Pittston Area sharpshooter, Daniella Ranieli (2), hits for one of her three 3-point baskets for a game high 20 of the Patriots’ 41 points against Wyoming Area. Tony Callaio | For Sunday Dispatch
Giuliana Latona (14), Pittston Area sophomore power forward, drives the lane for a lay up against rival Wyoming Area on Thursday night.
Tony Callaio | For Sunday Dispatch
Addison Gaylord (2) from Wyoming Area, looks for an open teammate while at Pittston Area for a non-conference game.
Tony Callaio | For Sunday Dispatch
Taryn Ashby, left, and Rowan Lazevnick, right, granddaughters of the late PA State Rep. Tom Tigue, hand over the Thomas Tigue Memorial MVP trophy to Pittston Area’s Daniella Ranieli.
Tony Callaio | For Sunday Dispatch
Wyoming Area’s Addison Gaylord, center, received the Tony Denisco Memorial trophy for being the MVP of the Warrior team against Pittston Area on Thursday night at Pittston Area. Presenting the trophy are Tony Denisco’s grandchildren, Anthony Capozucca and his sister Cara Capozucca Joyce.
Tony Callaio | For Sunday Dispatch
YATESVILLE – Daniella Ranieli fueled a dominant second quarter with a little boost from Lili Hintze.
They reversed roles for the first 2½ minutes of the second half with Hintze leading the way.
By then, their scoring outbursts had already decided the outcome of the eighth annual Tigue-Denisco Cup game, combining with a strong defensive effort to lead Pittston Area to a 41-11, home-court rout of Wyoming Area Thursday night.
Ranieli scored 12 points and Hintze added eight as Pittston Area outscored Wyoming Area 25-2 for the stretch that included the entire second quarter and the early stages of the third quarter.
Hintze’s five straight points, Ranieli’s 17-foot baseline jumper for the last basket of her 20-point effort and a free throw by Grace Callahan gave Pittston Area an insurmountable, 35-6 lead with 5:25 left in the third quarter.
Ranieli received the Thomas Tigue Award as Pittston Area’s Most Valuable Player in the game after going 3-for-6 from 3-point range and making a game-high six steals.
“It’s a good accomplishment,” Ranieli said of her first Tigue Award. “I think winning the game and playing as a team mean more.”
Hintze, the only other player in the game with more than four points, added 10 points.
The Lady Patriots already led 27-6 after a 17-2 second quarter.
Hintze made sure they did not stop there. She opened the second half with a 3-pointer, then made a steal and drove for another quick basket.
“We needed to get some energy going,” she said. “We needed to work as a team to do that.”
Hintze’s runner from the right side with 1:50 left in the third quarter represented the last of the scoring by a Pittston Area starter as the Lady Patriots turned the game over to substitutes.
Pittston Area’s Carlina Lizza beat the third-quarter buzzer with a 3-pointer, then neither team scored in the fourth quarter.
The Lady Patriots started slowly on offense, then Ranieli hit two free throws and a corner 3-pointer in a 22-second stretch of the final minute for a 10-4 lead after one quarter.
Pittston Area scored the first 17 points of the second quarter with Ranieli providing 10 points and following up one of her baskets with a steal of the in-bounds pass and feed to a cutting Maddie Karp for a basket.
Hintze also hit a 3-pointer in the run and Karp had another layup off her own back-court steal.
“I think we’re getting better each game and improving and learning how to play together,” Ranieli said.
At 3-0, with the start of Wyoming Valley Conference Division 1 play ahead in a month, coach Jeff Gregory said the Lady Patriots still have work to do.
“We’ll take the win, but we have to get a lot better,” he said. “There’s a lot of things we can improve on.
“If we don’t, we’re going to have a problem come January.”
Gregory said it’s always a big game to beat the team’s rival, but it was not Pittston Area’s best effort.
The larger crowd and the tradition of playing for the Tigue-Denisco Cup made for a fun night.
“It’s a rivalry game,” Hintze said. “It means a lot to win it.”
Addison Gaylord received the Tony Denisco Award as Wyoming Area’s top player. She shared the team lead with three points, was the only Lady Warrior with two steals and also added three rebounds and a blocked shot.
