By Mark Nance / Sun-Gazette Correspondent St. John Neumann's Gigi Parlante and Shaniya Tutler are scheduled to play against Mountain View in the PIAA Class A quarterfinals tonight in Hazleton.
Three area teams will play in the state quarterfinals on Friday night, and two more teams will play Saturday afternoon. The St. John Neumann girls and Loyasock boys capped off the best finish by area basketball teams in the 2000s with five teams advancing to the state's Elite Eight.
Below is a review of today's match.
Women's A class
St. John Neumann (24-4) vs. Mountain View (22-4), Hazleton, 1 p.m.
Neumann on the road to Elite 8: Defeat Benton 51-28 in District 4. Lourdes, 44-33, Meadowbrook Christian, 44-27. At state, they defeated High Point Baptist 64-39 and Mount Calvary Christian 52-41.
Mr Newman said: The Knights advanced to the quarterfinals for the first time last season and have reached the quarterfinals for the second year in a row. Newman continued to make history this season, breaking the program's winning record and winning its first league, conference and district championships. Newman won 20 straight games and had a strong performance against Mount Calvary Christian, where the Chargers trailed by as many as four points before falling to 8-2. Gigi Parlante had her 20th double-double and Lizzie Weller had her second consecutive double-double. Sophie Reid had nine points and five steals. Shaniya Tatler had 14 points and six assists in the first-round win and held All-State guards Macy Reed and Kylie Devlin to a combined eight points in the district playoff win. Bre Nixon had five steals against High Point Baptist.
Mountain View to Elite 8: Defeat Pottsville Native 56-37 and Susquehanna 42-17 in District 2-11. At state, they defeated Lancaster County Christian 66-26 and Veritas Academy 44-31.
The Mountain View newspaper wrote: The Eagles made it to the Final Four last year, but lost to Lourdes to repeat the District 2 championship. Mountain View got off to a strong start against Veritas, building a double-digit lead in the first quarter, but was down to five points at halftime. Addison Kilmer, a 6-foot-1 sophomore center, is averaging 17.4 points per game and making a team-high 40 3-pointers. She had 25 points in the first round state playoff win and 10 points against Veritas. Mountain View made 12 3-pointers against Lancaster County Christian, with Aubrey Sanders taking five of them for 17 points. Claire Goetz is averaging 7.2 points per game and making 38 3-pointers. Riley Kilmer scored 14 points and averaged 6.1 points against Lancaster County. Mountain View has won 12 straight games and 19 of its last 20 games.
Winning play: Either District 3 champion Linville Hill or District 3 No. 4 Greenwood.
Boys class AAA
mathematics, civics,
Science (19-10) vs.
Royal Sock (28-1)
Hazleton, 4 p.m.
Road to the MCS Elite 8: Defeat Constitution 55-47 in District 12. They lost to Imhotep 49-39 and Devon Prep 53-33. At state, they defeated Saucon Valley 67-47 and Columbia 63-60.
MCS Notes: Like Royersoc, MCS has a rich basketball tradition. As MCS closes its doors in June, the school is looking to end its history on a high note. Malik Myatt averages a team-high 11.5 points and is one of seven Mighty Elephants averaging at least 5.3 points per game, two of whom have transferred and played in the past year. I haven't been able to do it. Azeem Murphy (6-5) had a good performance against Columbia with 15 points and six rebounds, averaging 7.8 points and 5.6 rebounds per game. He has been particularly good at each state, recording 17 points and 17 rebounds in the season opener against Saucon Valley. Aiden Brown became the third player to average at least five rebounds per game and added 5.8 points. He scored 17 points in the first round victory. Murphy, Brown, Myatt and Alantay Dawson all scored in double figures against Columbia. Zion Robinson added 10 points against Saucon Valley.
Loyalsock's path to the Elite 8: Defeated Hughesville 67-44 in District 4; Warrior run 64-55, Troy 67-57. At state, they defeated Mid-Valley 77-57 and Notre Dame-Green Pond 62-56.
Royasoc said: This is the first time the Lancers have advanced to the state quarterfinals since 2021, but the sixth time since 2013. The 2021 team defeated MCS in the Eastern finals to win its first state championship. Loyalsock fought through Notre Dame's comebacks on Tuesday, answering each time they cut the deficit to one and two points in the fourth quarter. Isaiah Jennings hit a 3-pointer and Nate Bauman became a runner and hit two foul shots. Jennings also made a crucial 3-pointer with a minute left in the game, giving Loyalsock an eight-point lead. Bauman, Jalen Andrews and Gage Patterson are all 1,000 point scorers. Ethan Nagy scored a team-high 18 points against Notre Dame, Andrews rebounded from his second straight double-double and Tyler Gee played great defense throughout the playoffs. Ditto for Jennings, who did a great job against dynamic Notre Dame point guard Colin Boyle. The Lancers have won 25 straight games, and their 28 wins match the 2020 team for the most wins by a Loyalsock team in the 2000s.
Winning play: Either District 12 champion Devon Prep or District 11 champion Executive Education.
