Mounties drop heartbreaker in 3A semfinal

PHILIPSBURG — In two District 6 playoff games so far, Westmont-Hilltop’s Dylan Craft made a total of 13 three-point shots, but none was bigger than the one he drained against Philipsburg-Osceola in the 3A semifinal.

Playing in Philipsburg on Tuesday night, the two teams battled down the stretch and went into the final seconds of play tied, 62-62.

After a timeout, the Hilltoppers worked the ball down to the 10-second mark when point guard Landon Weeks drew in the P-O defense with a drive into the lane.

Weeks saw Craft open on the wing, passed him the ball, and the senior guard arced a perfect rainbow that put his team ahead with just 3.7 seconds left to play.

As a bonus, Craft was fouled by a diving Mountie defender and because he was shaken up on the play, teammate Alex Ray completed the four-point play that gave the Hilltoppers a 66-62 victory.

The win was the 13th of the season for Westmont, against 8 losses, and sets up a finals matchup against either Bishop Guilfoyle or Richland on Friday, March 12 at a site to be determined.

The game began all Westmont as the Hilltoppers raced out to a 10-point, first quarter lead that they extended to 41-30 at halftime.

P-O was up to the challenge, however, and led by point guard Oliver Harpster and forward Jake DeSimone, the Mounties stormed back into the lead, 54-52, going into the final eight minutes.

Both teams played it close to the vest in the fourth quarter with the Mounties maintaining a 2 to 3 point lead.

P-O could not break away, however, and Westmont finally tied it at 62-62 on a free throw by Tanner Civis with just under a minute to play.

The Mounties had a chance to take the lead on their subsequent possession but missed the first end of a 1-and-1, setting up Westmont’s final possession.

Craft led the Hilltopper offense with 19 points while Weeks had 18 and Civis 17.

Center Ryan Whitehead led P-O with 19 points, followed by DeSimone with 18 and Jeremy Whitehead with 10.

Philipsburg finished its season with an overall record of 11-7.

BISHOP CARROL 45,

ST. JOSEPH’S CATHOLIC ACADEMY 38 DISTRICT 6, 1A SEMIFINALS

Despite playing a solid first half and taking a 6-point lead after two quarters, the Saint Joseph’s Catholic Academy Wolfpack could not hold on against Bishop Carroll in the District 6, 1A semifinal on March 5 in Ebensburg.

Carroll turned up the defensive heat in the second half and completed a comeback 45-38 win to advance into the final against Williamsburg.

“We felt like if we just duplicated our defensive effort in the second half then we would win,” St. Joseph’s head coach Richard Ciambotti said. “Unfortunately, Carroll came out with a whole other level of intensity, and we did not match it. We just made too many mistakes in the second half and never found any sort of rhythm offensively. And they took advantage.”

It didn’t take Carroll long to turn things around after the break. The Huskies went on a 17-8 run to take control going into the final quarter, and then kept it going down the stretch for their eighth victory of the season.

SJCA, on the other hand, struggled on offense in the second half and managed just 16 points against the Carroll defenders.

Brendan Scanlon led the Wolfpack with 12 points and Noah Straub contributed 11 as the team finished its season with a 5-12 record.

“We were extremely thankful to be able to play this season,” Ciambotti added, “and I am very proud of these guys for dealing with a multitude of distractions and disappointments throughout the year. They were really playing their best basketball at the end and it is unfortunate that we couldn’t get a shot at the district title.”

WESTMONT-HILLTOP 65, PENNS VALLEY 48 DISTRICT 6, 3A FIRST ROUND

Westmont-Hilltop drained four three-pointers in the first quarter — three by senior guard Dylan Craft — as the Hilltoppers jumped out to an early double-digit lead and kept going from there.

Westmont’s lead ballooned to 15 points by halftime and as much as 25 in the second half as it closed out the Rams, 65-48, and moved into the D6 semifinal against No. 2 seeded Philipsburg-Osceola.

The Rams, led by Zach Braucht’s 19 points, struggled back to within 36-22 midway through the third quarter, but the Hilltoppers ran off another 11 points and essentially put the game away.

Craft had a big game for Westmont, hitting 7 threes altogether and finishing with 25 points. Also in double figures for the Hilltoppers were Tanner Civis with 15 and Austin Svencer with 11.

The loss ended the season for Penns Valley with a final record of 9-10.

SHIKELLAMY 39, BELLEFONTE 37 DISTRICT 4-6, 5A SEMIFINALS

Shikellamy’s Mason Dietrich made a layup with 17 seconds remaining that gave the Braves a 39-37 victory over Bellefonte in the District 6-4, 5A semifinal on March 8 in Sunbury.

Dietrich’s goal came after Bellefonte’s Blair Eckley-Jones tied the game with an inside move at 37 with under a minute left to play.

The Red Raiders pressed looking for a win, but Shikellamy was able to set up, and Brayden Long found Dietrich wide open for a back-door layup that put the Braves up by two.

Bellefonte still had a chance, but Eckley-Jones’ final three-pointer fell short at the buzzer.

Eckley-Jones finished the game with 17 points for Bellefonte, and Nick Way added

12. The loss set the the Red Raiders’ final record at 6-12.

Shikellamy will now advance into the District 6-4 final against Central Mountain.

NO. 3 ALTOONA AT NO. 2 STATE COLLEGE DISTRICT 6, 6A SEMIFINAL

Unfortunately, the District 6, 6A semifinal game between State College and Altoona will be played too late for this edition of CCG.

The Little Lions, who already have two wins over Altoona this season, will be trying to get into the final against No. 1 seeded Mifflin County.

Mifflin this season is 5-14 this season, but it has not faced State College. Mifflin’s last game was a 61-48 loss to Bellefonte on March 2.

The final will be played on Saturday, March 13 at Tyrone High School at 6 p.m.

The winner will advance to the District 6-8-10 sub-regional and face either the champion from District 8 or District 10 on March 17.