Athletes hone skills over the holidays
Dax Ploskina eludes his defender as he drives to the hoop for a basket. He scored 10 points in Peters Township's 47-33 win against Washington during holiday tournament action. The Indians were 7-2 heading back into section action this past Friday against Bethel Park.
Eleanor Bailey/The Almanac
Andrew Casey (32) rises up to the basket to take a shot while Chris Pantelis (13) positions himself for a possible rebound.
The holiday break was anything but that for area athletes. While many visited lush locations like the Bahamas and Florida, they still labored at their craft. And, if results taught them anything, they discovered that 2019 should prove an even more successful year for their future endeavors and aspirations.
However triumphs will not come easy. There will be titanic struggles, particularly in boys’ basketball as Section 2 foes resume their battles.
“It will be a war,” predicted Joe David as his Mt. Lebanon Blue Devils looked at a plate filled with challenges against Canon-McMillan, Peters Township, Bethel Park and Upper St. Clair, not to mention McDowell, to start the new year.
The Blue Devils rung out the old year with an impressive third-place showing in the Great Eight Classic held in Jefferson City, and kicked off 2019 with a 8-2 record.
Sean Loughran and Jake Hoffman earned All-Tournament honors in the event played in Missouri. Loughran also won the 3-point shooting contest while Hayden Mitchell was awarded the academic award for highest grade-point average with a 4.8.
“First of all, it’s a great tournament. Fantastic,” David said. “It’s not all about basketball and they try to make a difference with the kids and have an impact on those young men and women.”
David noted how the event stressed not just basketball but making good decisions such as not texting while driving or participating in other errant teen behavior. In fact, his players took the pledge to practice safe driving habits.
Sixteen teams, eight boys and eight girls, participated in the tournament, which featured some highly-ranked teams from many states.
After beating Helias Catholic from Missouri, 69-44, Lebo lost to one of them. Harvest Prep, which is ranked fifth in all of Ohio and No. 1 in its classification, edged the Blue Devils, 73-71. Lebo won the consolation contest for third place with an 86-57 triumph over the host club.
Loughran exploded for 30 points in the opener and Hoffman followed with 20 tallies. Though Lebo had double-digit scoring from Loughran (21) and outscored Prep, 25-16, in the fourth quarter, they lost on a tip-in at the buzzer.
“It was a very competitive game and tournament,” David said. “We were happy to play those teams because they expose our weaknesses and make us better. We beat good teams and that helped us because our section is such a grind. It’s never easy.
“We are anxious to see how we compete against Canon-Mac, Bethel, Peters and of course, USC. They have all been ranked teams, too.”
Prior to the tournament, Lebo made a habit of knocking off the top teams. In mid-December, the Blue Devils toppled No. 1 Butler, 77-47. In the win against the Golden Tornado, Hoffman fired in 27 and Loughran followed with 23.
Lebo also downed Cantral Catholic, 77-47. In the win against the Vikings, Hoffman (25), Loughran (14) and Mike Palmer (10) all finished in double digits.
Lebo’s start and showing out of state could be an omen for things to come. David recalled that he first heard about the Missouri Tournament the same year his Blue Devils went to the state championship.
On March 26, 2011, the Blue Devils lost in overtime to Chester, 72-60, at the Bryce Jordan Center.
“The nice thing was the teams that we saw in Missouri were similar to the very good teams that are in the WPIAL. They had a mixture of height and speed. They were all well-coached teams with veterans and that is not too drastically different from what we are facing.”
In addition to Lebo’s starting five of Loughran, Hoffman, Mitchell, Palmer and Blaine Gartley, all significant contributors to last year’s club that reached the WPIAL Final Four, the Blue Devils received key contributions from Lucas Decaro, Andy Sapp and Tommy Peters in the tournament as well as quality performances from veterans such as Tim Walters and Will Ehland. David expects Danny Simboro, Joey King and Evan Jones to have an impact on this year’s team, too.
“Honestly when you look at the list, most of the guys are playing and they are all doing good things and getting better,” David said. “We are excited about them and we think people will like watching us play because we are energetic and aggressive. It’s going to be fun the next few weeks to see where we are and how good we become and how we rank in the section.”
USC one step ahead
Heading into section action on Jan. 4, Upper St. Clair ranked ahead of the Blue Devils. The Panthers were undefeated at 10-0 after dominating action in the Atlantis Beach Bash played at Nassau and in the Peters Township Round-Robin Tournament. USC opened section action with a thrilling win over Peters Township, 86-81, on Dec. 14.
The Panthers host the Blue Devils on Jan. 15 but not before they battle Canon-Mac on Jan. 8 and visit Bethel Park on Jan. 11.
Tanner Gensler has been USC’s go-to guy.
He tossed in 25 points in an 81-51 win against Washington and followed with 23 tallies in a 69-52 triumph against South Fayette in the PT post-holiday event.
While he also scored in double digits in each of the games in the Bahamas, Gensler set a school record when he tossed in 42 markers in the come-back-win against Peters. In the win, USC overcame a 12-point deficit to tie the contest on a buzzer-beater by Chris Pantelis and force overtime.
In the Bahamas, USC swept Doris Johnson, 73-62, St. Francis of Ontario, 91-42, and Erie Cathedral Prep, 66-59.
In the opener, Josh Russell led the Panthers in scoring with 23 points. The Panthers had four other players reach double figures including: Gensler (19), Pantelis (12), and Luke Gensler (10). High scorers against St. Francis were: Andrew Casey 18, Gensler 14, Pantelis 13, and Russell 13. Gensler (18), Pantelis (12), Casey (12) and Ben Sandusky (10) led the way in the championship game.
In the PT Tournament against the Lions other top scorers were: Pantelis (14), Sandusky (12), and Casey (10). Sandusky (15), Luke Geisler (11), and Pantelis (13) were in double figures against the Little Prexies.
Other action
Both Bethel Park and Peters Township entered the new year sporting 7-2 records after feasting on holiday competition.
In their own tournament, the Indians defeated Washington, 47-33, and South Fayette, 63-44
The Indians also played in the KSA Disney Classic in Orlando. They beat Gonzaga from Newfoundland, 60-29; Salem from Massachusetts, 61-47; and Jackson Christian from Tennessee, 63-46.
Meanwhile, BP boys hosted their tournament with their girls’ squad and posting wins against Worthington Kilbourne from Ohio, 80-60, and McDowell, 74-67.
Alex Mullen fired in 31 points in the first fray and 13 in the other. Ryan Meis led the way with 32 points against McDowell. He had 10 tallies against the Ohio squad. Anthony Chiccutt scored in double digits (12 and 13) in each victory.
On the girls’ side, the Lady Hawks defeated South Fayette, 69-52, to capture their championship.
Olivia Westphal led the way with 29 tallies. She buried four, 3-pointers and scored 13 of her team’s 16 markers in a key third quarter.
Maria Cerro and Maddie Dziezgowski followed with13 and 12 tallies.
For the Lions, Skyler Aitken managed 13 points.
BP opened tournament play with a 60-31 win against Seton LaSalle, which lost to Ambridge, 63-39, in the consolation contest, despite 13 tallies from Chloe Listitian.
In the Hawks’ win against the Rebels, Lauren Mullen (15), Dziezgowski (11) and Westphal (11) led the way.
BP was 8-0 heading into its pivotal section match this past Thursday against PT. They opened league action with wins against USC and Lebo. In the 44-33 triumph against the Blue Devils, Dziezgowski pumped in 20 points and Maria Cerro added 13.
The holiday season was equally busy and filled with glitter for local wrestlers.
At the Powerade Tournament held in Canonsburg, Mt. Lebanon put three grapplers on the podium.
Luke Stout took third in the 182-pound weight class when he scored a major decision, 14-3, against Belle Vernon’s Scott Joli in the consolation match. Stout lost to eventual champion, Carter Starocci from Erie Cathedral Prep, 7-3, in the semifinals.
Nathan Hoagland finished fifth at heavyweight while Mac Stout secured seventh place at 160.
Jake Slinger continued his outstanding senior season by capping his December with a championship in the Southmoreland Tournament.
The Upper St. Clair heavyweight began the season with a win at the Chartiers-Houston Tournament then posted his 100th career victory during the Moon Duals. He is 15-0 with 14 falls this season.
The George Mason recruit is on track to become the all-time winningest wrestler at USC. He had a 114-25 career record heading into a dual match with Mt. Lebanon on Jan. 4.
Mac McGuire (132-11) holds the record followed by Eli Grape (131-27), who wrestles at Lehigh University.
USC finished sixth as a team at Southmoreland. Other Panthers to place included: Harvey Rauch, Grant Walnoha and Quinn Murray (all third) as well as Sean Martin, who finished fifth.
Luke Montgomery captured first place at the Southmoreland Tournament. He decisioned Hunter Tremain from North Star, 5-0, to win the 195-pound weight class.
BP finished 11th as a team thanks also to fifth-place finishes from Parker Loera and Riley O’Mara at 132 and 182 respectively.