Lady Scots finish strong for 45-39 win at Tyrone
The last basketball game the Southmoreland girls played was a disappointing loss to Knoch in the WPIAL Class AAAA semifinals.
The Lady Scots rebounded from the disheartening loss — and a long bus ride — Tuesday night by opening the PIAA Class AAAA basketball playoffs with a hard-fought 45-39 road victory at Tyrone.
Southmoreland (19-4) advances to the second round Saturday afternoon against Blackhawk, the recently crowned WPIAL champions. The Lady Cougars (25-0) defeated Eastern York, 54-48.
The Lady Scots’ victory was the second in the state playoffs in the program’s history.
The Lady Scots finished strong in the fourth quarter, rallying from a 32-31 deficit by outscoring the Golden Eagles in the final eight minutes, 14-7.
“It was a tight one down to the end. The girls really buckled down,” said Southmoreland coach Amber Cernuto. “We were getting the loose balls at the end of the game.”
Southmoreland really buckled down from the foul line, converting 7-of-9 attempts in the final four minutes. The Lady Scots made 13-of-15 for the game, compared to Tyrone’s 15-of-18.
“Making our free throws helped us pull it out,” said Cernuto. “They had to foul in the last two minutes.”
Cernuto felt one of the defining moments of the game from her squad came with a big field goal from a reserve player.
“Reagan Carson hit a 3-pointer for us. That sparked us for the last three minutes,” said Cernuto.
Tyrone (22-2) cut the deficit to 35-34 with around 4陆 minutes remaining and the District 6 champions kept the margin within three points until the final moments.
The game was close throughout with Tyrone leading 8-6 after the first quarter and Southmoreland rallying for a 19-17 halftime lead.
The Lady Scots tied the game at 25-25 with around three minutes left in the third quarter, but Tyrone held the advantage at the end of the quarter, 32-31.
“We kept our tempo and were patient on offense,” said Cernuto. “They packed it in on us like a lot of teams have done this season.
“They were comparable to Elizabeth Forward. They had some shooters and a big girl that could take the ball to the hoop.”
Olivia Cernuto paced Southmoreland with 18 points and 12 rebounds. Gracie Spadaro contributed 15 points and seven rebounds. Jaida Parker led Tyrone with a game-high 21 points.
Though the recovery time was longer than expected, Amber Cernuto said her squad was able to shake off the loss to Knoch and handled the long bus ride well.
“(The loss) lingered longer than 24 hours. The game really hit them hard,” said Amber Cernuto. “But, they came back with energy. They didn’t want the season to end today.
“They were relaxed on the trip and able to bond as a team. They had me worried they might have bus lag, but they warmed up and were ready.”
Bedford 47, Elizabeth Forward 39 — The home team pulled away in the third quarter and then held off a late rally from the Lady Warriors for an opening-round victory in the PIAA Class AAAA playoffs.
Bedford (22-5) plays Villa Maria Saturday in the second round. Villa Maria (22-2) defeated Quaker Valley, 60-21.
Bedford led 14-10 after the first quarter, but Elizabeth Forward (19-6) rallied for a 17-16 halftime lead.
Bedford outscored the visitors in the third quarter, 18-8, for a 34-25 lead. Elizabeth Forward held a slight 14-13 advantage in the final eight minutes.
Bailie Brinson led the Lady Warriors with 14 points.
Bedford’s Natalie Lippencott (16), Sydney Taracatac (15), and Josie Shuke (10) combined for 41 points.
Elk County Catholic 52, Monessen 23 — The Lady Greyhounds were outscored 30-7 in the middle two quarters for an opening round loss in the PIAA Class A basketball playoffs.
Elk County Catholic (25-3) advances to the second round Saturday against Union. The Lady Scots (21-2) downed Farrell, 42-33.
Elk County Catholic held slim 10-8 lead after the first quarter, but held Monessen (17-7) to three points in the second quarter and four in the third quarter for a 50-15 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
Monessen’s Mercedes Majors scored 10 points. Elk County Catholic’s Sydney Alexander finished with a game-high 24 points.