Class 4A title.
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Punxsutawney’s Samantha Griebel hit a 3 with 1:20 to play to tie the game at 38, and Avary Powell gave the No. 1 Lady Chucks the lead for good, 40-38 on a layup with 50 left to give the Lady Chucks (22-1) their first lead of the half.
“We just had to play our game and play togher as one,” Powell said. “Even if our shots don’t fall we have to box out and we have to keep going.”
See Powell and Griebel’s full interview:
Griebel knocked down a pair of free throws with 17.9 seconds to play to make it 42-38.
Izzy Catalone came down and hit a 3 for No. 2 St. Marys to make it 42-41 with 7.5 seconds to play.
Griebel was fouled with four seconds to go and missed the front end of the 1-and-1, but got her own rebounds and put it back in to end the game.
“I didn’t mean to miss that foul shot, but it wall worked out,” Griebel said.
The Lady Chucks saw their run of seven straight D9 titles end last season at the hands of Redbank Valley, but coach Mike Carlson knew his team possessed championship DNA.
“We can beat anybody when we shoot it and lose when we don’t shoot it well,” Carlson said. “We’ve been in this situation before. We were down 18 I think against Hazelton (a game Punxsy came back to win 57-49 on Dec. 29). We’d like to start playing better a little sooner, but you have to earn a championship and we were able to get it done.”
Punxsutawney led by as many as six early in the second quarter, but St. Marys rallied to tie the game at the half, 17-17.
The Lady Dutch (19-7) came out of halftime hot, going on an 8-0 run, with Jayssa Snelick scoring four of those points.
Chloe Presloid, Punxsutawney’s leading scorer at 16.1 ppg. was limited to just four points,m all of which came in a span to keep the Lady Chucks within striking distance, 27-23.
But St. Marys answered right back with a pair of Snelick buckets to end the quarter, and a pair of Olivia Eckles free throws put them up 37-27 with 6:07 to play.
“There doesn’t seem to be a lot of panic there and I think they know they can do it,” Carlson said. “They’ve been in that situation before. We can put up points quickly but you have to get stops on the other end, too.”
Punxsy’s defense certainly did that in the fourth quarter, limiting St. Marys to eight points.
A Danielle Griebel 3 started the rally Powell also had five points in the spurt before Samantha Greibel’s 3 tied it.
Powell had nine of her 15 points in the fourth quarter and Samantha Griebel had seven of her nine.
Eckles led St. Marys with 12 points, while Snelick finished with 10.
Punxsutawney was supposed to play Carrick in an 8-9 subregional, but Carrick opted out, so the Lady Chucks will move on to the first round of the PIAA championships, where they will meet the No. 5 team from the WPIAL, either Beaver or Belle Vernon, on March 11.
“We’re excited to keep it going,” Samantha Griebel said.
PUNXSUTAWNEY 44, ST. MARYS 41
Score by Quarters
St. Marys 6 11 16 8 – 41
Punxsutawney 10 7 8 19 – 44
ST. MARYS – 41
Alexa Schneider 3 0-0- 7, Izzy Catalone 2 1-2 6, Olivia Eckles 4 4-4 12, Jayssa Snelick 4 2-2 10, Maura Caskey 2 2-6 6, Molly Hanslovan 0 0-0 0, Totals 15 9-14 41
PUNXSUTAWNEY – 44
Chloe Presloid 1 2-2 4, Danielle Griebel 4 2-3 12, Samantha Greibel 3 2-4 9, Riley Doverspike 1 0-0 2, Avary Powell 7 1-1 15, Olivia Burkett 1 0-0 2, Emily McMahon 0 0-0 0, Totals 17 7-10 44
Three-pointers: St. Marys 2 (Schneider, Catalone); Punxsutawney 3 (D. Griebel 2, S. Griebel)
