HERMITAGE, Pa. – In a battle of two of the top programs in Pennsylvania, Kennedy Catholic outlasted Blackhawk 37-35.
Kennedy Catholic was the PIAA state champion a year ago, while Blackhawk lost in the PIAA Class 4A title game.
Kennedy Catholic led 37-35 when Blackhawk’s Aubree Hupp drove and was fouled with 3.5 seconds to play. Hupp missed the first free-throw, missed the second one intentionally and KC’s Layke Fields got the rebounds and passed off to Monique Vincent to end the game.
Blackhawk took a 35-34 lead on a bucket by Hupp with 6:17 to play, which turned out to be its last points of the game.
Kennedy Catholic took the lead for good with 5:03 to play when Layke Fields knocked down a pair of free-throws to take a 36-35 lead.
Monique Vincent ended a long-scoring drought by knocking down 1-of-2 from the line with 41.2 seconds to play to make it 37-35.
Hupp then missed a 3, and Bella Magestro was fouled with 19.9 seconds to play. Magestro went 0-for-2 from the line, setting up Hupp’s last-ditch attempt.
The game was tight throughout, as Blackhawk led 13-10 after one quarter and 22-20 at halftime before Kennedy rallied to take a 32-31 lead after the third quarter.
Fields finished with 19 points and 15 rebounds for the Golden Eagles, while Magestro had nine points and Vincent seven.
Hupp had 13 points for Blackhawk, while Piper Romigh added seven.
BROOKVILLE 31, DUBOIS 29
BROOKVILLE, Pa. – At its holiday tournament, Brookville held off visiting DuBois, 31-29, in a game that counted in the D9 League standings.
The Lady Raiders, who led most of the night, had to withstand a late 3-point attempt from Lynx Lander that would have tied the game at 30.
Eden Wonderling had 11 points and nine rebounds for Brookville with Kerstyn Davie adding nine points.
Lander had a double-double for DuBois with 13 points and 12 rebounds.
ERIE 64, EISENHOWER 37
RUSSELL, Pa. – A 13-0 second-quarter run effectively put the game out of reach as Erie picked up a 64-37 road win over Eisenhower.
Rewatch the game:
After falling behind by 11, 24-13, at the end of the first quarter, Eisenhower had cut the deficit to six, 24-18, early in the second. Erie responded by scoring 13 straight to push the lead to 37-18.
Sisters Draya and Aubrey Neavins took turns leading the Royals’ offense. Draya scored 13 of her 20 points in the first quarter, while Aubrey scored 11 of her 20 points in the second quarter.
“That’s my twin sister, we read each other well, and we get one bucket after another,” Draya Neavins said during her Cole Orthodontic Associates player interview. “It’s actually really fun.”
See Draya Neavins’ full Cole Orthodontic Associates postgame interview:
After exploding for 24 points in the first quarter, the Royals slowed the pace in the second half and scored 22 points combined in the third and fourth quarters.
The Knights matched the high-paced Royals through most of the first quarter but went cold from the field in the second half with just three field goals.
Clara Steinberg scored 10 of her team-high 15 points from the free-throw line. Lainey Font and Laney Belcher each had eight points.
CATHEDRAL PREP 44, FAIRVIEW 30
FAIRVIEW, Pa. – Cathedral Prep jumped out to a 21-6 lead after the first quarter on its way to a 44-30 win over Fairview.
Jayden McBride scored 10 of her 16 points in the first quarter for the Ramblers.
Addie Biel and Lena Walz were also in double figures for Prep with 11 and 10 points, respectively.
Fairview outscored Prep 24-23 over the final three quarters.
Paige Garrity led Fairview with 17 points, 14 of which came in the second half, while Bre Heidt added nine points.
DUBOIS CENTRAL CATHOLIC 60, BROCKWAY 30
BROOKVILLE, Pa. – Leading by four late in the first half, DuBois Central Catholic went on a 30-7 run on its way to a 60-30 win over Brockway in the opening round of the Brookville Holiday Tournament.
The Lady Cardinals were up 23-19 with 54 seconds left in the first half before ending the half with a 6-0 spurt. They then outscored Brockway 24-7 in the third quarter to put the game near the Mercy Rule.
Three-pointers from Ella Elensky and Marina Hanes before the end of the half started the run, and Elensky then knocked down three more triples in the third quarter.
Hanes led DCC with 13 points, Elensky added 12 on four 3-pointers, and Hope Jacob chipped in 10. Jessy Frank and Kayley Risser also scored nine tallies each.
Sophia Morrison paced Brockway with 10 points with Sophia Schmader adding seven.
GREENVILLE 44, CAMBRIDGE SPRINGS 32
CAMBRIDGE SPRINGS, Pa. – Preslie Kirila scored 20 points as Greenville beat Cambridge Springs, 44-32.
Greenville built a 25-15 halftime lead on its way to the win.
Josie Hart and Peyton Davis had six points each for Greenville.
Sydney Zilhaver had 14 points and Payton Leandro had 12 for Cambridge Springs.
NORTHERN POTTER 37, BUCKTAIL 33
ULYSSES, Pa. – Outscoring visiting Bucktail 14-9 in the fourth quarter, Northern Potter rallied for a 37-33 win.
The Lady Panthers trailed 24-23 going to the fourth quarter but got scoring from six different players in the frame, including four points from Haylee Chapman, to get the win.
Chapman led Northern Potter with 14 points with Emma Haynes adding nine points and 14 rebounds. Molly Cady grabbed nine boards with Kayden Brown hauling in eight rebounds.
Mackenzie Wagner had a game-high 19 points for Bucktail.
HARBOR CREEK 62, GENERAL MCLANE 31
EDINBORO, Pa. – Brooke Przybylski scored 18 points as Harbor Creek topped General McLane, 62-31.
Harbor Creek led 33-20 at halftime on its way to the win, with Georgia Weber also in double figures with 11 points.
Libby Opp had 16 points and Kiley Leasure 10 for GM.
SHARPSVILLE 41, LAUREL 29
SHARPSVILLE, Pa. – Lily Palko scored 15 points as Sharpsville picked up its second win of the season, 41-29 over Laurel.
Sharpsville built a 41-29 halftime lead en route to the win.
Four different Sharpsville players – Savannah Hassan, Macie Steiner, Katherine Smith, and Lani Slemmer had five points each.
Maya Jarrett led Laurel with eight points.
PORTERSVILLE CHRISTIAN 45, HICKORY 23
HERMITAGE, Pa. – Isabel Green scored 20 points to lead Portersville Christian to a 45-23 win over Hickory.
Hickory led 17-14 at halftime, but Portersville Christian went on a 21-6 run in the third quarter to take control.
Mariah Swanson led Hickory with nine points.
FRANKLIN 48, COCHRANTON 36
FRANKLIN, Pa. – Estella Adams knocked down four 3’s and finished with 16 points as Franklin beat Cochranton, 48-36.
Franklin got seven points from Katie Boal in the first half to build a 20-13 advantage.
Boal finished with 14 points for Franklin and Jenn Blum was also in double figures with 11.
Marley Rodax scored seven of her 11 points in the second half to pace Cochranton and Shelby McBryar was also in double figures with 10 points.
FOREST AREA 52, TIDIDOUTE CHARTER 22
TIDIOUTE, Pa. – Kaylie Rooke had a double-double and was one of three Forest Area players in double digits, as the visiting Fires beat Tidioute Charter, 52-22.
Rooke had 11 points, 16 rebounds, five blocked shots, and four steals to lead the way.
Jayden Colvin netted a game-high 14 points while dishing out four assists for Forest Area, and Amber Guzzi added 10 points, seven rebounds, and five steals.
Also for the Fires, Tori Brown had nine points, on three 3-pointers, and hauled in five rebounds.
Layle Rulenete paced Tidioute with 10 points with Brooksten Fors adding nine points.
GROVE CITY 52, FARRELL 35
GROVE CITY, Pa. – Piper Como and Izzie Gamble scored 15 points each as Grove City powered past Farrell, 52-35.
Maddie Osborn scored nine of her 13 points in the first half to help stake Grove City to a 27-15 halftime advantage.
Janiya Daniels scored 12 of her team-high 14 points in the first half for Farrell, while Damerra Thomas added 10 points.
KANE 42, BRADFORD 29
KANE, Pa. – Maya Smith and Leah Tigani combined for 24 points in a 42-29 Kane home win over Bradford.
Smith led the Lady Wolves with 14 points with Tigani chipping in 10 tallies.
Kalie Dixon had 12 points for Bradford with Haley Keane adding eight points.
MERCYHURST PREP 57, BUTLER 47
BUTLER, Pa. – Seana Thrower and Olivia Kulyk scored 17 points each as Mercyhurst Prep went on the road to beat Butler, 57-47.
Mercyhurst Prep led 19-12 after the first quarter on its way to the win.
Amelia McMichael had a game-high 20 points for Butler.
KNOCH 50, SLIPPERY ROCK 24
SAXONBURG, Pa. – Knoch built a 22-2 lead after the first quarter on its way to a 50-24 win over Slippery Rock.
Adah Fuller led Knoch with 15 points and Karlee Buterbaugh had 14.
Madison Romanovich led Slippery Rock with 14 points.
JAMES MADISON (Va.) 34, MCDOWELL 33
KISSIMMEE, Fla. – Sara Becker scored 11 points as James Madison (Va.) edged McDowell, 34-33.
Three different James Madison players scored five points each in the win.
Amaiya Nelson led McDowell with 11 points.
