In fairness, we should have learned the first game of the season that the Cameron County girls basketball team had a flair for the dramatic.
In that game, sophomore Madi Guisto rebounded a miss by her sister, senior Susie Guisto and laid the ball up and in for a stunning 44-42 win at Bradford.
That game was part of a 7-1 start for the Lady Raiders — who then lost four in a row in January, before rebounding to finish 13-8.
Despite that, few, if any could have forseeen what was to come.
A triple-overtime thriller over A-C Valley in the first round of the D9 Class A playoffs on Tuesday was followed by a stunning upset of Port Allegany in the quarterfinal round Thursday, 45-38.
But the girls are only one half of an equation that has Emporium buzzing, with the boys team being the other half.
Their venture into the the district semifinals was perhaps expected, but met with equal enthusiasm.
Much like the girls win over Port Allegany Thursday at Austin, the Red Raiders student section, the ‘Cameron Crazies,’ stormed the court after a 41-30 win over DuBois Central Catholic Friday at St. Marys.
To understand the hysteria, you have to remember that it’s been since 2003 since the girls earned a trip to the district semifinals and the state playoff and even longer for the boys —1999.
Many of the students who stromed the court weren’t even born or were just babies at the time.
It’s a different feel from, say, Elk County Catholic, which has both of its boys and girls teams in the district semis as well.
Those programs are the model of stability in District 9, where district championship and state playoff apperances have become the norm.
That’s not quite the case in Cameron County, which finds itself in rare terrirtory.
Because of that, you can imagine the tremendous amount of pride in Empoirum, which hasn’t always been a beacon for positive news recently.
“It seems like whenever you read the paper lately, it’s been a lot of negative about Emporium,” said Cameron County boys coach Jon Songer after the win over DCC, a game that saw them hold the Cardinals to four points in the second half. “For both ourselves and the girls team to advance to this point, it’s a real source of pride for the community. I’m just so happy and so proud.”
Songer was just a kid himself that last time the boys advanced to this point, and now he is coaching a team that has visions of a potential district championship and perhaps a whole lot more.
Both teams have a busy week ahead, with the girls playing Clarion, the defending Class A champion, today at DuBois Middle School (6 p.m.).
They’ll most likely be considered the underdog again, but the way they are going, that’s not going to phase them.
The boys, meanwhile, have a date with Venango Catholic at 6 p.m. Wednsesdsay at Clarion University.
Should both teams win, they would play Saturday at Clarion for their respective district championships.
Could you imagine the party Emporium would have then?
