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By Michael Boytim
mboytim@altoonamirror.com
HOLLIDAYSBURG -- The Blair Regional YMCA summer league can be an opportunity for young players to get their first looks against varsity action, but the last couple months have given the opportunity to Williamsburg's Megan Palmer to get reacquainted with it.
Palmer tore her ACL in the final game of her sophomore year at Williamsburg in a District 6 Class 1A semifinal game at Bishop Guilfoyle Catholic and did not play for the Lady Pirates last season.
She's back on the court with Williamsburg this summer prior to her senior year and made a big difference in Tuesday night's high school girls division semifinal game against State College when she scored the game-tying basket on a putback at the buzzer before LeAnna Royer took over the overtime period to lead the Lady Pirates to a 47-41 triumph.
"(Palmer is) a gutsy player and always has been," Williamsburg coach Amy Hileman said. "You definitely want it in her hands at the end of the game, because she has a nose for the ball and will take it to the hoop strong. If she doesn't get it in, she'll get fouled. She was a big difference at the end."
Williamsburg will meet Beard Legal Group, Altoona's entry, in the championship game at the Blair Regional YMCA at 5:30 on Thursday. Altoona topped McLanahan Corporation, Hollidaysburg's entry, 43-36, in Tuesday's first semifinal.
After Palmer's putback saved Williamsburg, Royer took advantage of a second opportunity in the extra three minutes. She took the opening tip for a score, drilled a 3-pointer and made three free throws to account for all eight Williamsburg points in overtime.
"LeAnna has been playing very consistently," Hileman said. "When we need her to step up, she's stepped up."
Williamsburg has lost to the eventual PIAA champion to end its season in each of the last three years (Bishop Guilfoyle, Northumberland Christian, Union). The Lady Pirates are working in several new players as star Ayla Hileman recovers from her own knee injury.
Royer finished with a game-high 18 points, freshman Levada Gorsuch scored 11 points and Anastasia Ranalli added 10 points. Palmer scored eight.
With rival Bellwood-Antis out of the Inter-County Conference, Williamsburg is taking the opportunity to play up in competition this summer not knowing the level of competition it will see during the regular season.
"That's why we like to participate in the Y summer league," Hileman said. "You get the best high school teams you are playing against and really great alumni teams. If you can get through that in the summer league, you're going to go into the regular season feeling pretty confident."
The next challenge will be Beard Legal Group, which won a tightly-contested game over McLanahan's that was a 31-30 game with about five minutes to play.
"We were up one, Melana (Eyer) missed a shot, and instead of worrying about what she did on the offensive end, she sprinted back and ended up getting a steal with a girl behind her," Altoona coach Chris Fleegle said. "That would have given them the lead, and that was a big momentum change. That's maturity of players."
Altoona lost just one regular season game and went unbeaten in its division.
"They have had a heck of a summer, and there's a confidence with them," Fleegle said. "The last three years, if Hollidaysburg would have cut that lead on us down, we have typically handed the game over. Tonight, we extended the lead, which shows our maturity level. We took good shots at the end, got stops when we needed them, and that was really important for the coaching staff to see."
Eyer scored a game-high 13 points, and Zaelinh Nguyen-Moore added 11 points.
Hollidaysburg got nine points each from Bella Vent and Makenna Weimert.
"They are resilient," Hollidaysburg coach Deanna Jubeck said. "We lost pretty handily to them in the regular season of this YMCA league, so to come back and lose by single digits shows a lot of guts for these kids to come out here and do what they did all summer long."
McLanahan's went 11-5 in the regular season this summer.
"There's a lot of potential on this team," Jubeck said. "Our gym has been closed, and our kids have been out working on their own. It lets us know the future is bright for Hollidaysburg."
BEARD LEGAL GROUP (ALTOONA) (43): M. Eyer 4 3-4 13, Hollobaugh 0 0-0 0, Nguyen-Moore 5 0-0 11, Krull 2 3-3 7, Wilt 1 5-6 7, L. Eyer 2 0-0 5. Totals -- 14 11-13 43.
McLANAHAN'S (HOLLIDAYSBURG) (36): Weimert 2 5-8 9, Sidney 1 0-2 2, Shoemaker 1 0-0 2, DiPangrazio 1 0-0 3, L. Stevenson 3 0-0 7, Vent 4 1-2 9, Padamonsky 2 0-0 4. Totals -- 14 6-12 36.
SCORE BY HALVES
Beard Legal Group 22 21 -- 43
McLanahan's 18 18 -- 36
3-point goals: Beard Legal Group 4 (M. Eyer 2, L. Eyer, Nguyen-Moore); McLanahan's 2 (DiPangrazio, L. Stevenson).
STATE COLLEGE (41): Hawbaker 0 2-6 2, Bechtel 1 0-0 2, Tate 1 0-0 2, Mikesic 3 0-0 6, Risha 2 6-6 10, Donnell 3 0-0 7, Whikhurst 4 3-3 12. Totals -- 14 11-15 41.
WILLIAMSBURG (47): L. Royer 6 3-5 18, Ranalli 5 0-2 10, Gorsuch 3 5-5 11, Palmer 4 0-0 8, R. Prough 0 0-0 0, Carper 0 0-0 0, A. Colbert 0 0-0 0. Totals -- 18 8-12 47.
SCORE BY HALVES
State College 17 22 2 -- 41
Williamsburg 20 19 8 -- 47
3-point goals: State College 2 (Donnell, Whikhurst); Williamsburg 2 (L. Royer 2).
Officials: Craig Andros, Bill Pfeffer, Dan Amrhein.