You’re never quite sure what to expect at the beginning of a high school sports season.
Are the usual suspects going to continue their dominance? What newcomers will arrive on the scene and surprise the field? And how far will the local teams go in the District 9 and PIAA playoffs?
Well, we had a little bit of everything in the way of answers to those questions this basketball season.
Ridgway’s quarterfinal loss to Our Lady of the Sacred Heart on Saturday officially ended the hoops year that began in early December and stretched until nearly St. Patrick’s Day.
Plenty was accomplished — both on the individual and team level this year — and deserve some extra recognition now that we all gear up for the Spring sports season that begins (weather permitting) next week.
Some of the top highlights from the high school hardwood:
Chambers’ scoring surge: Coudersport senior guard Owen Chambers came into the season on pace to become one of the top scorers in District 9 history. But with a 30 point-per-game scoring clip and leading a Coudersport team that averaged over 80 points per game, Chambers soon began exceeding even the loftiest expectations. By February, he had already eclipsed the 2,000 point mark and had become the top scorer in both Coudersport and North Tier League history.
After losing to Ridgway in the D-9 Class AA title game in St. Marys, Chambers and his teammates realized that he would need at least two more cracks at breaking the all-time D-9 scoring record. So, with his season hanging by a thread, Chambers nailed a buzzer-beater in the opening round of the PIAA playoffs to guarantee that second game. And despite facing a talented Bishop Guilfoyle squad in what would prove to be his final HS game, Chambers dropped 30 points to finish with 2,269 career tallies and close his incredible Falcon career with the all-time scoring mark.
There are plenty of statistics that illustrate just how dominant Chambers was this past season, but perhaps none more so than this: he finished with 830 points in 27 games in 2018-19, which were 333 more than any other player from the District.
And with a handful of college scouts watching Chambers and his Falcons during their postseason run, his basketball career isn’t over quite yet.
Ridgway’s run: Last season was supposed to be ‘the one’ for the Elkers. But after posting a perfect regular season record, Ridgway lost in the AA championship game to Coudersport before getting bounced in the first round of the PIAA playoffs. After losing a couple of their key contributors from that team, it was fair to wonder if Tony Allegretto’s squad would take a step back this year.
But the top defensive team in D-9 had other ideas. The Elkers rolled to eight straight victories at the start of the year and finished it even stronger — handing Elk County Catholic its first loss in the AML title game and then enacting revenge on Coudersport in the District championship game. But the Elkers weren’t done there. Ridgway beat both Sewickley Academy and Wilmington in the first two rounds of the playoffs and were leading the heavily favored Our Lady of the Sacred Heart early in the third quarter of its quarterfinal matchup before getting overpowered down the stretch. The Elkers’ run was the furthest a D-9 boys team got this year, and one of the more impressive postseason runs in recent memory. With nearly its entire starting lineup lost to graduation, maybe next year is when Ridgway finally takes that step back. But for now, the Elkers can bask in the glory of winning District championships in both football and basketball in 2018-19.
Kane girls set school history: After losing to Coudersport in the AA championship game each of the past two seasons, the Lady Wolves set out to make sure history wouldn’t repeat itself in 2019. Despite losing a double-digit lead in the title game, Kane beat A-C Valley in overtime to secure its first D-9 championship in school history. The duo of Ella Marconi (who set school records in both points and rebounds) and Hannah Buhl (the school’s all-time leading 3-point scorer) proved lethal for the opposition as Kane won 20 straight games before falling to West Middlesex in the PIAA quarterfinals on Saturday. The Lady Wolves were able to win the district title as well as its first two playoff games without head coach Dave Kiehl — who suffered a health scare — which made their magical run all the more meaningful to the players and community.
PIAA problems: The unfortunate part of Ridgway’s run is that they probably went as deep in the playoffs as they could with how the postseason is set up.
Ridgway, which graduates less than 70 kids per year, faced a school located just outside of Pittsburgh that relies on a talented core of recruits from around the state.
It certainly wasn’t unique to just Ridgway or to this basketball season, rather it’s been a problem that has plagued local teams for years.
Ridgway coach Tony Allegretto summarized the uphill battle public schools face on his Twitter account.
“There are approximately 125 AA schools playing boys basketball. Of those there are 25 to 30 non-boundary schools. Over the last 3 seasons non-boundary schools are 12 for 12 in completing the final fours. #Dothemath. I’m sure it’s just better coaching.”
How challenging would it be for the PIAA to create separate playoff systems for boundary and non-boundary schools? Or even having schools like OLSH bump up a class or two to face fairer competition? It seems like a no-brainer to most of us around these parts, but then again this is the same organization that insists that installing shot clocks will cost too much money. One can only hope common sense prevails at some point soon on both issues.
Best of the rest: Despite losing in the D-9 title game and in its first round state game, the Johnsonburg Ramettes had a phenomenal season. J’burg’s championship game appearance was its first since the 1970s, and the Ramettes success was part of another strong all-around hoops season in Elk County.
–Although it has been almost routine down in St. Marys, another undefeated season by the Elk County Catholic Crusaders is certainly worthy of recognition. Although they had a couple of close calls, Aaron Straub and his Crusaders rolled through most of their opponents, finally ending their win streak at the hands of Ridgway in the AML title game before winning another D-9 Class A crown and an opening PIAA playoff game.
— It was another very competitive season on the girls side of the North Tier League. Coudersport’s Bob Tingley, who was named the NTL girls coach of the year, presided over a Lady Falcons team that won the league for a third straight season and went on a 14-game win streak after losing their first three games of the year. Kudos also go to first-year head coaches Shawn Gray (Otto-Eldred) and Jamie Evens (Port Allegany) who led their respective teams to 31 combined victories and trips to the D-9 playoffs in Class A and AA.
Finally, a note to our readers: thank you. It was certainly a busy few months for the Era’s depleted sports staff, and it was great to hear feedback and suggestions on what we can do better — or differently — throughout the winter months. Also, a ‘thank you’ to all of the area coaches that cooperated with us throughout the winter (even if some of you lost our phone number after losses). We appreciate all of your effort in making our jobs easier.
(Anthony Sambrotto, Bradford Era sports editor, can be reached at asambrotto@bradfordera.com).
