NA keeps composure in win
North Allegheny coach Spencer Stefko saw his team grow up before his eyes Thursday night.
As the top-ranked Tigers were battling No. 2 Peters Township in a key non-section matchup, the Indians, in front of a rowdy home crowd on senior night, were able to pull within four points midway through the fourth quarter. But North Allegheny kept its composure and executed down the stretch for a 67-54 victory.
“I feel like that was a mature win for us,” Stefko said. “When it was crunch time, the ball found the right hands and we showed maturity. We didn’t get crazy.”
Madelyn Fischer netted 18 and Rachel Martindale added 15 for North Allegheny (21-0). Makenna Marisa had 21 points and now has 1,005 in her career for Peters Township (18-3).
More top girls games
In a battle between two of the top teams in 5A, No. 3 Mars (17-4, 11-1) used a 1910 third-quarter advantage to pull away for a 59-52 Section 4 win at second-ranked Hampton (17-4, 11-1). Lauren Wasylson had 20 for the Planets. The Talbots’ Laryn Edward led all scorers with 22.
Bella Posset’s free throws with 0.3 of a second remaining gave 4A No. 4 host Beaver (16-5, 10-2) a 59-58 Section 2 victory against No. 2 Blackhawk (17-2, 10-2).
It took two overtimes for host Steel Valley (7-14, 5-7) to pull out a 58-57 3A Section 3 victory against Shady Side Academy. Kelsey McCafferty led the victors with 22 points, while Ariana Goitz had 26 for the Indians (1010, 4-8).
Maria Cerro scored 10 of her 12 points in the first half to lead 6A No. 3 Bethel Park (15-5, 8-2) to a 50-33 non-section triumph against visiting Shaler (9-12, 4-6). Emily Cavacini paced the Titans with a game-high 14.
South Park (13-9, 10-4) snapped 4A No. 3 Keystone Oaks’ nine-game winning streak with a 58-53 upset of the third-ranked Golden Eagles (17-4, 13-1). Maura Huwalt scored 22 points and had 15 rebounds for South Park.
Plum freshman Kennedie Montue picked up 17 points, 14 rebounds and 4 blocks to pace the Mustangs (6-15, 4-8) in a 4636 triumph at 5A Section 4 foe Franklin Regional (8-13, 3-9).
Class 3A No. 1 Bishop Canevin (16-3, 12-0) was sizzling from 3-point range, as the Crusaders connected on 10 shots from beyond the arc in a 76-42 rout of Carlynton (6-15, 1-11) in Section 3. Diajah Allen and Kasey Kaczorowski each had four 3s.
Amani Johnson netted 34 points and 3A No. 2 East Allegheny rolled to a 62-23 Section 2 rout of South Allegheny.
Milestones
Chartiers-Houston’s Alexa Williamson, the leading scorer in the WPIAL, poured in 36 points in a 55-15 romp against visiting Fort Cherry to give her exactly 2,000 for her career. The 6-foot-1 senior center and Temple recruit is the 43rd player in WPIAL history to score at least 2,000.
Hayden Robinson, an Avonworth junior, reached 1,000 career points in a 24-point effort for the host Antelopes (15-7, 8-4) in their 61-48 win against Seton LaSalle (9-13, 6-6) in 3A Section 3.
Trinity junior guard Alayna Capelli netted 14 points and boosted her career total to 1,004, as the top-ranked Hillers (18-3, 12-0) downed host Ringgold (16-6, 10-2) in 5A Section 3.