First Posted: 12/30/2014
YATESVILLE — Pittston Area’s stars came out in the third quarter.
Seniors Allie Barber and Liz Waleski combined for 18 of the Patriots 24 points in the quarter to open up the game and take a 68-57 win over Lake-Lehman in the Greater Pittston Holiday Tournament championship on Monday night.
Waleski drained six threes and finished with a game-high 24 points. Barber, after scoring just three points in the first half, exploded for 16 down the stretch. She also finished with eight assists.
“We changed up our defense a little bit,” Pittston Area coach Kathy Healey said of the third quarter. “We came out in a different mindset. We got a couple steals in the quarter and had a stretch where we made a few baskets. That was the difference.”
Barber was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player. Waleski, along with teammate Taryn Ashby was named to the all-tournament team. Lake-Lehman’s Cayle Spencer and Julia Eneboe were also named to the all-tournament team. Spencer finished the game with 19 points, while Eneboe hit six 3-pointers en route to her 18 points.
Despite the Patriots using a diamond and one against her, Spencer still turned in an impressive performance for the Knights. She also had eight rebounds and three assists. Eneboe stepped up to make six 3-pointers — four of them were in the final quarter.
“She’s an amazing payer,” Healey said when asked about the diamond defense on Spencer. “We knew we had to shut her down. We were going to take our chances on the other players. I have to give Lake-Lehman a lot of credit.”
Pittston Area and Lake-Lehman were neck-and-neck much of the first half. Patriot freshman Alexa Noone got a feed from Barber and hit a 3-pointer midway through the second quarter to give the Patriots the lead, 16-13. But Lehman’s Molly Storz then hit one from beyond the arc to tie it back up.
Two minutes later, Noone found nylon again from 3 and the Patriots had a 20-18 lead. After a Lehman bucket, the Patriots would go on a 6-0 run to end the first half and take a 26-20 lead to the locker room.
The Patriots shot just 22 percent from the field in the first half. That was soon about the change.
The Patriots opened up the third quarter on a 14-0 run — it was a 20-0 run if you count the first half as well. Waleski started the scoring with a three and a quick steal. Marley O’Brien then found herself a rebound and a put back. Soon, a six-point deficit turned into a 17-point deficit for Lake-Lehman.
“In the locker room we talked about stepping it up and making more shots,” Waleski said. “We had to get to the rim to more to open up the outside and that’s what we focused on.”
There wasn’t much Lake-Lehman coach Charlie Lavan could do.
“They hit that three and it ignited them,” he said. “They are a real good basketball team. We talked at halftime and we couldn’t give them any fuel and we did.”
Barber and Waleski were the beneficiaries of most of the team’s 24 points in the third quarter. Waleski hit three triples in the period. But it was mostly due to the team’s tough defense.
“We knew we had to push our defense in the second half,” Waleski said. “That’s what we did.”
In the consolation game, Wyoming Area beat East Stroudsburg South, 57-31. Wyoming Area’s Katie Wolfgang finished with 23 points and Lydia Edwards added 14. After nailing 11 3-pointers against Pittston Area on Friday, the Warriors hit another 10 in the win over the Cavaliers.
Wolfgang and South’s Deana McKeller rounded out the all-tournament team.
“Right now we’re playing the hot hands,” Wyoming Area coach Chad Lojewski said of all the 3-pointers. “The girls are working hard with great effort. We’re letting them fly when we’re open.”
The Warriors jumped out to a comfortable lead before the Cavs made a charge in the second quarter. It was a two-point defensive effort that lifted Wyoming Area in the third. East Stroudsburg had only two free throws in the period.
“We talk about peaks and valleys in every game,” Lojewski said. “The third quarter was awesome. To allow just two free throws the whole quarter is impressive.”
Playing without senior Emily Wolfgang, who was out battling an illness, the Warriors used several players off the bench to coral the Cavs, including fellow senior Melissa Mazatelli.
“Emily not being here absolutely deflated us,” Lojewski said. “Melissa picked it right back up. She’s another senior leader and she stepped right in.”
Pittston Area 57, Tunkhannock 37
Liz Waleski hit four 3-pointers to led Pittston Area past Tunkhannock on Friday.
Teammate Alexa Noone nailed three from behind the arc and finished with 12 points. Jaime Chisdock scored 10 points in the win.
The Patriots led by just seven points at the half, but scored 34 points in the third and fourth quarters to put the game out of reach.
Hanover Area 66, Wyoming Area 51
Wyoming Area’s Sarah Holweg scored a team-high 21 points in a loss to Hanover Area Friday night.
The Warriors couldn’t overcome the hot scoring of Hanover Area’s Asdone Hooper and Haylee Bobos, who combined for 48 of the team’s 66 points.
Schedule
Pittston Area will travel to Crestwood on Monday, and host Wyoming Valley West on Wednesday and Berwick on Friday. Wyoming Area will travel to Nanticoke on Monday and travel to GAR on Thursday.
