Dec 22, 2004 By Jim Downey 4 min read

YORK RUN – A coach’s responsibility is to put his team in the position to win a game, and then it’s up to the players to finish the task. Albert Gallatin coach Dan Andria and Connellsville’s Nick Bosnic did just that, and both teams had chances to win the game, but it was the Colonials who finished the task for a hard-fought 47-45 Section 1-AAAA home victory.

Albert Gallatin pushed out to a 46-42 lead when Zach Voithofer hit a pair of free throws with 1:23 remaining in the contest. Connellsville was game, however, with Clay Hurley nailing a pair of free throws 23 seconds later.

The Colonials attempted to run out the clock, but Chris Pepe came out with a steal that eventually turned into a bonus situation for Andrew Kraynak. The lanky forward made the first, but missed the second only to have Pepe johnny-on-the-spot again for an offensive rebound.

The Falcons inbounded the ball with Josh Holt, who sat most of the final three quarters, deftly stealing the ball with 8.3 seconds to go. He made the second shot of a two-shot opportunity, allowing Connellsville one last chance to tie or win the game.

Pepe again rose to the front, getting fouled on a baseline drive with one second left. He missed the first and Albert Gallatin knocked away any hopes of a rebound tap-in for the exhilarating win.

“It was all guts. That’s the way it was going,” said Andria. “Games like this come down to the foul line. Josh Holt made the play at the end of the game. I told him he was going to make a play when I put him in (after Jawaan Alston fouled out).”

“We have to make those plays that we had. We got it in spots, but we just couldn’t make the plays,” said Bosnic after the game.

The combination of Terrence McCrae foul trouble and a switch by Andria to a 1-3-1 zone slowed Connellsville in the third quarter. The talented sophomore picked up his third foul at 6:06 of the quarter, part of the reason the Falcons didn’t score a point until John Dilworth’s inside jumper at 4:03 of the period to tie the game at 30.

“Nate Turner on the point of the 1-3-1 covers a lot of ground. He makes guards think,” said Andria.

McCrae’s, and Connellsville’s, woes worsened when he picked up his fourth and fifth fouls in less than 10 seconds early in the fourth quarter, fouling out at 6:46 of the fourth. He was the only Falcon in double figures with 16, all scored in the first half.

“McCrae fouling out was a big factor. He was in the flow,” said Bosnic. “That’s just how it goes.

“The 1-3-1 zone didn’t bother us. We have to be patient and concentrate. Albert Gallatin’s big inside, but we had some very makeable shots. We have to become more disciplined. We had easy shots, easy baskets against the zone.”

“McCrae was super,” praised Andria. “When he fouled out, it changed the game, and then Jawaan (Alston) fouled out to even things out. McCrae was looking for the basket. Justin Alston shut him down. We had a diamond working against McCrae.”

Points were scarce, but came in bunches. A 12-4 run at the end of the first quarter gave Connellsville (0-2, 2-4) a 16-10 lead with the two teams putting up identical numbers, four field goals and four free throws, to go into halftime with Connellsville leading, 28-23.

Despite a slow third quarter, Connellsville finished strong enough to leave the quarter with a slime 36-35 advantage.

T.J. Hall scored a team-high 16 points for Albert Gallatin, including a pair of 3-pointers in the second half with the second one giving the Colonials a 40-38 lead at 2:07 of the fourth quarter. Jawaan Alston scored 14 before fouling out while Turner added 12.

According to both coaches, Section 1-AAAA is akin to the NHL’s old Norris Division, once known as the “Black and Blue” division.

“We made an improvement from Uniontown,” said Bosnic. “We play Penn Trafford at home Thursday. They have a good record, and they’re fast and well-rounded.”

“People are going to beat each other,” said Andria, whose Colonials (3-1, 5-2) play Hempfield on Thursday. “You have to win some road games. I wouldn’t be surprised if four losses win the section.”