Mirror photo by Patrick Waksmunski CNB Bank's Lauren Wagner is pressured by Dom's Auto's Chloe Hammond (left) and Lily Fiscus.

HOLLIDAYSBURG — Limiting shot opportunities on the defensive end, and getting your own chances at a rebound goes a long way on the basketball court.

CNB Bank followed that recipe to perfection on Thursday night as it jumped out to a 20-point lead at the half and never looked back as the team grabbed the Blair Regional YMCA Alumni Division championship over Dave’s Auto, 57-43.

CNB’s Darby Lee noted that the team did switch things up for the title game compared to the team’s regular-season meetings.

“Nine times out of 10 we start off in a 3-2 or a 2-3,” she said. “Already having played them this year and knowing where they hurt us, and it was that penetration and those outside shots. We just went man straight from the get-go and it played to our advantage.

“Everybody’s good at recognizing those screens and either hedging or getting back to their guy on defense and that really helped.”

Dave’s Auto was held without a field goal for about 12 minutes, thanks to CNB’s smothering defense and shots not falling for much of the first half.

Jackie Lantzy helped spark some of that success on the boards for CNB as she nailed a putback with around 8:30 minutes to play in the opening stanza.

Laterin the game, in the final four minutes, CNB added points off a rebound after Rachel Gehret – scoring on two of those opportunities – and Darby Lee scored three times which helped the winners build the lead to 36-16 at the half.

“They definitely play hard, they play tough defense,” Dave’s Auto’s Melana Eyer said. “A lot of girls on their team have a lot of experience. They gave us a run for our money and they ended up on top.”

Gehret finished with 10 points. Megan Smith tied for the scoring lead as she converted three 3-pointers on her way to scoring 17.

CNB didn’t let up as Lee knocked down a turnaround jumper a little under two minutes left in the half.

“The man (defense) really helped and we took away a lot of those penetrations and those second chance shots,” Lee said. “As soon as we got the rebound, our goal was to either push the ball, make them run, make them tired, and we either scored on that first transition or we were able to get a second bucket. That also really helped us out.”

Eyer helped Dave’s Auto cut into the deficit after drawing the and-1 with under five minutes to play. She added three 3s of her own to tie for the scoring lead with 17.

Kaack ended the rally with a shot from downtown with a little over two minutes to play.

“Even growing up when I was in high school (at Altoona), half of these girls I played against, they were on the alumni teams,” Lee said. “There’s a very wide range of ages on this team and I love that. Now, I get a chance to play on the team with them. Everybody’s so close, there’s so much chemistry. This team is so close and it’s one big family.”

DAVE’S AUTO (43): Eyer 5 4-5 17, Thomas 0 0-0 0, Mumau 3 3-4 9, Kirsch 2 0-0 4, Fiscus 1 1-2 3, Norton 0 0-0 0, Haralson 4 0-2 9, Hammond 0 0-0 0. Totals: 15 8-13 43.

CNB BANK (57): McDowell 2 1-1 5, Smith 7 0-0 17, Nardozza 0 0-0 0, Kaack 2 0-0 6, Lee 3 1-2 7, Hershey 2 0-0 5, Gehret 5 0-0 10, L. Wilt 1 0-0 3, C. Wilt 0 0-0 0, Lantzy 2 0-0 4, R. Hopsicker 0 0-0 0. M. Hopsicker 0 0-0 0. Totals: 24 2-3 57.

Halftime: CNB Bank, 36-21. 3-point field goals: Dave’s Auto 4 (Eyer 3, Haralson), CNB Bank 7 (Smith 3, Kaack 2, Hershey, L. Wilt)

Officials: George Figura, Jack McDougal, Denny Detwiler.