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Peters Township beats Gateway to advance to WPIAL championship finals

By Eleanor Bailey almanac Sports Editor ebailey@thealmanac.Net 2 min read
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Jake Ziegler (15) jumps into the arms of head coach Joe Urmann after Peters Township defeated Gateway, 62-55, to advance to the WPIAL Class 5A boys' basketball championship game set for 9 p.m. Thursday, March 2 at the Petersen Events Center. The Indians last won a WPIAL title in 2009. Ziegler scored 15 points in the win.

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Brendan McCullough (2) and Jake Ziegler (15) celebrate with their teammates and fans after Peters Township's victory against Gateway qualified them for the WPIAL Class 5A boys' basketball championship game set for 9 p.m. Thursday, March 2 at the Petersen Events Center. The Indians last won a WPIAL title in 2009. In the win against the Gators, McCullough tossed in 11 points while Ziegler provided 15 markers.

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Peters Township head coach Joe Urmann (far left) and his basketball team along with the student body react to a free throw attempt in the waning seconds of a 62-55 victory over Gateway. The win put the Indians in the WPIAL Class 5A final set for 9 p.m. March 2 at the Petersen Events Center.

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Brendan McCullough (2) makes his move against Tra Williams during Peters Township's 62-55 win against Gateway. McCullough tossed in 11 points, five in a pivotal third quarter as the Indians vaulted to a 45-41 lead after being deadlocked at 28 at intermission.

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Jack Dunbar (45) puts up a jumpshot during Peters Township's 62-55 victory against Gateway in the WPIAL Class 5A boys' semifinal basketball game. Dunbar fired in 29 points in the victory.

Peters Township last won a WPIAL championship in boys’ basketball in 2009. At the time, Joe Urmann was on the losing end, coaching as an assistant at Mt. Lebanon.

Urmann now coaches the Indians and thanks to a victory against Gateway on Feb. 25, ironically, in the Lebo gymnasium, he gets a chance to again compete for a title.

The Urnmann-led Indians defeated the Gators, 62-55, to advance to the Class 5A finals set for 9 p.m. March 2 at the Petersen Events Center on the University of Pittsburgh campus.

The Indians used a huge, third-quarter surge to separate themselves from the Gators. The teams were deadlocked, 15-15, after one frame and 28-28 at halftime.

Behind the point-guard play of Brendan McCullough, Peters Township opened up a 49-41 lead by the end of the third quarter. McCullough scored five of his 11 points and dished up several assists, particularly to Jake Ziegler, during the breakaway frame. Ziegler finished with 15 tallies, 10 coming in the eight-minute span.

Jack Dunbar was Mr. Consistent, scoring at will from beyond the arc as well as in the paint. He buried five, 3-pointers, four in the first half, on his way to a game-high 29 points. The performance was punctuated by a game-ending dunk.

Earlier, with 3:17 to play, Dunbar cashed in a 3-pointer that afforded PT a 54-50 edge. He and McCullough also cashed in a critical free throws in the final frame.

With the win, PT improved to 21-3 overall. The Indians will face Penn Hills (20-3) in the finals. The match-up will be between the No. 1 and the No. 2 seed.

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