×

Greenwood shuts down Paul in 49-19 blowout over Halifax

MILLERSTOWN–If the old axiom defense wins championships is true, the Greenwood girls’ basketball team is well positioned to win one.

Greenwood played stifling defense last night resulting in a 49-19 District 3 quarterfinal victory over Halifax.

“We were a little upset with ourselves, not finishing business up last week so that kind of played into it a little bit,” said Greenwood coach Jeff Deitz referring to his squad’s 49-39 loss to Susquenita in the TVL Championship game. “(Our girls) were hungry tonight, they know what is at stake and they know where this road leads. I think it showed specifically in the way we defended. I thought we did a good job with the looks we gave. We were tuned in defensively.”

The defense held the TVL leading scorer Montana Paul, who averaged 21.1 points per game in league play, to 13 on the night.

“Alli Crockett deserves a lot of credit (for taking on Paul),” Deitz said. “She relishes and wants that. She takes it personal; (Crockett) would off and say I shouldn’t have given up that shot. So, even when things were going in our favor, she was still out there grinding.”

Crockett totaled four points, four rebounds and a steal.

“We felt confident coming in, we did the things we needed to do in practice, but we didn’t bring it here and do it tonight,” Halifax coach Kevin Steffen said. “They didn’t do anything different than what we already knew, but bottom line, we did not execute. Coming in we were confident, but once we stepped on the court, that went away.”

On the other side, Kenedy Stroup had confidence in spades. The senior poured in 23 points while collecting five rebounds and three steals.

Stroup rewarded her coach’s faith when he left her on the floor despite picking up two first-quarter fouls by not getting another one the rest of the way.

“If Stroup was a player who put herself in that position a bunch of times, then I would have worried about her, but she is seldom in foul trouble,” Deitz explained. “She is my senior point guard, I have had her for four years and I trust her to make the right decisions.”

Ella Brummer got the home crowd into it right from the start by nailing a 3-pointer on the game’s opening possession. It was her only basket, but she added three boards, a pair of steals and a block.

Then Alli Walton completed an old-fashioned 3-point play after being fouled on a put-back bucket to stretch the lead to 6-0. Walton was a force inside, posting seven points, 12 boards, four blocks and two steals.

Greenwood built a 16-5 by the end of the quarter as Stroup nailed a pair of 3-pointers. Stroup and Abby Taylor each tallied six in the second quarter, and Greenwood’s advantage ballooned to 30-10 by the break. Taylor contributed eight points, three steals, and a pair of boards.

The visitors continued to struggle in the third. A basket from Samantha Manion (five points) was all they could muster and Greenwood took a 39-12 lead to the final frame.

Overall, Greenwood shot 17-of-41 from the floor, while Halifax went 7-of-43. Greenwood also won the boards 37-30. Mercedees McNaughton helped that cause off the bench by collecting six boards.

Lauren Schumber had a strong game in defeat, leading her team in rebounds, steals, and blocks with eight, three and two, respectively.

With the win, Greenwood clinches a spot in the PIAA Tournament, and will travel to Christian School of York in the District 3 Class A semifinals on Tuesday at 7 p.m.

Greenwood 49, Halifax 19

HALIFAX

Montana Paul 5 1-2 13, Samantha Manion 2 1-2 5, Lauren Schumber 0 1-2 1, Kearstin Manion 0 0-2 0. Totals 7 3-8 19.

3 point goals: Montana Paul 2.

Did not score: Alyza Steinhauer, Caitlynn Wells, Hannah Roland.

GREENWOOD

Kenedy Stroup 8 4-10 23, Alli Walton 3 1-3 7, Ella Brummer 1 0-0 3, Abigail Taylor 4 0-0 8, Allison Crockett 1 2-2 4, Sarah Pennay 0 2-2 2, Jordan Stroup 0 1-2 1, Nyssa Yoder 0 1-3 1.Totals 17 11-22 49.

3 point goals: Kenedy Stroup 3, Ella Brummer.

Did not score: Mercedees McNaughton, Emily Brinser, Ella Seiber.

Score by Quarters:

Greenwood 16-14-9-10– 49

Halifax 5-5-2-7 –19

NEWSLETTER

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper? *
   

COMMENTS

[vivafbcomment]

Starting at $3.92/week.

Subscribe Today