DAVIDSVILLE — Led by sophomore Mya Poznanski’s 24 points, and senior Chloe Shaulis who added 13 points along with seven steals of her own, the Conemaugh Township Indians used tough full-court defense to pave the way to a 59-34 victory over Northern Bedford in the opening round of the District 5 2A playoffs Friday night.

“We just pulled out a really big win,” Poznanski said. “Our team really pulled it together, and we have been really improving over the last several weeks.”

Conemaugh Township coach Lisa Byer praised her sophomore guard and her team defense.

“Mya Poznanski puts in the shots in practice, and she puts the work in outside of practice. She is dedicated, a good shooter, and her teammates really trust her. She is a threat every time she gets the ball,” she said. “As a team, offensively we started off strong, and our press led to some easy baskets on the other end. Our girls trusted each other and never left up from beginning to end.”

Both teams came out tentative in the playoff atmosphere and struggled to find the net. After Northern Bedford’s Mariah Hall hit a 3-pointer at the midpoint of the quarter, the Panthers had a 5-4 lead which would be their only one of the night.

Emilee Roman answered with a 3-pointer of her own, and then Poznanski added back-to-back baskets to end the quarter with Conemaugh Township holding a 11-5 lead.

In the second quarter, Poznanski took control, scoring eight points, but it was the Indians’ press that troubled the young Panthers. Conemaugh Township extended its lead to 26-13 at the half.

Midway through the third, back-to-back 3-pointers by Poznanski and Maeve Cullen extended the Indians lead to 39-15. After a Northern Bedford timeout, the Panthers, to their credit, didn’t go away. Three consecutive baskets, followed up by another 6-0 run to end the quarter, including a Makayla Hall shot at the buzzer, trimmed the Lady Indians’ lead to 43-27.

The fourth quarter started with a 12-0 run by the Lady Indians, and a strong defense kept Northern Bedford scoreless until just over two minutes was left in the game.

For the Lady Panthers (2-9), their season comes to an end after the first-round exit, but coach Jon Ewart wants his underclassman to learn from his seniors.

“Poznanski had a real nice game, and between her and Shaulis, they really hurt us,” he said. “We struggled with the full-court press, and I didn’t think we would. For my seniors they really worked hard and helped develop our younger players, and I am thankful I got to work with them.”

Hannah Swank and Mya Nanna each had seven rebounds to dominate the glass for the Lady Indians, and the only thing left was for the home crowd got to salute the teams only senior Chloe Shaulis one last time when she was removed from the game with 2:02 left in the game.

The senior reflected on her final game on her homecourt.

“It was a great night,” Shaulis said. “Playing with the team this year being the only senior has been special. My teammates have showed me a lot of support and I can’t wait to play again on Tuesday.”

Conemaugh Township (6-12) next plays at No. 1 seed Windber on Tuesday night. Byer is looking forward to a third meeting with the Ramblers.

“We have already seen them twice, but we will be ready for them. They play great man to man defense, but it’s playoffs and anything can happen.”

NORTHERN BEDFORD (59): Kochara 3 0-0 6, Makayla Hall 2 0-0 4, Kichman 2 0-0 4, Ritchey 2 1-4 5, Mariah Hall 2 0-0 5, Grimes 1 0-0 3, Higgins 1 0-0 2, Swanseen 1 0-0 2, McIlnay 0 2-4 2, Davis 0 1-3 1. Totals: 14 4-11-34

CONEMAUGH TOWNSHIP (59): Poznanski 10 3-6 24, Shaulis 5 2-4 13, Brenneman 4 0-0 8, Swank 3 0-1 6, Cullen 1 0-0 3, Roman 1 0-0 3, Nanna 1 0-0 2. Totals: 25 5-11 59

SCORE BY QUARTERS

Northern Bedford 5 8 14 7 — 34

Conemaugh Township . 11 15 17 16 — 59

3-point goals: Conemaugh Township 4 (Poznanski, Shaulis, Roman, Cullen); Northern Bedford 2 (Mh. Hall, Grimes)

Records: Northern Bedford (2-9), Conemaugh Township (6-12)