District 2 Boys Division Recaps

Written by: Jon K on January 25, 2018

DISTRICT 2 BOYS DIVISION ANALYSIS

(games through 1/24)

WYOMING VALLEY CONFERENCE

DIVISION 1

Hazleton Area (8-0, 12-1) 6A

Dallas (6-1, 11-2) 5A

Crestwood (6-2, 10-4) 5A

Wyoming Valley West (2-5, 4-9) 5A

Pittston Area (1-7, 2-12) 5A

Wilkes-Barre Coughlin (0-7, 2-11) 5A

Hazleton Area remained perfect in Division 1 at 8-0 with crossover wins over Tunkhannock (73-38), Nanticoke Area (83-65) Tuesday night, and Wilkes-Barre GAR (77-50) Wednesday night. Jeff Planutis netted 16 points while Scott Shamany and Joey Grula combined for 23 for the Cougars (who jumped out to a 42-12 halftime lead). Then, on Saturday night, they participated in the much-anticipated Geigle Classic against Reading. The Cougars had things going to their liking through the first period (leading 16-10) but then trudged through a combination of offensive woes in the paint, poor defensive rebounding, and 0-fer from the free throw line to trail 29-20 at the break. As expected, Mike Joseph’s squad did rally to trim the gap to four points 53-49 midway through the final quarter, but could not sustain the momentum after Josh Samec (15 points) fouled out and the Red Knights went on to seal the 65-56 upset win from the charity stripe. HA got 21 points and 10 board from Joey Grula, 10 points from Jeff Planutis, and 15 caroms from Da’Mir Faison. Reading was led by Xavier Starks (15 points) and Wesley Butler (14 points). Their wins over Nanticoke and GAR will be recapped next week, but, in both games the Cougars found themselves in a tight battle through intermission. They are definitely getting everyone’s attention and best effort. Dallas (6-1) defeated GAR 66-40 as Alex Charlton netted 18 while Nick Kocher and Joey Parsons teamed up for 22. The Mountaineers then notched a big road victory, 72-51 over Wyoming Area. One of the division teams to watch out for going forward is Crestwood. The Comets came away with crossover wins over Meyers, Wyoming Area, and Tunkhannock (Tuesday night). In their 50-36 win over Meyers, the Comets pulled away in the final stanza as they got 18 from Ryan Petrosky and 14 from Camden Boris (with 4 triples). In their 59-45 win over Wyoming Area, Crestwood got off to a quick start as Petrosky again led the way with 19 while Boris and Sean Murphy combined for 23. Tuesday night they topped Tunkhannock 55-39. Crestwood also traveled for a non-league Saturday matchup as they rallied for a 55-45 win over highly-regarded Danville. Mike Palmiero hit 19, Boris 17, and Murphy 14 in the game that was tied 25-25 at the break. The Ironmen got 17 from Jordan Bickhart and 10 from Shane Kozick. Wyoming Valley West rallied in the second half from a 20-point halftime deficit, but came up short against Wyoming Area, 71-61. The Spartans got 28 points (with 4 triples) from Draig Ruff and 17 (with 3 triples) from Justus Simpson. Monday night WVW dropped a 69-48 loss to Berwick. Pittston Area, with just one division win, played very competitively in crossover losses to Nanticoke Area, Wilkes-Barre Meyers, and Berwick. Naseem Guillaume netted 27 points (with 4 triples) in their 56-49 loss to the Trojans. Tuesday they fell to Meyers 45-42 and then went into overtime before coming up short to Berwick 68-64 on Wednesday night. Game details on both of those matchups next week. Wilkes-Barre Coughlin is still looking for their first division win. The Crusaders got 8 points from Aaron Bennett in a 48-31 loss to Berwick. On Tuesday, they lost to Wilkes-Barre city rival Coughlin, 64-53. Coming up on Friday, Crestwood hosts Nanticoke Area in a premier matchup while Dallas entertains surging Wilkes-Barre Meyers. Also Friday, Hazleton Area hosts Berwick as they will honor their 1992-1993 team (29-2) which reached the state championship.

DIVISION 2

Nanticoke Area (6-2, 10-3) 4A

Wilkes-Barre Meyers (6-2, 7-6) 4A

Berwick (6-3, 9-5) 4A

Tunkhannock (4-3, 7-5) 4A

Wyoming Area (5-4, 9-4) 4A

Wilkes-Barre GAR (4-4, 6-7) 4A

Wilkes-Barre Meyers, fresh off a 48-40 win over Holy Redeemer Wednesday night, has pulled into a Division 2 first place tie with Nanticoke Area (both at 6-2). The Mohawks began last week with a 50-36 loss to Crestwood, although they only trailed by a basket (33-31) heading into the final period. Jawane Buckner netted 15 and Blake Masker added 8. Tuesday night, Meyers edged Pittston Area 45-42. In a non-league game on Saturday, Meyers trailed by 10 early (15-5) but controlled the middle periods (35-16) to post a 56-51 victory over Central Columbia. Buckner scored 18 while Kendall Brewster added 13. Dominic Coombe hit 41 for the Bluejays. Nanticoke Area converted 16 of 19 free throws and got another stellar effort from Nate Kreitzer (30 points with 4 treys) plus a dozen from Trahjan Krupinski in a 56-49 win over Pittston Area. The Trojans then dominated the middle stanzas (37-17) as they got a 69-48 win over MMI Prep as Kreitzer hit 17. Tuesday night, GNA played a very inspired game against Hazleton Area, but dropped an 83-65 loss to the Cougars. Berwick, playing a bit under the radar, came within a whisper of leading the division following wins over Coughlin (48-41), Wyoming Valley West (69-48) Tuesday night, and Pittston Area (68-64 in overtime) Wednesday night. Their only loss was a 41-40 loss to MMI Prep in which they led 33-30 going into the final eight minutes. Damon Beckhorn (17 points) and Alec Markle (15 points with 3 triples) led the way in the win over Coughlin. In the loss to MMI, Beckhorn, Markle, and Ken Marshman teamed up for 32 points. Recaps of their wins over Valley West and Pittston Area will be posted next week. Tunkhannock got 9 points from Tyler Faux in a 73-38 loss to Hazleton Area. Faux then connected on 4 treys (24 points) and Sean Harder added 13 as the Tigers defeated Lake-Lehman, 62-31. Tuesday night, they dropped a 55-39 loss to Crestwood. Wyoming Area got a 71-61 win over Wyoming Valley West as Sam Greenfield hit 34 points, Kyre Zielinski 15, and Dylan Melberger 9 (on three triples). Against Crestwood, the Warriors trailed 18-8 after the first quarter and lost to the Comets 59-45 as they got 17 from Aaron Zezza and 13 from Sam Greenfield. Tuesday night WA dropped a home game to Division 1 contender Dallas, 72-51. GAR dropped to 4-4 in division play after then dropped loses to Dallas (66-40) and Hazleton Area (77-50) wrapped around a win over city rival Coughlin (64-53). In their loss to Dallas, Will Johnson hit 15 and Simon Peter 14 (with 4 triples). On Friday night, Nanticoke Area visits Crestwood, Meyers travels to Dallas, and Berwick plays at Hazleton Area.

DIVISION 3

Wyoming Seminary (7-2, 12-3) 3A

Holy Redeemer (5-3, 9-4) 3A

Hanover Area (3-5, 8-6) 4A

MMI Prep (2-6, 6-8) 1A

Northwest Area (1-8, 4-10) 2A

Lake-Lehman (0-8, 1-13) 4A

Wyoming Seminary and Holy Redeemer got together for their first showdown of the season with the Blue Knights coming away with a 46-41 win and first place in Division 3. Dimitri Gnall scored 17 and Jeremy Callahan 10 in the win while the Royals got 8 each from Bryan Yencha and Collin Cook plus 14 from Joey Judge. The Blue Knights also gained wins over MMI Prep (49-23) Tuesday night and Northwest Area (77-64) Wednesday night. Holy Redeemer rebounded with a 68-54 win over Hanover Area Tuesday night, but then fell to surging Wilkes-Barre Meyers Wednesday night, 48-40. Hanover Area picked up a pair of wins over Lake-Lehman and Northwest before dropping the loss to Holy Redeemer Tuesday night. In their 76-37 victory over L-L, they placed three into doubles (Mike Piscotty 21, Evan Matera 11, and Tyler Thomas 10). The Black Knights got 26 combined from Donald Thompson, Nate Salus, and Max Paczewski). Hanover then got 19 with 3 triples from Matera, 14 with 4 treys from Piscotty, and 13 from Asad Whitehead in a 70-40 win over Northwest Area. The Rangers got 27 combined from Bryce Koser, Jaxson Yaple, and Sam Saxe. MMI Prep picked up a pair of wins last week, 51-35 over Lake-Lehman and 41-40 over Berwick. Matt Marchetti scored 25 and Marcus Kassick 14 in the win for the Preppers. The Black Knights got 14 from CJ Cerone and 11 from Paczewski. In their win over Berwick, Marchetti netted 23. Marchetti also hit 18 and George Palermo 12 in a 69-48 loss to Nanticoke. On Friday night, Holy Redeemer visits Northwest Area while Wyoming Seminary hosts Lake-Lehman.

LACKAWANNA LEAGUE

DIVISION 1

Scranton Prep (7-0, 12-3) 4A

Abington Heights (6-1, 13-2) 5A

Scranton (5-2, 10-5) 6A

Valley View (2-5, 10-6) 4A

West Scranton (2-5, 7-8) 5A

In Division 1, Scranton Prep (7-0) continues to lead the way. Abington Heights moved into sole possession of second place following their historic win over Scranton Friday night in which head coach Ken Bianchi captured win #758 to become the all-time District 2 leader, passing Julius Prezelski, the legendary Forest City coach who retired in 1993. Scranton Prep raced out to a 31-9 lead, placing a dozen players into the scoring column, led by Leo O’Boyle with 20 (and 3 triples) as the Cavaliers topped North Pocono 73-37. Then, in another crossover matchup, Prep took an early 20-4 lead and then held off a final period run by Wallenpaupack for a 63-53 win. Again, the Cavs got everyone involved on the scoresheet, led by O’Boyle (21), Greyson Schermerhorn (9), and Wes Simons (8). On Saturday afternoon, Prep traveled to the Lehigh Valley to battle 6A Parkland (8-8 overall). The Cavs downed the Trojans 72-66 as O’Boyle (30 points, 5 treys) again played spectacular while Simons added 13. Parkland got 17 from Logan Rindock, 16 from Jared Kucharczyk, and 14 each from Jake Bartholomew and Dylan Rhoads. Tuesday night, Prep rolled over Western Wayne 85-59 in another crossover tilt. Last Friday, Abington Heights controlled the middle periods and hit 14 of 16 free throws as they eventually shook off a talented Scranton squad, 68-56. The Comets, minus Trey Koehler (ankle/foot injury) for a few weeks got a superb effort from Jackson Danzig (27 points with 4 triples) and George Tinsley (23 points). They also got 8 each from Jack Nealon and Corey Perkins. The Knights received balanced scoring from Marcus Bauman (14), Robbie McAndrew (11 with 3 triples), and Ky’Ron Harbin (with 10). AH then got 18 from Perkins while Danzig and Tinsley combined for 24 as the Comets got by Honesdale at home 59-33 in a Monday makeup crossover game. Tuesday night they defeated Valley View 57-38. Scranton sandwiched wins over Delaware Valley (62-41) and North Pocono (71-49) around their loss to AH. In their crossover win over Del-Val, the Knights held a commanding 48-26 lead before the Warriors began to narrow the final gap. Harbin (16), McAndrew (15), Tyjay Ash (13 with 3 treys), and Bauman (9) paced Scranton. Valley View split a pair of games last week. They defeated Western Wayne 62-38 as Marc Kudrich scored 17, Dylan Howanitz 14, and Bobby Craig 10. The Cougars then got 12 each from Jaden Duplessis and Howanitz plus 11 from Chase Combs in a 64-47 loss to West Scranton. West got 24 points (with 3 triples) from Shayne Merrifield, 18 from Josh Hart, and 12 from Jalen Gregory. Speaking of the Invaders, they experienced both the thrill victory (a 46-45 OT win over North Pocono) and agony of defeat (52-49 loss to Delaware Valley at the buzzer). In their win over the Trojans, Merrifield netted 14 and Hart 12. Friday night Scranton Prep hosts West Scranton, Valley View entertains Scranton, and Abington Heights travels to play Wallenpaupack.

DIVISION 2

Delaware Valley (5-2, 10-6) 6A

Honesdale (3-4, 9-7) 4A

Wallenpaupack (2-5, 9-7) 5A

Western Wayne (2-5, 6-8) 4A

North Pocono (1-6, 3-13) 5A

Delaware Valley, aided by yet another stellar effort from Blake Gearhart, defeated West Scranton on the road Tuesday night (52-49) to open up a 2-game lead in Division 2. Last week the Warriors split a pair of games. Gearhart hit 16 with 3 triples and Zach Klapak added 12 in their 62-51 loss to Scranton. Then, in a pivotal battle against Honesdale, Del-Val was able to hold off a come bid from the Hornets to secure a 46-42 victory. Gearhart netted 17 while Dylan Kelly added 8. Honesdale got 12 from Anthony DeGori, 11 from Joey Scarfalloto, and 8 from Colin Rickard. Honesdale, who was tied with Del-Val a week ago, fell two games off the pace following losses this week to Abington Heights (59-33 Monday) and Wallenpaupack (47-37 on Tuesday). Against AH, the Hornets trailed 15-2 after the first stanza as they got 14 points from Rickard. Wallenpaupack won a pair of division game following their 63-53 crossover loss to Scranton Prep last week. In the loss to the Cavs, the Buckhorns got a combined 33 points from Elijah Rosenthal, Gabe Springer, and Alex Pillar. Paupack then used a 35-16 advantage through the second and fourth periods in a 56-45 victory over Western Wayne as four players reached doubles (Rosenthal 15, Derrick Vosburg 12, Springer 11, and Pillar 11). The Wildcats got 18 from Dahlton Frisbie (with 5 treys), 12 from Zachary Rovinsky, and 9 (on 3 triples) from Lucas Scott. Monday night they topped Honesdale. Western Wayne got 9 points from Rovinsky in a 62-38 loss to Valley View. North Pocono got 18 from Chris McLafferty and 10 from Alec Ciaglia in their overtime (46-45) loss to West Scranton. Friday night, Delaware Valley visits Western Wayne, Honesdale hosts Western Wayne, and Wallenpaupack entertains Abington Heigths.

DIVISION 3

Holy Cross (4-1, 8-6) 2A (1-0 crossover)

Mid Valley (4-1, 8-6) 3A (1-0 crossover)

Riverside (4-2, 6-8) 3A (0-0 crossover)

Dunmore (3-2, 7-6) 3A (1-0 crossover)

Carbondale (2-3, 7-7) 3A (0-0 crossover)

Old Forge (1-4, 5-9) 2A (1-0 crossover)

Lakeland (0-5, 3-10) 3A (1-0 crossover)

After Mid Valley got by Dunmore Tuesday night, 45-40, the Spartans have moved into a Division 3 first place tie in first half play (say that ten times fast). Holy Cross remained co-leader following their 73-39 crossover victory over Blue Ridge. Things could get very interesting depending on what happens Thursday night when Holy Cross visits Carbondale, Mid Valley hosts Old Forge, and Dunmore travels to Lakeland. We could have anything from an outright first half winner to a completely chaotic 4-way jam. Last week, the Crusaders came away with wins over Dunmore and Old Forge. They had a big first half jumping out to a 39-24 lead on the Bucks in the 55-39 win as Patrick Galvin (13), Kieran Burrier (13), and Tom Montefour (12) led the way. Dunmore got 7 each from Noah O’Malley and Nate Fangio. Holy Cross followed that with another strong start racing out to a 17-2 advantage before doubling up Old Forge 62-31. Tyler Mozeleski netted 16 while Burrier and Dom Possanza combined for 23. Joey Verespey and Michael DiGregorio combined for 22 for the Blue Devils. Mid Valley topped Lakeland 50-40 as Collin Scherer (19 points with 5 triples), JJ Glinsky (12), and Shane Rosencrans (9) paced the Spartans who hit all 9 of their free throws. The Chiefs, who are still looking for their first division win, led at the break 16-15 as they got 11 each from James Lewis and CJ Dippre. Mid Valley also got a 59-24 crossover victory over Mountain View as they got 16 from Scherer, 13 (with 3 treys) from Rosencrans, and 13 from Colin Hazelton. Riverside dropped a game off the lead after splitting a pair of games as they completed first half action. First, they lost to Dunmore 59-48 as Evan Carrubba had a huge game hitting 27 points for the Vikes. Dunmore got 17 from Fangio, 13 from Daniel Walsh, and 12 from O’Malley. The Vikings rebounded against top rival Old Forge, 57-52, as Marcos Esheverria (18), Razen Reyes (16), and Carrubba (11) led the way. The Devils got 16 from Kevin Walsh, 13 (with 3 triples) from Brandon Nee, and 11 from Verespey. Carbondale picked up their second division win as they rallied from a halftime deficit to defeat Lakeland 62-53. The Chargers placed four into doubles (Bobby Salitsky 22. Andrew Manarchuck 12, Mike Zazzera 12, and Bailey Rumford 10). Lakeland got 18 points including 4 triples from Rodney LaBorde while Nick Bertholf, Lewis, and Dippre combined for 28 more. Carbondale also defeated Forest City in a non-league tilt as Manarchuck and Salitsky teamed up for 22 points. And Old Forge picked up their first division victory Tuesday night with an overtime 62-58 win over Lakeland. Stop back later in the week for updates and possible first half playoff scenarios.

DIVISION 4

Montrose (5-1, 8-6) 3A (0-0 crossover)

Susquehanna (4-1, 7-7) 1A (0-1 crossover)

Elk Lake (3-2, 8-6) 2A (0-0 crossover)

Lackawanna Trail (3-2, 3-11) 2A (0-1 crossover)

Forest City (2-3, 2-11) 2A (0-1 crossover)

Mountain View (1-4, 3-10) 2A (0-1 crossover)

Blue Ridge (0-5, 0-12) 2A (0-1 crossover)

In Division 4, Montrose clinched a tie for first half honors following their 67-52 victory over Lackawanna Trail Tuesday night. Susquehanna can pull into first place and force a playoff if they can defeat Forest City at home Thursday night. Montrose split their games last week, defeating Forest City (50-41) before being upset by Mountain View (59-51). In the win over Forest City, the Meteors were led by Jacob Peck (14 points), Evan Snyder (13), and Tyler Rebello (9). The Foresters got 10 points each from Dakota Knehr-Cook and Jordan Non. Against Mt. View, Montrose got 13 from Snyder, 12 from Andrew Rapisardi, and 11 from Brennan Gilhool. The Eagles, who pulled away in the final period, got great efforts from Kyle Streich (22 points with 5 triples), Mikey Schermerhorn (14 points) and Alex Showalter (13). Susquehanna had a big week picking up wins over Lackawanna Trail (50-48 in OT), Elk Lake (64-43), and Mountain View (52-37) Monday night. Mason Deakin netted 20 and Eric Lee added 15 in their win over LT. The Lions, who led by 8 at the break, got 21 combined points from Shawn Jones and Josh Rzucidlo. The Sabers then got 26 from Bryce Baldwin, 20 from Deakin, and 10 from Lee in the victory over Elk Lake. The Warriors got 34 of their 43 points from Rierdan Reyan (who also connected on 3 triples). Lackawanna Trail dropped out of the first half race following their loss to Montrose Monday night. The Lions got 26 from Jones, 17 (plus 3 triples) from Rzucidlo, and 9 from Zac Cost in a 69-54 win over Blue Ridge. The Raiders got 18 (with 5 treys) from Sam Cosmello and a dozen from Kaleb Folk. Elk Lake picked up their third win of the half Tuesday night with a 66-50 win over Forest City. Speaking of the Foresters, they had a busy week. They defeated winless Blue Ridge 62-53 as Dakota Knehr-Cook (20 with 3 triples), Noah Yates (17), and Eric Paulin (13) led the way. The Raiders got 25 combined from Folk and Cosmello. Forest City also dropped a 51-40 non-league loss to Carbondale as Yates and Knehr-Cook each tallied 16 points. Mountain View dropped a crossover game to Mid Valley 59-24 as Preston Petts scored 7 for the Eagles. Finally, Elk Lake topped Towanda 70-55 pulling away in the final quarter as Reyes had another monster game hitting 31 points (with 3 treys) while Drew Arnold and Kevin Valvanolo teamed up for 24.