×

Big guys inside help BG triumph

Mirror photo by Michael Boytim BG’s Michael Woolridge (30) and Westmont Hilltop’s Tanner Civis go up on the opening tipoff.

JOHNSTOWN — Entering Tuesday’s Laurel Highlands Athletic Conference matchup, Bishop Guilfoyle Catholic was the top seed in the District 6 Class 3A rankings, and Westmont Hilltop was third, so there’s a decent chance the teams will see each other again.

The Hilltoppers will likely spend some of that time between games trying to figure out how to grow a few inches.

The Marauders used the length of starters Michael Woolridge, Cameron Khoza and Alex Wood to stifle Westmont Hilltop’s offense in a 46-32 victory.

Tanner Civis, one of the Hilltoppers key players inside, finished with just two points and three rebounds.

“Tanner is one of the better post players in the area,” Westmont Hilltop coach Dave Roman said. “But you have 6 foot 9 inches on the ball, 6-7 on one side and 6-5 on the other, that makes it difficult. They take up a lot of passing lanes. That matchup zone is tough with their length. They are well coached and don’t leave many things uncovered. You have to be able to knock down shots when you get an opportunity, and we didn’t do that enough.”

The zone is a new look for Bishop Guilfoyle and especially under Drenning.

“(Civis) is very tough,” Drenning said. “Anyone that knows me knows I have played man defense 98 percent of the possessions of my career, but we started playing this defense, because it keeps our length closer to the basket. Defensively, Mike is doing a great job making guys make tough shots around him and getting rebounds.”

Woolridge finished with just four points but had a game-high 10 rebounds and changed almost every Westmont Hilltop shot that went up in the paint.

“He’s really come a long way,” Drenning said. “When Luke (Ruggery) was out with a back injury, (Woolridge) started seven games for us as a sophomore. What set him back last year was that he got mono right before the season. He had gained weight and gotten stronger and then lost it when he got mono. That set him back, but then he had a really good offseason this year. You can’t teach his length, and with a lot of playing time, he’s been figuring some things out, and he’s becoming a great presence around the basket. He’s doing a good job sliding his feet and using his length and picking his spots where he’s trying to block shots while being terrific on the boards.”

Westmont Hilltop, which dropped all the way to No. 6 in the District 6 Class 3A rankings with the loss, actually held a 7-6 lead after one quarter but was outscored 13-2 in the second quarter when BG’s defense frustrated the Hilltoppers into settling for 3-point attempts rather than getting the ball into Civis and Alex Ray.

“We came off a really nice win last night (at Bedford) where we didn’t have Cam (Khoza) in a pretty good atmosphere,” Drenning said. “It’s a long bus ride over here to Westmont after playing last night, and I thought the guys didn’t have their usual energy. Give credit to Westmont, because they played well, but I thought our defense kept us in the game until our offense got going.”

Wood and Khoza also provided a spark offensively, combining for five 3-pointers and 24 points. Bishop Guilfoyle’s Patrick Haigh scored a game-high 16 points.

“We attacked it better in the second half,” Roman said. “But you can’t simulate that size in practice. Their big guys are skilled too. Khoza and Wood can knock down 3s too, so they present some problems on the offensive side, too. I’m proud of my guys. They battled, but we couldn’t get closer than seven.”

BISHOP GUILFOYLE (46): Haigh 4 6-6 16, Smith 0 0-1 0, Khoza 3 3-4 12, Wood 4 2-2 12, Mi. Woolridge 1 2-4 4, Ko. Kiesewetter 1 0-1 2, Yanoshak 0 0-0 0, Ma. Woolridge 0 0-0 0. Totals — 13 13-18 46.

WESTMONT HILLTOP (32): Weeks 3 0-1 8, Mosorjak 3 1-2 9, D. Craft 1 0-0 3, Civis 1 0-0 2, Ray 3 0-0 7, Crocco 0 1-4 1, R. Craft 1 0-0 2. Totals — 12 2-7 32.

SCORE BY QUARTERS

Bishop Guilfoyle 6 13 16 11 — 46

Westmont Hilltop 7 2 13 10 — 32

3-point goals: Bishop Guilfoyle 7 (Haigh 2, Wood 2, Khoza 3); Westmont Hilltop 5 (Weeks 2, Mosorjak 2, D. Craft).

Records: Bishop Guilfoyle (11-3); Westmont Hilltop (9-8).

Officials: Sam Zambanini, Tony Hutzell, Dan Amrhein.

JV: Bishop Guilfoyle, 48-30. High scorers–A.J. Kilmartin, BG, 18; Ryan Craft, WH, 12.

NEWSLETTER

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper? *
   

Starting at $4.39/week.

Subscribe Today