District 2 Girls Game Recap (Pittston Area vs. Wilkes-Barre Area)

Written by: Jon K on January 10, 2023

January 9, 2023

Lady Patriots Top Pack to Remain Undefeated

Pittston Area 40, Wilkes-Barre Area 35

YATESVILLE – When Pittston Area and Wilkes-Barre girls’ squads get together, it’s an interesting contrast in basketball styles.  While the Wolfpack loves to drive the ball to the hoop, the Lady Patriots are quite comfortable at beating teams from long-range.  Monday night’s matchup brought plenty of extra pre-game hype as both teams sported undefeated 11-0 records.  While scoring throughout the second half screeched to snail’s pace, there was plenty of drama until the closing moments as Pittston Area overcame some struggles at the charity stripe to notch a 40-35 victory.  The wins kept them undefeated (12-0) but more importantly puts then all alone atop the Wyoming Valley Conference Division 1 standings at 4-0.

After both teams were off target on their initial possessions, Kallie Booth got the crowd going as the sharpshooter connected on a pair of triples wrapped around a drive to the basket by Emma Krawczeniuk for a 6-2 Pittston Area lead.  Teams then traded the lead back and forth throughout the rest of the stanza.  The Wolfpack battled back as Diamond Thorton scored in the lane followed by a bank trey by Natalie Credle off a Patriots turnover to put WBA into the lead, 7-6.  PA responded with a basket by Ava Callahan plus a triple by Daniella Ranieli for an 11-7 lead with 2:51 left in the period.  Thorton made a triple from the corner followed by an Eternity Aiken score as the Pack went back on top, 12-11.  PA finished the first quarter on a 4-0 run as they got a putback by Taylor Baiera and jumper from Ranieli as they took a 15-12 advantage into the second quarter as this showdown was living up to everyone’s expectations.

A second foul called on Wolfpack’s Shelby Ardo Boyko sent the talented forward to the bench.  What was a concerning development for their inside game quickly got nullified as WBA went on a 9-3 run.  Katherin Brito came off the bench to make a pair of layups wrapped around triples by both teams (Krawczeniuk and Ranieli) to give WBA a 19-18 edge.  Their run continued as Thorton got a driving layup followed by a free throw at the 3:05 mark for a 22-18 lead.  Pittston Area then regrouped and finished the first half with their own run, an 11-3 spurt that began with a sensational fed into Baiera for a layup.  A triple by Roman Lazevnick gave PA a 23-22 lead.  Thorton, having a terrific first half scoring and on the boards, got a 3-point play as WBA again went up, 25-23, with 2:05 left in the half.  PA would finish the half with two scores from Booth !one off a terrific steal) and one by Ranieli for a 29-25 lead.

Pittston Area came out of the locker room running a more patient offense and seemed more focused on not letting Wilkes-Barre Area dictate the tempo.  The first four minutes of the third period featured some sensational defense by the Wolfpack as both teams began to turn the ball over and repeatedly came up short on the scoreboard.  Aiken finally connected on a jumper from the foul line at the 3:38 mark.  The Lady Patriots were trying to work the ball underneath the basket to Baiera as Ardo Boyko was again of the game after picking up a third foul early in the quarter.  But, back-to-back turnovers gave WBA another chance to tie to game.  This time they used some nice ball movement to get the ball to Thorton for a layup that knotted the game at 29.  Booth would add a free throw to give PA a 30-29 edge heading into the final frame.

Baiera scored on a layup to start the fourth period.  Thornton responded with a triple that tied the game at 32 with 7:03 left in the game.  A clutch trey by Ranieli followed by a 3-point baseline drive by Booth two minutes later gave Pittston Area a 38-32 advantage.  And in a second half in which points were coming at an absolute premium, it seemed like the Pats were in a great position to run some clock and let the Pack send them to the foul line.  After PA missed a 1+1 with 2:07 left, teams traded turnovers as things began to get a bit sloppy.  A triple by Krawczeniuk at the 1:38 mark cut it to 38-35.  Over the next minute, Pittston Area would again miss the front end of two more trips to the charity stripe.  But, while the door of opportunity was wide open, Wilkes-Barre could not get any closer.  Ava Callahan would secure the 40-35 victory with a pair of foul shots in the closing seconds.

Pittston Area was led by Kallie Booth with 14 points and Daniella Ranieli with 13 points.  Taylor Baiera, Ava Callahan, and Roman Lazevnick combined to score 13 points.  The Lady Patriots were 4 of 10 at the free throw line.

Wilkes-Barre Area was paced by Diamond Thorton who netted 16 points.  Emma Krawczeniuk scored 8 points.  Eternity Aiken, Katherin Brito, and Natalie Credle combined to add 11 points.       

Both teams continue division play Thursday on the road.  Pittston Area visits Dallas and Wilkes-Barre Area travels to Hazleton Area.

Kallie Booth with a terrific steal and driving layup to put Pittston Area up by four at halftime pic.twitter.com/HjNTtVKNmo

— LLHoops Neast Beat (@LLHoopsNEPbeat) January 10, 2023

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