Wildcats come up short in final
By Chris Dougherty
MILTON — Friday night’s District 4 Class AAA final was one for the ages. It had everything you could ask for — physical play, big leads, comebacks and gutsy performances.
In the end it was Danville who came out on top of Mifflinburg, 61-58, in an unbelievable title game in The Jungle at Milton.
The way things began it looked as if Danville (18-6) would easily run away with the title. The Ironmen built a 19-12 lead after the first quarter and led 30-21 heading into the break, with Danville’s Ryan Reichard and Mifflinburg’s Zac Hoy traded buzzer-beating treys to end the first and second quarters, respectively.
After the third, Danville held a 40-28 advantage. Things looked to be on cruise control for those sporting orange and purple, as the Ironmen were red hot from everywhere on the court.
“It was a tale of shooting percentages,” Mifflinburg coach Eldon Hoy said. “We weren’t shooting well and they were.”
The tides turned, though, as the teams seemed to reverse roles. Danville went cold and Mifflinburg began to heat up.
The Wildcats (22-3) showed the true meaning of a team in the final three minutes of the game. Starting senior Kaleb Snyder fouled out, the deficit reached 17, and things were looking bleak.
But the team that relies so much on chemistry and unselfishness showed its true grit, putting together a 14-2 run to get within 53-49 with 90 seconds to play. Zac Hoy, Jim Sowers and Corey Murtha accounted for every basket during the stretch.
“They’ve been doing it all year, picking each other up,” Eldon Hoy said. “They’re emotional kids who never give up and really pulled it together after that deficit.”
Danville’s Reichard and Mikeal Owens-Wright would ruin their comback bid.
With Mifflinburg over the foul limit, Reichard hit 5 of 6 from the free-throw line in the final minute to keep Danville on top. His only miss left things at 58-55, giving the Wildcats another shot. However, Connor Pierce’s 3-point attempt was blocked with six seconds left, Owens-Wright sank his free throws and the game was over.
“We played excellent for three quarters,” Danville coach Dwayne Heeter said. “It’s pretty painful to watch a big lead slip away, but I think we did just enough down the stretch to hold on.”
The loss leaves Mifflinburg still in search of its first district title in the sport.
“When both teams play excellent basketball and one team hits more shots than the other, you’ve got to give them credit,” Eldon Hoy said. “It just wasn’t meant to be (for us) tonight.”
Reichard led all scorers with 26. Owens-Wright had 14 and Andrew Andreychik chipped in 12.
Zac Hoy led Mifflinburg with 23. Murtha added 14 and Sowers 13.
The season is not over for the Wildcats, though, as they qualified for the state tournament. They will play District 11 champion Pottsville at a time, date and place to be determined. Danville takes on District 11 runner-up Allentown Central Catholic at a time, date and place to be determined.
NOTES: Mifflinburg put up 30 points in the final frame…Snyder fouled out with 4:38 left…Travis Trutt fouled out with 1:17.
Posted: March 6th, 2010 under JV-Varsity.
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