HARRISBURG - Central Dauphin East outscored Mifflin County by 15 points in the fourth quarter, enough to climb out of a hole and gain a 57-48 victory in Commonwealth Division girls basketball Friday.
The Huskies were leading 44-38 before the game turned in favor of the Panthers, a tough ending, coach Kevin Kodish said.
"The girls played so hard and they played a great ballgame," he said. Central Dauphin East is a very good team. We came into their place and played a great basketball game but you have to finish."
And, he admitted, it was his team's mistakes that opened the door for the home team to move ahead.
"We traveled on three straight possessions and then missed an inside shot that we needed to convert," he said.
Olivia Halfpenny's 16 points led Mifflin County. Breanna Cline added 11 and Ashleigh Williams 10.
In the JV game, the Huskies came out on top, 34-28, led by Haley Predix's 10.
Mifflin County (9-9, 5-8) plays at State College today; the JV time has been moved to 2 p.m. with the varsity to follow.
Girls basketball
Williamsburg 48,
Belleville Mennonite 15
WILLIAMSBURG - The Belleville Mennonite girls basketball team fell to Williamsburg Friday night, 48-15.
Coach Ally Zook said the game was much better than the score denotes.
"Our defense was excellent and we took great shots," Zook said. "We just couldn't hit anything."
Mollie Morgan, Rachel Anders and Grace Peachey scored four, five and six points, respectively.
Zook was optimistic despite the loss and said her team played one of the best games of the year.
Belleville Mennonite (2-13) will be back in action Monday at Forbes Road.
Juniata Mennonite 37, Walnut Street Christian 18
JERSEY SHORE - The Juniata Mennonite girls basketball team picked up another win against Allegheny Christian Athletic Association foe Walnut Street Christian Friday, doubling up the Warriors 37-18.
Defense was the difference in this matchup, as neither team shot the lights out.
Juniata Mennonite coach Andy Meiser said his team's defense ultimately propelled them to victory.
"We extended our matchup zone and stayed active," Meiser said. "The girls are really buying in and playing hard on defense."
The Lions' offense was slowed as Walnut Street Christian targeted one of their biggest threats.
"They played a box-and-one against Valerie (Meiser), which forced us to become more balanced," Meiser said.
Molly Arnold helped in balancing the Lions' attack, chipping in 11 points and going 5-11 at the free throw line.
Juniata Mennonite (7-7, 5-5) returns to action Friday, hosting ACAA opponent Meadowbrook Christian.
Mount Union 59, Moshannon Valley 32
HOUTZDALE - Improvement was the mantra for the Mount Union girls, who picked up an Inter-County Conference basketball win over Moshannon Valley, 59-32, Friday.
"We still come out kind of slow but tonight we got progressively better," Mount Union coach Jenny Cunningham said.
The Trojans outscored the Damsels 18-2 in the third quarter to cement the win. Tynita White led the game with 21 points; Aliyah Gilbert-Walker added 14 and Ashley Foor 11 for Mount Union.
"They picked up the defense tonight. The passing was really good," Cunningham said. "They did a lot of things well."
The Trojans also won the JV game, 24-19.
Mount Union (8-9, 5-6) travels to Huntingdon Monday.
Boys basketball
Halifax 51, Juniata 38
MIFFLINTOWN - Juniata matched Tri-Valley League foe Halifax out of the gates Friday night but just didn't have enough, falling 51-38.
Following a strong first quarter, the Indians lost a key starter in the second and struggled to get back on track. The difference in the game proved to come from the foul line where Juniata shot 40 percent while the Wildcats netted 63 percent of its free chances.
"We didn't get to the line enough," Juniata coach Nate Geibel said. "They made as many as we attempted."
Scott Sneath led the charge for the Indians, dropping 17 while shooting 50 percent form the free-throw line.
"Sneath played well again tonight," Geibel said. "We just didn't have enough tonight to get the win."
Juniata (2-16) hosts Millersburg Tuesday.
Carson Long 57, Belleville Mennonite 50
BELLEVILLE - A difficult third quarter proved to be the downfall for Belleville Mennonite's boys Friday, as Carson Long reversed a halftime deficit on the way to a 57-50 basketball win.
"We played a good game, a consistent game," Belleville Mennonite coach Doug Snook said. "We played strong the whole game."
No one can argue consistency - the Trojans scored 11 in the opening frame and 13 in the other three, and had a four-point advantage at the break. But the Warriors put up 22 in the third, capitalizing on Belleville Mennonite miscues.
"There was a window in the third quarter, then on the offensive side we made some poor choices," Snook said.
Austin Byler's 14 points led the Trojans; Sammy Kauffman added 12.
Belleville Mennonite (3-12) travels to Forbes Road Monday.
Juniata Mennonite 60, Walnut Street Christian 36
JERSEY SHORE - Dennis Zimmerman pushed his team to stay out of the paint and the strategy worked - Juniata Mennonite scored 23 in the first quarter en route to a 60-36 win over Walnut Street Christian in an Allegheny Christian Athletic Association boys basketball game.
"We had to work on our outside shooting," the Lions coach said. "We actually played the first half shooting only from the outside."
The only problem, he said, was his team got sloppy after building a 23-2 lead in the first; Walnut Street actually outscored Juniata Mennonite in the third.
Jessie Watts scored 19 points in the win. Caleb Gehman had 19. Luke Showers squeaked into double figures with 10.
The Lions (9-6) host Watsontown Christian Friday.
Mount Union 82, Moshannon 33
MOUNT UNION - Moshannon Valley was overmatched against Mount Union Friday, as the Trojan boys triumphed by an 82-33 margin in their Inter-County Conference action.
The Trojans dominated the first half, pushing the game into the mercy rule shortly after the third quarter began.
Jamal Smith and Klayton Heffner each had 10 points in the first quarter alone; Smith was at 19 at the break. Mount Union scored the first 18 points of the game.
Smith ended with 26 and Andre Trice scored 16.
Mount Union won the JV game 55-23 with a 20-point effort by Heffner.
The Trojans (10-7, 5-5) travel to Tyrone today.
Junior high
Girls basketball
* 9th grade: Mifflin County 42, Altoona 23. High scorer, Jessa Wright 16 points. Mifflin County 33, Central Dauphin East 26. High scorer, Jessa Wright 16 points. The Huskies are 17-2.
Boys basketball
* 9th grade: Central Dauphin East 65, Mifflin County 42. High scorer, Peyton Reesman 10 points. The Huskies host DuBois today.
