|
Great Season! Schuylkill League Champs For the Fourth Straight Season! A 59 game winning Streak Against Schuylkill League
Teams
Good Luck Seniors!!! Brandon Bridy - Ryan Coyle -Jake Plachko Zach Wile -Bobby Witman,
Salisbury ends Pottsville's season by anthony burkhart (staff writer aburkhart@ republicanherald.com) Published: March 1, 2013 ORWIGSBURG - When the calendar turns to March, uncharacteristic mistakes become glaring errors for a playoff basketball
team. The repercussions are enormous. So was the case Friday night as Pottsville's
slew of fourth-quarter errors ultimately cost the Crimson Tide their season in a 45-39 loss to Salisbury in a tightly contested,
back-and-forth District 11 Class AAA consolation game at Blue Mountain High School. In
a win-or-go-home matchup that had a PIAA Tournament berth on the line, Pottsville and Salisbury exchanged the lead 12 times
in what amounted to a see-saw affair. When it mattered most, the Crimson Tide
committed seven fourth-quarter turnovers. Salisbury slowly sneaked away, jumping off the hypothetical playground ride that
sent the top-seeded Crimson Tide's season crashing to the ground. No. 6 seed
Salisbury (18-8) advances to the state tournament and will take on District 2 runner-up Wilkes-Barre GAR in the first round
next Friday. Pottsville's season is fin- ished. For the second straight season, the Crimson Tide (21-6) miss out on the state tournament. "We didn't play well and we made mistakes we hadn't made all season. I don't know how else to say it,"
Pottsville coach Dave Mullaney said. "Salisbury is a good, well-coached team and defends well. We saw that tonight." Salisbury's defense forced most of the mistakes, but others - balls dribbled off a foot, 3-second violations - were
little mistakes by Pottsville that eventually added up. "Those turnovers
in the fourth quarter weren't even mistakes we made throughout the rest of the game," Mullaney said. "I don't know
how to explain it." Travis Blankenhorn scored a game-high 20 points for
the Tide, including four 3-pointers. But there was little offensive production outside of the sophomore. Senior Brandon Bridy was blanketed all night and held to six points on 3-of-13 shooting. Pottsville shot 13-for-41
(32 percent) as a team. "This is a difficult one for us, especially all
of our seniors for it to end like this," Bridy said. "Give Salisbury credit for their defense. It was difficult
for us to get anything going except for (Blankenhorn)." Both teams traded
buckets much of the first half as the lead changed hands six times. Blankenhorn hit a corner 3-pointer at the second-quarter
buzzer to give the Tide a 22-21 lead at the break. The third quarter was much
of the same. Eli Nabholz nailed a trey to give Pottsville a 25-24 lead with five minutes remaining in the quarter. The next
trip down the floor, the Falcons took back the lead on a Justin Aungst layup. The
back-and-forth play continued over the final minutes and the teams finished the third quarter knotted at 33. Salisbury opened the fourth quarter on a 6-0 run. Blankenhorn hit his final 3-pointer to cut the lead to 39-36 with
4:09 remaining, but that's as close as the Tide would get. Mistakes led to turnovers,
turnovers led to fouling. The Falcons shot 16 free throws in the fourth quarter and hit half of them to seal the victory in
the final minutes. Aungst led the Falcons with 12 points while teammate Austin
Uhl added 11, including going 7-for-12 from the line and 4-for-8 in the fourth quarter. "I watched five or six games of Pottsville and I'm so impressed with their physicality," Salisbury coach
Jason Weaver said. "I'm very proud of our defense and what we did tonight against a squad like that. Holding a player
like Bridy to six points is no easy feat." This season was the first in
Class AAA for Pottsville since competing in AAAA the last two seasons. The Tide earned the No. 1 seed for the district tournament,
but Mullaney said that provided no added pressure and failing to get to states doesn't make the season unsuccessful. Pottsville's seniors leave the program having guided the Crimson Tide to four straight Schuylkill League titles.
"I think this season was a huge success and I'm very proud of what we've
accomplished," Mullaney said. "With the schedule we played and winning another Schuylkill League title, I would
categorize it as a huge success. These seniors can be proud and we'll definitely miss them." Game Summary District 11 Class AAA Consolation At Blue Mountain SALISBURY (45) - Cooperman 3 1-1 7, Brown 1 1-2 4, B. Reichenbach 1 0-0 3, D. Reichenbach 1 0-1 3, Vangeli 1 1-2
3, Aungst 6 2-3 14, Uhl 2 7-12 11. Totals 15 12-21 45. POTTSVILLE (39) - Blankenhorn
8 0-0 20, Witman 1 0-0 2, Bridy 2 2-2 6, Nabholz 2 0-0 6, Coyle 0 2-4 2, Wile 0 0-0 0, Melochick 0 3-6 3. Totals 13 7-12 39. 3-point FGs: Brown, B. Reichenbach, D. Reichenbach, Blankenhorn 4, Nabholz 2
Crimson Tide plays Salisbury Friday Night at 8:00 at Blue Mountain High School. Come out and support the Tide!
Bethlehem Catholic surges past Pottsville (With a Little Help- BC Fouls Shots - (22 for 29), Crimson Tide - (5 for 7), You do the math!) by leroy boyer (sportS editor lboyer@republicanherald.com) Published: February 26, 2013 ORWIGSBURG - For the first seven minutes, everything went Pottsville's way. The Crimson Tide buried four 3-pointers. They controlled the tempo. They patiently worked for an open shot on offense,
then converted it. They controlled the paint. They prevented second-chance opportunities. Unfortunately for Pottsville, the Tide couldn't maintain that level of play. In the second half, Bethlehem Catholic took advantage. The Golden Hawks
overcame a 15-point, first-half deficit to surge past Pottsville 56-50 in a District 11 Class AAA boys' basketball semifinal
at Blue Mountain High School. Freddie Simmons Jr. scored 14 of his team-high
18 points in the second half and Justin Lenzer drained two huge fourth-quarter 3-pointers as Bethlehem Catholic advanced to
Friday's championship game against Allentown Central Catholic, a 62-48 winner over Salisbury. The loss doesn't eliminate Pottsville, as the Crimson Tide will play Salisbury in the District 11 Class AAA consolation
game Friday at a site and time to be determined for the right to advance to the PIAA playoffs. "I thought we were well prepared," Pottsville coach Dave Mullaney said. "A shot here, a shot there,
a rebound here, a rebound there, maybe things are different. "We're happy
to be still alive, and maybe we can get a win Friday and move on to states." The
Crimson Tide dominated all facets of the game in the first quarter. Offensively,
Pottsville exposed a mismatch by posting Travis Blankenhorn underneath, which led to several easy baskets in the Tide's Princeton
offense. When the Hawks shifted their defense, Pottsville went to the perimeter,
shooting 4-of-7 from 3-point range. Blankenhorn scored 10 of his game-high 21 points in the first quarter, while Ryan Coyle
and Eli Nabholz each connected on 3-pointers. With 56 seconds left in the opening
frame, Pottsville led 21-6. "We had an advantage in the post at times, and
we got some easy baskets under there, and our shots were falling from the outside," Mullaney said. "I think that
was great, but I also think throughout the rest of the game that kind of led us to take a little too quick of a shot, and
that's uncharacteristic of us." Pottsville shot 8-for-13 from the floor
in the first quarter, but just 11-for-40 over the final three frames. "We
had good looks the entire game," Mullaney continued. "We had some really good looks, and our guys ran our sets well.
Then our shots didn't fall. And against a quality team like that, you can't do that for three quarters." Bethlehem Catholic slowly crawled back in it, getting 6-foot-11 center Matt Husek more involved in the offense. Husek,
who finished with 15 points, 13 rebounds and three blocked shots, became a force on the defensive end while the Hawks picked
up the tempo. Bethlehem Catholic used a 13-2 run in the first half to trim Pottsville's
lead to 29-23 at halftime. "We made a couple of quick halftime adjustments,"
Bethlehem Catholic coach Michael Frew said. "We wanted to pressure them, force tempo, and those things started to go
in our favor and give us a little bit of momentum as the game went on." Pottsville
extended its lead to 38-28 with 2:44 left in the third quarter on a 3-pointer by Nabholz and two spinning moves in the lane
by Brandon Bridy, who finished with 12 points. Bethlehem Catholic got more aggressive
offensively, taking the ball to the rim and crashing the boards offensively. That led to a bevy of free-throw opportunities,
as the Hawks shot 15-for-21 from the foul line in the second half. Husek and
Simmons led the charge, combining for 12 points - eight on free throws - in a 14-0 run that gave Bethlehem Catholic a 42-38
lead with 7 minutes left. After shooting 1-for-12 from the field in the first
half, Simmons scored 10 points in the third quarter. "He's extremely talented,
and we knew that coming in," Mullaney said. "We had the best defender that we've ever had here guarding him (Bridy),
and at times he struggled with him. He was able to get to the basket. "(Husek)
hurt us in the first half, and (Simmons) killed us in the second half." The
teams battled back and forth over the next 5 minutes, with Pottsville taking a 47-46 lead on two free throws by Bobby Witman
with 2:33 left. Lenzer then drained back-to-back 3-pointers, the first off an
offensive rebound, to put Bethlehem Catholic ahead to stay. Lenzer finished with
12 points, while Simmons collected 12 rebounds. "Offensive rebounds hurt
us all night," Mullaney said. "We knew coming out of halftime that if we didn't secure those, it was going to be
our downfall, and it was."
The Crimson Tide continues it's quest for the District
XI Title, This Tuesday aganist
Bethlehem Catholic at 7:30 at Blue Mountain High School.
|
|
| Photo By Pottsville Republican |
|
|
| Photo By Pottsville Republican |
Crimson Tide hammer Lehighton in
AAA quarterfinalby anthony burkhart (staff writer aburkhart@republicanherald.com) Published: February 22, 2013 ORWIGSBURG - When
Pottsville was sluggish out of the gate in Friday's District 11 Class AAA boys' quarterfinal game, Ryan Coyle's hot hand kept
the Crimson Tide neck-and-neck with Lehighton. The Tide offense and defense eventually improved, and when Pottsville
had a chance to put away the Indians for good in the third quarter, Coyle's hot hand was there again, this time to bury Lehighton. Coyle
drained a career-high five 3-pointers - two in the first quarter and three in the third - scoring a season-high 18 points
as top-seeded Pottsville cruised to a 59-30 win over Lehighton at Blue Mountain High School. Pottsville (21-4) will
take on No. 5 Bethlehem Catholic in Tuesday's semifinal, a 7:30 p.m. matchup at Blue Mountain. The Golden Hawks defeated No.
4 Blue Mountain 54-40. Early on, the Tide missed seven of their first eight shots. It was Coyle's second 3-pointer with
1:20 left in the quarter that jump-started a 7-0 run over the final 80 seconds that turned momentum in Pottsville's favor. From
there the Tide's defense was tighter; the offense was smoother. Things ran as they should for a No. 1 seed. "I
felt like my shot was on tonight, and I got a lot of clean looks," said Coyle, who was 5-for-5 from the floor. "It
took us a little bit of time at the beginning to get settled, and I'm glad I could knock down a couple of those 3s to
keep us in it early on." Pottsville's defense kicked in during the second quarter, limiting Lehighton (12-12) to
just three points and zero field goals on 0-for-4 shooting. Lehighton committed seven turnovers in the quarter. Pottsville
ultimately held Lehighton to 18 points through three quarters of play. "Our kids are pretty good defenders and
that's the style we've played all year," Pottsville coach Dave Mullaney said. "That's what we expect to do and that's
one part of the game we know is going to be consistent. Tonight that kept us in it early on." Pottsville built
a 25-10 halftime lead before outscoring the Indians 20-8 in the third quarter behind Coyle's three 3-pointers. "He's
a very good shooter and he's always capable of something like that," Mullaney said of Coyle. "He got a lot of looks
tonight when (Lehighton) would focus on (Brandon) Bridy or (Travis) Blankenhorn. Give him credit, he took advantage of what
they gave him." Bridy scored 14 points, while Blankenhorn added 10. Pottsville had the game on cruise control
the rest of the way, but that was never reflected in the intensity of play. Several injury timeouts and two intentional
fouls littered the second half as both teams went at each other - on the floor and in the stands. Finally, with 5:11
left in the game, Schuylkill League president and District 11 committee member Carl McBreen called both coaches to center
court to calm things down after a hard foul on Coyle. "I'll say this, Lehighton kept fighting and they weren't
going to give up," Mullaney said. "To be honest, I think we frustrated them and sometimes things happen. I saw two
teams playing hard." Lehighton never did give up and continued to foul the Tide to the very end despite trailing
by nearly 30 points, which drew the ire of the Pottsville crowd. If this was a preview for a game atmosphere when Lehighton
joins the Schuylkill League in the 2014-15 season, there will be some raucous meetings. "I'm sure there will be
some matchups again that have this intensity the whole way through," Mullaney said. "When they do get in the league
they're going to be a tough team. "We fought hard tonight and stayed focused at the task at hand. Now we can move
on to the next one and put our focus there."
Game Summary District 11 Class AAA Boys' Quarterfinal
At Blue Mountain LEHIGHTON (30) - Rossino 2 0-0 4, Farano 0 3-4 3, Crum 3 3-4 9, Williams 1 1-2 4, McCandless 1 1-2
3, K. Knappenberger 0 0-0 0, Skrincosky 0 0-0 0, J. Knappensberger 2 0-0 5, Mele 1 0-0 2. Totals 10 8-14 30. POTTSVILLE
(59) - Painter 0 3-6 3, Blankenhorn 4 0-0 10, Witman 1 0-1 2, Bridy 4 6-7 14, Toomey 1 0-0 2, Nabholz 0 1-4 1, Coyle 5 3-6
18, Wile 0 0-0 0, Melochick 3 2-2 8, Dunkel 0 1-2 1. Totals 18 16-28 59. 3-point FGs: Williams, J. Knappensberger, Coyle
5, Blankenhorn
Salisbury ends Pottsville's season by anthony burkhart (staff writer aburkhart@ republicanherald.com) Published: March 1, 2013 ORWIGSBURG - When the calendar turns to March, uncharacteristic mistakes become glaring errors for a playoff basketball
team. The repercussions are enormous. So was the case Friday night as Pottsville's
slew of fourth-quarter errors ultimately cost the Crimson Tide their season in a 45-39 loss to Salisbury in a tightly contested,
back-and-forth District 11 Class AAA consolation game at Blue Mountain High School. In
a win-or-go-home matchup that had a PIAA Tournament berth on the line, Pottsville and Salisbury exchanged the lead 12 times
in what amounted to a see-saw affair. When it mattered most, the Crimson Tide
committed seven fourth-quarter turnovers. Salisbury slowly sneaked away, jumping off the hypothetical playground ride that
sent the top-seeded Crimson Tide's season crashing to the ground. No. 6 seed
Salisbury (18-8) advances to the state tournament and will take on District 2 runner-up Wilkes-Barre GAR in the first round
next Friday. Pottsville's season is fin- ished. For the second straight season, the Crimson Tide (21-6) miss out on the state tournament. "We didn't play well and we made mistakes we hadn't made all season. I don't know how else to say it,"
Pottsville coach Dave Mullaney said. "Salisbury is a good, well-coached team and defends well. We saw that tonight." Salisbury's defense forced most of the mistakes, but others - balls dribbled off a foot, 3-second violations - were
little mistakes by Pottsville that eventually added up. "Those turnovers
in the fourth quarter weren't even mistakes we made throughout the rest of the game," Mullaney said. "I don't know
how to explain it." Travis Blankenhorn scored a game-high 20 points for
the Tide, including four 3-pointers. But there was little offensive production outside of the sophomore. Senior Brandon Bridy was blanketed all night and held to six points on 3-of-13 shooting. Pottsville shot 13-for-41
(32 percent) as a team. "This is a difficult one for us, especially all
of our seniors for it to end like this," Bridy said. "Give Salisbury credit for their defense. It was difficult
for us to get anything going except for (Blankenhorn)." Both teams traded
buckets much of the first half as the lead changed hands six times. Blankenhorn hit a corner 3-pointer at the second-quarter
buzzer to give the Tide a 22-21 lead at the break. The third quarter was much
of the same. Eli Nabholz nailed a trey to give Pottsville a 25-24 lead with five minutes remaining in the quarter. The next
trip down the floor, the Falcons took back the lead on a Justin Aungst layup. The
back-and-forth play continued over the final minutes and the teams finished the third quarter knotted at 33. Salisbury opened the fourth quarter on a 6-0 run. Blankenhorn hit his final 3-pointer to cut the lead to 39-36 with
4:09 remaining, but that's as close as the Tide would get. Mistakes led to turnovers,
turnovers led to fouling. The Falcons shot 16 free throws in the fourth quarter and hit half of them to seal the victory in
the final minutes. Aungst led the Falcons with 12 points while teammate Austin
Uhl added 11, including going 7-for-12 from the line and 4-for-8 in the fourth quarter. "I watched five or six games of Pottsville and I'm so impressed with their physicality," Salisbury coach
Jason Weaver said. "I'm very proud of our defense and what we did tonight against a squad like that. Holding a player
like Bridy to six points is no easy feat." This season was the first in
Class AAA for Pottsville since competing in AAAA the last two seasons. The Tide earned the No. 1 seed for the district tournament,
but Mullaney said that provided no added pressure and failing to get to states doesn't make the season unsuccessful. Pottsville's seniors leave the program having guided the Crimson Tide to four straight Schuylkill League titles.
"I think this season was a huge success and I'm very proud of what we've
accomplished," Mullaney said. "With the schedule we played and winning another Schuylkill League title, I would
categorize it as a huge success. These seniors can be proud and we'll definitely miss them." Game Summary District 11 Class AAA Consolation At Blue Mountain SALISBURY (45) - Cooperman 3 1-1 7, Brown 1 1-2 4, B. Reichenbach 1 0-0 3, D. Reichenbach 1 0-1 3, Vangeli 1 1-2
3, Aungst 6 2-3 14, Uhl 2 7-12 11. Totals 15 12-21 45. POTTSVILLE (39) - Blankenhorn
8 0-0 20, Witman 1 0-0 2, Bridy 2 2-2 6, Nabholz 2 0-0 6, Coyle 0 2-4 2, Wile 0 0-0 0, Melochick 0 3-6 3. Totals 13 7-12 39. 3-point FGs: Brown, B. Reichenbach, D. Reichenbach, Blankenhorn 4, Nabholz 2
Bethlehem Catholic surges past Pottsville by leroy boyer (sportS editor lboyer@republicanherald.com) Published:
February 26, 2013 ORWIGSBURG
- For the first seven minutes, everything went Pottsville's way. The Crimson
Tide buried four 3-pointers. They controlled the tempo. They patiently worked for an open shot on offense, then converted
it. They controlled the paint. They prevented second-chance opportunities. Unfortunately
for Pottsville, the Tide couldn't maintain that level of play. In the second
half, Bethlehem Catholic took advantage. The Golden Hawks overcame a 15-point,
first-half deficit to surge past Pottsville 56-50 in a District 11 Class AAA boys' basketball semifinal at Blue Mountain High
School. Freddie Simmons Jr. scored 14 of his team-high 18 points in the second
half and Justin Lenzer drained two huge fourth-quarter 3-pointers as Bethlehem Catholic advanced to Friday's championship
game against Allentown Central Catholic, a 62-48 winner over Salisbury. The loss
doesn't eliminate Pottsville, as the Crimson Tide will play Salisbury in the District 11 Class AAA consolation game Friday
at a site and time to be determined for the right to advance to the PIAA playoffs. "I
thought we were well prepared," Pottsville coach Dave Mullaney said. "A shot here, a shot there, a rebound here,
a rebound there, maybe things are different. "We're happy to be still alive,
and maybe we can get a win Friday and move on to states." The Crimson Tide
dominated all facets of the game in the first quarter. Offensively, Pottsville
exposed a mismatch by posting Travis Blankenhorn underneath, which led to several easy baskets in the Tide's Princeton offense. When the Hawks shifted their defense, Pottsville went to the perimeter, shooting 4-of-7 from 3-point range. Blankenhorn
scored 10 of his game-high 21 points in the first quarter, while Ryan Coyle and Eli Nabholz each connected on 3-pointers. With 56 seconds left in the opening frame, Pottsville led 21-6. "We
had an advantage in the post at times, and we got some easy baskets under there, and our shots were falling from the outside,"
Mullaney said. "I think that was great, but I also think throughout the rest of the game that kind of led us to take
a little too quick of a shot, and that's uncharacteristic of us." Pottsville
shot 8-for-13 from the floor in the first quarter, but just 11-for-40 over the final three frames. "We had good looks the entire game," Mullaney continued. "We had some really good looks, and our guys
ran our sets well. Then our shots didn't fall. And against a quality team like that, you can't do that for three quarters." Bethlehem Catholic slowly crawled back in it, getting 6-foot-11 center Matt Husek more involved in the offense. Husek,
who finished with 15 points, 13 rebounds and three blocked shots, became a force on the defensive end while the Hawks picked
up the tempo. Bethlehem Catholic used a 13-2 run in the first half to trim Pottsville's
lead to 29-23 at halftime. "We made a couple of quick halftime adjustments,"
Bethlehem Catholic coach Michael Frew said. "We wanted to pressure them, force tempo, and those things started to go
in our favor and give us a little bit of momentum as the game went on." Pottsville
extended its lead to 38-28 with 2:44 left in the third quarter on a 3-pointer by Nabholz and two spinning moves in the lane
by Brandon Bridy, who finished with 12 points. Bethlehem Catholic got more aggressive
offensively, taking the ball to the rim and crashing the boards offensively. That led to a bevy of free-throw opportunities,
as the Hawks shot 15-for-21 from the foul line in the second half. Husek and
Simmons led the charge, combining for 12 points - eight on free throws - in a 14-0 run that gave Bethlehem Catholic a 42-38
lead with 7 minutes left. After shooting 1-for-12 from the field in the first
half, Simmons scored 10 points in the third quarter. "He's extremely talented,
and we knew that coming in," Mullaney said. "We had the best defender that we've ever had here guarding him (Bridy),
and at times he struggled with him. He was able to get to the basket. "(Husek)
hurt us in the first half, and (Simmons) killed us in the second half." The
teams battled back and forth over the next 5 minutes, with Pottsville taking a 47-46 lead on two free throws by Bobby Witman
with 2:33 left. Lenzer then drained back-to-back 3-pointers, the first off an
offensive rebound, to put Bethlehem Catholic ahead to stay. Lenzer finished with
12 points, while Simmons collected 12 rebounds. "Offensive rebounds hurt
us all night," Mullaney said. "We knew coming out of halftime that if we didn't secure those, it was going to be
our downfall, and it was."
Crimson Tide hammer Lehighton in
AAA quarterfinalby anthony burkhart (staff writer aburkhart@republicanherald.com) Published: February 22, 2013 ORWIGSBURG - When
Pottsville was sluggish out of the gate in Friday's District 11 Class AAA boys' quarterfinal game, Ryan Coyle's hot hand kept
the Crimson Tide neck-and-neck with Lehighton. The Tide offense and defense eventually improved, and when Pottsville
had a chance to put away the Indians for good in the third quarter, Coyle's hot hand was there again, this time to bury Lehighton. Coyle
drained a career-high five 3-pointers - two in the first quarter and three in the third - scoring a season-high 18 points
as top-seeded Pottsville cruised to a 59-30 win over Lehighton at Blue Mountain High School. Pottsville (21-4) will
take on No. 5 Bethlehem Catholic in Tuesday's semifinal, a 7:30 p.m. matchup at Blue Mountain. The Golden Hawks defeated No.
4 Blue Mountain 54-40. Early on, the Tide missed seven of their first eight shots. It was Coyle's second 3-pointer with
1:20 left in the quarter that jump-started a 7-0 run over the final 80 seconds that turned momentum in Pottsville's favor. From
there the Tide's defense was tighter; the offense was smoother. Things ran as they should for a No. 1 seed. "I
felt like my shot was on tonight, and I got a lot of clean looks," said Coyle, who was 5-for-5 from the floor. "It
took us a little bit of time at the beginning to get settled, and I'm glad I could knock down a couple of those 3s to
keep us in it early on." Pottsville's defense kicked in during the second quarter, limiting Lehighton (12-12) to
just three points and zero field goals on 0-for-4 shooting. Lehighton committed seven turnovers in the quarter. Pottsville
ultimately held Lehighton to 18 points through three quarters of play. "Our kids are pretty good defenders and
that's the style we've played all year," Pottsville coach Dave Mullaney said. "That's what we expect to do and that's
one part of the game we know is going to be consistent. Tonight that kept us in it early on." Pottsville built
a 25-10 halftime lead before outscoring the Indians 20-8 in the third quarter behind Coyle's three 3-pointers. "He's
a very good shooter and he's always capable of something like that," Mullaney said of Coyle. "He got a lot of looks
tonight when (Lehighton) would focus on (Brandon) Bridy or (Travis) Blankenhorn. Give him credit, he took advantage of what
they gave him." Bridy scored 14 points, while Blankenhorn added 10. Pottsville had the game on cruise control
the rest of the way, but that was never reflected in the intensity of play. Several injury timeouts and two intentional
fouls littered the second half as both teams went at each other - on the floor and in the stands. Finally, with 5:11
left in the game, Schuylkill League president and District 11 committee member Carl McBreen called both coaches to center
court to calm things down after a hard foul on Coyle. "I'll say this, Lehighton kept fighting and they weren't
going to give up," Mullaney said. "To be honest, I think we frustrated them and sometimes things happen. I saw two
teams playing hard." Lehighton never did give up and continued to foul the Tide to the very end despite trailing
by nearly 30 points, which drew the ire of the Pottsville crowd. If this was a preview for a game atmosphere when Lehighton
joins the Schuylkill League in the 2014-15 season, there will be some raucous meetings. "I'm sure there will be
some matchups again that have this intensity the whole way through," Mullaney said. "When they do get in the league
they're going to be a tough team. "We fought hard tonight and stayed focused at the task at hand. Now we can move
on to the next one and put our focus there."
Game Summary District 11 Class AAA Boys' Quarterfinal
At Blue Mountain LEHIGHTON (30) - Rossino 2 0-0 4, Farano 0 3-4 3, Crum 3 3-4 9, Williams 1 1-2 4, McCandless 1 1-2
3, K. Knappenberger 0 0-0 0, Skrincosky 0 0-0 0, J. Knappensberger 2 0-0 5, Mele 1 0-0 2. Totals 10 8-14 30. POTTSVILLE
(59) - Painter 0 3-6 3, Blankenhorn 4 0-0 10, Witman 1 0-1 2, Bridy 4 6-7 14, Toomey 1 0-0 2, Nabholz 0 1-4 1, Coyle 5 3-6
18, Wile 0 0-0 0, Melochick 3 2-2 8, Dunkel 0 1-2 1. Totals 18 16-28 59. 3-point FGs: Williams, J. Knappensberger, Coyle
5, Blankenhorn
4 - Peat Schuylkill League Champs
Defense leads Pottsville to 4th straight Schuylkill League title by mike carnahan (staff writer mcarnahan@republicanherald.com) Published: February 15, 20
The chants of "It's a four-peat" rained
down from the Pottsville student section. When the buzzer sounded, the Crimson Tide bench rushed the Martz Hall floor and mobbed each other at center court,
some holding up "No. 4" signs with their fingers. Another year, another
Schuylkill League boys' basketball title for Pottsville. The fourth one followed
a similar format as the first three - its star player dominated and the Crimson Tide had an exceptional night on defense. Brandon Bridy scored a game-high 18 points and Pottsville's defense held Mahanoy Area to the lowest point total in
a Schuylkill League boys' championship game en route to a 35-21 victory Friday night. Sophomore Travis Blankenhorn added eight points and eight rebounds for Pottsville, which won its 13th overall league
championship, thanks in large part to a another dominating defensive performance. "That's
what we are at Pottsville," said Bridy, who's been a starter for the Tide since he was a sophomore. "We pride ourselves
on defense." It's the main reason the streak continues. The 21 points Pottsville
allowed was lowest since the Tide held Marian to 25 in 2010. North Schuylkill also held Williams Valley to 25 points in 2009. Everybody had a hand in Friday's victory. It was extra special for senior Bobby Witman, who missed all of last season
with a torn ACL and LCL he suffered during the football preseason. He went through nine months of rehabilitation, returning
for the football season this past fall. "It is great to come back and get
four in a row, especially last year, missing the entire year," he said. "I finally got one of my own." The Tide (20-4) got some even better news from the Lehigh Valley later Friday when Bangor knocked off Wilson 51-47
in overtime in the Colonial League championship game. It means that Pottsville will be the No. 1 seed when District 11 Class
AAA playoffs begin next week. First, the Tide had to take care of business against
the Golden Bears, who were making their first appearance in the league finals since 2007 and were coming off a thrilling,
come-from-behind, 42-39 semifinal victory Wednesday over Blue Mountain. Led by
a stifling effort by the Crimson Tide guards, Pottsville limited the Golden Bears (18-5) to 9-for-36 (25 percent) shooting
from the floor and forced 21 turnovers, with 14 coming in the first half as the Tide built a 23-9 halftime advantage. "They were just too good," Mahanoy Area coach Mickey Holland said. "Defensively, they are a step above
everybody that we face. They are big, they are quick, strong, so well coached. They are never in the wrong spot. They know
what you want to do and they take it away." One key for the Tide's defense
Friday was shutting down Mahanoy Area's Tyler Cavenas. The 6-foot-4 center finished the night with a double-double of 11 points
and 11 rebounds, but was held in check most of the night. The 6-5 Witman was
responsible for guarding Cavenas most of the night, with help from Eli Nabholz and John Toomey. Witman wanted to use his reach
and speed to get in front of Cavenas. "We had backside help the whole time
so I just got to front him a little bit and try to use my speed to get around him," said Witman, who had two steals.
"I had a lot of help from everybody else." Out front, Bridy held the
Bears' Dylan Mahmod, who keyed Wednesday's comeback victory, to two points on 1-of-10 shooting, including an 0-for-6 effort
on 3-pointers. "I tried to get him off the 3-point line a lot," Bridy
said. "His dominant hand is the left so I was forcing him right, making him go to his right, and see if I could get a
steal. I did that a couple of times. I think I did a good job on him." Ryan
Coyle was responsible for guarding point guard Kyle McGee. Coyle set an early tone as he had a steal on the Bears' first possession.
He was fouled on his way to basket and hit 1-of-2 from the line. Coyle then forced
Mahanoy Area into a turnover on its next possession, one of the eight it had in the first quarter. "I was just trying to make it hectic for him to make a pass, even take a dribble and keep hounding him,"
Coyle said. "Tonight we made it a point to start out fast and finish strong." Pottsville led 10-3 after the first quarter and by 14 at the half. The closest the Bears got was late in the third
quarter when Brian Miller hit a 3-pointer from the wing, making it 25-16. "I
thought it was our most consistent effort the entire year," Pottsville coach Dave Mullaney said. "We didn't take
a possession off. I was really proud of our guys. I was really proud of our guys on both ends." Game Summary Schuylkill League Boys' Championship At Martz Hall POTTSVILLE (35) - Blankenhorn 4 0-2 8, Witman 0 1-2 1, Bridy 7 2-6 18, Coyle 0 1-3 1, Wile 0 0-0 0, Nabholz 1 0-0
3, Melochick 2 0-0 4, Toomey 0 0-0 0. Totals 14 4-13 35. MAHANOY AREA (21) -
Mahmod 1 0-0 2, McGee 0 0-0 0, Miller 2 0-0 6, Cavenas 5 1-3 11, Kuzma 1 0-0 2, Richmond 0 0-0 0, Merchlinsky 0 0-0 0. Totals
9 1-3 21. 3-point FGs: Bridy 2, Nabholz, Miller
Bridy gets offensive in Tide's win over Golden Bearsby
leroy boyer (sports editor lboyer@republicanherald.com) Published:
February 16, 2013
First, there was a soft jumper
from just inside the foul line. Nothing but net. Then came a steal and a coast-to-coast drive for a layup. Up and in. Late
in the first quarter, a 3-pointer from the top of the key. Swish. A spin move
for a bucket ... another spin move to a hook shot. Both good. Finally, a driving,
off-balance, fall-away shot from the right wing with two defenders in his face that kissed off the glass and went in. If Friday's Schuylkill League boys' basketball championship game was a game of H-O-R-S-E, Pottsville's Brandon Bridy
would have had Mahanoy Area saddled up by the middle of the second quarter. The
Crimson Tide senior put on an impressive offensive display in the first half at Martz Hall, scoring 13 of his game-high 18
points to propel Pottsville to a 35-21 victory over the Golden Bears. The scoring
outburst helped the Tide to a 23-9 halftime lead as Pottsville captured its fourth straight Schuylkill League boys' crown. The victory, coupled with Bangor's 51-47 OT win over Wilson in the Colonial League final, gives the Tide the
top seed in the upcoming District 11 Class AAA playoffs. "I try to score
a variety of ways," Bridy said. "Turn to the basket and shoot. Have confidence when you shoot. "Some of those acrobatic shots ... I don't know what to say about them. I just threw them up and they went in." Bridy's outburst in the first half was the only offensive highlight on a night where both defenses were dominant.
Nine of Bridy's 13 first-half points came during a 15-2 Pottsville run that put the Crimson Tide ahead for good. "We got out to a strong start, and that's what we wanted to do," Bridy said. "Mahanoy is a great team,
a great defensive team. That 13-point run really helped us get momentum going into the second half." Bridy shot 6-for-9 from the field in the first half as Pottsville shot 10-for-21 (48 percent). Mahanoy Area made
some defensive adjustments in the second half, holding Pottsville to just 12 points on 4-of-15 shooting (27 percent). Bridy's first-half outburst was too much to overcome, however. He also delivered when it counted in the second half,
nailing a 3-pointer to open the fourth quarter that pushed the Tide's lead to 29-16. "We
didn't realize until too late in the first half that we couldn't let Bridy 1-on-1 down low," Mahanoy Area coach Mickey
Holland said. "We didn't have anybody that could guard him down in the post. Tyler (Cavenas) didn't realize until too
late that he had to double. In the second half, we doubled down on him in the post and then jumped out on their shooters." What makes Bridy so hard to defend is his versatility. At 6-foot-1, he's quick and smooth enough to play point guard
and shooting guard, but also big enough to play down low. In Pottsville's motion
offense he does a little bit of everything, making it hard for opposing defenses to contain him. "Brandon was responsible for a lot of our offense in the first half," Pottsville coach Dave Mullaney said.
"Like he's done all year, he can score in a variety of ways, whether it's on the break, in the post or on the perimeter. "When you have a guy like that, you know you're going to get points from him and he's going to be consistent
night in and night out. Something is always going to be working for him. "That
was the case tonight. He scored in a variety of ways, where a lot of players aren't able to do that." As Bridy strode to the foul line late in the fourth quarter, the large Pottsville student section started chanting,
"MVP, MVP." Friday, it was very fitting. "Yeah, I heard it. It's cool, it's awesome," Bridy said. "I just try to embrace it, don't try to get
a big head about it. Just move on to the next play."
Pottsville boys' aim: Complete
four-peatBY MIKE CARNAHAN (STAFF WRITER mcarnahan@republicanherald.com)Published: February 15,
2013Lightbox
link Lightbox
linkLightbox linkEver since Mahanoy Area clinched the Schuylkill League Division III championship Jan. 31, coach Mickey Holland said
he has wanted to play Pottsville."You always want a shot at the best, and they are absolutely the best team
in the league," he said. "So it is an honor to get a shot to play them."Yes, Coach Holland, you and the Golden
Bears have gotten your wish.Mahanoy Area will attempt to put an end to the Crimson Tide's three-year championship run when
the two meet for the Schuylkill League boys' basketball title at 7:30 this evening at Martz Hall.The Golden Bears (18-4),
appearing in their first league title game since 2007, reached tonight's championship by battling back from an 11-point, fourth-quarter
deficit to stun Blue Mountain 42-39 in overtime during Wednesday's semifinals. Pottsville (19-4) - looking for its fourth
consecutive championship - overwhelmed Williams Valley 45-27 in Wednesday's other semifinal.The final features teams with similar styles.
Both are deliberate offensively but will get out in transition on occasion. Both have players - Pottsville's Travis Blankenhorn
(45 3-pointers), Mahanoy Area's Dylan Mahmod (30 3s) - who can knock down shots from beyond the arc.And both are built
on tough, man-to-man defense.Pottsville and Mahanoy Area are ranked first and second in the league, respectively, in team
defense, with the Crimson Tide allowing 36 points per game and the Golden Bears 37.8. Both teams handled the top two offensive
teams in the league Wednesday.Williams Valley, which came in scoring 60.2 points per game, led 14-13 10 minutes into the
game but ended up scoring 13 points the rest of the way. The Tide held the Vikings to a season low in points and held a team
to under 30 in a game for the sixth time this season. The Bears held Blue Mountain, which entered scoring 60 points per game,
to under 40 for only the third time this season (Pottsville did it twice). Mahanoy Area also held an opponent to under 40
points for the 11th time this year.The Golden Bears are out to do what no Division II team or smaller has done since
they beat Schuylkill Haven 48-47 in the 2006 title game - win a championship.Since then, the next six champs have come
from Division I. Blue Mountain (2007), Shamokin (2008) and North Schuylkill (2009) won titles. Pottsville's current title
run started with a 49-25 win over Marian (Division III) in 2010, followed by victories over Division I wild-card Pine Grove
(51-49 in 2011, 38-31 last year).The Golden Bears certainly have a track record of success in winning league titles.
Pottsville enters tonight with 13 championships overall, while Mahanoy Area is tied for second for most titles with Shamokin
with seven.Holland credits the success the Golden Bears have had to the work his players put in over the summer, making the
time even as preparations for football are under way. Junior Tyler Cavenas (team-leading 13.0 points per game) is likely headed
to a Division I school for football, while Mahmod (10 ppg) is the starting quarterback. Backups Greg Merchlinsky and Jason
Richmond also play football."I am no smarter than the next guy," Holland said. "I am the first one to tell
you that, but I just like to say to myself and pride myself in that I have to work as hard as the next guy. If I am going
to work as hard and put the time in during the summer, I expect them to, too. Most of these kids really want to play so they
do it. It is not like we are ruining other sports."To get together and play two games on a summer night, most of
them don't mind doing it. To get into the gym for an hour-and-a-half on a summer morning, most of them don't mind doing it.
These kids are not afraid to put the time in and have been willing to a lot longer than the 30 years I've been here, because
we did it when I was in school."A difference-maker could be Cavenas, who at 6-foot-4, 240 pounds, brings a physical
presence inside that might give Pottsville some problems. Cavenas got the ball farther away from the blocks during the first
half of Wednesday's win and wasn't a factor. However, he got the ball closer to the basket in the second half and finished
the game with seven points.Tide senior Bobby Witman (6-5) is likely to be matched up on Cavenas tonight. Witman's reach
makes him an excellent shot blocker, and he had three during Wednesday's victory. Sophomore Eli Nabholz (6-5), who returned
from an ankle injury Wednesday, might draw time on Cavenas, too."That inside presence we are worried about,"
Pottsville coach Dave Mullaney said. "They are not going to beat themselves. They are going to play great man-to-man
defense, they are going to run their sets. They are just really, really well coached and they know how to play. We have our
hands full."Offensively, Pottsville is led by senior Brandon Bridy (16.4 points per game), who had 18 points in Wednesday's victory.
The Tide struggled somewhat against the Vikings' 3-2 zone, but when the Tide's defense started to force missed shots and turnovers,
Pottsville began scoring some points in transition and it opened the game up."We talk about the same thing,"
Mullaney said. "You talk about turnovers, you talk about turnover points, we talk about offensive rebounds, us and them.
If you do those things, you are probably going to win the game, and if we do those things, we generally win the game. That
will probably be our focus again."
Defense leads Pottsville to 4th straight Schuylkill League title by mike carnahan (staff writer mcarnahan@republicanherald.com) Published: February 15, 20
The chants of "It's a four-peat" rained
down from the Pottsville student section. When the buzzer sounded, the Crimson Tide bench rushed the Martz Hall floor and mobbed each other at center court,
some holding up "No. 4" signs with their fingers. Another year, another
Schuylkill League boys' basketball title for Pottsville. The fourth one followed
a similar format as the first three - its star player dominated and the Crimson Tide had an exceptional night on defense. Brandon Bridy scored a game-high 18 points and Pottsville's defense held Mahanoy Area to the lowest point total in
a Schuylkill League boys' championship game en route to a 35-21 victory Friday night. Sophomore Travis Blankenhorn added eight points and eight rebounds for Pottsville, which won its 13th overall league
championship, thanks in large part to a another dominating defensive performance. "That's
what we are at Pottsville," said Bridy, who's been a starter for the Tide since he was a sophomore. "We pride ourselves
on defense." It's the main reason the streak continues. The 21 points Pottsville
allowed was lowest since the Tide held Marian to 25 in 2010. North Schuylkill also held Williams Valley to 25 points in 2009. Everybody had a hand in Friday's victory. It was extra special for senior Bobby Witman, who missed all of last season
with a torn ACL and LCL he suffered during the football preseason. He went through nine months of rehabilitation, returning
for the football season this past fall. "It is great to come back and get
four in a row, especially last year, missing the entire year," he said. "I finally got one of my own." The Tide (20-4) got some even better news from the Lehigh Valley later Friday when Bangor knocked off Wilson 51-47
in overtime in the Colonial League championship game. It means that Pottsville will be the No. 1 seed when District 11 Class
AAA playoffs begin next week. First, the Tide had to take care of business against
the Golden Bears, who were making their first appearance in the league finals since 2007 and were coming off a thrilling,
come-from-behind, 42-39 semifinal victory Wednesday over Blue Mountain. Led by
a stifling effort by the Crimson Tide guards, Pottsville limited the Golden Bears (18-5) to 9-for-36 (25 percent) shooting
from the floor and forced 21 turnovers, with 14 coming in the first half as the Tide built a 23-9 halftime advantage. "They were just too good," Mahanoy Area coach Mickey Holland said. "Defensively, they are a step above
everybody that we face. They are big, they are quick, strong, so well coached. They are never in the wrong spot. They know
what you want to do and they take it away." One key for the Tide's defense
Friday was shutting down Mahanoy Area's Tyler Cavenas. The 6-foot-4 center finished the night with a double-double of 11 points
and 11 rebounds, but was held in check most of the night. The 6-5 Witman was
responsible for guarding Cavenas most of the night, with help from Eli Nabholz and John Toomey. Witman wanted to use his reach
and speed to get in front of Cavenas. "We had backside help the whole time
so I just got to front him a little bit and try to use my speed to get around him," said Witman, who had two steals.
"I had a lot of help from everybody else." Out front, Bridy held the
Bears' Dylan Mahmod, who keyed Wednesday's comeback victory, to two points on 1-of-10 shooting, including an 0-for-6 effort
on 3-pointers. "I tried to get him off the 3-point line a lot," Bridy
said. "His dominant hand is the left so I was forcing him right, making him go to his right, and see if I could get a
steal. I did that a couple of times. I think I did a good job on him." Ryan
Coyle was responsible for guarding point guard Kyle McGee. Coyle set an early tone as he had a steal on the Bears' first possession.
He was fouled on his way to basket and hit 1-of-2 from the line. Coyle then forced
Mahanoy Area into a turnover on its next possession, one of the eight it had in the first quarter. "I was just trying to make it hectic for him to make a pass, even take a dribble and keep hounding him,"
Coyle said. "Tonight we made it a point to start out fast and finish strong." Pottsville led 10-3 after the first quarter and by 14 at the half. The closest the Bears got was late in the third
quarter when Brian Miller hit a 3-pointer from the wing, making it 25-16. "I
thought it was our most consistent effort the entire year," Pottsville coach Dave Mullaney said. "We didn't take
a possession off. I was really proud of our guys. I was really proud of our guys on both ends." Game Summary Schuylkill League Boys' Championship At Martz Hall POTTSVILLE (35) - Blankenhorn 4 0-2 8, Witman 0 1-2 1, Bridy 7 2-6 18, Coyle 0 1-3 1, Wile 0 0-0 0, Nabholz 1 0-0
3, Melochick 2 0-0 4, Toomey 0 0-0 0. Totals 14 4-13 35. MAHANOY AREA (21) -
Mahmod 1 0-0 2, McGee 0 0-0 0, Miller 2 0-0 6, Cavenas 5 1-3 11, Kuzma 1 0-0 2, Richmond 0 0-0 0, Merchlinsky 0 0-0 0. Totals
9 1-3 21. 3-point FGs: Bridy 2, Nabholz, Miller
Defense, Bridy lead Pottsville to victory over Williams Valleyby
mike carnahan (staff writer mcarnahan@republicanherald.com) Published:
February 13, 2013
Pottsville calmly lined up for the postgame handshake, showing little emotion,
except for perhaps Brandon Bridy, who clapped a few times. After Wednesday's
45-27 victory over Williams Valley at Martz Hall in the Schuylkill League boys' basketball semifinal, the Crimson Tide find
themselves in a familiar position - playing for a league title. The win earned
Pottsville (19-4), the Division I champ, its fourth consecutive trip to the championship game. The Tide will look to make
it four straight titles against Division III champ Mahanoy Area (18-4) at 7:30 p.m. on Friday at Martz Hall. The Golden Bears battled back from an 11-point, fourth-quarter deficit to stun Division I wild-card Blue
Mountain 42-39 in overtime during Wednesday's other semifinal. "It is very
hard to get back here every year and to do it four times is a tremendous accomplishment," Pottsville's Brandon Bridy
said "Give credit to our coaches. (They are the) best coaches in the world to get us back here four years in a row." Bridy had a game-high 18 points for Pottsville, while Travis Blankenhorn added 13 points, including three
3-pointers. Both Bobby Witman and Blankenhorn grabbed six rebounds apiece for the Tide and Ryan Coyle had three assists and
three steals. The way the Crimson Tide earned another trip was also familiar:
Plenty of physical, intense man-to-man defense that totally took the Division II champ Vikings (17-6) out of their offense
early in the second until the final buzzer. Williams Valley led 14-13 after Colin
Harrison hit a baseline jumper with 6 minutes left in the first half. For the next 15 minutes, the Vikings had just one field
goal - a layup by Stephen Sedesse after a steal with 28 seconds remaining in the first half. Nick Rodichok hit a 3-pointer from the corner at 7:03 of the fourth to stop the drought. After hitting 4-of-9 from the floor in the first quarter, the Vikings, who came into the night with the league's
highest scoring offense at 60.2 points per game, were just 3-of-26 (12 percent) from the floor the rest of the game. Harrison and Stephen Sedesse were held to six points apiece and Owen Daniel scored only two. Sedesse entered
the game averaging 11.8 points per game and Sedesse and Harrison scored 10 points per game apiece. "We knew their defense would be strong and it was," Williams Valley coach Denny Kasper said. "They
took it to us and got stronger as the game went along. It was very difficult to run our offense, and that's a tribute to them." Pottsville's defense set up its offense, which struggled at times against Williams Valley's 3-2 zone. The
Tide went on two key runs, though, turning missed shots and turnovers into points in transition. "It took us a while to get going," Coyle said. "Our outside shooting wasn't really there for
us so it helps to get a couple of steals, get out in transition and score." The
first spurt was a 10-2 run to finish the first half as Bridy scored eight of his points in the second quarter. After Harrison's bucket made it 14-13, Zach Wile hit 1-of-2 from the line. A Witman block and rebound turned
into a fast-break layup for Bridy. After Coyle set up Jordan Melochick for two inside, Bridy hit a 7-foot hook shot in the
lane with 1:35 to go, making it 21-14. After Sedesse's layup, Bridy finished
the half by banking in a one-handed shot over the defense in the lane as the buzzer sounded. "The
first half we were pretty hesitant against the zone," Bridy said "We weren't attacking it good enough and some of
our shots weren't going in like usual. I just try to attack and try to create for others and make plays." Pottsville's defense really got going in the third quarter as the Vikings missed all six of their shots and
turned the ball over six times with five coming on Tide steals, leading to a 13-1 run. Up
by 10 at 27-17 after Janson hit 1-of-2 from the foul line with the 1:33 remaining, Pottsville put the game away. Bridy hit
a jumper, Coyle's steal set up a Blankenhorn layup, and Coyle went in for 2 after a another steal at half court. Blankenhorn
then knocked down a 3-pointer from the wing before the third-quarter buzzer, which was set up by a drive and kick out by Bridy. "We started cranking up a bit in the second half," Coyle said. "First half wasn't bad, but
the second half was where we really stepped it up." Game Summary Schuylkill
League boys' semifinal At Martz Hall POTTSVILLE
(45) - Painter 0 0-2 0, Blankenhorn 5 0-0 13, Plachko 0 0-0 0, Witman 0 0-0 0, Doyle 0 0-0 0, Bridy 8 1-2 18, Toomey 0 0-0
0, Nabholz 0 0-0 0, Coyle 2 0-2 5, Hinchliffe 0 0-0 0, Wile 2 3-3 7, Melochick 1 0-0 2. Totals 18 4-9 45. WILLIAMS VALLEY (27) - Daniel 1 0-0 2, Harrison 3 0-0 6, Sedesse 2 2-2 6, Matter 0 0-0 0, B. Miller 1 0-0
2, Jansen 0 3-4 3, Rautzahn 0 1-2 1, Rodichok 1 2-2 5, C. Miller 1 0-0 2. Totals 9 8-10 27. 3-point
FGs: Blankenhorn 3, Bridy, Coyle, Rodichok
Williams Valley (17-5, 10-3, Division II champ)
vs. Pottsville (18-4,
12-0, Division I champ), 7:30 p.m.
About Williams Valley Head
coach: Denny Kasper 18th season)
Schuylkill League playoff appearances (since 1985): Nine overall,
no titles
Last appearance: 2010 —Lost to Pottsville 54-35 in semifinals
League rankings:
Offense (1st, 60.2 points per game), defense (8th, 47.0 points per game)
Probable starting lineup: F
Owen Daniel (sr., 6-1, 10.0 ppg.), F Colin Harrison (sr., 6-3, 10.0 ppg.), G Stephen Sedesse (jr., 5-11, 11.8 ppg.), G Dennis
Jansen (sr., 5-8, 9.5 ppg.), F Brendan Miller (jr., 5-11, 9.0 ppg.)
Key reserves: G-F Ben Rautzahn (jr.,
6-0, 4.7 ppg.), G-F Nick Rodichok (fr., 5-11, 4.6 ppg.) About
Pottsville Head coach: Dave Mullaney (6th season)
Schuylkill
League playoff appearances (since 1985): 16 overall, 9 titles (1985, 1989, 1993, 1995, 2000, 2004, 2010, 2001, 2012)
Last appearance: 2012 — Beat Pine Grove 38-31 in championship game
League rankings:
Offense (6th, 54.0 points per game), defense (1st, 36.5 points per game)
Probable starting lineup: G
Travis Blankenhorn (soph., 6-1, 13.4 ppg.), F Bobby Witman (sr., 6-5, 5.5 ppg.), G Brandon Bridy (sr., 6-1, 16.4), G Ryan
Coyle (sr., 5-9, 8.3 ppg.), F Zach Wile (sr., 6-1, 4.7 ppg.)
Key reserves: F John Toomey (jr., 6-2,
1.0 ppg.), F Eli Nabholz (soph., 6-5, 7.0 ppg.), G-F Jordan Melochick (fr., 6-2, 4.1 ppg.) Game notes Vikings coming off emotional, hard-fought 57-48
victory at Lourdes on Saturday in a hostile gymnasium to clinch their first division title since 2010. Won game despite turning
the ball over 22 times, using 14-2 run from late in third quarter into fourth to pull away after Red Raiders tied game at
36. … Must cut down on turnovers against the Crimson Tide’s tenacious man-to-man defense to have a chance. …
Vikings started season 12-2 before going 2-3 over next five games and enter on three-game winning streak. … Sedesse
and Jansen have both hit 34 3-pointers this season in what may be the most balanced offensive team in the league. …
Crimson Tide wrapped up regular season with 10 consecutive victories and clinched division title with 52-32 victory over North
Schuylkill on Feb. 1. They have won 43 consecutive league games and average margin of victory in their league games this season
has been 24.2 points. … Bridy has reached double figures in 20 games, including 10 consecutive heading into tonight.
… Blankenhorn has hit 42 3-pointers despite missing six games in January with a knee injury … … One of
the leagues’ deepest benches could get a boost as Nabholz is expected to return tonight after missing final four games
of regular season with severely sprained ankle he suffered in win over Blue Mountain on Jan. 29. He has played in just three
games all season, missing the first 15 with a bad back.
"Here
We Go, Schuylkill League Playoffs" The league playoffs start at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at Martz Hall against Division I champ
Pottsville Crimson Tide (18-4, 12-0 D-I) facing Williams Valley Vikings (17-5, 10-3 D-II). The other semifinal has Division
III champ Mahanoy Area Bears(17-4, 12-1 D-III) facing Division I wild-card Blue Mountain Eagles (18-4, 10-2 D-I) at 6
p.m.
Defense, Bridy lead Pottsville to victory over Williams Valleyby
mike carnahan (staff writer mcarnahan@republicanherald.com) Published:
February 13, 2013
Pottsville calmly lined up for the postgame handshake, showing little emotion,
except for perhaps Brandon Bridy, who clapped a few times. After Wednesday's
45-27 victory over Williams Valley at Martz Hall in the Schuylkill League boys' basketball semifinal, the Crimson Tide find
themselves in a familiar position - playing for a league title. The win earned
Pottsville (19-4), the Division I champ, its fourth consecutive trip to the championship game. The Tide will look to make
it four straight titles against Division III champ Mahanoy Area (18-4) at 7:30 p.m. on Friday at Martz Hall. The Golden Bears battled back from an 11-point, fourth-quarter deficit to stun Division I wild-card Blue
Mountain 42-39 in overtime during Wednesday's other semifinal. "It is very
hard to get back here every year and to do it four times is a tremendous accomplishment," Pottsville's Brandon Bridy
said "Give credit to our coaches. (They are the) best coaches in the world to get us back here four years in a row." Bridy had a game-high 18 points for Pottsville, while Travis Blankenhorn added 13 points, including three
3-pointers. Both Bobby Witman and Blankenhorn grabbed six rebounds apiece for the Tide and Ryan Coyle had three assists and
three steals. The way the Crimson Tide earned another trip was also familiar:
Plenty of physical, intense man-to-man defense that totally took the Division II champ Vikings (17-6) out of their offense
early in the second until the final buzzer. Williams Valley led 14-13 after Colin
Harrison hit a baseline jumper with 6 minutes left in the first half. For the next 15 minutes, the Vikings had just one field
goal - a layup by Stephen Sedesse after a steal with 28 seconds remaining in the first half. Nick Rodichok hit a 3-pointer from the corner at 7:03 of the fourth to stop the drought. After hitting 4-of-9 from the floor in the first quarter, the Vikings, who came into the night with the league's
highest scoring offense at 60.2 points per game, were just 3-of-26 (12 percent) from the floor the rest of the game. Harrison and Stephen Sedesse were held to six points apiece and Owen Daniel scored only two. Sedesse entered
the game averaging 11.8 points per game and Sedesse and Harrison scored 10 points per game apiece. "We knew their defense would be strong and it was," Williams Valley coach Denny Kasper said. "They
took it to us and got stronger as the game went along. It was very difficult to run our offense, and that's a tribute to them." Pottsville's defense set up its offense, which struggled at times against Williams Valley's 3-2 zone. The
Tide went on two key runs, though, turning missed shots and turnovers into points in transition. "It took us a while to get going," Coyle said. "Our outside shooting wasn't really there for
us so it helps to get a couple of steals, get out in transition and score." The
first spurt was a 10-2 run to finish the first half as Bridy scored eight of his points in the second quarter. After Harrison's bucket made it 14-13, Zach Wile hit 1-of-2 from the line. A Witman block and rebound turned
into a fast-break layup for Bridy. After Coyle set up Jordan Melochick for two inside, Bridy hit a 7-foot hook shot in the
lane with 1:35 to go, making it 21-14. After Sedesse's layup, Bridy finished
the half by banking in a one-handed shot over the defense in the lane as the buzzer sounded. "The
first half we were pretty hesitant against the zone," Bridy said "We weren't attacking it good enough and some of
our shots weren't going in like usual. I just try to attack and try to create for others and make plays." Pottsville's defense really got going in the third quarter as the Vikings missed all six of their shots and
turned the ball over six times with five coming on Tide steals, leading to a 13-1 run. Up
by 10 at 27-17 after Janson hit 1-of-2 from the foul line with the 1:33 remaining, Pottsville put the game away. Bridy hit
a jumper, Coyle's steal set up a Blankenhorn layup, and Coyle went in for 2 after a another steal at half court. Blankenhorn
then knocked down a 3-pointer from the wing before the third-quarter buzzer, which was set up by a drive and kick out by Bridy. "We started cranking up a bit in the second half," Coyle said. "First half wasn't bad, but
the second half was where we really stepped it up." Game Summary Schuylkill
League boys' semifinal At Martz Hall POTTSVILLE
(45) - Painter 0 0-2 0, Blankenhorn 5 0-0 13, Plachko 0 0-0 0, Witman 0 0-0 0, Doyle 0 0-0 0, Bridy 8 1-2 18, Toomey 0 0-0
0, Nabholz 0 0-0 0, Coyle 2 0-2 5, Hinchliffe 0 0-0 0, Wile 2 3-3 7, Melochick 1 0-0 2. Totals 18 4-9 45. WILLIAMS VALLEY (27) - Daniel 1 0-0 2, Harrison 3 0-0 6, Sedesse 2 2-2 6, Matter 0 0-0 0, B. Miller 1 0-0
2, Jansen 0 3-4 3, Rautzahn 0 1-2 1, Rodichok 1 2-2 5, C. Miller 1 0-0 2. Totals 9 8-10 27. 3-point
FGs: Blankenhorn 3, Bridy, Coyle, Rodichok
| 57 Game Win Streak | | Against Schuylkill League Opponents | | | | DATE | PLACE | OPPONENT | W/L | STREAK | | 1/15/2010 | HOME | Jim Thorpe | | | | 1/19/2010 | AWAY | @ Panther Valley | W | 1 | | 1/22/2010 | AWAY | @ Blue Mountain | W | 2 | | 1/26/2010 | HOME | Tamaqua | W | 3 | | 1/29/2010 | AWAY | @ Pine Grove | W | 4 | | 2/2/2010 | AWAY | @ Schuylkill Haven | W | 5 | | 2/5/2010 | HOME | North Schuylkill | W | 6 | | 2/12/2010 | HOME | Panther Valley | W | 7 | | 2/9/2010 | AWAY | @ Jim Thorpe | W | 8 | | 2/17/2010 | PLAYOFF | Williams Valley-semi finals | W | 9 | | 2/19/2010 | PLAYOFF | Marian - Sch League-finals | W | 10 | | 2/27/2010 | PLAYOFF | Panther Valley | W | 11 | | 3/2/2010 | PLAYOFF | Jim Thorpe | W | 12 | | | | | | | | DATE | PLACE | OPPONENT | W/L | STREAK | | 12/21/10 | HOME | Blue Mountain | W | 13 | | 12/23/10 | HOME | Pine Grove | W | 14 | | 12/28/10 | HOME | Schuylkill Haven | W | 15 | | 12/30/10 | HOME | Nativity BVM | W | 16 | | 1/4/11 | AWAY | Panther Valley | W | 17 | | 1/7/11 | AWAY | Tamaqua | W | 18 | | 1/11/11 | HOME | Jim Thorpe | W | 19 | | 1/14/11 | AWAY | North Schuylkill | W | 20 | | 1/20/11 | AWAY | Blue Mountain | W | 21 | | 1/24/11 | AWAY | Pine Grove | W | 22 | | 1/27/11 | HOME | Panther Valley | W | 23 | | 1/31/11 | HOME | Tamaqua | W | 24 | | 2/3/11 | HOME | Jim Thorpe | W | 25 | | 2/7/11 | HOME | North Schuylkill | W | 26 | | 2/15/11 | PLAYOFF | Marian - Playoff | W | 27 | | 2/18/11 | PLAYOFF | Pine Grove - Playoff | W | 28 | | 12/20/2011 | AWAY | Blue Mountain | W | 29 | | 12/23/2011 | HOME | Pine Grove | W | 30 | | 12/27/2011 | AWAY | Schuylkill Haven | W | 31 | | 12/29/2011 | HOME | Nativity | W | 32 | | 1/4/2012 | AWAY | Panther Valley | W | 33 | | 1/6/2012 | HOME | Tamaqua | W | 34 | | 1/10/2012 | AWAY | Jim Thorpe | W | 35 | | 1/13/2012 | HOME | North Schuylkill | W | 36 | | 1/19/2012 | HOME | Blue Mountain | W | 37 | | 1/23/2012 | AWAY | Pine Grove | W | 38 | | 1/26/2012 | HOME | Panther Valley | W | 39 | | 1/30/2012 | AWAY | Tamaqua | W | 40 | | 2/2/2012 | HOME | Jim Thorpe | W | 41 | | 2/6/2012 | AWAY | North Schuylkill | W | 42 | | 2/14/2012 | HOME | Marian | W | 43 | | 2/17/2012 | HOME | Pine Grove | W | 44 | | 12/20/202 | HOME | Pine Grove | W | 45 | | 12/27/2012 | HOME | Nativity | W | 46 | | 1/2/2013 | HOME | Tamaqua | W | 47 | | 1/4/2013 | AWAY | Blue Mountain | W | 48 | | 1/7/2013 | AWAY | North Schuylkill | W | 49 | | 1/10/2013 | Home | Panther Valley | W | 50 | | 1/14/2013 | AWAY | Jim Thorpe | W | 51 | | 1/22/2013 | AWAY | Pine Grove | W | 52 | | 1/25/2013 | AWAY | Tamaqua | W | 53 | | 1/29/2013 | HOME | Blue Mountain | W | 54 | | 2/1/2013 | HOME | North Schuylkill | W | 55 | | 2/5/2013 | AWAY | Panther Valley | W | 56 | | 2/7/2013 | HOME | Jim Thorpe | W | 57 | | 2/13/2013 | HOME | Williams Valley | W | 58 | | | | | | |
Pottsville 65 Jim Thorpe 33 Brandon Bridy netted 11
of his 24 points in second quarter to key a big run in the Crimson Tide's Division I victory over the Olympians. Pottsville outscored Jim Thorpe 23-8 in the second. Ryan Coyle added 11 points for the Crimson Tide. JIM THORPE (33) - Harleston 3 0-0 7, Heydt 0 0-0 0, Lindsey 3 2-4 8, M. Principe 0 0-0 0, Green 0 0-0 0, Smith 0
0-0 0, Snisky 0 0-0 0, S. Principe 0 0-0 0, McElmoyle 1 0-0 3, Micciche 2 0-0 6, Brown 3 1-5 7, Luciano 0 0-0 0, Everitt 1
0-0 2. Totals 13 3-9 33. POTTSVILLE (65) - Painter 0 0-0 0, Blankenhorn 3 0-0
8, Moser 1 0-0 2, Plachko 1 0-0 2, Whitman 3 3-5 9, Dunkel 0 0-0 0, Doyle 0 0-0 0, Bridy 9 4-4 24, Toomey 0 0-0 0, Coyle 4
2-2 11, Hinchliffe 2 0-0 5, Kuperavage 0 0-0 0, Wile 1 1-2 4, Melochick 0 0-0 0. Totals 24 10-13 65. 3-point FGs: Harleston, McElmoyle, Micciche 2, Blankenhorn 2, Bridy 2, Coyle, Hinchliffe, Wile JV score: Pottsville 46-21
"Senior Night at Martz Hall" The Jim Thorpe Game has been moved to Thursday Night from Friday Night. It will also be Senior Night for Brandon Bridy, Ryan Coyle, Jake Plachko,
Zach Wile and Bobby Witman
Tide Pounds The Panthers The Crimson Tide Rolled to a victory over Panther Valley by the score of 73 - 41. The 73 points was a season high
total for points. It also continued the Crimson Tide's streak to 56 wins in a row against Schuylkill League teams.
The Tide had a well balanced scoring attack with four players scoring in double digits. Brandon Bridy
led the way with 17 points, followed by Bobby Witman 13 points and Travis Blankenhorn and Ryan Coyle adding 11 points each. The Tide close out the regular season Friday at home against Jim Thorpe. The Tide will try and remain
undefeated in Division 1 for the Third straight year.
Pottsville 73 Panther Valley 41 LANSFORD - Brandon
Bridy scored eight of his 17 points in the first quarter as the Crimson Tide broke out to a 23-2 lead and cruised the rest
of the way in a Division I game against the Panthers. Bobby Witman also scored
13 points, while Ryan Coyle and Travis Blankenhorn netted 11 each for Pottsville. Brett
Kerschner and Steven Romanchik had 11 and 10 points, respectively, for Panther Valley. POTTSVILLE (73) - Painter 0 0-0 0, Blankenhorn 4 3-6 11, Moser 0 0-0 0, Plachko 0 0-0 0, Witman 6 1-1 13, Doyle 0
1-2 1, Bridy 7 2-2 17, Toomey 1 0-0 2, Coyle 4 2-2 11, Hinchcliffe 0 0-0 0, Kuperavage 1 0-0 2, Wile 1 4-6 6, Melochick 4
0-0 8, Dunkel 1 0-0 2. Totals 29 13-19 73. PANTHER VALLEY (41) - Dubosky 0 0-0
0, Szczecina 2 2-2 7, Kusko 0 0-0 0, Stano 2 1-1 5, Romanchik 4 0-3 10, Kerschner 4 0-0 11, Ferryman 2 0-0 4, Vermillion 0
0-0 0, Keo 0 0-0 0, Hudicka 0 0-0 0, Campbell 1 0-0 2, Nase 0 0-0 0, Owens 0 0-0 0, Horan 1 0-0 2, Moore 0 0-0 0, Weng 0 0-0
0. Totals 16 3-6 41. 3-point FGs: Bridy, Coyle, Szczecina, Romanchik 2, Kerschner
3 JV score: Pottsville 51-27
Pottsville tops Emmaus in overtimeby mike carnahan (staff writer mcarnahan@republicanherald.com) Published: February 2, 2013 Pottsville's Bobby Witman made all four of
his free throws during the final 4 minutes of Saturday's game. So did Travis Blankenhorn. It's
somewhat ironic, since foul shooting almost cost the Crimson Tide a win. After
missing critical free throws down the stretch in regulation, Pottsville was perfect from the line in overtime to pull away
for a hard-fought 50-45, non-league victory over Emmaus at Martz Hall. The Tide
(16-4) led by eight at 42-34 after Brandon Bridy hit 1-of-2 from the foul line in a 1-and-1 situation with 1:36 left in regulation.
But Pottsville missed its next four free throws as the Green Hornets (10-10) went on an 8-0 run, finished off when Derek Tannous
hit a deep 3-pointer from the wing with 4.6 seconds left. The Tide had a chance
to win it on their final shot when Emmaus' defense went with Pottsville's shooters and Zach Wile, who was inbounding the ball
in front of the scorers' table, found Witman wide open underneath on a pick. But Witman's layup try was too hard as the buzzer
went off. Nate Feiertag put the Green Hornets up 43-42 when he hit 1-of-2 from
the line at 1:18. But Witman gave Pottsville the lead for good as he was fouled attempting to put in a Bridy missed 3-pointer
at 1:02. He hit both to make it 44-43. With the Tide in the double bonus, Blankenhorn
hit four consecutive foul shots. After Emmaus' Joe Nicolini scored on a layup with 3.7 seconds to go, Witman iced the game
for good, hitting two more free throws to set the final. "This is good win
for us," Pottsville coach Dave Mullaney said. "It really was. After the way we started, I wasn't really sure." The Tide, coming off a 52-32 Schuylkill League Division I-clinching rout of North Schuylkill on Friday, was
5-for-21 (24 percent) from the floor over the first 16 minutes as the Green Hornets built an 18-10 advantage late in the first
half. But the shots started to drop for Pottsville in the second half as the Tide hit on 12-for-19 (63 percent) the rest of
the game, including a 4-for-7 showing from 3-point land. Mullaney was somewhat
disappointed with the Tide following their 46-39 win over Blue Mountain last Tuesday. But he felt Friday's victory was one
of Pottsville's best offensive showings of the season and was pleased Saturday, considering the competition. Despite their overall record, Green Hornets, a District 11 Class AAAA playoff qualifier, were coming off
a 56-54, triple-overtime victory over William Allen on Friday. They improved to 8-4 in the Lehigh Valley Conference, keeping
their league playoff hopes alive. "I thought we played really well,"
Mullaney said. "We didn't shoot the ball well in the first half but I thought we defended well and I thought we executed
well offensively. We just knew some shots were going fall for us and in that third quarter were able to make a little run." Blankenhorn had a game-high 17 points, with 14 coming in the second half. Witman added a season-high 12 points.
He also grabbed five rebounds and had four blocks, all in the fourth quarter. Bridy
had 11 points and four assists and Ryan Coyle contributed eight points, five rebounds and three assists. Feiertag led Emmaus with 14 points, while Tannous added 11 and Gabe Shankweiler 11 rebounds. Blankenhorn also hit three 3-pointers in the game, with his first coming with 3 seconds left in the first
half to cut Emmaus' lead to 18-13 at intermission. Pottsville opened the second
half on an 11-0 run as Coyle hit a 3 from the top of the circle, Blankenhorn hit a 3 from the wing, Witman went in for a layup
after a steal at half court and Blankenhorn finished the run, picking up a deflected ball and knocking down a 3 from the corner
at 5:16, giving the Tide a 24-18 lead. Pottsville started to work the ball inside
more in the fourth quarter with lob passes and seemingly had the game in hand with its eight-point lead with 1:36 to go. "Down the stretch, that was tough," Mullaney said. "For the most part we had guys on the line
that we wanted on the line, but they weren't able to convert." With two
games left in the regular season, as well as league and District 11 Class AAA postseason spots locked up, Pottsville can now
begin playoff preparations. "Everything we've challenged our guys to do
they've done," Mullaney said. "Anything we've emphasized, they've responded. I think we've covered everything, but
it is just a matter of being consistent with everything. When we do that, we are a pretty good team."
Pottsville 65 Jim Thorpe 33 Brandon Bridy netted 11
of his 24 points in second quarter to key a big run in the Crimson Tide's Division I victory over the Olympians. Pottsville outscored Jim Thorpe 23-8 in the second. Ryan Coyle added 11 points for the Crimson Tide. JIM THORPE (33) - Harleston 3 0-0 7, Heydt 0 0-0 0, Lindsey 3 2-4 8, M. Principe 0 0-0 0, Green 0 0-0 0, Smith 0
0-0 0, Snisky 0 0-0 0, S. Principe 0 0-0 0, McElmoyle 1 0-0 3, Micciche 2 0-0 6, Brown 3 1-5 7, Luciano 0 0-0 0, Everitt 1
0-0 2. Totals 13 3-9 33. POTTSVILLE (65) - Painter 0 0-0 0, Blankenhorn 3 0-0
8, Moser 1 0-0 2, Plachko 1 0-0 2, Whitman 3 3-5 9, Dunkel 0 0-0 0, Doyle 0 0-0 0, Bridy 9 4-4 24, Toomey 0 0-0 0, Coyle 4
2-2 11, Hinchliffe 2 0-0 5, Kuperavage 0 0-0 0, Wile 1 1-2 4, Melochick 0 0-0 0. Totals 24 10-13 65. 3-point FGs: Harleston, McElmoyle, Micciche 2, Blankenhorn 2, Bridy 2, Coyle, Hinchliffe, Wile JV score: Pottsville 46-21
Tide Pounds The Panthers The Crimson Tide Rolled to a victory over Panther Valley by the score of 73 - 41. The 73 points was a season high
total for points. It also continued the Crimson Tide's streak to 56 wins in a row against Schuylkill League teams.
The Tide had a well balanced scoring attack with four players scoring in double digits. Brandon Bridy
led the way with 17 points, followed by Bobby Witman 13 points and Travis Blankenhorn and Ryan Coyle adding 11 points each. The Tide close out the regular season Friday at home against Jim Thorpe. The Tide will try and remain
undefeated in Division 1 for the Third straight year.
Pottsville 73 Panther Valley 41 LANSFORD - Brandon
Bridy scored eight of his 17 points in the first quarter as the Crimson Tide broke out to a 23-2 lead and cruised the rest
of the way in a Division I game against the Panthers. Bobby Witman also scored
13 points, while Ryan Coyle and Travis Blankenhorn netted 11 each for Pottsville. Brett
Kerschner and Steven Romanchik had 11 and 10 points, respectively, for Panther Valley. POTTSVILLE (73) - Painter 0 0-0 0, Blankenhorn 4 3-6 11, Moser 0 0-0 0, Plachko 0 0-0 0, Witman 6 1-1 13, Doyle 0
1-2 1, Bridy 7 2-2 17, Toomey 1 0-0 2, Coyle 4 2-2 11, Hinchcliffe 0 0-0 0, Kuperavage 1 0-0 2, Wile 1 4-6 6, Melochick 4
0-0 8, Dunkel 1 0-0 2. Totals 29 13-19 73. PANTHER VALLEY (41) - Dubosky 0 0-0
0, Szczecina 2 2-2 7, Kusko 0 0-0 0, Stano 2 1-1 5, Romanchik 4 0-3 10, Kerschner 4 0-0 11, Ferryman 2 0-0 4, Vermillion 0
0-0 0, Keo 0 0-0 0, Hudicka 0 0-0 0, Campbell 1 0-0 2, Nase 0 0-0 0, Owens 0 0-0 0, Horan 1 0-0 2, Moore 0 0-0 0, Weng 0 0-0
0. Totals 16 3-6 41. 3-point FGs: Bridy, Coyle, Szczecina, Romanchik 2, Kerschner
3 JV score: Pottsville 51-27
Pottsville tops Emmaus in overtimeby mike carnahan (staff writer mcarnahan@republicanherald.com) Published: February 2, 2013 Pottsville's Bobby Witman made all four of
his free throws during the final 4 minutes of Saturday's game. So did Travis Blankenhorn. It's
somewhat ironic, since foul shooting almost cost the Crimson Tide a win. After
missing critical free throws down the stretch in regulation, Pottsville was perfect from the line in overtime to pull away
for a hard-fought 50-45, non-league victory over Emmaus at Martz Hall. The Tide
(16-4) led by eight at 42-34 after Brandon Bridy hit 1-of-2 from the foul line in a 1-and-1 situation with 1:36 left in regulation.
But Pottsville missed its next four free throws as the Green Hornets (10-10) went on an 8-0 run, finished off when Derek Tannous
hit a deep 3-pointer from the wing with 4.6 seconds left. The Tide had a chance
to win it on their final shot when Emmaus' defense went with Pottsville's shooters and Zach Wile, who was inbounding the ball
in front of the scorers' table, found Witman wide open underneath on a pick. But Witman's layup try was too hard as the buzzer
went off. Nate Feiertag put the Green Hornets up 43-42 when he hit 1-of-2 from
the line at 1:18. But Witman gave Pottsville the lead for good as he was fouled attempting to put in a Bridy missed 3-pointer
at 1:02. He hit both to make it 44-43. With the Tide in the double bonus, Blankenhorn
hit four consecutive foul shots. After Emmaus' Joe Nicolini scored on a layup with 3.7 seconds to go, Witman iced the game
for good, hitting two more free throws to set the final. "This is good win
for us," Pottsville coach Dave Mullaney said. "It really was. After the way we started, I wasn't really sure." The Tide, coming off a 52-32 Schuylkill League Division I-clinching rout of North Schuylkill on Friday, was
5-for-21 (24 percent) from the floor over the first 16 minutes as the Green Hornets built an 18-10 advantage late in the first
half. But the shots started to drop for Pottsville in the second half as the Tide hit on 12-for-19 (63 percent) the rest of
the game, including a 4-for-7 showing from 3-point land. Mullaney was somewhat
disappointed with the Tide following their 46-39 win over Blue Mountain last Tuesday. But he felt Friday's victory was one
of Pottsville's best offensive showings of the season and was pleased Saturday, considering the competition. Despite their overall record, Green Hornets, a District 11 Class AAAA playoff qualifier, were coming off
a 56-54, triple-overtime victory over William Allen on Friday. They improved to 8-4 in the Lehigh Valley Conference, keeping
their league playoff hopes alive. "I thought we played really well,"
Mullaney said. "We didn't shoot the ball well in the first half but I thought we defended well and I thought we executed
well offensively. We just knew some shots were going fall for us and in that third quarter were able to make a little run." Blankenhorn had a game-high 17 points, with 14 coming in the second half. Witman added a season-high 12 points.
He also grabbed five rebounds and had four blocks, all in the fourth quarter. Bridy
had 11 points and four assists and Ryan Coyle contributed eight points, five rebounds and three assists. Feiertag led Emmaus with 14 points, while Tannous added 11 and Gabe Shankweiler 11 rebounds. Blankenhorn also hit three 3-pointers in the game, with his first coming with 3 seconds left in the first
half to cut Emmaus' lead to 18-13 at intermission. Pottsville opened the second
half on an 11-0 run as Coyle hit a 3 from the top of the circle, Blankenhorn hit a 3 from the wing, Witman went in for a layup
after a steal at half court and Blankenhorn finished the run, picking up a deflected ball and knocking down a 3 from the corner
at 5:16, giving the Tide a 24-18 lead. Pottsville started to work the ball inside
more in the fourth quarter with lob passes and seemingly had the game in hand with its eight-point lead with 1:36 to go. "Down the stretch, that was tough," Mullaney said. "For the most part we had guys on the line
that we wanted on the line, but they weren't able to convert." With two
games left in the regular season, as well as league and District 11 Class AAA postseason spots locked up, Pottsville can now
begin playoff preparations. "Everything we've challenged our guys to do
they've done," Mullaney said. "Anything we've emphasized, they've responded. I think we've covered everything, but
it is just a matter of being consistent with everything. When we do that, we are a pretty good team."
Tide earn Division I crownPublished: February 2, 2013
Travis Blankenhorn scored a game-high
15 points as Pottsville got out to an early lead en route to a 52-32 victory over North Schuylkill at Martz Hall that clinched
the Schuylkill League Division I championship and a spot in the league playoffs for the Crimson Tide. Pottsville opened
the game on a 14-4 run as Blankenhorn scored five of his points in the first quarter. He added eight points more in the third
as Pottsville built a 45-19 advantage and put the game away. Brandon Bridy added 10 points for Pottsville, which clinched
the Division I title for the fourth consecutive year and is looking for its fourth straight overall league title. Bobby
Grigas placed the Spartans with 11 points. NORTH SCHUYLKILL (32) - Hughes 1 0-0 2, Ennis 0 0-0 0, Murray 0 0-0 0, Weist
0 0-0 0, Marlow 0 0-0 0, Meyer 3 0-0 8, Wiley 0 0-0 0, Manbeck 0 0-0 0, Howard 0 0-0 0, Damiter 1 2-2 4, Grigas 2 7-8 11,
Stokes 1 1-2 3, Walsh 2 0-0 4, Mazeika 0 0-0 0, Hillbish 0 0-0 0. Totals 10 10-12 32. POTTSVILLE (52) - Painter 0 0-0
0, Blankenhorn 6 0-0 15, Moser 0 0-0 0, Plachko 1 0-2 2, Witman 3 0-0 6, Dunkel 1 0-0 2, Doyle 1 0-0 2, Bridy 5 0-0 10, Toomey
0 0-0 0, Coyle 0 0-0 0, Hinchcliffe 1 0-0 3, Kuperavage 0 0-0 0, Wile 3 0-0 8, Melochick 1 2-3 4. Totals 22 2-5 52. 3-point
FGs: Meyer 2, Blankenhorn 3, Hinchcliffe, Wile 2 JV score: Pottsville 48-40
Pottsville downs Blue Mountain in Division I showdownby mike carnahan (staff writer mcarnahan@republicanherald.com) Published: January 29, 2013
Pottsville's student section serenaded Brandon Bridy with chants of "MVP, MVP" as he was introduced before
the start of Tuesday's game with rival Blue Mountain. The 6-foot-2 senior guard
didn't disappoint the Crimson Tide fans, especially offensively down the stretch. And he wasn't the only Pottsville player
making plays late. Bridy scored seven of his game-high 15 points in the fourth
quarter while Pottsville's defense came up with key stops, lifting the Crimson Tide to a hard-fought, 46-39 victory over the
Eagles in a Schuylkill League Division I contest at Martz Hall. What started
out as a potential rout turned into a dogfight and a much more competitive contest than the first meeting between the two
backyard rivals - a 43-33 Pottsville victory Jan. 4 in Orwigsburg. The Crimson
Tide (14-4, 9-0 D-I) found a way to get it done despite shooting 6-for-19 (32 percent) from the field in the second half. The win was Pottsville's 40th consecutive league victory. With three division games left, the Crimson Tide now have
a two-game lead over Blue Mountain (13-4, 7-2) and a three-game cushion over third-place North Schuylkill (13-5, 6-3). "It was a grind-out game," Bridy said. "Our defense helped us get some stops in the fourth quarter.
We executed well on offensive." Travis Blankenhorn, who missed the first
meeting, added 13 points for Pottsville, while Ryan Coyle had eight, including a perfect 6-for-6 performance from the foul
line. Will Bornstein scored nine of his 12 points in the second half for the
Eagles, who battled back from an 11-point halftime deficit and cut Pottsville's led to two early in the fourth. Blue Mountain trailed 38-35 after Peter Harding hit a 3-pointer from the corner with 2:13 to go. But Bridy hit two
free throws after he was fouled on a drive on Pottsville's next possession, making it a five-point game with 1:48 left. Bridy, who came in tied for second in the league in scoring with Marian's Ryan Karnish at 16.6 points per game, hit
2-of-3 from the field in the fourth. He scored inside over a Blue Mountain defender
to give Pottsville a 34-30 lead after the Eagles cut the deficit to two, then later scored on a layup, grabbing the ball after
Bobby Witman swatted away a Bornstein shot inside. Bridy was 3-for-4 from the
foul line in the fourth and had a couple of defensive rebounds, too. "I
think everybody on our team wants the ball in the fourth quarter," Bridy said. "We are not selfish at all. Whoever
is hot, whoever is wide open, we will give it to them. We have confidence in all five of our guys scoring." Bridy certainly wasn't the only one making plays in the fourth. Witman
had two blocks, while Coyle was a perfect 4-for-4 from the foul line. Coyle wrapped the win up by hitting both shots in a
double-bonus situation with 19.2 seconds left. Blankenhorn also had a key defensive
stop, taking a charge on Bornstein - one of four defensive charges the Tide had in the game - with 54.9 seconds left. It turned
out to be Bornstein's fifth foul, sending him to the bench. "That basically
sealed it for us," Bridy said. The Tide opened the game on an 8-0 run, but
the Eagles got back in the game by attacking the basket more on the offensive end in the second half. After shooting 3-for-13 (23 percent) from the floor in the first half, the Eagles shot 9-for-18 (50 percent) in the
second. "We started to get more aggressive," Blue Mountain coach Dustin
Werdt said. "In the first half, we just settled for jump shots and contested jump shots. In the second half, we started
attacking the basket." What hurt Blue Mountain was foul trouble. The Eagles
had three starters foul out, with Cody Coller and Kyle Slane joining Bornstein. "In
the second half we were lucky to dig in and get a couple of stops," Pottsville coach Dave Mullaney said. "To be
honest with you, I felt they outplayed us. I feel very fortunate to get this win with the stuff they were forcing us to do." BLUE MOUNTAIN (39) - Bornstein 4 4-5 12, P. Harding 3 0-0 8, Slane 2 2-2 7, Grapsy 0 1-2 1, Jones 0 0-0 0, Tobash
0 0-0 0, Coller 1 3-6 5, Panchari 2 2-4 6. Totals 12 12-19 39. POTTSVILLE (46)
- Painter 0 0-0 0, Blankenhorn 4 3-4 13, Witman 2 1-2 5, Bridy 5 5-7 15, Toomey 0 0-0 0, Nabholz 1 0-0 2, Coyle 1 6-6 8, Wile
0 1-2 1, Melochick 0 2-2 2. Totals 13 18-23 46. 3-point FGs: P. Harding 2, Slane,
Blankenhorn 2 JV score: Pottsville 58-41
Brandon Lights up The Blue Raiders Brandon Bridy led the Crimson Tide to a 59-42 victory over Tamaqua. Brandon
scored a personal and season high 29 points. The Tide's pressure defense in the first half forced Tamaqua into 13 first half
turnovers. The Tide never looked back after that. Travis Blankenhorn scored 8 points and Ryan Coyle added 7. Bobby Witman
controlled the boards for the Tide.
Pottsville 59 Tamaqua 42 TAMAQUA - Brandon Bridy exploded
for a season-high 29 points as the Crimson Tide used a big second quarter to down the Raiders in a Division I contest. Pottsville led 11-8 after the first quarter and then went on a 20-9 run in the second to go up 31-17 at the half. Bo Rottet had 11 points to pace the Raiders. POTTSVILLE (59) - Painter
0 0-0 0 Blankenhorn 3 1-2 8, Moser 0 0-0 0, Plachko 0 0-0 0, Witman 2 1-2 5, Doyle, 0-0-0-0, Bridy 13 2-4 29, Toomey 0 0-0
0, Nabholz 2 0-0 4, Coyle 3 0-1 7, Wile 1 2-3 4, Kuperavage 0 0-0 0, Melochick 1 0-0 2. Totals 25 6-12 59. TAMAQUA (42) - Rottet 2 4-5 11, Chartier 2 0-0 6, Krell 2 1-1 5, Frantz 1 0-0 2, Wargula 2 0-0 6, Kehl 1 0-0 2, Ty.
Skripko 1 0-0 2, Kosciolek 2 3-4 8, Weinert 0 0-0 0, MacDonald 0 0-0 0, Marcin 0 0-0 0. Totals 13 8-10 42. 3-point FGs: Blankenhorn, Bridy, Coyle, Rottet 3, Chartier 2, Wagula 2, Kosciolek JV score: No game
Crimson Tide Clips the Cardinal's Wing's The Crimson Tide glided to a 71 - 37 victory of the Pine Grove Cardinals.
The Tide were led by a trio of scoring from Brandon Bridy with 17 points and Eli Nabholz's 15 points and Travis Blankenhorn's
14 points. The game marked the return
to action for Eli who was out most of the season with a injury. His strong showing on the court with 2 three pointers
highlight the game. The Tide scored a season high of 71 points with an all around team effort. The Crimson Tide also continued it's streak against the Schuylkill League teams to an impressive
52 games. The Tide will be traveling to Tamaqua for it's next league game. Pottsville
71 Pine Grove 37 PINE GROVE - Brandon Bridy paced a trio of double-digit scorers
with 17 points as the Crimson Tide rolled past the Cardinals in a Division I contest. Bridy scores 11 and Travis Blankenhorn tallied 12 of his 14 in the first half as Pottsville built a 34-22 lead. Eli
Nabholz, in his first action of the season, scored 12 of his 15 points in the second half as the Tide pulled away. Kobe D'Agostino has a game-high 20 points for Pine Grove. POTTSVILLE
(71) - Painter 0 2-4 2, Blankenhorn 5 2-4 14, Moser 0 0-0 0, Plachko 2 0-0 5, Witman 4 0-2 8, Doyle 0 0-0 0, Bridy 5 7-8 17,
Toomey 0 0-0 0, Nabholz 5 3-3 15, Coyle 3 0-0 7, Hinchliffe 0 0-0 0, Kuperavage 0 0-0 0, Wile 1 1-2 3. Totals 25 15-23 71. PINE GROVE (37) - Blankenhorn 0 1-2 1, D'Agostino 7 3-7 20, Rossi 0 0-0 0, Mars 0 0-1 0, Bressler 1 1-2 3, Wolfe
2 0-0 5, Fidler 0 0-1 0, Weinus 1 2-4 4, Kreiser 2 0-0 4, Keefer 0 0-0 0, Seiger 0 0-2 0. Totals 13 7-19 37. 3-point FGs: T. Blankenhorn 2, Plachko, Nabholz 2, Coyle, D'Agostino 3, Wolfe JV score: Pottsville 61-33
Crimson Tide fend off Muhlenberg's challenge Published: January 19, 2013
LAURELDALE - Travis Blankenhorn connected on six
3-pointers en route to a 24-point performance as Pottsville earned a 54-46 non-league boys' basketball victory over Muhlenberg
on Saturday afternoon. Blankenhorn hit four 3-pointers in the second half, including
two in the fourth quarter to stem a Muhlenberg charge. Brandon Bridy added 14
points for the Crimson Tide. POTTSVILLE (54) - Painter 0 0-0 0, Blankenhorn 2
6 2-3 24, Witman 1 3-5 5, Bridy 5 4-6 14, Toomey 3 0-0 6, Coyle 2 0-0 5, Hinchliffe 0 0-0 0, Wile 0 0-0 0. Totals 19 9-14
54 MUHLENBERG (46) - Flynn 3 4-5 10, Ovid 3 1 1-2 10, Devault 2 0-0 4, Siggins
0 0-0 0, Stinson 1 2-2 4, Onwudinjo 2 0-1 4, Giraldi 1 1-2 4, Hine 3 4-4 10. Totals 16 12-16 46. 3-point FGs: Blankenhorn 6, Coyle, Ovid, Giraldi JV score: Pottsville
29-27
Tide Clips Jim Thorpe 63 - 34 for It's 10th
Win of the Season Pottsville 63 Jim Thorpe 34 JIM THORPE - Travis Blankenhorn returned to the lineup after missing six games due to injury and scored eight of
his 13 points in the first half as the Crimson Tide rolled past the Olympians. Brandon Bridy led
all scorers with 19 points, scoring nine of those in the third quarter. Pottsville, which clinched a District 11 Class AAA
playoff spot with victory, led 30-11 at halftime and 52-22 after three frames. POTTSVILLE (63)
- Painter 0 0-0 0, Blankenhorn 5 0-0 13, Moser 0 0-0 0, Plachko 0 0-0 0, Witman 3 1-1 7, Bridy 5 8-9 19, Toomey 1 0-0 2, Coyle
1 2-2 4, Hinchliffe 1 0-0 2, Kuperavage 1 0-0 3, Wile 3 1-1 9, Melochick 2 0-1 4. Totals 22 12-14 63. JIM
THORPE (34) - Harleston 3 2-2 8, Heydt 0 0-0 0, Lindsey 2 1-4 5, M. Principe 0 0-0 0, Green 0 0-0 0, Smith 1 0-0 2, S. Principe
1 0-0 3, McElmoyle 0 0-0 0, Micciche 2 0-0 6, Brown 3 0-0 6, Everett 2 0-2 4. Totals 14 3-8 34. 3-point
FGs: Blankenhorn 3, Bridy, Kuperavage, Wile 2, Micciche 2, S. Principe JV score: Jim Thorpe 53-50 )&t=blank&al=(as$12nmvqcqm,aid$JEMmsGKIDKE-,bi$1594022051,cr$3091240051,ct$25,at$0))
Crimson Tide PoundsThe Panthers 59 - 31 Brandon
Bridy scored a game-high 18 points, including eight in a 19 - 8, second quarter run, to lead Pottsville to a Division 1 win
at Martz Hall. Ryan Coyle contributed 13 points and Jordan Melochick had 11 for the Crimson Tide, who led 31 - 15 at Half-time. Jake Szczecina netted 14 points and Steve Romanchik added 11
for the Panthers.
Panther Valley (31) - Szczecina 5 0-0 14, Stano 1 0-0 2, Romanchik 5 1-2 11, Kerschner 0 0-2 0, Ferryman
1 1-2 4, Dubosky 0 0-0 0, Owens 0 0-0 0, Nase 0 0-0 0, Hudicka 0 0-0 0, Horan 0 0-0 0, Weng 0 0-0 0. Totals 12 2-6 31
Pottsville
(59) - Painter 0 1-2 1, Moser 0 2-2 2, Plachko 0 0-0 0, Witman 1 4-5 6, Doyle 0 0-0 0, Bridy 6 6-8 18, Toomey 1 0-2 2, Coyle
6 0-0 13, Hinchliffe 0 0-0 0, Kupervage 1 0-0 3, Wile 1 0-0 3, Melochick 5 1-1 11. Totals 21 14-20 59 3-Point FG's - Szczecina 4, Ferryman, Coyle, Kupervage, Wile JV Score - Pottsville 45 - 18
Pocono Mountain West Tops The Tide Pocono Summit: Zach Wile score a team high 12 points, but a slow start hampered the
Crimson Tide in a non-league loss to the Panthers. Pocono Mountain opened the game on a 12-2 run and led 24-7 at halftime.
The loss ended Pottsville's seven game win streak. Pottsville(26) -- Plachko 0 0-0 0, Witman 2 0-0 4, Doyle 0 0-0 0, Bridy 3 1-2 7, Toomey 0 0-0
0, Coyle 0 3-6 3, Hinchliffe 0 0-0 0, Kuperavage 0 0-0 0, Wile 4 1-1 12,Melochick
0 0-0 0, Totals 9 5-9 26 Pocono Mountain West (47) Dixon 1
0-0 2, Vick 1 0-0 2, Cooper 3 0-0 6, Miles 0-0-0 0, Howard 0- 0-0 0, Diaz 0- 0-2 0,Wiggins 7 1-3 16,
Baptiste 3 0-0 6, FHardy 6 0-0 15, Toyals 21 1-5 47 Pottsville (8-4)
2 5 6 13 --- 26 PM West
(8-2) 12 12 15 8 --- 47
Crimson Tide stifle North Schuylkill, win 7th straightby
mike carnahan (staff writer mcarnahan@republicanherald.com) Published: January 7, 2013 FOUNTAIN SPRINGS - Pottsville's Travis Blankenhorn spent the night on the bench dressed in street clothes
again. He sat next to Eli Nabholz, who hasn't see action at all yet this season. In the second quarter, the Crimson Tide's Brandon Bridy and Bobby Witman both got into foul trouble,
each picking up their second personals. It really didn't matter much. The Crimson Tide just kept rolling along, much
like that college football team with the same nickname did Monday night. Ty Painter and John Toomey provided the key
minutes off the bench, Bridy finished with a double-double and Pottsville's defense was its usual self in a 50-31 victory
over North Schuylkill in a Schuylkill League Division I contest. Bridy picked up his second personal with 5:53 left
in the first half on an offensive foul. Witman got his second fouling the Spartans' Jake Damiter on a drive with 2:47 to go.
At that point, Pottsville's lead was under 10 points. It was double digits at halftime. The Crimson Tide never really
missed a beat, get key contributions from Painter, a good defender who knocked down a 3-pointer from the top of the key with
1:28 left in the half to make it 22-13. Ryan Coyle then hit 1-of-2 for the foul line with 33 seconds left, making it
23-13 at the half. Pottsville (8-3, 4-0 D-I) increased its lead from there in the second half, going on a 13-5 run in
the third quarter to make it 36-18, and went on to its seventh consecutive victory. "Ty Painter came off the bench
and gave us some big minutes," Pottsville coach Dave Mullaney said. "It's a nice luxury to have if Brandon happens
to be in foul trouble." Bridy finished the night with 20 points and 11 rebounds, while Coyle had eight points,
including buzzer-beating buckets at the end of the first and third quarters. Damon Meyer and Pat Walsh had 10 points
apiece for the Spartans (7-3, 2-2 D-I), who were held for a season-low in points. The Crimson Tide turned in another
impressive defensive performance. They came in allowing 34.4 points per game and Monday's performance was the seventh straight
contest Pottsville held an opponent under 35 points. Bridy matched up with Walsh, while Coyle guarded Meyer and Zach
Wile held Jake Damiter, North Schuylkill's leading scorer at 12.7 points per game, to no field goals and one point. "Coyle
and Wile were the keys for us," Mullaney said. "Coyle did a great job guarding Meyer and Zach holding Damiter to
1 point was a great defensive job for us." The Spartans finished the night 10-for-32 (31 percent) from the floor
as poor shooting hurt them again. Coach Curt Ziegmont felt North Schuylkill got quality looks against Pottsville's man-to-man
defense in the first half, the shots just weren't dropping. "It's pretty much what has been going on with us since
the season started," he said. "It is frustrating and it has little to do with Pottsville. This is something that's
been plaguing us, foul shooting, missed opportunities, missed inside shots, layups. "I don't know what the magic
word is." The Crimson Tide were efficient offensively, hitting 15-for-31 (48 percent) on the night. North Schuylkill
cut the deficit to 29-18 after a baseline jumper by Meyer with 1:58 left in the third quarter. Pottsville, however,
finished the quarter on a 7-0 run. Wile drove in from the lane on the Tide's next possession, Bridy hit 3-for-4 from the line
and Coyle finished it off, dropping in a shot off the baseline at the buzzer to up the lead to 18. "They are a
great defensive team and they did a lot of defense things that as a coach, you just have to trust your players with their
trapping and switching," Mullaney said. "Before we were even making the call, they are looking to attack and get
the ball to the right guy. We did a phenomenal job." Mullaney is expecting Blankenhorn (knee) back for next Monday's
game at Jim Thorpe. Nabholz (back) might be cleared to begin practice next week. POTTSVILLE (50) - Painter 1 1-2
4, Plachko 0 0-0 0, Witman 2 3-3 7, Doyle 0 0-0 0, Bridy 7 4-5 20, Toomey 0 0-0 0, Coyle 2 3-4 8, Hinchliffe 0 0-0 0, Kuperavage
0 0-0 0, Wile 2 2-2 6, Melochick 1 3-4 5. Totals 15 16-20 50. NORTH SCHUYLKILL (31) - Hughes 1 2-2 4, Ennis 0 0-0 0,
Murray 0 0-0 0, Weist 1 1-1 3, Meyer 4 1-1 10, Wiley 0 0-0 0, Manbeck 0 1-2 1, Howard 0 0-0 0, Damiter 0 1-2 1, Grigas 0 0-0
0, Galagher 0 0-0 0, Stokes 1 0-0 2, Marone 0 0-0 0, Walsh 3 4-9 10. Totals 10 10-17 31. 3-point FGs: Painter, Bridy
2, Coyle, Meyer JV score: Pottsville 52-42
"Tide Makes Mincemeat out of Hamburg" The Crimson Tide after a slow start, came back to beat Hamburg 57-25 at Martz
Hall, this afternoon. The Tide had a well balanced attack with four players scoring in double figures. Brandon Bridy led the
Tide with 12 points, followed by Ryan Coyle's 11 points and Bobby Witman and Zach Wile adding 10 points each. This game marked the return to action for Tyler Moser, who was
sidelined with an wrist injury, Tyler hit a long 3 to get in the scorebook. The Crimson Tide improve it's record to 7 and
3, The Tide will next meet North Schuylkill on Tuesday. Pottsville
57 Hamburg 25 Brandon Bridy scored all 12 of his points in a 32-1 run from the
second quarter into the fourth as the Crimson Tide rolled past the Hawks in a non-league game at Martz Hall. Ryan Coyle added 11 points and Bobby Witman and Zach Wile each netted 10 for Pottsville, which outscored
Hamburg 20-0 in the third quarter. The Hawks led 13-9 after one frame. HAMBURG
(25) - Fink 0 0-0 0, Barter 2 0-2 5, Barr 1 2 0-0 8, Schlottman 2 0-0 4, Preston 0 0-2 0, Kisha 3 0-0 6, Peacock 0 0-0 0,
Lesher 0 1-2 1, Hauck 0 1-2 1. Totals 7 3 2-8 25. POTTSVILLE (57) - Painter 0
0-0 0, Moser 1 0-0 3, Plachko 0 0-0 0, Witman 5 0-0 10, Doyle 0 0-0 0, Bridy 6 0-0 12, Toomey 1 1-4 3, Coyle 4 2-2 11, Hinchliffe
1 0-0 3, Kuperavage 1 0-0 3, Wile 5 0-0 10, Melochick 1 0-0 2. Totals 25 3-6 57. 3-point
FGs: Barter, Barr 2, Moser, Coyle, Hinchliffe, Kuperavage JV score: Pottsville
55-13
Pottsville defense shuts down Eagles
by leroy boyer (sports editor lboyer@republicanherald.com) Published:
January 4, 2013
ORWIGSBURG - Ryan Coyle called it
"tough, physical, all those adjectives." Brandon Bridy called it "amazing." Whatever you call
it, Pottsville's defensive effort against Blue Mountain on Friday night was one to remember. The Crimson Tide held the
high-powered Eagles offense without a field goal for nearly 16 minutes through the middle quarters en route to a 43-33 victory
in a Schuylkill League Division I first-place showdown. The victory, Pottsville's fifth straight, leaves the Crimson
Tide (6-3, 3-0 D-I) as the lone unbeaten in Division I and ends the Eagles' six-game win streak. "It's who we are.
That's Pottsville basketball," Bridy said of the Tide defense, which has allowed just 35.4 points per game. "We
pride ourselves on defense and we work on it every day. "It was very amazing tonight. It was a great defensive
effort by the whole team tonight." In front of a packed house that featured two loud, boisterous student sections,
Pottsville stifled a Blue Mountain offense that came into the contest averaging 68.4 points per game. Leading 13-10
with 5:45 left in the second quarter, Pottsville put together a 19-3 run that spanned 15 minutes, 37 seconds, gave the Tide
a 32-13 lead and didn't end until Peter Harding drained a 3-pointer from left wing with 6:18 remaining in the fourth quarter. Blue
Mountain (7-2, 3-1) scored just one point in the third quarter, and shot 1-for-16 (6 percent) from the field through the middle
quarters. The Eagles were 4-for-30 (13 percent) through the first three quarters while committing 12 turnovers. "You
have to credit Pottsville for their defense," Blue Mountain coach Dustin Werdt said. "They do it to every team they
play. They have the best scoring defense in the county, and they showed it tonight. "They did a great job dictating
the tempo. They defended, they stopped the transition, they take care of the ball on offense." A key to the Crimson
Tide's success was their ability to prevent Blue Mountain from scoring fast-break baskets and getting points off transition. Playing
without sophomore Travis Blankenhorn, who suffered a knee injury this week in practice, Pottsville got a great effort from
Zach Wile, who limited Blue Mountain top scorer Will Bornstein (16.1 ppg) to 10 points. Bridy held Harding (13.9 ppg)
to just six points, while freshman Jordan Melochick added seven points and four rebounds starting in place of Blankenhorn.
Bobby Witman led the inside effort with six rebounds and three blocks. "That was the first thing on the list when
we prepared for tonight - defensive transition," Pottsville coach Dave Mullaney said. "Make sure we sprint to the
paint, funnel out to our guys. In particular, we wanted to run to Harding, because we know what a great shooter he is. "We
thought if we could get them more into a half-court, it would be to our benefit." The key point in the game came
at the end of the first quarter, when Coyle drained a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from the top of the key to give Pottsville
an 8-6 lead. The shot came one possession after Bornstein scored off a steal, and just seconds after Bornstein picked up his
second foul trying for another steal. Coyle finished with 10 points, hitting an almost identical 3-pointer at the end
of the first half to put Pottsville up 20-12. "That was huge," Coyle said of his first 3-pointer. "It
was a complete swing in our favor." Bridy led all scorers with 16 points, and added six rebounds and five assists
in an impressive all-around effort. With Blankenhorn (13.1 ppg) out, Bridy took over the game at key points. He scored
12 points in the second half as the Tide held off a late Blue Mountain charge. "Losing a player like Travis is
big for us. I tried to get my other teammates involved," Bridy said. Added Mullaney: "Brandon ... I don't
think you'll get a lot of arguments about him being the best player in the Schuylkill League. He does so many things for us.
Great defender, can score off the dribble, can score from the perimeter, gets other guys involved. He's a great player."
Game Summary POTTSVILLE (43) - Witman 1 0-1 2, Bridy 5 5-8 16, Coyle 3 2-2 10, Wile 3 0-0 8, Melochick 3 1-2 7, Toomey
0 0-0 0, Painter 0 0-0 0. Totals 15 8-13 43. BLUE MOUNTAIN (33) - Bornstein 4 2-2 10, Harding 2 0-0 6, Slane 3 1-2 8,
Grapsy 1 1-2 4, Coller 1 2-2 4, Panchari 0 1-2 1. Totals 11 7-10 33. 3-point FGs: Bridy, Coyle 2, Wile 2, Harding 2,
Slane, Grapsy JV score: Pottsville 36-34
Tide runs Over Tamaqua For Coach Mullaney's 100th Victory Mullaney secures 100th career win in Tide's
rout of TamaquaPublished: January 2, 2013
Pottsville coach Dave Mullaney notched his 100th career victory as the Crimson Tide shut down Tamaqua for a 46-25
win in a Schuylkill League Division I boys' basketball contest at Martz Hall on Wednesday night. Brandon Bridy scored 19 points for Pottsville, while Ryan Coyle added 16. The duo combined for all 16 points in the
second quarter as the Tide pulled away. Adam Frantz led Tamaqua with eight points.
TAMAQUA (25) - Rottet 1 1-2 3, Chartier 0 0-0 0, Krell 0 0-0 0, Weinert 0 0-0
0, Frantz 4 0-0 8, Wargula 2 1-2 6, Kehl 0 0-2 0, McDonald 0 0-0 0, Marcin 0 0-0 0, Ty. Skripko 0 0-0 0, Kosciolek 2 0-0 4,
Tr. Skripko 0 0-0 0, Hartung 2 0-0 4 Totals 11 2-6 25. POTTSVILLE (46) - Painter
0 0-0 0, Plachko 0 0-0 0, Witman 2 3-3 7, Doyle 0 0-0 0, Bridy 8 2-3 19, Toomey 0 0-0 0, Coyle 7 1-2 16, Hinchliffe 0 0-0
0, Kuperavage 0 0-0 0, Wile 1 0-0 2, Melochick 1 0-0 2. Totals 19 6-8 46. 3-point
FGs: Wargula, Bridy, Coyle JV score: Pottsville 45-27
Red-hot Crimson Tide thump Hilltoppers December 27, 2012 Travis Blankenhorn
was perfect from beyond the arc in the first half as Pottsville hit on 8-of-10 3-point attempts. It took Nativity nearly
10 minutes to score its first field goal in the game. It was that kind of night for both at the annual Battle of the
Hills. Ryan Coyle and Blankenhorn scored 15 points apiece as the Crimson Tide raced out to a big lead and rolled to
a 56-27 victory over the Hilltoppers on Thursday evening at Martz Hall. Pottsville opened the game with a 23-1 run and
led 43-8 late in the first half. The Crimson Tide built their advantage to 48-11 midway through the third quarter before taking
most of their starters out. After starting the season 1-3, Pottsville (4-3) has now won three in a row. In all three
of those wins, the Tide have held their opponents under 30 points. "I was happy with the effort," Pottsville
coach Dave Mullaney said. "We made a lot of shots offensively that made us look good. We were fortunate we were able
to do that." Brandon Bridy added eight points, five rebounds and three assists for Pottsville, while John Toomey
had four assists. Jeff Yordy led Nativity with 10 points and five rebounds, with Kyle Kaledas grabbing six boards. Pottsville
was 7-for-13 (54 percent) from the field during its game-opening run. Two of those misses were grabbed for offensive rebounds
- one by Bobby Witman and the other by Coyle - resulting in five second-chance points. Overall, the Tide finished 15-for-27
(56 percent) in the first half, including their 80 percent showing from 3-point land as all five of Blankenhorn's field goals
Thursday were 3-pointers. That included a run of three consecutive triples early in the first half that turned a close game
into a 16-1 Pottsville lead. Coyle, who hit two 3-pointers in the game, followed Blankenhorn's run with one of his own
from the top of the circle to make it a 19-point lead with 4:12 left in the first. Coyle and Witman each followed with a free
throw, while a slash by Bridy gave the Tide their 23-1 advantage with 1:12 left in the quarter. While Mullaney was happy
with how well Pottsville shot the ball, he was hoping the Tide established more of an inside game. It is something he is still
looking for as the season moves along. "You always hope that you just don't rely on perimeter shots and that you
score in a variety of ways," Mullaney said. "We hit perimeter shots in the half court, and obviously our defense
led to transition points." Indeed, Pottsville was its usual self defensively again, as its half-court, man-to-man
defense prevented the Hilltoppers from developing any rhythm as all in the first half. Nativity was 2-for-15 from the floor
and turned the ball over 13 times in the first half. "If there is a better defensive team than that in the league,
I don't want to see them," Nativity coach Kevin Kennedy said. All five of the Hilltoppers first-quarter points
were free throws by Yordy. Jason DiNicola scored on a cut inside for Nativity's first field goal with 6:18 remaining in the
first half. Tyler Hunyara had the Hilltopppers' other first-half field goal, scoring inside with 39 seconds to go. "The
kids played hard in the second half," Kennedy said. "I wasn't sure if it was the fact that we were playing in Martz
Hall, that it was Pottsville, or a combination of both, but in the first half, we just couldn't get anything going. It was
a shipwreck at halftime." Game Summary NATIVITY (27) - White 0 0-0 0, Holohan 2 0-0 4, J. DiNicola 1 0-0 2, Sabol
0 0-0 0, Hunyara 1 0-0 2, Hoppel 0 0-0 0, Yordy 2 5-6 10, Kaledas 1 1-2 3, Palamar 1 1-3 3, Piccioni 1 0-0 3, McGovern 0 0-0
0, G. DiNicola 0 0-0 0. Totals 9 7-11 27. POTTSVILLE (56) - Painter 1 0-0 2, Blankenhorn 5 0-0 15, Plachko 1 0-0 3,
Witman 1 4-7 6, Doyle 0 0-0 0, Bridy 3 2-2 8, Toomey 0 0-0 0, Coyle 6 1-2 15, Hinchliffe 1 0-0 3, Kuperavage 0 0-0 0, Wile
0 0-0 0, Melochick 1 2-4 4. Totals 19 9-15 56. 3-point FGs: Yordy, Piccioni, Blankenhorn 5, Plachko, Coyle 2, Hinchliffe JV
score: Pottsville 60-21
Crimson Tide Hit the Speed Limit "55" Pottsville's
Schuylkill League winning streak hit 55 games with a win over North Schuylkill last night. The steak includes the regular season
and playoff games. The Tide hope to finish the year with an undefeated regular season with two games left against Panther
Valley and Jim Thorpe. This would be the third year in a row undefeated in regular season.
Tide earn Division I crownPublished: February 2, 2013
Travis Blankenhorn scored a game-high
15 points as Pottsville got out to an early lead en route to a 52-32 victory over North Schuylkill at Martz Hall that clinched
the Schuylkill League Division I championship and a spot in the league playoffs for the Crimson Tide. Pottsville opened
the game on a 14-4 run as Blankenhorn scored five of his points in the first quarter. He added eight points more in the third
as Pottsville built a 45-19 advantage and put the game away. Brandon Bridy added 10 points for Pottsville, which clinched
the Division I title for the fourth consecutive year and is looking for its fourth straight overall league title. Bobby
Grigas placed the Spartans with 11 points. NORTH SCHUYLKILL (32) - Hughes 1 0-0 2, Ennis 0 0-0 0, Murray 0 0-0 0, Weist
0 0-0 0, Marlow 0 0-0 0, Meyer 3 0-0 8, Wiley 0 0-0 0, Manbeck 0 0-0 0, Howard 0 0-0 0, Damiter 1 2-2 4, Grigas 2 7-8 11,
Stokes 1 1-2 3, Walsh 2 0-0 4, Mazeika 0 0-0 0, Hillbish 0 0-0 0. Totals 10 10-12 32. POTTSVILLE (52) - Painter 0 0-0
0, Blankenhorn 6 0-0 15, Moser 0 0-0 0, Plachko 1 0-2 2, Witman 3 0-0 6, Dunkel 1 0-0 2, Doyle 1 0-0 2, Bridy 5 0-0 10, Toomey
0 0-0 0, Coyle 0 0-0 0, Hinchcliffe 1 0-0 3, Kuperavage 0 0-0 0, Wile 3 0-0 8, Melochick 1 2-3 4. Totals 22 2-5 52. 3-point
FGs: Meyer 2, Blankenhorn 3, Hinchcliffe, Wile 2 JV score: Pottsville 48-40
|
|
| Photo By Pottsville Republican |
|
|
| Photo By Pottsville Republican |
|
|
| Photo By Pottsville Republican |
|
|
| Photo By Pottsville Republican |
Pottsville downs Blue Mountain in Division I showdownby mike carnahan (staff writer mcarnahan@republicanherald.com) Published: January 29, 2013
Pottsville's student section serenaded Brandon Bridy with chants of "MVP, MVP" as he was introduced before
the start of Tuesday's game with rival Blue Mountain. The 6-foot-2 senior guard
didn't disappoint the Crimson Tide fans, especially offensively down the stretch. And he wasn't the only Pottsville player
making plays late. Bridy scored seven of his game-high 15 points in the fourth
quarter while Pottsville's defense came up with key stops, lifting the Crimson Tide to a hard-fought, 46-39 victory over the
Eagles in a Schuylkill League Division I contest at Martz Hall. What started
out as a potential rout turned into a dogfight and a much more competitive contest than the first meeting between the two
backyard rivals - a 43-33 Pottsville victory Jan. 4 in Orwigsburg. The Crimson
Tide (14-4, 9-0 D-I) found a way to get it done despite shooting 6-for-19 (32 percent) from the field in the second half. The win was Pottsville's 40th consecutive league victory. With three division games left, the Crimson Tide now have
a two-game lead over Blue Mountain (13-4, 7-2) and a three-game cushion over third-place North Schuylkill (13-5, 6-3). "It was a grind-out game," Bridy said. "Our defense helped us get some stops in the fourth quarter.
We executed well on offensive." Travis Blankenhorn, who missed the first
meeting, added 13 points for Pottsville, while Ryan Coyle had eight, including a perfect 6-for-6 performance from the foul
line. Will Bornstein scored nine of his 12 points in the second half for the
Eagles, who battled back from an 11-point halftime deficit and cut Pottsville's led to two early in the fourth. Blue Mountain trailed 38-35 after Peter Harding hit a 3-pointer from the corner with 2:13 to go. But Bridy hit two
free throws after he was fouled on a drive on Pottsville's next possession, making it a five-point game with 1:48 left. Bridy, who came in tied for second in the league in scoring with Marian's Ryan Karnish at 16.6 points per game, hit
2-of-3 from the field in the fourth. He scored inside over a Blue Mountain defender
to give Pottsville a 34-30 lead after the Eagles cut the deficit to two, then later scored on a layup, grabbing the ball after
Bobby Witman swatted away a Bornstein shot inside. Bridy was 3-for-4 from the
foul line in the fourth and had a couple of defensive rebounds, too. "I
think everybody on our team wants the ball in the fourth quarter," Bridy said. "We are not selfish at all. Whoever
is hot, whoever is wide open, we will give it to them. We have confidence in all five of our guys scoring." Bridy certainly wasn't the only one making plays in the fourth. Witman
had two blocks, while Coyle was a perfect 4-for-4 from the foul line. Coyle wrapped the win up by hitting both shots in a
double-bonus situation with 19.2 seconds left. Blankenhorn also had a key defensive
stop, taking a charge on Bornstein - one of four defensive charges the Tide had in the game - with 54.9 seconds left. It turned
out to be Bornstein's fifth foul, sending him to the bench. "That basically
sealed it for us," Bridy said. The Tide opened the game on an 8-0 run, but
the Eagles got back in the game by attacking the basket more on the offensive end in the second half. After shooting 3-for-13 (23 percent) from the floor in the first half, the Eagles shot 9-for-18 (50 percent) in the
second. "We started to get more aggressive," Blue Mountain coach Dustin
Werdt said. "In the first half, we just settled for jump shots and contested jump shots. In the second half, we started
attacking the basket." What hurt Blue Mountain was foul trouble. The Eagles
had three starters foul out, with Cody Coller and Kyle Slane joining Bornstein. "In
the second half we were lucky to dig in and get a couple of stops," Pottsville coach Dave Mullaney said. "To be
honest with you, I felt they outplayed us. I feel very fortunate to get this win with the stuff they were forcing us to do." BLUE MOUNTAIN (39) - Bornstein 4 4-5 12, P. Harding 3 0-0 8, Slane 2 2-2 7, Grapsy 0 1-2 1, Jones 0 0-0 0, Tobash
0 0-0 0, Coller 1 3-6 5, Panchari 2 2-4 6. Totals 12 12-19 39. POTTSVILLE (46)
- Painter 0 0-0 0, Blankenhorn 4 3-4 13, Witman 2 1-2 5, Bridy 5 5-7 15, Toomey 0 0-0 0, Nabholz 1 0-0 2, Coyle 1 6-6 8, Wile
0 1-2 1, Melochick 0 2-2 2. Totals 13 18-23 46. 3-point FGs: P. Harding 2, Slane,
Blankenhorn 2 JV score: Pottsville 58-41
|
|
| Photo By Pottsville Republican |
|
|
| Photo By Pottsville Republican |
|
|
| Photo By Pottsville Republican |
Brandon Lights up The Blue Raiders Brandon Bridy led the Crimson Tide to a 59-42 victory over Tamaqua. Brandon
scored a personal and season high 29 points. The Tide's pressure defense in the first half forced Tamaqua into 13 first half
turnovers. The Tide never looked back after that. Travis Blankenhorn scored 8 points and Ryan Coyle added 7. Bobby Witman
controlled the boards for the Tide.
Pottsville 59 Tamaqua 42 TAMAQUA - Brandon Bridy exploded
for a season-high 29 points as the Crimson Tide used a big second quarter to down the Raiders in a Division I contest. Pottsville led 11-8 after the first quarter and then went on a 20-9 run in the second to go up 31-17 at the half. Bo Rottet had 11 points to pace the Raiders. POTTSVILLE (59) - Painter
0 0-0 0 Blankenhorn 3 1-2 8, Moser 0 0-0 0, Plachko 0 0-0 0, Witman 2 1-2 5, Doyle, 0-0-0-0, Bridy 13 2-4 29, Toomey 0 0-0
0, Nabholz 2 0-0 4, Coyle 3 0-1 7, Wile 1 2-3 4, Kuperavage 0 0-0 0, Melochick 1 0-0 2. Totals 25 6-12 59. TAMAQUA (42) - Rottet 2 4-5 11, Chartier 2 0-0 6, Krell 2 1-1 5, Frantz 1 0-0 2, Wargula 2 0-0 6, Kehl 1 0-0 2, Ty.
Skripko 1 0-0 2, Kosciolek 2 3-4 8, Weinert 0 0-0 0, MacDonald 0 0-0 0, Marcin 0 0-0 0. Totals 13 8-10 42. 3-point FGs: Blankenhorn, Bridy, Coyle, Rottet 3, Chartier 2, Wagula 2, Kosciolek JV score: No game
Crimson Tide Clips the Cardinal's Wing's The Crimson Tide glided to a 71 - 37 victory of the Pine Grove Cardinals.
The Tide were led by a trio of scoring from Brandon Bridy with 17 points and Eli Nabholz's 15 points and Travis Blankenhorn's
14 points. The game marked the return
to action for Eli who was out most of the season with a injury. His strong showing on the court with 2 three pointers
highlight the game. The Tide scored a season high of 71 points with an all around team effort. The Crimson Tide also continued it's streak against the Schuylkill League teams to an impressive
52 games. The Tide will be traveling to Tamaqua for it's next league game. Pottsville
71 Pine Grove 37 PINE GROVE - Brandon Bridy paced a trio of double-digit scorers
with 17 points as the Crimson Tide rolled past the Cardinals in a Division I contest. Bridy scores 11 and Travis Blankenhorn tallied 12 of his 14 in the first half as Pottsville built a 34-22 lead. Eli
Nabholz, in his first action of the season, scored 12 of his 15 points in the second half as the Tide pulled away. Kobe D'Agostino has a game-high 20 points for Pine Grove. POTTSVILLE
(71) - Painter 0 2-4 2, Blankenhorn 5 2-4 14, Moser 0 0-0 0, Plachko 2 0-0 5, Witman 4 0-2 8, Doyle 0 0-0 0, Bridy 5 7-8 17,
Toomey 0 0-0 0, Nabholz 5 3-3 15, Coyle 3 0-0 7, Hinchliffe 0 0-0 0, Kuperavage 0 0-0 0, Wile 1 1-2 3. Totals 25 15-23 71. PINE GROVE (37) - Blankenhorn 0 1-2 1, D'Agostino 7 3-7 20, Rossi 0 0-0 0, Mars 0 0-1 0, Bressler 1 1-2 3, Wolfe
2 0-0 5, Fidler 0 0-1 0, Weinus 1 2-4 4, Kreiser 2 0-0 4, Keefer 0 0-0 0, Seiger 0 0-2 0. Totals 13 7-19 37. 3-point FGs: T. Blankenhorn 2, Plachko, Nabholz 2, Coyle, D'Agostino 3, Wolfe JV score: Pottsville 61-33
Crimson Tide fend off Muhlenberg's challenge Published: January 19, 2013
LAURELDALE - Travis Blankenhorn connected on six
3-pointers en route to a 24-point performance as Pottsville earned a 54-46 non-league boys' basketball victory over Muhlenberg
on Saturday afternoon. Blankenhorn hit four 3-pointers in the second half, including
two in the fourth quarter to stem a Muhlenberg charge. Brandon Bridy added 14
points for the Crimson Tide. POTTSVILLE (54) - Painter 0 0-0 0, Blankenhorn 2
6 2-3 24, Witman 1 3-5 5, Bridy 5 4-6 14, Toomey 3 0-0 6, Coyle 2 0-0 5, Hinchliffe 0 0-0 0, Wile 0 0-0 0. Totals 19 9-14
54 MUHLENBERG (46) - Flynn 3 4-5 10, Ovid 3 1 1-2 10, Devault 2 0-0 4, Siggins
0 0-0 0, Stinson 1 2-2 4, Onwudinjo 2 0-1 4, Giraldi 1 1-2 4, Hine 3 4-4 10. Totals 16 12-16 46. 3-point FGs: Blankenhorn 6, Coyle, Ovid, Giraldi JV score: Pottsville
29-27
Tide Clips Jim Thorpe 63 - 34 for It's 10th
Win of the Season Pottsville 63 Jim Thorpe 34 JIM THORPE -
Travis Blankenhorn returned to the lineup after missing six games due to injury and scored eight of his 13 points in the first
half as the Crimson Tide rolled past the Olympians. Brandon Bridy led all scorers with 19 points, scoring nine of those
in the third quarter. Pottsville, which clinched a District 11 Class AAA playoff spot with victory, led 30-11 at halftime
and 52-22 after three frames. POTTSVILLE (63) - Painter 0 0-0 0, Blankenhorn 5 0-0 13, Moser 0 0-0 0, Plachko 0 0-0
0, Witman 3 1-1 7, Bridy 5 8-9 19, Toomey 1 0-0 2, Coyle 1 2-2 4, Hinchliffe 1 0-0 2, Kuperavage 1 0-0 3, Wile 3 1-1 9, Melochick
2 0-1 4. Totals 22 12-14 63. JIM THORPE (34) - Harleston 3 2-2 8, Heydt 0 0-0 0, Lindsey 2 1-4 5, M. Principe 0 0-0
0, Green 0 0-0 0, Smith 1 0-0 2, S. Principe 1 0-0 3, McElmoyle 0 0-0 0, Micciche 2 0-0 6, Brown 3 0-0 6, Everett 2 0-2 4.
Totals 14 3-8 34. 3-point FGs: Blankenhorn 3, Bridy, Kuperavage, Wile 2, Micciche 2, S. Principe JV score: Jim
Thorpe 53-50
Crimson Tide PoundsThe Panthers 59 - 31 Brandon
Bridy scored a game-high 18 points, including eight in a 19 - 8, second quarter run, to lead Pottsville to a Division 1 win
at Martz Hall. Ryan Coyle contributed 13 points and Jordan Melochick had 11 for the Crimson Tide, who led 31 - 15 at Half-time. Jake Szczecina netted 14 points and Steve Romanchik added 11
for the Panthers.
Panther Valley (31) - Szczecina 5 0-0 14, Stano 1 0-0 2, Romanchik 5 1-2 11, Kerschner 0 0-2 0, Ferryman
1 1-2 4, Dubosky 0 0-0 0, Owens 0 0-0 0, Nase 0 0-0 0, Hudicka 0 0-0 0, Horan 0 0-0 0, Weng 0 0-0 0. Totals 12 2-6 31
Pottsville
(59) - Painter 0 1-2 1, Moser 0 2-2 2, Plachko 0 0-0 0, Witman 1 4-5 6, Doyle 0 0-0 0, Bridy 6 6-8 18, Toomey 1 0-2 2, Coyle
6 0-0 13, Hinchliffe 0 0-0 0, Kupervage 1 0-0 3, Wile 1 0-0 3, Melochick 5 1-1 11. Totals 21 14-20 59 3-Point FG's - Szczecina 4, Ferryman, Coyle, Kupervage, Wile JV Score - Pottsville 45 - 18
"Pottsville rolls past Shamokin" December 23, 2012Brandon Bridy scored all of his game-high 18 points in the first half as Pottsville
rolled to a 65-26, non-league victory over Shamokin on Saturday afternoon at Martz Hall. Pottsville
opened the game with a 21-2 run to settle the issue. Travis Blankenhorn added
11 points for the Crimson Tide, including three from beyond the arc. Ryan Coyle
was the third and final double-digit scorer for Pottsville, tallying 10 points. The
Crimson Tide had seven other players tally points on the scoresheet as 12 players got in the game. SHAMOKIN (26) - Sebasovich 0 0-2 0, Dietrich 2 0-0 4, Yost 0 0-0 0, Weaver 1 2-2 4, Delbaugh 0 0-0 0, Taylor
0 0-0 0, Stine 2 0-2 4, Moyer 0 0-0 0, E. Taylor 1 2-2 4, Papas 2 0-0 4, Carstellar 0 3-9 3, Campbell 1 0-0 3, DiRenzo 0 0-0
0. Totals 9 7-17 26. POTTSVILLE (65) - Painter 1 2-2 4, Blankenhorn 3 2-2 11,
Plachko 1 0-0 2, Witman 0 0-0 0, Doyle 0 0-0 0, Bridy 7 4-6 18, Toomey 2 0-0 4, Coyle 3 3-5 10, Hinchliffe 1 0-0 3, Kuperavage
1 0-0 2, Wile 3 1-1 8, Melochick 1 1-1 3. Totals 23 13-17 65. 3-point FGs: Campbell,
Blankenhorn 3, Coyle, Hinchliffe, Wile JV score: Pottsville 48-35
Coyle’s clutch baskets;
Melochick’s key minutesBy Mike Carnahan, Republican-Herald Sports Writer
Pottsville’s Ryan Coyle has scored 18 combined
points during the Crimson Tide’s last two games, key Schuylkill League Division I victories over Blue Mountain 43-33
last Friday and a 50-31 rout of North Schuylkill on Monday. Those are solid numbers for the senior guard but a little deeper
digging reveals an even more impressive feat.
Of those 18 points, 11 have been buzzer beaters to end quarters, with six
coming against the Eagles and five versus the Spartans.
Last Friday, Coyle hit a 3-pointer at the end of the first from
the top of the key, putting Pottsville up 8-6, a lead the Tide never lost. He then drained another 3 in similar fashion just
before halftime, making it 20-12.
Coyle was at it again Monday.
He swished a 3-pointer from the wing at the end
of the first quarter, set up on penetration and a kick out pass by Brandon Bridy, giving Pottsville the lead for good at 10-7.
He then drove the baseline and scored inside at the end of the third, making it 36-18.
“I’ve seen so much
film on Pottsville so far this past year and every game, every game that I’ve watched, (Coyle) hit at least one, if not two, buzzer beaters,” North Schuylkill coach
Curt Ziegmont said after Monday’s game. “The kid is clutch. If any NBA guy was watching the game I was watching,
just at the end of the first quarter, what does he hit, a 3, with me in his ear, because I was standing right behind the kid.
Trust me, I was in his ear.
“Every time you think you have something going, one of those kids steps up, makes a
big shot and takes the wind out of your sails. That’s their bread and butter.”
—-
The Tide also
have a knack for getting key minutes from different players. Such has been the case for freshman Jordan Melochick.
Pottsville
coach Dave Mullaney had reason for concern going into the Tide’s critical contests against the Eagles and Spartans,
especially since sophomore Travis Blankenhorn missed both with a knee injury. But Melochick, a 6-foot-2 guard/forward has been an excellent starting in Blankenhorn’s place.
He scored seven
points and grabbed four rebounds against the Eagles, and then had five points during Monday’s victory over the Spartans.
Melochick also played almost the entire game against North Schuylkill, finally coming out early in the fourth quarter when
he picked up his fourth personal foul.
“He doesn’t play like a freshman,” Mullaney said of Melochick
“He is very, very skilled and has a high basketball IQ, which makes him fit in with the rest of our guys.”
Pocono Mountain West Tops The Tide Pocono Summit: Zach Wile score a team high 12 points, but a slow start hampered the Crimson Tide in
a non-league loss to the Panthers. Pocono Mountain opened the game on a 12-2 run and led 24-7 at halftime. The loss ended
Pottsville's seven game win streak. Pottsville(26) -- Plachko 0 0-0 0, Witman 2 0-0 4, Doyle 0 0-0 0, Bridy 3 1-2 7, Toomey 0 0-0
0, Coyle 0 3-6 3, Hinchliffe 0 0-0 0, Kuperavage 0 0-0 0, Wile 4 1-1 12,Melochick
0 0-0 0, Totals 9 5-9 26 Pocono Mountain West (47) Dixon 1
0-0 2, Vick 1 0-0 2, Cooper 3 0-0 6, Miles 0-0-0 0, Howard 0- 0-0 0, Diaz 0- 0-2 0,Wiggins 7 1-3 16,
Baptiste 3 0-0 6, FHardy 6 0-0 15, Toyals 21 1-5 47 Pottsville (8-4)
2 5 6 13 --- 26 PM West
(8-2) 12 12 15 8 --- 47
|
|
| Photo By Pottsville Republican |
|
|
| Photo By Pottsville Republican |
|
|
| Photo By Pottsville Republican |
|
|
| Photo By Pottsville Republican |
Crimson Tide stifle North Schuylkill, win 7th straightby
mike carnahan (staff writer mcarnahan@republicanherald.com) Published: January 7, 2013 FOUNTAIN SPRINGS - Pottsville's Travis Blankenhorn spent the night on the bench dressed in street clothes
again. He sat next to Eli Nabholz, who hasn't see action at all yet this season. In the second quarter, the Crimson Tide's Brandon Bridy and Bobby Witman both got into foul trouble,
each picking up their second personals. It really didn't matter much. The Crimson Tide just kept rolling along, much
like that college football team with the same nickname did Monday night. Ty Painter and John Toomey provided the key
minutes off the bench, Bridy finished with a double-double and Pottsville's defense was its usual self in a 50-31 victory
over North Schuylkill in a Schuylkill League Division I contest. Bridy picked up his second personal with 5:53 left
in the first half on an offensive foul. Witman got his second fouling the Spartans' Jake Damiter on a drive with 2:47 to go.
At that point, Pottsville's lead was under 10 points. It was double digits at halftime. The Crimson Tide never really
missed a beat, get key contributions from Painter, a good defender who knocked down a 3-pointer from the top of the key with
1:28 left in the half to make it 22-13. Ryan Coyle then hit 1-of-2 for the foul line with 33 seconds left, making it
23-13 at the half. Pottsville (8-3, 4-0 D-I) increased its lead from there in the second half, going on a 13-5 run in
the third quarter to make it 36-18, and went on to its seventh consecutive victory. "Ty Painter came off the bench
and gave us some big minutes," Pottsville coach Dave Mullaney said. "It's a nice luxury to have if Brandon happens
to be in foul trouble." Bridy finished the night with 20 points and 11 rebounds, while Coyle had eight points,
including buzzer-beating buckets at the end of the first and third quarters. Damon Meyer and Pat Walsh had 10 points
apiece for the Spartans (7-3, 2-2 D-I), who were held for a season-low in points. The Crimson Tide turned in another
impressive defensive performance. They came in allowing 34.4 points per game and Monday's performance was the seventh straight
contest Pottsville held an opponent under 35 points. Bridy matched up with Walsh, while Coyle guarded Meyer and Zach
Wile held Jake Damiter, North Schuylkill's leading scorer at 12.7 points per game, to no field goals and one point. "Coyle
and Wile were the keys for us," Mullaney said. "Coyle did a great job guarding Meyer and Zach holding Damiter to
1 point was a great defensive job for us." The Spartans finished the night 10-for-32 (31 percent) from the floor
as poor shooting hurt them again. Coach Curt Ziegmont felt North Schuylkill got quality looks against Pottsville's man-to-man
defense in the first half, the shots just weren't dropping. "It's pretty much what has been going on with us since
the season started," he said. "It is frustrating and it has little to do with Pottsville. This is something that's
been plaguing us, foul shooting, missed opportunities, missed inside shots, layups. "I don't know what the magic
word is." The Crimson Tide were efficient offensively, hitting 15-for-31 (48 percent) on the night. North Schuylkill
cut the deficit to 29-18 after a baseline jumper by Meyer with 1:58 left in the third quarter. Pottsville, however,
finished the quarter on a 7-0 run. Wile drove in from the lane on the Tide's next possession, Bridy hit 3-for-4 from the line
and Coyle finished it off, dropping in a shot off the baseline at the buzzer to up the lead to 18. "They are a
great defensive team and they did a lot of defense things that as a coach, you just have to trust your players with their
trapping and switching," Mullaney said. "Before we were even making the call, they are looking to attack and get
the ball to the right guy. We did a phenomenal job." Mullaney is expecting Blankenhorn (knee) back for next Monday's
game at Jim Thorpe. Nabholz (back) might be cleared to begin practice next week. POTTSVILLE (50) - Painter 1 1-2
4, Plachko 0 0-0 0, Witman 2 3-3 7, Doyle 0 0-0 0, Bridy 7 4-5 20, Toomey 0 0-0 0, Coyle 2 3-4 8, Hinchliffe 0 0-0 0, Kuperavage
0 0-0 0, Wile 2 2-2 6, Melochick 1 3-4 5. Totals 15 16-20 50. NORTH SCHUYLKILL (31) - Hughes 1 2-2 4, Ennis 0 0-0 0,
Murray 0 0-0 0, Weist 1 1-1 3, Meyer 4 1-1 10, Wiley 0 0-0 0, Manbeck 0 1-2 1, Howard 0 0-0 0, Damiter 0 1-2 1, Grigas 0 0-0
0, Galagher 0 0-0 0, Stokes 1 0-0 2, Marone 0 0-0 0, Walsh 3 4-9 10. Totals 10 10-17 31. 3-point FGs: Painter, Bridy
2, Coyle, Meyer JV score: Pottsville 52-42
|
|
| Photo By Pottsville Republican |
|
|
| Photo By Pottsville Republican |
|
|
| Photo By Pottsville Republican |
|
|
| Photo By Pottsville Republican |
"Tide Makes Mincemeat out of Hamburg" The Crimson Tide after a slow start, came back to beat Hamburg 57-25 at Martz
Hall, this afternoon. The Tide had a well balanced attack with four players scoring in double figures. Brandon Bridy led the
Tide with 12 points, followed by Ryan Coyle's 11 points and Bobby Witman and Zach Wile adding 10 points each. This game marked the return to action for Tyler Moser, who was
sidelined with an wrist injury, Tyler hit a long 3 to get in the scorebook. The Crimson Tide improve it's record to 7 and
3, The Tide will next meet North Schuylkill on Tuesday. Pottsville
57 Hamburg 25 Brandon Bridy scored all 12 of his points in a 32-1 run from the
second quarter into the fourth as the Crimson Tide rolled past the Hawks in a non-league game at Martz Hall. Ryan Coyle added 11 points and Bobby Witman and Zach Wile each netted 10 for Pottsville, which outscored
Hamburg 20-0 in the third quarter. The Hawks led 13-9 after one frame. HAMBURG
(25) - Fink 0 0-0 0, Barter 2 0-2 5, Barr 1 2 0-0 8, Schlottman 2 0-0 4, Preston 0 0-2 0, Kisha 3 0-0 6, Peacock 0 0-0 0,
Lesher 0 1-2 1, Hauck 0 1-2 1. Totals 7 3 2-8 25. POTTSVILLE (57) - Painter 0
0-0 0, Moser 1 0-0 3, Plachko 0 0-0 0, Witman 5 0-0 10, Doyle 0 0-0 0, Bridy 6 0-0 12, Toomey 1 1-4 3, Coyle 4 2-2 11, Hinchliffe
1 0-0 3, Kuperavage 1 0-0 3, Wile 5 0-0 10, Melochick 1 0-0 2. Totals 25 3-6 57. 3-point
FGs: Barter, Barr 2, Moser, Coyle, Hinchliffe, Kuperavage JV score: Pottsville
55-13
Pottsville defense shuts down Eagles
by leroy boyer (sports editor lboyer@republicanherald.com) Published:
January 4, 2013
ORWIGSBURG - Ryan Coyle called it
"tough, physical, all those adjectives." Brandon Bridy called it "amazing." Whatever you call
it, Pottsville's defensive effort against Blue Mountain on Friday night was one to remember. The Crimson Tide held the
high-powered Eagles offense without a field goal for nearly 16 minutes through the middle quarters en route to a 43-33 victory
in a Schuylkill League Division I first-place showdown. The victory, Pottsville's fifth straight, leaves the Crimson
Tide (6-3, 3-0 D-I) as the lone unbeaten in Division I and ends the Eagles' six-game win streak. "It's who we are.
That's Pottsville basketball," Bridy said of the Tide defense, which has allowed just 35.4 points per game. "We
pride ourselves on defense and we work on it every day. "It was very amazing tonight. It was a great defensive
effort by the whole team tonight." In front of a packed house that featured two loud, boisterous student sections,
Pottsville stifled a Blue Mountain offense that came into the contest averaging 68.4 points per game. Leading 13-10
with 5:45 left in the second quarter, Pottsville put together a 19-3 run that spanned 15 minutes, 37 seconds, gave the Tide
a 32-13 lead and didn't end until Peter Harding drained a 3-pointer from left wing with 6:18 remaining in the fourth quarter. Blue
Mountain (7-2, 3-1) scored just one point in the third quarter, and shot 1-for-16 (6 percent) from the field through the middle
quarters. The Eagles were 4-for-30 (13 percent) through the first three quarters while committing 12 turnovers. "You
have to credit Pottsville for their defense," Blue Mountain coach Dustin Werdt said. "They do it to every team they
play. They have the best scoring defense in the county, and they showed it tonight. "They did a great job dictating
the tempo. They defended, they stopped the transition, they take care of the ball on offense." A key to the Crimson
Tide's success was their ability to prevent Blue Mountain from scoring fast-break baskets and getting points off transition. Playing
without sophomore Travis Blankenhorn, who suffered a knee injury this week in practice, Pottsville got a great effort from
Zach Wile, who limited Blue Mountain top scorer Will Bornstein (16.1 ppg) to 10 points. Bridy held Harding (13.9 ppg)
to just six points, while freshman Jordan Melochick added seven points and four rebounds starting in place of Blankenhorn.
Bobby Witman led the inside effort with six rebounds and three blocks. "That was the first thing on the list when
we prepared for tonight - defensive transition," Pottsville coach Dave Mullaney said. "Make sure we sprint to the
paint, funnel out to our guys. In particular, we wanted to run to Harding, because we know what a great shooter he is. "We
thought if we could get them more into a half-court, it would be to our benefit." The key point in the game came
at the end of the first quarter, when Coyle drained a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from the top of the key to give Pottsville
an 8-6 lead. The shot came one possession after Bornstein scored off a steal, and just seconds after Bornstein picked up his
second foul trying for another steal. Coyle finished with 10 points, hitting an almost identical 3-pointer at the end
of the first half to put Pottsville up 20-12. "That was huge," Coyle said of his first 3-pointer. "It
was a complete swing in our favor." Bridy led all scorers with 16 points, and added six rebounds and five assists
in an impressive all-around effort. With Blankenhorn (13.1 ppg) out, Bridy took over the game at key points. He scored
12 points in the second half as the Tide held off a late Blue Mountain charge. "Losing a player like Travis is
big for us. I tried to get my other teammates involved," Bridy said. Added Mullaney: "Brandon ... I don't
think you'll get a lot of arguments about him being the best player in the Schuylkill League. He does so many things for us.
Great defender, can score off the dribble, can score from the perimeter, gets other guys involved. He's a great player."
Game Summary POTTSVILLE (43) - Witman 1 0-1 2, Bridy 5 5-8 16, Coyle 3 2-2 10, Wile 3 0-0 8, Melochick 3 1-2 7, Toomey
0 0-0 0, Painter 0 0-0 0. Totals 15 8-13 43. BLUE MOUNTAIN (33) - Bornstein 4 2-2 10, Harding 2 0-0 6, Slane 3 1-2 8,
Grapsy 1 1-2 4, Coller 1 2-2 4, Panchari 0 1-2 1. Totals 11 7-10 33. 3-point FGs: Bridy, Coyle 2, Wile 2, Harding 2,
Slane, Grapsy JV score: Pottsville 36-34
Tide runs Over Tamaqua For Coach Mullaney's 100th Victory Mullaney secures 100th career win in Tide's
rout of TamaquaPublished: January 2, 2013
Pottsville coach Dave Mullaney notched his 100th career victory as the Crimson Tide shut down Tamaqua for a 46-25
win in a Schuylkill League Division I boys' basketball contest at Martz Hall on Wednesday night. Brandon Bridy scored 19 points for Pottsville, while Ryan Coyle added 16. The duo combined for all 16 points in the
second quarter as the Tide pulled away. Adam Frantz led Tamaqua with eight points.
TAMAQUA (25) - Rottet 1 1-2 3, Chartier 0 0-0 0, Krell 0 0-0 0, Weinert 0 0-0
0, Frantz 4 0-0 8, Wargula 2 1-2 6, Kehl 0 0-2 0, McDonald 0 0-0 0, Marcin 0 0-0 0, Ty. Skripko 0 0-0 0, Kosciolek 2 0-0 4,
Tr. Skripko 0 0-0 0, Hartung 2 0-0 4 Totals 11 2-6 25. POTTSVILLE (46) - Painter
0 0-0 0, Plachko 0 0-0 0, Witman 2 3-3 7, Doyle 0 0-0 0, Bridy 8 2-3 19, Toomey 0 0-0 0, Coyle 7 1-2 16, Hinchliffe 0 0-0
0, Kuperavage 0 0-0 0, Wile 1 0-0 2, Melochick 1 0-0 2. Totals 19 6-8 46. 3-point
FGs: Wargula, Bridy, Coyle JV score: Pottsville 45-27
Red-hot Crimson Tide thump Hilltoppers
by mike carnahan Published: December
27, 2012 Travis Blankenhorn was perfect
from beyond the arc in the first half as Pottsville hit on 8-of-10 3-point attempts. It took Nativity
nearly 10 minutes to score its first field goal in the game. It was that kind of night for both
at the annual Battle of the Hills. Ryan Coyle and Blankenhorn scored 15 points apiece as the Crimson
Tide raced out to a big lead and rolled to a 56-27 victory over the Hilltoppers on Thursday evening at Martz Hall. Pottsville opened the game with a 23-1 run and led 43-8 late in the first half. The Crimson Tide built their advantage
to 48-11 midway through the third quarter before taking most of their starters out. After starting
the season 1-3, Pottsville (4-3) has now won three in a row. In all three of those wins, the Tide have held their opponents
under 30 points. "I was happy with the effort," Pottsville coach Dave Mullaney said.
"We made a lot of shots offensively that made us look good. We were fortunate we were able to do that." Brandon Bridy added eight points, five rebounds and three assists for Pottsville, while John Toomey had four assists. Jeff Yordy led Nativity with 10 points and five rebounds, with Kyle Kaledas grabbing six boards. Pottsville was 7-for-13 (54 percent) from the field during its game-opening run. Two of those misses were grabbed
for offensive rebounds - one by Bobby Witman and the other by Coyle - resulting in five second-chance points. Overall, the Tide finished 15-for-27 (56 percent) in the first half, including their 80 percent showing from 3-point
land as all five of Blankenhorn's field goals Thursday were 3-pointers. That included a run of three consecutive triples early
in the first half that turned a close game into a 16-1 Pottsville lead. Coyle, who hit two 3-pointers
in the game, followed Blankenhorn's run with one of his own from the top of the circle to make it a 19-point lead with 4:12
left in the first. Coyle and Witman each followed with a free throw, while a slash by Bridy gave the Tide their 23-1 advantage
with 1:12 left in the quarter. While Mullaney was happy with how well Pottsville shot the ball,
he was hoping the Tide established more of an inside game. It is something he is still looking for as the season moves along. "You always hope that you just don't rely on perimeter shots and that you score in a variety of ways,"
Mullaney said. "We hit perimeter shots in the half court, and obviously our defense led to transition points." Indeed, Pottsville was its usual self defensively again, as its half-court, man-to-man defense prevented the Hilltoppers
from developing any rhythm as all in the first half. Nativity was 2-for-15 from the floor and turned the ball over 13 times
in the first half. "If there is a better defensive team than that in the league, I don't
want to see them," Nativity coach Kevin Kennedy said. All five of the Hilltoppers first-quarter
points were free throws by Yordy. Jason DiNicola scored on a cut inside for Nativity's first field goal with 6:18 remaining
in the first half. Tyler Hunyara had the Hilltopppers' other first-half field goal, scoring inside with 39 seconds to go. "The kids played hard in the second half," Kennedy said. "I wasn't sure if it was the fact that we
were playing in Martz Hall, that it was Pottsville, or a combination of both, but in the first half, we just couldn't get
anything going. It was a shipwreck at halftime." Game Summary NATIVITY (27) - White 0 0-0
0, Holohan 2 0-0 4, J. DiNicola 1 0-0 2, Sabol 0 0-0 0, Hunyara 1 0-0 2, Hoppel 0 0-0 0, Yordy 2 5-6 10, Kaledas 1 1-2 3,
Palamar 1 1-3 3, Piccioni 1 0-0 3, McGovern 0 0-0 0, G. DiNicola 0 0-0 0. Totals 9 7-11 27. POTTSVILLE
(56) - Painter 1 0-0 2, Blankenhorn 5 0-0 15, Plachko 1 0-0 3, Witman 1 4-7 6, Doyle 0 0-0 0, Bridy 3 2-2 8, Toomey 0 0-0
0, Coyle 6 1-2 15, Hinchliffe 1 0-0 3, Kuperavage 0 0-0 0, Wile 0 0-0 0, Melochick 1 2-4 4. Totals 19 9-15 56. 3-point FGs: Yordy, Piccioni, Blankenhorn 5, Plachko, Coyle 2, Hinchliffe JV score: Pottsville
60-21
"Pottsville rolls past Shamokin" December 23, 2012Brandon Bridy scored all of his game-high 18 points in the first half as Pottsville
rolled to a 65-26, non-league victory over Shamokin on Saturday afternoon at Martz Hall. Pottsville
opened the game with a 21-2 run to settle the issue. Travis Blankenhorn added
11 points for the Crimson Tide, including three from beyond the arc. Ryan Coyle
was the third and final double-digit scorer for Pottsville, tallying 10 points. The
Crimson Tide had seven other players tally points on the scoresheet as 12 players got in the game. SHAMOKIN (26) - Sebasovich 0 0-2 0, Dietrich 2 0-0 4, Yost 0 0-0 0, Weaver 1 2-2 4, Delbaugh 0 0-0 0, Taylor
0 0-0 0, Stine 2 0-2 4, Moyer 0 0-0 0, E. Taylor 1 2-2 4, Papas 2 0-0 4, Carstellar 0 3-9 3, Campbell 1 0-0 3, DiRenzo 0 0-0
0. Totals 9 7-17 26. POTTSVILLE (65) - Painter 1 2-2 4, Blankenhorn 3 2-2 11,
Plachko 1 0-0 2, Witman 0 0-0 0, Doyle 0 0-0 0, Bridy 7 4-6 18, Toomey 2 0-0 4, Coyle 3 3-5 10, Hinchliffe 1 0-0 3, Kuperavage
1 0-0 2, Wile 3 1-1 8, Melochick 1 1-1 3. Totals 23 13-17 65. 3-point FGs: Campbell,
Blankenhorn 3, Coyle, Hinchliffe, Wile JV score: Pottsville 48-35
Crimson Tide Clips The Cardinals Wings 62-21
Pottsville's
defense shuts down CardsBrandon Bridy exploded for 12 points in the first
quarter and finished with 21 as Pottsville cruised to a 62-21 victory over Pine Grove in a Schuylkill League Division I matchup
at Martz Hall on Thursday evening. Travis Blankenhorn added 12 points for the Crimson Tide in
the rout. Pottsville's balanced scoring consisted of 10 different contributors throughout the
contest. Bridy and Blankenhorn were the only two that scored in double digits. PINE GROVE (21)
- J. Blankenhorn 0 0-0 0, D'Agostino 1 1-6 4, Rossi 0 0-0 0, Bressler 4 0-0 8, Wolfe 2 3-4 7, Fick 0 0-0 0, Weinus 0 0-0 0,
Kreiser 1 0-0 2, Keefer 0 0-0 0, Seiger 0 0-0 0. Totals 8 4-10 21. POTTSVILLE (62) - Painter 1
0-0 2, T. Blankenhorn 4 2-4 12, Plachko 2 0-0 6, Witman 0 2-2 2, Doyle 0 0-0 0, Bridy 7 5-7 21, Toomey 1 0-0 2, Coyle 1 1-1
3, Hinchliffe 1 0-0 3, Kuperavage 0 0-0 0, Wile 1 0-0 3, Melochick 4 0-0 8. Totals 22 10-14 62. 3-point
FGs: T. Blankenhorn 2, Plachko 2, Bridy 2, Hinchliffe, Wile JV score: Pottsville 59-16
Crimson Tide Hangs Tough against Williamsport Boys' Basketball Williamsport 45 Pottsville 37 Brandon Bridy scored
a game-high 17 points for the Crimson Tide, but it wasn't enough as Pottsville fell to the state-ranked Millionaires in a
non-league contest at Martz Hall. Williamsport ranked seventh in the state in
Class AAAA by The Patriot-News entering the season and boasts Penn State verbal commitment Isaiah Washington at point guard.
Thomas Ross led Williamsport with 14 points and Washington added 11 as the Millionaires
outscored the Crimson Tide 16-7 in the fourth quarter to pull out the tightly contested win. Travis Blankenhorn tallied 13 points for Pottsville. WILLIAMSPORT (45)
- Thomas 3 4-4 11, Stelly 0 0-0 0, Gardner 0 0-0 0, Ross 4 6-6 14, Washington 3 5-6 11, Watson 0 1-4 1, Federino 0 0-0 0,
Kinley 3 2-2 8. Totals 13 18-22 45. POTTSVILLE (37) - Painter 0 0-0 0, Blankenhorn
2 8-8 13, Witman 0 0-0 0, Bridy 5 4-4 17, Toomey 0 0-0 0, Coyle 1 2-3 4, Wile 2 1-3 5, Melochick 0 0-0 0. Totals 10 15-18
39. 3-point FGs: Thomas, Blankenhorn, Bridy 3 JV score: Williamsport 41-35.
"TIDE
ROLLS PAST GOVERNOR MIFFLIN" Pottsville 64 Governor
Mifflin 40 Brandon Bridy scored 18 points as the Crimson Tide beat the Mustangs
in a non-league contest at Martz Hall. Ryan Coyle tallied 17 points and Travis Blankenhorn added 16
for Pottsville. GOVERNOR MIFFLIN (40) - Martin 2 0-0 6, DePaul 3 2-2 8, McKnight
0 2-2 2, Peters 5 0-0 12, Hoff 3 2-2 9, Willet 0 2-2 2, Bowe 0 0-0 0, Whight 0 0-0 0, Quigley 0 1-4 1. Totals 13 9-12 40 POTTSVILLE (64) - Painter 0 1-1 0, Blankenhorn 5 2-2 16, Plachko 0 0-0 0, Witman 0 2-4 2, Doyle 0 0-0 0, Bridy 8
2-2 18, Toomey 1 0-0 2, Coyle 6 2-3 17, Hinchliffe 0 0-0 0, Kuperavage 0 0-0 0, Wile 1 0-0 2, Melochick 3 1-4 7. Totals 24
9-16 64 3-point FGs: Martin 2, Peters 2, Hoff, Blankehorn 4, Coyle 3 JV score: Pottsville 48-42
" Home Opener"
Young scorers must step up
BY MIKE CARNANAN (STAFF
WRITER mcarnahan@republicanherald.com) Published: December 13, 2012 Pottsville's Brandon
Bridy, Tamaqua's Brett Kosciolek, Williams Valley's Colin Harrison, Lourdes' Anthony Pennypacker, Minersville's Isaac Melochick,
Marian's Ryan Karnish, Shenandoah Valley's Nick Merva and Mahanoy Area's Tyler Cavenas, your time has arrived. You have already shown moments of greatness. But now, with
the amount of offensive talent that has graduated, the focus is on you and any other Schuylkill League player who is ready
to step up this season. You have big shoes to fill. Out of the league's
top 20 scorers from 2011-12, 13 have graduated. That includes the top five in Shenandoah Valley's
Josh Dombrosky (17.8 points per game), Minersville's Cole Weachock (17.4 ppg), Pine Grove's Kyler Burke (17.2 ppg) and Larry
Zimmerman (17.0 ppg), and Tri-Valley's Michael Fortune (16.1 ppg). Dombrosky and Burke were the
Republican-Herald Co-Players of the Year and those two, along with Zimmerman, earned Associated Press Class AA All-State third-team
honors. Also gone are Jim Thorpe's Darius Clark (14.0 ppg), Tri-Valley's Zach Wasilus (13.2 ppg) and Schuylkill Haven's Scott
Moyer (12.9 ppg), who were 7-8-9, respectively. Overall, 12 of the league's 17 teams lost their
leading scorer to graduation. Graduation losses even hit area teams outside the league hard as Hamburg lost its top point
producer in Brenden Forrest (13.1 ppg), as did Upper Dauphin in Adam Hoffman (11.0 ppg). So how
might this affect league play this season? "I think one of the big things about the kids
who graduated last year, a lot of them were two- and three-year starters," said North Schuylkill coach Curt Ziegmont,
who lost his top two scorers in Brandon McCloskey (11.4 ppg) and Jake Rakowsky (9.9 ppg). "I
think the league is going to be just as competitive as it was last year, you are just going to have new names who are scoring
the 15-18 points per game instead of the household names they might have known over the last few years." The league is far from talent deprived. As a freshman, Kosciolek (14.7 ppg) led the Raiders
in scoring and was sixth in the league overall. This season, the 6-foot-6 guard-forward leads a young, but rapidly-improving
Tamaqua team that could be on cusp of great things. Kosciolek and Pottsville sophomore Travis
Blankenhorn (11.0 ppg, 47 3-pointers) were The Republican-Herald Co-Rookies of the Year last season. Bridy
(12.1 ppg), a 6-2 senior guard, might be one of the top overall returning players in the league. He helped lead the Crimson
Tide to their third consecutive Division I and overall league title. Harrison (11.7), Karnish
(11.3), Pennypacker (10.6), Merva (10.5) and Melochick (10.0) also averaged double figures in scoring last season. Karnish
(2.3 per game, 57 total) was the leading 3-point shooter in the league, while Merva (2.2) was third, Tri-Valley's Devin Masser
(2.0) fourth, and Blankenhorn and Melochick tied for fifth at 1.9 3s per game. What the loss of
offensive talent could perhaps mean is more parity. "I don't know if anybody is head and
heels above anybody else," Williams Valley coach Denny Kasper said. "I think maybe the league is more balanced than
it's been for a while." Not surprisingly, those that have the most returners - Pottsville
in Division I, Williams Valley and Lourdes in Division II and Marian in Division III - are the favorites in their respective
divisions. "I think it just is really going to get it back to where the best teams are always
going to come out on top," Shenandoah Valley coach Robbie Miller said. "Probably out of all those offensive guys
who left, it was Pottsville who still won the league. They won it with defense (a league-best 34.4 points allowed per game)
and they won it with teamwork. "Just like every year, I think it is going to come down to
the team that plays the best defense, regardless if there is a scoring star." That's really
not surprising in the Schuylkill League. There are two new coaches this season. Both are familiar
faces to area basketball fans, but for different reasons. After previous stints at Minersville
(1999-2007) and Tri-Valley (2007-2011), Fran Murphy takes over at Schuylkill Haven. He will attempt to revive a program that
was 1-21 last winter and hasn't had a winning season since 2007-08. Kevin Kennedy is now at the
helm at Nativity, replacing Chris McLaughlin, who coached the previous two years. Kennedy has never coached before, but was
a PIAA official for 23 years. The Green Wave went 9-13 in 2011-12. There are also changes in the
District 11 classifications for the next two seasons. Here's how the area's teams break down: -
Class AAA - Blue Mountain, Jim Thorpe, Panther Valley, Pottsville, Tamaqua - Class AA - Minersville,
North Schuylkill, Pine Grove, Schuylkill Haven, Williams Valley - Class A - Mahanoy Area, Marian,
Nativity, Shenandoah Valley, Tri-Valley, Weatherly In District 3, Upper Dauphin is in Class AA
and Hamburg in Class AAA, while Lourdes remains Class A in District 4. Let the games begin. Division I Pottsville's current league title run is the best since Shamokin won three
consecutive championships from 1996-98. In addition to the titles, the Tide have finished undefeated in division play the
past two seasons and take a 31-game league winning streak into their Division I opener Dec. 20 against Pine Grove at Martz
Hall. Pottsville is a favorite to win it all again. In addition to
Bridy and Blankenhorn, Ryan Coyle (6.5 ppg, 39 3-pointers), Zach Wile (3.4 ppg) and Eli Nabholz (3.0 ppg) saw plenty of playing
time last season. Pottsville also gets Bobby Witman back after he missed all of 2011-12 with an injury he suffered prior to
the football season. However, injuries are a concern for the Tide heading into this year. Nabholz
(back) is expected to miss the first month, while Blankenhorn and Coyle are both recovering from football injuries. "We're going to have to learn to play without the two seniors (Shavinski Thomas and Tyler Heffner) we lost,"
Pottsville coach Dave Mullaney said. "We are going to have to rebound the ball as a team and we are going to have to
develop some depth. With some of the injuries we've had, we are going to have to develop some guys maybe we didn't anticipate
playing a lot of minutes this year who are going to have to." Three starters return for North
Schuylkill, as guards Damon Meyer (8.8 ppg) and Jake Damiter (7.6 ppg) and forward Pat Walsh (7.0 ppg) are expected to lead
an offense that was second in the league last season at 53 points per game. Ziegmont like his
size, quickness and depth. "We are versatile," Ziegmont said. "I think we have
good team unity. The kids all like each other. What we need to get is reps. I think our depth is a positive right now." Blue Mountain was hit hard by graduation, losing its top scorers in Jake Cryts (11.4 ppg), Kyle McLaughlin (10.4
ppg) and Nate Yost (9.2 ppg, 37 3-pointers). Senior guard Peter Harding (7.3 ppg) is the top returning scorer and will be
relied upon until others develop. To that end, Eagles coach Dustin Werdt will emphasise defense
more, especially early on, and will look to be more up-tempo. "I think we have an athletic
group that loves to run, loves to be aggressive," he said. "They are going to bump people off screens and challenge
each dribble on the defensive end. They want to get up and down." One team that could be
ready to make a move is Tamaqua. Record-wise, the Raiders struggled last season under first-year
coach Caszy Kosciolek, winning just five games, but should be able to improve on that. In addition to Brett Kosciolek, there
is plenty of other talent returning, including Tanner Kehl, Adam Frantz, Zach Wargula (5-1 ppg, 32 3-pointers) and Bo Rottet. "We have a lot of players that have potential to score for us," Caszy Kosciolek said. "Taking care
of the ball ... limiting turnovers is critical." No team from the league has had more success
during the state playoffs in recent memory than Pine Grove had the past two seasons. The Cardinals, who won the District 11
Class AA championship in 2012, reached the PIAA quarterfinals in both 2011 and 2012. And, perhaps,
no team has been hit harder by graduation than the Cardinals. In addition to Burke and Zimmerman, Chris Rossi (2.6 ppg) and
several key role players in Ty Zimmerman (3.7 ppg), Nick Todero (1.9 ppg) and Addam Zerbe (1.6 ppg) all graduated. Senior forward Jake Wolfe (5.8) is the lone returning starter and played big minutes last season. The rest of the
new starters, including Brett Kreiser and Kobe D'Agostino, saw limited time. Still, Cardinals'
coach Dave Archer doesn't want to call this a rebuilding year and isn't lowering the program's high standards. "We still want to go to the district playoffs and we still want a chance to defend our district championship,"
Archer said. "That being said, it is going to be very, very tough. But if you lower the standards for the program, I
am not a coach. "I am a coach that believes next man up. We have some young guys who can
play." Panther Valley, which went 7-3 over its final 10 games to qualify for the District
11 Class AA playoffs, and Jim Thorpe both suffered heavy graduation loses. The only full-time starter back for the Panthers
is senior guard Steven Romanchick (7.5 ppg), while junior guard Jake Szczecina (4.5 ppg, 29 3-pointers) was a part-time starter. Forward Jaquan Brown (4.5 ppg) is the lone starter returning for the Olympians. Blue
Mountain Head coach: Dustin Werdt (10th season) Last year: 15-8 overall,
7-5 D-I. District 11 Class AAA quarterfinalist Returnees: Peter Harding (sr., G), Cody Coller
(sr., C), Kyle Slane (jr., G), Will Bornstein (jr., G), Shane Grapsy (jr., G), Skyler Panchari (jr., C) Newcomers: Ricky Jones (sr., F), Conner Eifert (jr., F), Luke Harding (jr., F), Dean Stramara (soph., G), Christian
Tobash (soph., G), Ian Donovan (soph., G-F) Outlook: The Eagles will emphasize defense even more,
especially early. Young, but athletic, so expect a more up-tempo style. Even with the youth, Eagles should be in the running
for the division wild card. Jim Thorpe Head coach: Brian Carroll
(6th season) Last year: 7-15, 2-10 D-I Returnees: Jaquan Brown (sr.,
F), Michael Harleston (sr., G), Deonte St. Hill (jr., G), David Everitt (soph., F) Newcomers:
Bryce Micciche (jr., G-F), Steven Principe (jr., G), Shane Snisky (soph., F), Khadir Lindsey (jr., G), Rayan Green (fr., F-C),
Jordan McElmoyle (fr., G) Outlook: Only one starter returns, so the younger players need to improve
quickly. Team defense will also be a key to just how successful the Olympians will be. Goal is to qualify for the district
playoffs. Panther Valley Head coach: Patrick Crampsie (11th season) Last year: 11-12, 4-8 D-I. District 11 Class AA quarterfinalist Returnees: Steven Romanchick
(sr., G), Jake Szczecina (jr., G) Newcomers: Brett Kershner (sr., F), Jon Taras (sr., F), Matt
Levitt (sr., G), Jake Kusko (jr., G), Kyle Ferryman (jr., G), Luke Stano (jr., F), Ethan Vermillion (soph., F), Matt Hudicka
(fr., G) Outlook: The Panthers have more team speed and stamina than in year's past, and has confidence
in their perimeter shooting. Committed to making return trip to district playoffs. Pine Grove Head coach: David Archer (4th season) Last year: 22-8, 8-4 D-I. Division I wild card,
Schuylkill League runner-up, District 11 Class AA champion, PIAA quarterfinalist Returnees: Jacob
Wolfe (sr., F), Brett Kreiser (sr., G), Kobe D'Agostino (soph., G) Newcomers: Wade Bressler (sr.,
F), Tyler Seiger (sr., C), Jed Blankenhorn (jr., G), Ryan Keefer (jr., F), Luke Rossi (soph., G), Brett Mars (soph., G), Austin
Fick (soph., F), Mark Weinus (soph., G) Outlook: Perhaps no team suffered bigger graduation losses
that the Cardinals. There is talent among the youth and team will improve as the season goes on. Could surprise. Pottsville Head coach: Dave Mullaney (6th season) Last year:
22-3, 12-0 D-I. Division I and overall Schuylkill League champion, District 11 Class AAAA quarterfinalist Returnees: Brandon Bridy (sr., G), Ryan Coyle (sr., G), Zach Wile (sr., G-F), Bobby Witman (sr., F), Jake Plachko
(sr., G), John Toomey (jr., F), Tyler Moser (jr., G), Travis Blankenhorn (soph., G), Eli Nabholz (soph., F) Newcomers: Ty Painter (soph., G), Connor Hinchliffe (soph., G), Jordan Melochick (fr., G-F) Outlook:
There are some injury concerns for the Crimson Tide, which is an issue with a tough non-league December schedule. The Tide's
strength is their guards. Once again, Pottsville is the division and overall league favorite. North
Schuylkill Head coach: Curt Ziegmont (10th season) Last year: 17-8,
8-4 D-I. District 11 Class AAA semifinalist Returnees: Damon Meyer (sr., G), Pat Walsh (sr., F),
Jake Damiter (jr., G) Newcomers: Drew Hughes (sr., G), Billy Stokes (sr., F), Josh Howard (sr.,
F), Anthony Marone (sr., F), Tom Gallagher (jr., F), Matt Manbeck (jr., F), Brett Ennis (jr., G), Glen Weist (jr., G), Bobby
Grigas (fr., G), Tevin Murray (fr., F) Outlook: Several experienced players return for the Spartans,
who have size, quickness and could go 10 deep. Team got experience in the district playoffs last season and will be in the
running for the division wild card and possibly the division title. Tamaqua Head coach: Caszy Kisciolek (2nd season at Tamaqua, 9th overall) Last year: 5-17, 1-11
D-I Returnees: Tyler Krell (sr., C), Tanner Kehl (sr., C-F), Adam Frantz (jr., F), Brett Kosciolek
(soph., G-F), Zach Wargula (soph., G), Bo Rottet (soph., G) Newcomers: Drew Chartier (sr., G),
Chris Hartung (jr., F), Mike Weinert (jr., G), Nate MacDonald (soph., G), Tyler Skripko (soph., F), Trevor Skripko (soph.,
F) Outlook: The Raiders are a program on the rise. Scoring should not be an issue, but one key
to taking the next step is shoring up the defense (next to last in the league in points allowed at 55.4) and rebounding. Qualifying
for districts is realistic goal. Division II Last year's Division
II championship wasn't decided until the last night of the regular season when Lourdes used a fourth-quarter comeback to down
Minersville 59-53 in overtime and earn its first trip to the league playoffs since 2008. The Red
Raiders, who ended up qualifying for the Class A state playoffs after finishing fourth in District 4, lost only one starter
and are a division favorite again. So is Williams Valley, which has all of its starters back. In
addition to Pennypacker, a forward, returning for the Red Raiders are guard Michael Menapace (5.6 ppg), who missed last year's
postseason run with a broken arm, center Zack Oquendo (9.5 ppg), forward Justin Howal (4.3 ppg) and guards Tyler Holleran,
Matt Savitski (7.6 ppg) and Michael Gilger (2.3 ppg). Forward Owen Daniel (11.2 ppg), guard Dennis
Jansen (9.0 ppg), forward Brendan Miller (11.2 ppg) and guard Stephen Sedesse (6.4 ppg in 17 games) join Harrison as returning
starters for the Vikings. Guard-forward Ben Rautzahn (2.1 ppg) provided key minutes off the bench last season and will see
plenty of playing time, too. With several two-year starters, Kasper, who reached 300 wins for
his career Feb. 9, 2012, expects to open up the style of play a little more. That means more pressure on defense and more
aggressiveness overall. One key will be improvement defensively. "That
is going to dictate how our season goes," Kasper said. "We need to be more physical, more aggressive, which hopefully
comes with the kids being a year older." Minersville will also be in the mix. In addition to Melochick, who is back to run the point, the Miners return experience inside with James Brophy (2.6
ppg) and Joe Fedornak (2.0 pgg). Minersville could go eight or nine deep, but there is lots of inexperience among those who
will see playing time. Two keys are rebounding and controlling the turnovers. In addition to Masser,
junior guard Cale Bruso (5.9 ppg, 19 3-pointers) and junior forward Conrad Opozada (3.1 ppg) are returning starters for Tri-Valley.
Senior Mike Bubeck (5.5 ppg) and junior Vinnie Fanelli (6.9 ppg, 39 3-pointers) are the top returning
players for Schuylkill Haven. "TIDE DROPS TO 0-2"
Wilson 56 Pottsville 45 Brandon
Bridy scored 12 points and Travis Blankenhorn scored 11 for the Crimson Tide in a non-league loss to the Bulldogs at Martz
Hall. Ryan Coyle contributed 10 points for Pottsville. WILSON (56)- Fegley 2 4-4 10, Smith 0 0-0 0, Templin 1 0-0 3, Watkins 0 0-0 0, Fraebel 3 2-3 8, Gaynor 1 0-0 2, Calloway
1 0-0 3, Coad 5 2-2 13, Rodriguez 5 7-7 17, Palmatier 0 0-0 0. Totals 18 15-16 56 POTTSVILLE
(45) - Painter 0 0-0 0, Blankenhorn 4 0-0 11, Plachko 0 0-0 0, Witman 1 0-0 2, Bridy 6 0-0 12, Toomey 0 0-0 0, Coyle 3 3-3
10, Wile 2 0-0 5, Melochick 2 1-2 5. Totals 18 4-5 45. 3-point FGs: Fegley 2,
Templin, Calloway, Coad, Blankenhorn 3, Coyle, Wile JV score: Pottsville 46-34
Crimson Tide
gets nipped by Danville 46-45 DANVILLE - Trailing by
one, Pottsville missed two shots at the buzzer and fell to the Ironmen in the season opener for both teams. Brandon Bridy led the Crimson Tide with 18 points, while Travis Blankenhorn added 14. Pottsville
shot just 5-of-12 at the free-throw line. POTTSVILLE (45) - Painter 0 0-0 0, Blankenhorn
6 0-1 14, Witman 1 1-2 3, Bridy 8 2-4 18, Toomey 0 0-0 0, Coyle 0 1-2 1, Hinchliffe 0 0-0 0, Wile 2 0-0 4, Melochick 2 1-3
5. Totals 19 5-12 45. DANVILLE (46) - Berg 5 3-4 14, Heeter 2 2-2 8, Koons 1 0-0
2, McConnell 3 0-0 7, Kozick 4 1-3 10, Renz 2 0-0 5, Seebold 0 0-0 0. Totals 17 6-9 46. 3-point
FGs: Blankenhorn 2, Berg, Heeter 2, McConnell, Kozick, Renz JV score: Pottsville
52-39 Come out and
show your support For The Crimson Tide!
Tide Complete Successful Summer
Our Program recently finished up another successful offseason! With a summer of lifting, skill and
team workouts, summer leagues, and team camp, we feel we should be well prepared for another run at a Schuylkill League and
District Title. This summer had the most participation of any over the past five years. We
have a renewed commitment to strength training, which will continue in the fall and into the season. Another
added feature of our program was our skill sessions on Monday and Wednesday mornings at Barefield. It should
be noted that our former player Nick Schlitzer implemented our new strength program and ran our skill workouts this summer.
He continues to be a tremendous asset to the program. These workouts were well attended and definitely had a positive
impact on the skill level of the players in our program. We again participated in two summer leagues, a high school league
at Hamburg and our Adult League at Barefield. We were fortunate enough to win all but one of our summer
league games at Hamburg this year. The Adult league at Barefield was by far the most talented it’s
been in four years. While we didn’t win too often, our guys again showed the ability to compete against
the best adult players in the area.
Our team camp at Kutztown was a big success. Playing
a very high level of competition, we were able to win 10 of 12 games at the Varsity level! Our JV’s
only had two losses as well. We were lucky to take 19 players that were split between the two teams.
For the first time all off season, we had the majority of team playing together. After observing
the games at camp, the coaching staff was extremely encouraged and confident that the team will have another successful season.
Our Booster Club, led by our officers and Craig Shields,
had its’ most successful offseason to date. Both our 3 on 3 and Golf Tournaments raised a significant
amount of money for the program. The Booster Club will continue its’ fundraising as we begin selling
tickets for a week vacation at a condo in Myrtle Beach. We also have accepted an offer to run an AFBE tournament
this spring which should generate some funds too. The program thanks everyone involved in our fundraising!
This fall the team is also looking to get a lot accomplished. We have a strong
core of players available during the fall season. We will continue our strength training and basketball
workouts three days a week. We are also planning several scrimmages against teams such as Shamokin, East
Stroudsburg North, Trinity, and Loyalsock, to name a few. In addition to the scrimmages, we will participate
in a tournament at Pleasant Valley in October and perhaps a few others. The staff anticipates over 20 players
being involved with our fall activities. 2012-2013 Season
The 2012-2013 season
could be a very exciting one for our boys’ basketball team. With five of the top seven players returning
from last season, there is reason to be optimistic. Yet, even with all of that experience coming back,
there are still several areas of concern. This offseason helped answer a few of those questions. With
several players coming off of injuries, health was a major concern. Some important members of our team
were injured for parts of the spring season and some for longer periods of time. These players, while not
being completely back at 100%, were able to show that not only would they be able to play, but they would be able to play
at a high level. This should allow us not only to have some skilled players but also some depth.
The four seniors from last season will be missed. Tyler Heffner,
Shavinski Thomas, Alec Adams, and Jake Tobin have all graduated and moved on to college. Heffner’s
leadership abilities will not be replaced with just one player. The three-year starter was an extremely
focused defender and provided the team with a coach on the floor. Shavi was the most dominant player in
the Schuylkill League a year ago. His ability to change the game on the defensive end and through rebounding
will be sorely missed. Alec was a great defender and leader who will also have to be replaced.
Jake Tobin, while not playing his senior year, still exemplified everything we want out of a player
in our program. (His dedication to rehabbing his knee over the winter enabled him to have one of the best
seasons ever for a player in our baseball program, as he received all-state honors!) Obviously with the loss of these seniors,
leadership is in question. Hopefully, with a talented, committed, and deep senior class, leadership will
not be an issue.
Brandon Bridy, Ryan Coyle, Jake Plachko, Charlie Schuster, Zach Wile, and Bobby Witman comprise the deep and talented
senior class that will try to provide that leadership. Along with these six players, several underclassmen
should compete for minutes too. The other returning letter winners include outstanding sophomores Travis
Blankenhorn and Eli Nabholz, both of whom were integral parts to a 22-3 record a year ago. The
juniors that will vie for minutes will be John Toomey, Tyler Moser, Danny Doyle, and Mike Kuperavage.
There are several other upperclassmen that could compete for varsity minutes as well, along with players from our very
talented 9th and 10th grade classes. This year’s schedule will be the most difficult the team has
faced over the past six seasons. We’ve added two
state powers in Williamsport and Pocono Mountain West. Williamsport will most likely be
a top ten AAAA team in the state and features several Division I level players. The Williamsport game,
on December 18th, will be televised on Fox-56. We travel to Pocono Summit on December 29th
to face Pocono Mountain West, who is the defending District XI AAAA champion.
The season gets under way on December 9th at Danville,
against a team that won a District IV title and advanced in the AAA state tournament last year. We follow
that game with two home games against Wilson West Lawn and Governor Mifflin. These two
teams are responsible for two of our six losses over the past two seasons. The rest of the non-league games
are as follows: Shamokin, Nativity, Hamburg, Muhlenberg, and Emmaus. While
the schedule, both out of conference and in conference, will be very difficult, our goals remain the same for the 2012-2013.
We want to win the Schuylkill League Title. This would make four straight for our program, a feat
that hasn’t been accomplished in the history of the Schuylkill League. We also want to qualify for
the State playoffs. Our district tournament will look a little different this year as we are now AAA for
the current cycle. We can reach the State tourney by finishing as one of the top three teams in the District XI AAA Tournament. This preseason has a similar feeling to the one we had prior to the
2010-2011 season. At that time, we were coming off a 23-5 season and had a good portion of our team returning.
We had high expectations then and we believe we have high expectations this year as well. We will
absolutely be getting everyone’s best game and won’t be able to surprise any team. There is
a different feel to being the hunted as opposed to being the hunter. We hope this team is up to the challenge!!
Pottsville's defense shuts down Card
Brandon Bridy exploded for 12 points in the first quarter and finished with 21 as Pottsville cruised to a 62-21 victory
over Pine Grove in a Schuylkill League Division I matchup at Martz Hall on Thursday evening. Travis
Blankenhorn added 12 points for the Crimson Tide in the rout. Pottsville's balanced scoring consisted
of 10 different contributors throughout the contest. Bridy and Blankenhorn were the only two that scored in double digits. PINE GROVE (21) - J. Blankenhorn 0 0-0 0, D'Agostino 1 1-6 4, Rossi 0 0-0 0, Bressler 4 0-0 8, Wolfe 2 3-4 7, Fick
0 0-0 0, Weinus 0 0-0 0, Kreiser 1 0-0 2, Keefer 0 0-0 0, Seiger 0 0-0 0. Totals 8 4-10 21. POTTSVILLE
(62) - Painter 1 0-0 2, T. Blankenhorn 4 2-4 12, Plachko 2 0-0 6, Witman 0 2-2 2, Doyle 0 0-0 0, Bridy 7 5-7 21, Toomey 1
0-0 2, Coyle 1 1-1 3, Hinchliffe 1 0-0 3, Kuperavage 0 0-0 0, Wile 1 0-0 3, Melochick 4 0-0 8. Totals 22 10-14 62. 3-point FGs: T. Blankenhorn 2, Plachko 2, Bridy 2, Hinchliffe, Wile JV score: Pottsville
59-16 |
