YATESVILLE — Chaquanna Zendarski’s first half had Nanticoke within striking distance of the defending district champs. Her second half helped keep the Trojans perfect.
Zendarski scored 10 points in the second half – and hauled in six rebounds – as Nanticoke earned a come-from-behind victory over Pittston Area Monday night in Wyoming Valley Conference girls basketball action. Zendarski finished the game with 14 points and added nine rebounds in the win.
Zendarski hauled in several key rebounds, both offensively and defensively, in the fourth quarter to help Nanticoke (4-0) secure the win over Pittston Area (2-1).
“She’s just a phenomenal athlete and she’s coming into her own right now,” Nanticoke coach Alan Yendrzeiwski said. “She really sparked our inside game. We expect big things from her for the rest of the season.”
The Trojans didn’t lead in the game until there were less than two minutes showing on the clock when Kayle Aufiero hit her final 3-pointer of the night to propel Nanticoke to a 42-41 lead. Aufiero hit four 3s in the game – three in the second half – and finished with a game-high 18 points.
“We weren’t shooting the ball well early on, but we were hanging in there,” Yendrzeiwski said. “We caught some fire in the second half and picked up the pressure. It really got our girls going.”
Nanticoke finished the game with eight 3s and eight two-point field goals. Following a Aufiero three-pointer, Pittston Area’s Taryn Ashby hit a pair of free throws to regain the lead in the closing minutes. That’s when Nanticoke started to turn up the heat.
Yendrzeiwski set up a press with a 44-43 lead following Gianna Robert’s layup with a minute to play. The Trojans forced a turnover and a foul sent Lisa Radziak to the foul line. Radziak’s first shot hit rim and Zendarski came up with the rebound. From there, Pittston Area was forced to foul and found itself down three with 11 seconds to play.
Pittston Area set up an inbounds play with a chance to tie the game and force overtime. Alexa Noon’s 3-point shot from the left wing fell short and Nanticoke improved to 4-0.
“We were going to switch everything,” Yendrzeiwski said. “The girls did a great job once the shot went up.”
Pittston Area led the entire game up until Aufiero’s 3-pointer with two minutes to play. The Patriots, however, never led by more than seven points. Coach Kathy Healey said finishing the game offensively contributed to this one slipping away.
“We have to find a way to score at the end,” Healey said. “It was definitely a great game and I’m heartbroken we lost. Everyone counted us out and here we are.”
Jamie Chisdock led the Patriots with 12 points, while Ashby finished the game with 11 points, seven rebounds and four steals. Marley O’Brien finished with six points and had four blocks in the first quarter to help spark Pittston Area defensively.
Berwick 43, Meyers 37
Taylor Montana scored 16 points while Tori Talanca went 3 for 4 from the line and finished with 11 points in Berwick’s win. Payden Montana hit two 3-pointers and finished with eight points.
Tiffany Muniz led Meyers with 14 points.
Northwest 68, Lackawanna Trail 34
Brenna Babcock (19), Liz Gurzynski (15), Hannah Wisniewski (12) and Trista Babcock (12) each finished in double figures as Northwest cruised past Lackawanna Trail.
The Rangers were 24 of 31 from the free-throw line.
Lackawanna Trail was led by Ally Decker who scored 13 points.
Hanover Area 79, Blue Ridge 51
Haylee Bobos scored a game-high 27 points and converted 7 of 13 free throws as Hanover Area rolled past Blue Ridge.
Asdone Hooper chipped in with 23 points and Genesis Rodriguez added 13 points for the Hawkeyes.
Sunday’s Game
Holy Redeemer 60, St. John’s-Catholic 50
Holy Redeemer participated in the Tina Thompson She Got Game Classic Invitational tournament in Washington D.C. over the weekend. The Royals came away with a 60-50 victory over St. John’s-Catholic Preparatory from Maryland.
Meghan Corridoni led the way with 16 points, Kayla Hons scored 12, Lydia Lawson added nine, while Rebecca Prociak and Sam Rajza each finished with eight points. Sara Flannelly scored seven in the win.
The She Got Game Classic was founded in 2009 by the WNBA’s first-ever draft pick, Tina Thompson, and Shot Doc Nation, creating a platform for young players to compete. The 2015 invite-only classic welcomed 93 teams from 13 states.
Nanticoke 47, Pittston Area 44
NANTICOKE (47) — Miranda Dunn 1 0-0 3, Kayla Aufiero 4 6-10 18, Amber Grohowski 1 0-0 3, Lisa Radziak 1 0-1 3, Chaquanna Zendarski 7 0-2 14, Gianna Roberts 2 1-4 6, Katie Butczynski 0 0-0 0. Totals 16 7-17 47.
PITTSTON AREA (44) — Kirsten Durling 4 0-0 8, Mary Silinskie 0 0-0 0, Jamie Chisdock 4 4-6 12, Megan Cummings 1 0-0 2, Rachel Ferrance 0 0-0 0, Alexa Noone 2 1-1 5, Marley O’Brien 3 0-0 6, Taryn Ashby 2 7-8 11. Totals 16 12-15 44.
Nanticoke`6`13`10`18`—`47
Pittston Area`10`12`14`8`—`44
Three-point goals — N 8 (Dunn 1, Aufiero 4, Grohowski 1, Radziak 1, Roberts 1); PA 0.
Berwick 43, Meyers 37
BER (43) — Reese Mensinger 2 0-0 5, Hannah Woodeshick 1 1-3 3, Tori Talanca 4 3-4 11, Roni Isenberg 0 0-0 0, Taylor Montana 8 0-4 16, Karen Boone 0 0-0 0, Payden Montana 2 2-2 8. Totals 17 6-13 43.
MEY (37) — Erin Morris 0 0-1 0, Amanon Gray 2 0-0 4, Tiffany Muniz 4 5-6 14, Bella Skaff 2 0-0 4, Alaena Lloyd 0 4-6 4, Giana Skaff 3 0-3 8, Selena Soto 0 0-0 0, Cameron Daughtry 1 1-1 3. Totals 12 10-17 37.
Berwick`6`11`19`7`—`43
Meyers`8`6`9`14`—`37
Three-point goals — BER 3 (P. Montana 2, Mensinger 1); MEY 3 (G. Skaff 2, Muniz 1).
Northwest 68, Lackawanna Trail 34
LT (34) — Ally Decker 3 7-9 13, Alyssa Fowler 0 0-0 0, Rachael Beener 0 0-0 0, Laurelann Penn 1 0-0 2, Sam Koshick 0 0-0 0, Alyssa Shons 1 0-0 3, Allison Stauch 0 0-0 0, Lexi Kwiatkowski 3 1-2 9, Ami Sohns 0 0-0 0, Sarah Weisenfluh 0 3-8 3, Amber Collett 0 0-0 0, Cali Fauguier 1 2-2 4, Sam Benamin 0 0-0 0. Totals 9 13-21 34.
NW (68) — Brooke Mendegro 0 5-6 5, Cassidy Foley 0 0-0 0, Trista Babcock 5 2-4 12, Brenna Babcock 8 2-2 19, Liz Gurzynski 3 8-9 15, Jackie Jones 1 0-0 2, Kendra Saxton 0 0-0 0, Jill Kondrosky 1 1-2 3, Danielle Bowman 0 0-0 0, Hannah Wisniewski 3 6-7 12. Totals 21 24-31 68.
Lackawanna Trail`6`14`4`10`—`34
Northwest`23`18`9`18`—`68
Three-point goals — LT 3 (A. Sohns 1, Kwiatkowski 2); NW 2 (B. Babcock 1, Gurzynski 1).
Hanover Area 79, Blue Ridge 51
BLR (51) — Kaylynn Meyers 6 0-4 13, Isabella Cosmello 8 3-4 20, Abigail Rowe 3 0-0 7, Taylor Bronson 0 0-0 0, Miranda Brullia 0 0-0 0, Callie Wyatt 1 0-2 2, Kim Klim 4 1-2 9, Hunter Vaughn 0 0-0 0. Totals 22 4-12 51.
HAN (79) — Asdone Hooper 9 2-2 23, Mary Slusser 1 0-0 2, Vicky Benning 3 1-2 7, Alesha Dennis 1 0-0 2, Lauren Blazaskie 2 0-0 4, Genesis Rodriguez 5 3-6 13, Halyee Bobos 10 7-13 27, Sara Whitesell 0 1-3 1, Vicky Hoffman 0 0-0 0, Tiana Davis 0 0-0 0. Totals 31 14-26 79.
Blue Ridge`10`17`16`8`—`51
Hanover Area`24`16`16`23`—`79
Three-point goals — BKR 3 (Meyers 1, Cosmello 1, Rowe 1); HAN 3 (Bobos 3).
Holy Redeemer 60, St. John’s-Catholic 50
HR (60) — Lydia Lawson 4 0-0 9, Kayla Hons 4 0-0 12, Meghan Corridoni 6 5-5 16, Rebecca Prociak 3 2-6 8, Sara Flannelly 3 1-1 7, Samantha Rajza 3 0-0 8. Totals 23 9-15 60.
STJ (50) — Marima Keita 1 4-6 6, Nicole Picketts 0 0-0 0, Taylor Hill 0 5-6 5, Tayler Stafford 5 0-0 11, Paige Holston 4 0-0 12, Alexis Moore 2 4-4 8, Tori Geitner 1 2-2 5, Mackenzie Holston 1 0-0 3, Shamira Clayton 0 0-2 0. Totals 14 15-20 50.
Three-point goals — HR 9 (Hons 4, Rajza 2, Corridoni 1, Lawson 1, Flannelly 1); STJ 7 (P. Holston 4, Geitner 1, M. Holston 1, Stafford 1).
