Tyrone was able to cruise to a 68-48 victory over the Rams of Penns Valley. Tyrone improves their win streak to nine with the victory.
The junior trio of Sam Crilly, Drew Escala, and Kendall Lehner once again led the Golden Eagles in scoring. Crilly and Escala both racked up nineteen points, while Lehner added sixteen.
Penns Valley was led by junior Carson Webster, who scored twelve points. Unlike the last matchup, the Golden Eagles were able to keep sophomore Fletcher Ironside shutdown, as he only contributed nine points.
The game began with a lot of scoring, as both teams found high-quality looks early on. The lead bounced back and forth, with a Penns Valley free throw putting the Rams up 20-19 to end the first quarter. Little did they know, this would be the last time Penns Valley had a lead.
The second quarter was a defensive battle, with both teams combining for eleven points. Fortunately, the Golden Eagles scored nine of those points. Tyrone’s defense was wreaking havoc on the Rams’ offense, forcing turnovers and heavily contesting every shot. Tyrone went into the halftime break up 28-22.
“We knew we wouldn’t lose this game if we kept defending the way we did in the second quarter,” senior Brady Ronan said.
Penns Valley found success to begin the third quarter, cutting Tyrone’s lead to just 4. Tyrone was able to re-widen the gap back to 10, but a small Penns Valley run left the Golden Eagles with just a 41-37 lead entering the final quarter.
Something clicked for Tyrone entering the fourth quarter, as their offense exploded. Attacking all three levels, it seemed as if the Golden Eagles couldn’t make a mistake. Twenty-four fourth quarter points later, Tyrone harbored a comfortable twenty-point lead when the starters were benched.
To put the icing on the cake of the playoff win, junior Logan Harpster checked into the game and banked in a buzzer-beater shot from behind the arc. The team stormed the court to celebrate with Harpster, and Tyrone ended the contest on top 68-48.
Tyrone improves to 17-6, while Penns Valley falls to 11-12 and their season is over. Tyrone advances to the semi-finals against Forest Hills.
BOX SCORE
PENNS VALLEY (48): F. Ironside 3 2-2 9, C. Ironside 3 0-0 8, Webster 4 0-0 12, Romig 5 1-1 11, Althouse 1 6-9 8, Niewinski 0 0-0 0, Patel 0 0-0 0, Shawley 0 0-0 0. Totals — 16 9-12 48.
TYRONE (68): Crilly 5 6-9 19, Escala 9 0-0 19, Walk 1 1-2 3, Lehner 7 2-2 16, Crowell 1 0-0 2, Woomer 2 0-0 6, Ronan 0 0-0 0, Harpster 1 0-0 3. Totals — 26 9-13 68.
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Penns Valley 20 2 15 11 — 48
Tyrone 19 9 13 27 — 68
3-point goals: Penns Valley 7 (Webster 4, C. Ironside 2, F. Ironside); Tyrone 7 (Crilly 3, Woomer 2, Escala, Harpster).
Records: Penns Valley (11-12); Tyrone (17-6).
