Mt. Lebanon girls clinch section banner
Lillian Young (No. 10) of Peters Township makes her move against Mt. Lebanon’s Kenshie Bushee during girls’ basketball action. Young had nine points in a 55-41 loss to the Blue Devils.
Isabella Mills maneuvers her way around a Mt. Lebanon defender during Peters Township’s key section match-up. Mills scored five points but that was not enough as the Indians dropped a 55-41 decision to the Lebo ladies.
On senior night, the duo of Kate Sramac and Kenzie Bushee spearheaded Mt. Lebanon to victory over Peters Township, 55-41, and sealed a playoff berth for the Blue Devils. A follow-up win, 44-17, against rival Upper St. Clair clinched the undisputed Section 2 (6A) banner for the Lebo ladies. The Blue Devils finished section action with a 9-1 record and the regular season with a 17-5 slate overall.
“It’s a nice accomplishment to win the section title, since we haven’t won it in two years,” said Lebo floor boss Dori Oldaker. “However, that is not our ultimate goal.”
Against the Lady Indians, who tied Canon-McMillan for the section title last season, Sramac and Bushee rallied Lebo, which trailed, 19-17, at intermission.
Sramac tossed in 19 points, 13 of which came in the second half. The Cornell University recruit also grabbed nine rebounds and collected eight steals.
Bushee, who recently surpassed the 1,000-point plateau in her scholastic career, supplied 13 points to the attack. The Stony Brook recruit, who had 11 points in the win against USC, ranks among the scoring leaders in the WPIAL, averaging nearly 16 points per game.
“Kate and Kenzie are really fun to watch,” Oldaker enthused. “They have been playing together for soooo long. It’s like they have a sixth sense for each other on the floor.”
The pair are two of only three seniors on the club. The other is Julia Rabeneck. The forward will attend Seton Hill University next fall.
Two underclasmen, however, helped Lebo finish off Peters, which will finish runner-up in the section.
Alyssa Hyland was also in double digits. The junior registered 17 points. Jamey Napoleon completed the scoring against the Indians. The sophomore supplied six points, all in the third quarter where Lebo outscored the Indians, 21-13.
Makenna Marissa paced Peters. The sophomore fired in 18 points, two above her season average. Lillian Young followed with nine markers while Isabella Mills finished with five.
Before dispatching USC, the Lebo ladies defeated Altoona, 70-54, in a non-league contest this past weekend. Bushee (21), Sramac (19) and Napoleon (16) all finished in double digits.
While the Lebo ladies finished section action with the win against USC, Peters hosts Canon-McMillan in its section finale at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 9. The Indians will prep further for the WPIAL playoffs when they visit top-ranked North Allegheny on Feb. 10 and host defending district champion Norwin Feb. 13, which is the final regular-season playing date.
The WPIAL steering committee will announce playoff pairings at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 14. While NA is expected to earn the No. 1 seed in 6A, Pine-Richland, Penn Hills, the Lebo ladies and Peters girls anticipate being among the other top five teams in the tournament.
Despite its third-place showing in the section, Bethel Park should not be ruled out of the running for the title. The Hawks are considered a sleeper since Justina Mascaro has returned to the line-up after recovering from surgery for a torn ligament in her knee. The senior is a 1,000-point scorer. She was instrumental in BP’s upset of Mt. Lebanon on Jan. 31. On Feb. 6, she tossed in 23 points in the Lady Hawks’ overtime win, 62-54, against Baldwin.
Becca Rodrigues also tapped into the 20s, finishing with two dozen points. She buried six, 3-point field goals.
Previously, Bethel Park topped Canon-McMillan, 50-39. Maria Cerro chipped in 19 points, nine from the charity stripe. Kamryn Lach followed with 14 markers for the Lady Hawks.
Bethel Park finished section play with a 6-4 slate. The Hawks, who are 14-6 overall, close out the regular season visiting West Mifflin on Feb. 9 and hosting Montour on Feb. 13.
Though the Lady Macs’ comeback fell short against Bethel-they outscored the Hawks, 16-7, in the final frame-they clinched the fourth and final playoff spot in the section. Heading into the Feb. 9 battle at Peters Township, C-M was 4-5 in the league.
Cheyenne Trest is C-M’s scoring leader with a 15-point average. She managed 16 points in the loss to Bethel. Izzy Allen followed with 12 tallies. The pair managed 16 and 22 points respectively in a 68-49 loss to Norwin.
Canon-Mac closes out the regular season facing South Fayette on Feb. 13. The Lady Lions enter the playoffs as one of the top three teams in Class 5-A. They won the Section 1 banner. However, after rolling up nine straight wins in the league, the Lions stumbled Feb. 6 at home, falling to rival Chartiers Valley, 50-49. South Fayette had won 26 section games in a row before the loss to CV.
Abbey Collins clinched the victory with a free throw with 21.5 seconds left in the game. Collins’ foul shot capped a 6-0 run that closed a 49-44 deficit.
For the Colts, who finished 8-2 and runner-up to the Lions in the league, Lauren Wagner and Megan McConnell led the attack as each pitched in 16 points apiece.
Sam Kosmacki led the Lions with 13 markers.
Before their showdown, Chartiers Valley dispatched Moon, 69-29, while South Fayette downed West Allegheny, 56-50.
McConnell led the Colts with 14 points while Kosmacki was tops for the Lions with 18.
Previously, South Fayette dispatched Bishop Canevin, 40-33, in a non-section contest. Maddie Gutierrez led the Lions with 11 points while Gillan Gustine tossed in 12 for the Crusaders.
The Lions, who are 15-4 overall, and the Lady Crusaders were both WPIAL champions in different divisions last season.
The Crusaders rule Section 3-A with an undefeated slate. They dispatched Apollo-Ridge, 68-21, on Feb. 6 to improve to 11-0 in the division and 15-5 overall. Brionna Allen led Canevin with 26 tallies.
Meanwhile, Seton-La Salle looks to recover from a 66-47 loss to Shady Side Academy when the Rebels host Avonworth at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 9 in the Section 3-A finale. In the loss to SSA, Layni Ziegler fired in 17 for the Rebels, who are 5-6 in the section and 5-14 overall.
Keystone Oaks remained in command of Section 3-AAAA. The Golden Eagles improved to 13-0 in the division and 17-2 overall with a 63-61 win against Elizabeth-Forward and a 64-41 triumph against Belle Vernon.
Against the Warriors, Maleyah Agurs scored the decisive points when she nailed a 3-point field goal with 15 seconds to play. Agurs finished with 12 tallies. Keagan Brownlee led with 13 markers.
Against the Leopards, Gillian Piccolino fired in 22 points.
The Golden Eagles also dispatched Allderdice, 58-47, in a non-league contest. Piccolino again led KO with 24 points.
Chartiers-Houston (13-0, 19-2) clinched the Section 1-AA title with wins against Shenango, 58-11, and New Brighton, 68-23.
Against Shenango, Jala Walker and Alexa Williamson each scored 20 points. Walker also added seven assists.
Against New Brighton, Williamson scored 29 and Walker fired in 25. Jules Vulcano tacked on 10 points.