Altoona, BG teams secure spots in high school championship
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By John Hartsock
jhartsock@altoonamirror.com
HOLLIDAYSBURG -- The Altoona Area High School team, sponsored by the Beard Legal Group, earned its third consecutive berth in the Blair Regional YMCA High School Girls Division basketball championship game Tuesday night, but it came at a hefty cost.
Star incoming senior guard Lanie Wilt, whose game-high 14 points sparked Altoona to a come-from-behind 36-33 victory over the Hollidaysburg High School team that is sponsored by the McLanahan Corporation, collided with a Hollidaysburg player in a battle for a loose ball in the closing seconds of the game, fell to the floor, and remained there for nearly a half hour until she was taken off on a stretcher.
Wilt was transported to a hospital emergency room, where she was diagnosed with a concussion.
The silent concern on the part of everybody in the gymnasium was palpable as Wilt was being attended to by medical personnel, again putting into top perspective that the well-being of the players dwarfs the result of any sporting event.
"She dove for the ball in a scramble with another player and her head banged against the body of the other player,'' Altoona coach Chris Fleegle said immediately after the game about the unfortunate set of circumstances. "As she always does, she left it all on the court.
"She's been taken to the hospital to get checked out, hopefully only as a precautionary measure,'' added Fleegle, who later confirmed that Wilt had suffered a concussion. "She was responsive right before she was taken off on the stretcher. She's a tough cookie, and everybody is hoping that she is going to be OK.''
Altoona will play the Bishop Guilfoyle Academy team, sponsored by the Wolford's Gearhart's Moving and Storage company, in the high school girls division championship game at 5:30 p.m. Thursday. The BG team advanced with a 46-27 win over the Bellwood-Antis team -- sponsored by Altoona Honda -- in Tuesday's other semifinal game.
Hollidaysburg broke out to leads of 9-0 and 11-2 early in its game with two-time defending league champion Altoona and held a 23-13 halftime lead before the Lady Lions regrouped in the second half.
Wilt hit a 3-pointer from the right side to pull Altoona to within one point, 30-29, with 5:05 remaining in the game, then scored a putback with under four minutes left to put Altoona ahead, 31-30. Wilt was fouled on the shot, and converted the free throw, giving Altoona a 32-30 edge.
A jumper from the key by Melana Eyer gave Altoona a 34-30 lead before Bella Vent made one of two free throws and Clare Padamonsky converted a rebound bucket with eight seconds left to pull Hollidaysburg to within 34-33.
A missed Hollidaysburg free throw was gathered in by Altoona's Brionna Hudson, who was fouled on the play and hit two game-clinching free throws on the other end of the floor to ice the Altoona win.
Vent -- an incoming senior who earned the Altoona Mirror's 2023-24 High School Girls Basketball Player of the Year Award as a junior -- led Hollidaysburg with 12 points.
"This is a summer league -- it's where you look to see what you have as a team, and I think that we'll be in a good place as a team come this November,'' said Hollidaysburg coach Deanna Jubeck, whose program has made it to the quarterfinals of the PIAA Class 5A girls tournament in each of the last two seasons.
The BG team, coming off a PIAA Class 1A state championship last March, got a game-high 17 points from incoming freshman Layona Williams, who will make a great team even better next winter.
"She and Gia Adams are guards who play excellent defense, and both of them working together will make it real tough for any opposing point guard to bring the ball up the floor against us next season,'' BG coach Kristi Kaack said of Williams.
"I'm really proud of her for playing the way that she did tonight,'' Kaack said of Williams. "I thought that her shot selection was really good tonight -- she got into the lane a lot, and that opened up the 3-point shot for her as well.''
Adams and Morgan Ruggery chipped in 10 points apiece for Bishop Guilfoyle, while Jenna Norton led Bellwood with 10.
"We're trying to put all the pieces of our team puzzle together, and I am pleased with the effort of our team this summer,'' Bellwood coach Kyley Longo said. "Last summer, we didn't even make the playoffs in this league, so this is a step in the right direction for us.''
Kaack expects a great championship game against Altoona Thursday.
"We missed the playoffs in this league last year, so it's great to be in the championship game here this year,'' Kaack said. "I'm real proud of our kids and the commitment that they've shown to get better. They've earned this (championship berth), and Altoona is a great team that is very well-coached.
"We're excited to be playing them with the level of players that they have,'' Kaack added.
BISHOP GUILFOYLE (46): Gofus 1 0-2 2, Adams 3 2-2 10, Ruggery 2 6-8 10, Williams 7 1-2 17, Petrecca 3 0-2 7, Hite 0 0-0 0, Bennett 0 0-0 0, P. Ronan 0 0-0 0, K. Ronan 0 0-0 0. Totals -- 16 9-16 46.
BELLWOOD-ANTIS (27): Clapper 1 2-3 4, Gerwert 1 2-2 4, Norton 2 4-4 10, Cacciotti 1 0-0 2, Sweigert 1 0-0 2, Hammond 1 0-0 3, Plummer 1 0-0 2, Worthing 0 0-0 0. Totals -- 8 8-9 27.
Halftime: Bishop Guilfoyle, 26-11.
3-point goals: Bishop Guilfoyle 5 (Adams 2, Williams 2, Petrecca); Bellwood-Antis 3 (Norton 2, Hammond).
HOLLIDAYSBURG (33): Vent 4 3-4 12, Stevenson 0 0-0 0, Weimert 3 2-4 8, Heim 0 1-2 1, Padamonsky 2 3-6 7, Sidney 2 0-0 5, Steiner 0 0-0 0. Totals -- 11 9-16 33.
ALTOONA (36): Wilt 5 2-3 14, R. Eyer 4 0-0 9, M. Eyer 1 4-4 6, Harpster 1 0-0 3, Nguyen-Moore 1 0-1 2, Hudson 0 2-2 2, Cogan 0 0-0 0. Totals -- 12 8-10 36.
Halftime: Altoona, 23-13.
3-point goals: Hollidaysburg 2 (Sidney, Vent); Altoona 4 (Wilt 2, R. Eyer, Harpster).
Officials: Bill Pfeffer, Jack McDougal, George Figura.