BY JEFF FALK
SOUTH LEBANON – Does it ever become routine?
Does it ever become boring?
Can you run out of superlatives for excellence?
Naaah! Winning never gets old.
On Thursday night at ‘The Cage”, during the quarterfinal round of the inaugural District Three Class AAAAAA postseason, the Cedar Crest girls’ basketball team won for the 26th time this season, by beating McCaskey for the fourth time, 47-38. The Falcons turned in another stellar defensive effort and although they were never quite able to shake the Red Tornado, they were never seriously threatened by it either.
Cedar Crest was a week removed from a 49-43 triumph over McCaskey that netted it the Lancaster-Lebanon League championship. The Falcons had also dismissed the Red Tornado by double digits twice during the regular year.
The result pushed the second-seeded Falcons to 26-0 and into its third straight District Three Class AAAAAA semifinal, opposite third-seeded Central Dauphin, on Tuesday at 5 p.m. at Hershey’s Giant Center. It also qualified Cedar Crest for a return trip to the PIAA tournament.
The loss left seventh-seeded McCaksey 18-9.
It was the Falcons’ final game at ‘The Cage’ this season.
“It’s one game at a time,” said Cedar Crest head coach Jim Donmoyer. “I told the girls before the game, ‘We’re 25-0. We won the league. It’s cherries on top.’ Every team eventually loses. If we go 33-0, then pinch me one more time.
“We haven’t had an off-night,” continued Donmoyer. “It really takes a lot to put together what we’ve put together. We’re not stressing it. We’re enjoying it. The way these guys stuck together and play, I’d put my money on them. You learn things from losing. But you also learn things from close games.”
“The most important thing was beating them four times,” said Cedar Crest senior pivot Alyssa Austin of the Red Tornado. “It’s hard to beat a team four times. But we had the confidence coming in. Now we’re going to the Giant Center. We’re reaching the goals we set. We’re checking them off the list.”
It was the shooting of Austin that gave the Falcons some breathing room with which to work. The 6-1 center drained three straight three-pointers as part of an 11-2, second-period spurt that turned a 13-11 deficit into a 22-15 lead.
Another three-pointer, this one from Gracen Donmoyer, beat the halftime buzzer and gave Cedar Crest a 25-19 advantage in the locker room.
“It’s real nice to have a post player who can shoot like that,” said Donmoyer. “When they (the Red Tornaddo) were playing the 3-2 zone in the championship game, it was (Rachel) Witherite who was lighting it up from the corner. I told them (Witherite and Austin) in practice, ‘Why don’t you two switch?’ It was huge. We knew they were going to key on Ariel (Jones).”
“I’ve never shot like that in a game,” said Austin. “I was open. They (her teammates) were getting me the ball. Over this summer at AAU I really improved my shooting. Last year, coach was a little iffy about it. Now he let’s me shoot.
“I just wanted to have a variety to my game,” Austin added. “It just adds to my game. I think college coaches like it when their post players can shoot.”
Cedar Crest spent much of the third quarter holding the Red Tornado at bay.
An old-fashioned three-point play from Jones made the Cedar Crest advantage 30-21 three minutes into the second half. And a three-point bomb by Witherite gave the Falcons a 34-26 margin with 1:27 remaining in the third period.
“How did we do? We won,” said Donmoyer. “That’s the most important thing. The best thing about it is we won’t see them (the Red Tornado) again. We played good defense.
“I just told the kids, ‘It’s not about going to the Giant Center and playing there and being there’,” added Donmoyer. “We did that the last two years. We lost in the semifinals. That’s not our goal. It’s a three-game season. We’re 1-0 and have two games left.”
“The goal is to just keep winning,” said Austin. “We’re going to the Giant Center. Last year, we were just happy to be there. Now we’re in rhythm and we want to keep it going.”
McCaskey was still very much within striking distance before Austin drilled her final triple to extend the Falcons’ lead to 39-30, with 5:52 to go. Three minutes later, Morgan scored inside and Cedar Crest had a 41-32 advantage.
“She came out with so much energy,” said Donmoyer of Morgan. “She got rebounds. She was jacked. We need someone to get rebounds when Alyssa is away from the basket. That was probably the best game she played.
“I always say that as Ariel goes, we go,” Donmoyer added. “Maybe I have to take some of that back. She plays within herself. She plays great defense. She handles the press.”
Austin canned a total of five three-point field goals and collected 20 points, while Morgan struck for 12 points. The Falcons outscored the Red Tornado 21-9 from three-point land.
“Defensively, we gave up 19 points in the first half and 19 points in the second half,” said Donmoyer. “I think we’re giving up (an average of) 37 all year. We play defense. Every game you play defense you’re going to be in. Your defense should never take a break. It’s pretty much about effort. We pride ourselves on our defense.
“I can’t say how proud I am of the kids,” continued Donmoyer. “How hard they work. How they play together. That’s what I would like them to know. I feel really blessed to be part of this season.”
“We were switching very well,” said Austin. “We were just really playing well as a team on defense.”
Morgan converted a steal into a lay-in and an early 5-0 Cedar Crest lead. The Falcons closed the opening quarter on a 6-2 spurt and an 11-8 advantage.
“Honestly, it’s amazing,” said Donmoyer of the four wins against McCaskey. “Four times is unheard of. The first two games, I don’t know if they were in sync. But they really improved the last two games we played them. They played us as tough as anyone we played.”
To purchase images in this article email jkfalk2005@yahoo.com, or to view more go to https://lebanonsportsbuzz.com/photo-gallery/.
2016-17 Cedar Crest Girls’ Basketball Results
| DATE |
OPPONENT |
TIME |
RESULT |
|
|
| 12/09 # |
@East Pennsboro
|
6:00 PM |
W 61-44 |
|
|
| 12/10 # |
@Cedar Cliff
|
7:30 PM |
W 55-43 |
|
|
| 12/13 |
Wilson West Lawn
|
7:30 PM |
W 66-48 |
|
|
| 12/16 * |
@McCaskey
|
7:30 PM |
W 63-47 |
|
|
| 12/19 * |
Warwick
|
7:30 PM |
W 65-47 |
|
|
| 12/21 * |
@Conestoga Valley
|
7:30 PM |
W 41-27 |
|
|
| 12/28 # |
@South Western
|
6:00 PM |
W 52-34 |
|
|
| 12/29 # |
@York Suburban
|
7:30 PM |
W 42-26 |
|
|
| 01/03 * |
Manheim Twp.
|
7:30 PM |
W 66-47 |
|
|
| 01/06 * |
Hempfield
|
7:30 PM |
W 54-40 |
|
|
| 01/09 |
Lebanon
|
7:30 PM |
W 55-21 |
|
|
| 01/10 * |
@Penn Manor
|
7:30 PM |
W 69-44 |
|
|
| 01/13 * |
@Elizabethtown
|
7:30 PM |
W 59-33 |
|
|
| 01/17 * |
McCaskey
|
7:30 PM |
W 62-42 |
|
|
| 01/20 * |
@Warwick
|
7:30 PM |
W 51-28 |
|
|
| 01/24 * |
Conestoga Valley
|
7:30 PM |
W 57-27 |
|
|
| 01/24 |
@Palmyra
|
7:30 PM |
W 51-28 |
|
|
| 01/27 * |
@Manheim Twp.
|
7:30 PM |
W 54-41 |
|
|
| 01/31 * |
@Hempfield
|
7:30 PM |
W 53-44 |
|
|
| 02/02 |
@Cocalico
|
7:30 PM |
W 57-37 |
|
|
| 02/03 * |
Penn Manor
|
7:30 PM |
W 50-30 |
|
|
| 02/07 * |
Elizabethtown
|
7:30 PM |
— |
|
|
| 02/11 # |
@Lebanon Catholic
|
— |
W 63-54 |
|
|
| 02/14 # |
@Northern Lebanon
|
— |
W 49-40 |
|
|
| 02/16 # |
@McCaskey
|
— |
49-43 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| DATE |
OPPONENT |
TIME |
LOCATION |
|
| 02/23 # |
McCaskey
|
7:00 PM |
Cedar Crest High School |
|
PIAA District Three
Class AAAAAA Power Rankings
| AAAAAA |
School |
W |
L |
T |
Rating |
TWP |
OWP |
| 1 |
Cumberland Valley |
17- |
1- |
0 |
0.838316 |
0.965596 |
0.682751 |
| 2 |
Cedar Crest |
22- |
0- |
0 |
0.814043 |
1.000000 |
0.586763 |
| 3 |
Central Dauphin |
19- |
3- |
0 |
0.792272 |
0.906130 |
0.653112 |
| 4 |
Central York |
20- |
2- |
0 |
0.767343 |
0.937255 |
0.559672 |
| 5 |
Cedar Cliff |
17- |
5- |
0 |
0.736588 |
0.823404 |
0.630480 |
| 6 |
Governor Mifflin |
16- |
6- |
0 |
0.710903 |
0.806723 |
0.593790 |
| 7 |
J P McCaskey |
15- |
7- |
0 |
0.705614 |
0.767490 |
0.629987 |
| 8 |
Manheim Township |
14- |
8- |
0 |
0.699771 |
0.742489 |
0.647559 |
| 9 |
Central Dauphin East |
13- |
8- |
0 |
0.698065 |
0.723356 |
0.667155 |
| 10 |
HEMPFIELD |
14- |
8- |
0 |
0.690738 |
0.734177 |
0.637647 |
| 11 |
Dallastown Area |
12- |
10- |
0 |
0.653054 |
0.635556 |
0.674440 |
| 12 |
Wilson (3) |
12- |
9- |
0 |
0.642893 |
0.674365 |
0.604427 |
| 13 |
Red Lion Area |
11- |
11- |
0 |
0.598714 |
0.599537 |
0.597708 |
| 14 |
Waynesboro Area |
14- |
7- |
0 |
0.597029 |
0.716628 |
0.450854 |
| 15 |
Carlisle |
8- |
13- |
0 |
0.563163 |
0.480818 |
0.663807 |
| 16 |
Conestoga Valley |
8- |
13- |
0 |
0.547699 |
0.481390 |
0.628743 |
| 17 |
Elizabethtown Area |
8- |
14- |
0 |
0.539605 |
0.459596 |
0.637393 |
| 18 |
Penn Manor |
8- |
14- |
0 |
0.537248 |
0.470297 |
0.619077 |
| 19 |
Warwick |
7- |
14- |
0 |
0.534636 |
0.441253 |
0.648771 |
| 20 |
Exeter Township |
7- |
15- |
0 |
0.494586 |
0.386364 |
0.626858 |
| 21 |
Reading |
4- |
18- |
0 |
0.445699 |
0.253968 |
0.680037 |
| 22 |
Ephrata Area |
5- |
17- |
0 |
0.419216 |
0.295455 |
0.570480 |
| 23 |
Chambersburg Area |
3- |
19- |
0 |
0.398022 |
0.171196 |
0.675253 |
| 24 |
William Penn |
3- |
18- |
0 |
0.391174 |
0.197772 |
0.627555 |
| 25 |
York Country Day School |
4- |
15- |
0 |
0.291718 |
0.158311 |
0.454772 |
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