Pioneers remain in playoff hunt with 61-40 win
CONNELLSVILLE TWP. — The West Greene Pioneers kept themselves in contention for a playoff spot out of Section 3-A, going on the road Friday night to beat the Geibel Catholic Gators, 61-40.
The Pioneers (4-2, 7-6) used their size to overpower the smaller Gators with three players reaching double figures. Kolton Rush, in only his second game since coming back from an injury, scored a game-high 20 points for the Pioneers. Craig Weaver, the Pioneers’ 6-8 center, muscled his way for 18 and freshman Nathan Brudnock added 13.
Kyle Toth was the only Geibel player to hit double figures, scoring 14.
“I’ve got a lot of respect for Geibel and their program and I was really concerned coming in here tonight,” Pioneers head coach Jim Romanus said. “My kids did a pretty good job tonight. I was happy with the way they came through. Anytime you can get a road win is a good night.”
West Greene started quickly. After edging out to a 5-4 lead, the Pioneers ran off the next 12 points to open up a 17-4 lead and then held a 21-8 advantage at the end of the first quarter. Weaver did most of the damage for the Pioneers, scoring 10 points.
“Little mistakes we make here and there continue to hurt us,” Geibel’s Bill Hughes said. “I tip my hat to coach Romanus and his team. They’re playing well and should make the playoffs, and I wish them the best. They played a good game tonight and executed better than we did.”
The pace slowed a little bit in the second quarter with the Pioneers outscoring Geibel 11-8 to take a 32-16 lead at the half.
The third quarter the Pioneers pulled their game together behind Rush. West Greene opened the third with a 16-0 run. Rush, who tallied nine in the quarter, got the scoring started with a basket, followed by scores from Brudnock and Weaver. Zach McHenry was fouled and hit 1-of-2 from the line. Rush drilled a 3-pointer to make the score 42-16.
Weaver scored, followed by another basket from Rush and a basket from Issac Rizor giving the Pioneers a 48-16 lead. Geibel came back with six points on baskets from Bailey Miller and Caleb Miller. Toth and Bailey Miller each went to the foul line, where they both hit 1-of-2 shots. Rush and Rizor hit consecutive baskets to close out the third quarter, giving West Greene a 52-22 lead.
“Right now we have to take care of our business,” Hughes said. ” We still have a mathematical chance at the playoffs. We’ve got to win some games and get some help along the way.”
Going into the fourth quarter Romanus started to go to the bench which allowed the Gators (1-6, 2-10) to pick up some points, outscoring the Pioneers, 18-9, with Toth scoring nine for Geibel.
“Kolton missed seven games, so he is still shaking off some rust,” Romanus said. “We have to get better. We did a lot of things well tonight, but we got sloppy at times. There is plenty of room for improvement.”
Section 3-A
West Greene 21-11-20-9 — 61
Geibel Catholic 8-8-6-18 — 40
West Greene: Kolton Rush 20, Craig Weaver 18, Nathan Brudnock 13. Geibel Catholic: Kyle Toth 14. Records: West Greene (4-2, 7-6), Geibel Catholic (1-6, 2-10).