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By Michael Boytim
mboytim@altoonamirror.com
ALEXANDRIA -- Juniata Valley seniors Kendan Beck and Connor Robinson volunteered to have pies smashed into their faces to support Huntingdon County charity CHAMP (Creating Hope and Making Progress) following Monday's game against Huntingdon.
Some kids might have been hesitant to partake in such an act in front of a packed gym following a closely-contested, 71-64, loss to a rival school, but both Beck and Robinson were focused on the larger picture.
"It's helping out the community, and it's really good for a lot of people who need it," Robinson said. "It's a nice cause. There's nothing wrong with taking a pie to the face. I was just helping out the community the best I can, and it doesn't hurt me at all to get pied in the face, but it helps the community."
Beck also did his best to make sure the pie that hit his face didn't go to waste as he gathered up the crumbled pieces and sampled it as Robinson took his turn.
The large crowd in attendance bought chances to win more than 30 baskets from local businesses in addition to a raffle to have the chance to pie the pair of seniors in the face. Both teams also wore shirts celebrating CHAMP and its mission to help local families fighting cancer.
The organization is Central Pennsylvania's largest high school student-run philanthropy event and has helped nearly 100 families since being formed in 2015.
"CHAMP is a huge community fundraiser that helps people in this community," Juniata Valley coach Bill Lightner said. "It's nice to see all the communities in Huntingdon County come together. It was a big game tonight with crosstown rivals, but everyone came together to create a positive atmosphere and have a positive attitude. In the end, we get to help a lot of deserving people."
Huntingdon coach Jordan Fortson appreciated the opportunity to be part of the special night.
"This is a great cause, and this is the first time since I have been coaching that we have been part of the CHAMP game," Fortson said. "I thought it was a great atmosphere, and they did a super job. I'm really happy we could be part of it."
Juniata Valley held a one-point lead after one quarter and led by three in the third quarter before a 10-1 run by the Bearcats put Huntingdon in control late in the period.
Huntingdon's Conner Moore got the run started with a 3-pointer, one his his six on the night, and he finished with a team-high 25 points. Brock Bryson's size in the middle off the bench also made a difference for the Bearcats, who got 12 points and 10 rebounds.
"Brock is a big kid when he knows how to use his body," Fortson said. Juniata Valley fell to 14-5 despite a game-high 32 points from Chris Deihl. Deihl and Robinson have both already went over 1,000 points for their career, and fellow senior Charlie Mattas is closing in on the mark, giving the Green Hornets plenty of scoring options once the District 6 Class 1A playoffs begin.
"We just have to keep emphasizing team basketball," Lightner said. "Tonight we had flashes of it, but nothing was dropping. You're not going to win a lot of games shooting 40 percent or so from the foul line. We were 14-of-30 from the foul line, and we lost by seven."
The Hornets recently handed West Branch its first loss in the Inter-County Conference but have struggled when playing teams outside the ICC like Huntingdon and Bellwood-Antis. Juniata Valley will have to get through both Heritage Conference and Laurel Highlands Athletic Conference teams if it wants to bring home district gold.
"We're still going through one or two bumps and bruises here," Robinson said. "Once we get around that, I feel like we'll have everything locked in and secure and have all the confidence that we need and we'll be fine going into playoffs."
HUNTINGDON (71): Foster 3 3-4 11, Boyer 3 2-4 8, Moore 8 3-4 25, Alexander 2 1-2 5, Guisler 3 0-0 6, Dell 0 2-2 2, Bryson 5 2-5 12, Rutter 0 0-0 0, Alexander 0 2-2 2, Susko 0 0-0 0, Norris 0 0-0 0. Totals -- 24 15-23 71.
JUNIATA VALLEY (64): Deihl 10 8-10 32, Robinson 7 2-4 16, Chavez 1 1-2 3, Rand 3 1-6 7, Mattas 2 1-6 5, Beck 0 0-0 0, Cook 0 1-2 1, LeCrone 0 0-0 0. Totals -- 23 14-30 64.
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Huntingdon 17 19 16 19 -- 71
Juniata Valley 18 16 14 16 -- 64
3-point goals: Huntingdon 8 (Moore 6, Foster 2); Juniata Valley 4 (Deihl 4).
Records: Huntingdon (7-9); Juniata Valley (14-5).
Officials: Tom Culp, Dave Lehner, Stephon Morgan.
JV: Juniata Valley, 76-55. High scorers--Ethan Scalia, JV, 22; Brock Bryson, H, 17.