KANE, PA – It wouldn’t be a District 9 Class A bracket without the annual clash of the Elk County Catholic and Otto-Eldred girls’ basketball teams. Meeting for the fifth time in six years, the Lady Crusaders’ added another tally to the rivalry, ending the Lady Terrors’ D9 title dreams with a 50-38 win.
After holding a slim, one-point lead after the first quarter of play, O-E slowly but surely began falling behind. Led by Lena Polaski’s eight points, ECC started to surge by outscoring the Lady Terrors 15-9 just before the half. Returning to the court after the intermission, the Lady Crusaders then double-down, building a seven-point advantage following the third quarter before sealing the victory, as well as their spot in Super Saturday, with a 19-point fourth quarter.
Hitting three 3-pointers throughout the game, Jahden Smith led the Lady Terrors with 16 points in the loss. Rayel Hakes and Baylee Francis both ended with nine points while Lexi Prince recorded three points in the loss.
While out of contention for the D9 championship, O-E will now look to secure a different type of hardware in the State Tournament – the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association takes the top four teams from Class 2A. However, first they will fight for bronze in the third place match on Friday. There, they will see either DuBois Central Catholic or Clarion-Limestone at a time and place yet to be announced.
AT KANE
Elk County Catholic (50)
Polaski 7 1-2 15, Lanzel 3 2-2 11, Staffer 3 0-2 7, Weisner 1 4-8 6, Newton 1 4-6 6, Van Slander 2 0-0 5. Totals: 17 11-20 50
Otto-Eldred (38)
Smith 6 1-2 16, Hakes 3 2-2 9, Francis 2 5-11 9, Prince 1 0-0 3, Van Scoter 0 1-2 1. Totals: 12 9-17 38
Elk County Catholic 8 23 31 50
Otto-Eldred 9 18 24 38
Three-point goals: O-E (5) Smith 3, Prince, Hakes, ECC (5) Lanzel 3, Van Slander, Staffer; Total fouls: O-E 17, ECC 15; Fouled out: None.
Boy’s Basketball
Olean 45, Maryvale 44
CHEEKTOWAGA, NY – Completing their comeback in the final few minutes, the Huskies survived a road trip to the North, defeating the Flyers and advancing to the Section VI Class A2 semifinals.
Two Huskies reached double-digit scoring figures in the win, with Mykel Rivera leading the way with 13. Taylor Teachman ended with 10, followed by Adrian Bohdanowycz with nine and Joe Mest with 7.
Olean now faces East Aurora (13-8) in the semifinals as they pursuit a berth in the Sectional Championship. Their matchup with the Blue Devils will take place on Saturday at 6 p.m. at Buffalo State College.
AT CHEEKTOWAGA
Olean (45)
Rivera 3 6-6 13, Teachman 4 2-4 10, Bohdanowycz 3 3-6 9, Mest 3 0-0 7, Myers 2 0-0 4, Hogle 1 0-0 2. Totals: 16 11-16 45
Maryvale (44)
Dost 4 0-0 10, Harrison 4 0-0 9, Hayes 4 0-3 9, Moore 2 0-0 5, Parks 0 2-2 2. Totals: 18v 3-9 44
Olean 3 12 32 45
Maryvale 11 24 35 44
Three-point goals: OL (2) Mest, Rivera, MV (5) Dost 2, Harrison, Moore, Hayes; Total fouls: OL 14, MV 12; Fouled out: Hill (MV).
