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PIAA Girls 6A First Round (Methacton 56, Wilkes-Barre Area 44)
 

PIAA Girls 6A First Round (Methacton 56, Wilkes-Barre Area 44)

Written by: Jon K on March 8, 2022

 

 

March 8, 2022

 

WBA Girls Fall in PIAA Opening Round

 

Methacton 56, Wilkes-Barre Area 44

 

By Phil T.

WILKES-BARRE – For the second consecutive year, the Wilkes-Barre Area Wolfpack came up short in the PIAA State Tournament’s opening round losing to District 1 Methacton 56-44.
It was the third year that the District 2 Girls’ 6A team has failed to advance past the opening round in the tournament.  The previous win in the state tournament came in 2019 when Hazleton Area defeated Central Bucks West 40-38 before losing in the second round.
The Warrior’s 1,700+ point leading scorer, Nicole Timko, got her team going early with two triples, but their shots would soon begin to miss while Wolfpack would start to make their mark in the game.  In the opening frame Methacton shot 3-11 (27%) from beyond the arc, all three via Timko, and they only attempted two shots from inside the perimeter.
Wilkes-Barre got on a 7-0 run early in the game which started and ended by Gloria Adjayi, but it was Danayjha Moore’s triples to start and end the frame that saw the Pack take a 13-11 lead after the opening buzzer.
Abby Arnold got the Warriors going with a mid-range jumper to start the second period, but the Pack’s Eternity Aiken quickly retook the lead with a bucket at the other end.
Timko proceeded to put her team on her back as she scored the Warrior’s next ten points, including seven unanswered, to retake the lead.  As the half drew to a close, Methacton went on another run, 7-2, punctuated by a Reana Torres triple to give her team a 30-24 advantage at the break.
Both teams traded buckets to start the second half until two Warrior triples, from Tori Bockrath and Torres, gave them another 7-0 spurt to extend their lead to double-digits.  A putback bucket from Adjayi and a layup from Shelby Ardo-Boyko, to end the third frame, cut the deficit back to nine points.
Coming out of the break Wilkes-Barre revamped its offensive and defensive gameplan.  Timko scored 21 points in the first half, but only five in the second half with defenders playing tightly against her, however, Methacton’s other shooters stepped up and shared the effort to maintain the Warrior lead.  On the offensive end, the Pack focused on feeding leading scorer Ajayi in the paint.  The plan of attack worked with her doubling her first half field-goals in the third stanza alone, but with the Warrior’s playing well from behind the arc, the Wolfpack was forced to play at a faster, shoot-at-will, pace.
With a comfortable lead in the final period, Methacton seemed content to move the ball around, consume the clock, and pick out high-percentage scoring opportunities.  The Pack had to begin fouling and sent their opponent to the line approaching 1:30 to play, but with a 12-point margin, the Warriors were able to secure the 56-44 victory.
Nicole Timko led her team to victory with a double-double performance, 26 points and 11 rebounds.  Tori Bockrath added 11 points in her team’s victory.
Gloria Adjayi led all Wolfpack players with an 18-point performance.  Shelby Ardo-Boyko added ten points in the contest.
With the win Methacton advances to the second round of the PIAA 6A Girls’ tournament where they will face fellow District 1 opponent, Perkiomen Valley.  Both teams already played each other twice this season, splitting the series 1-1.

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