Feb 1, 2005 By The 6 min read

Albert Gallatin wrestlers lose in team competition; Connellsville, Jeff-Morgan girls’ playoff hopes dashed On Monday night, Albert Gallatin led Fox Chapel with two bouts remaining in their WPIAL Class AAA playoff wrestling match before succumbing, while in girls basketball, Connellsville and Jefferson-Morgan were eliminated from postseason contention.

In a Section 2-A match-up, West Greene’s Rachel Phillips turned in one of the WPIAL’s best performances of the season, scoring 41 points in a win over Mapletown, while Southmoreland kept on rolling in Section 3-AAA with a win over Yough, which in turn helped Laurel Highlands in its chase for a playoff berth.

Wrestling

Fox Chapel 41, Albert Gallatin 31 – Fox Chapel had no problem with being referred to as “lightweight” competition in its WPIAL Class AAA play-in match with Albert Gallatin at Thomas Jefferson High School.

Trailing 31-29 with two bouts remaining, the Foxes’ Joe Johnson picked up a forfeit at 103 pounds before Brett Skonieczny sealed the match by pinning Albert Gallatin’s Shadd Matthews at 112 pounds in 1:19.

Fox Chapel’s Brandon Skoieczny started off the match with a forfeit victory at 119 pounds, and the Foxes won five of the next six bouts to take a commanding 29-6 lead.

Albert Gallatin then rolled off five straight victories, starting when Mark Brown pinned Andrew Richless at 160 pounds in 2:44. Charlie Belch followed by pinning Jason Schmidt in 1:45 at 171 pounds and Kevin Bella did likewise to Brandon Goeller in 4:38 at 189 pounds.

Trailing 29-24, Albert Gallatin’s Rob Blosser picked up a 9-2 decision over Andrew Lever, and the Colonials Alan Meyer gave AG its first lead with a major decision (12-1) over Hunter Welty at 275 pounds

Girls Basketball

Norwin 61, Connellsville 49 – Alissa Shocke led four players in double figures with 15 points, as the Lady Knights handed the Lady Falcons a Section 1-AAAA loss and knocked them out of playoff contention.

Connellsville entered play Monday needing to win its final two section games and have Latrobe and Greensburg Salem each split their remaining two. The loss guarantees the Lady Falcons can finish no higher than fifth place, with the top four teams advancing to the postseason.

Leading 26-25 at halftime, Norwin (17-5, 12-1) gave itself some breathing room with a 20-9 third-quarter advantage.

The Lady Knights’ Jessica Shocke and Erica Haitz added 14 points each, while Heather Derry chipped in 10.

Connellsville’s Brooke Bryner tossed in a game-high 16 points, including three treys, and teammate Rachel Means added 13.

Penn-Trafford 42, Albert Gallatin 27 – Jenna Petrini led a balanced scoring attack with 11 points as the Lady Indians topped the visiting Lady Colonials in Section 1-AAAA action.

No other Penn-Trafford player scored more than six points, as the Lady Indians improved to 16-5 overall and 10-3 in section play.

Jessica Lint paced Albert Gallatin (4-15, 0-13) with nine points.

Penn-Trafford led 9-4 after one quarter, and 25-10 at halftime.

Southmoreland 62, Yough 51 – Vanessa Abel scored a game-high 17 points and dished out five assists as the Lady Scots jumped out to a big lead through three quarters and held on for the Section 3-AAA win.

With the victory, Southmoreland improves to 16-5 overall and 9-4 in section play.

Yough, meanwhile, falls into a tie with Laurel Highlands for fourth place. The Lady Cougars (9-13, 7-6) can clinch a playoff berth with a win over visiting Mount Pleasant Thursday, as can Laurel Highlands with a victory over visiting Belle Vernon.

Ally Richardson added 12 points for the Lady Scots, which led 18-8 after one quarter and 31-16 at halftime. Southmoreland put the game away with a 13-8 third-quarter advantage.

“We played really well tonight,” said Southmoreland coach Brian Pritts. “Everybody seemed to work together. We controlled the game from start to finish.”

Rachel Sebens led three Yough players in double digits with 13 points, with teammates Jenny Jenny Coughenour and Brooke Orange adding 12 and 10 points, respectively.

Geibel Catholic 61, Jefferson-Morgan 52 – The Lady Gators’ Mia White paced a balanced scoring attack with a game-high 15 points in Geibel’s Section 2-A win over the Lady Rockets.

Geibel solidified its hold on second place, while the loss ended Jefferson-Morgan’s playoff hopes. The Lady Rockets could tie Carmichaels for fourth place with a win over Mapletown Thursday, but the Lady Mikes swept the season series and thus would win a tiebreaker for the fourth and WPIAL playoff berth.

White connected on five shots from the field, including a pair of three-pointers. Danielle Cochrane added 14 points, eight of which came from the free throw line, and Abbie Renzie chipped in 13 points.

Geibel took control of the game early, outscoring the home team, 20-8.

The big first quarter proved to be the difference.

“It was a very hard-fought game from the first-quarter on,” said Jefferson-Morgan coach Mike Buday. “We gave up some real easy buckets on fast breaks and we got behind. They’re (Geibel) a good ball club. We’re a young ball club. I’m pleased with the way they played tonight.

“We have a pretty good future ahead of us. We started to play pretty good ball the second half of the season. I just wanted to be competitive here, my first year. I think the future’s promising.”

Rachel Weaver led four Lady Rockets in double figures with 14 points and also pulled down 12 rebounds. Charity McCann and Ashley Phillips added 11 points each, with Lindsay Olson chipping in 10.

West Greene 56, Mapletown 49 – Lady Pioneers’ junior guard Rachel Phillips enjoyed a fantastic game, scoring 41 points, pulling down 15 rebounds and dishing out five assists in a Section 2-A win over the visiting Lady Maples.

Phillips scored 43 points earlier this season against Springdale and 41 as a sophomore against Brownsville.

West Greene (7-14, 4-7) led 12-9 after one quarter and 22-21 at halftime. The Lady Pioneers widened their lead to seven points with eight minutes to play.

Brittani Schock paced Mapletown (7-12, 6-5) with 15 points. Even with the loss, the Lady Maples clinched a playoff berth when Geibel Catholic defeated Jefferson-Morgan Monday night.

The Lady Maples’ Erika Chory and Mary Kocerka added 11 points apiece.

Boys Basketball

Washington 98, Geibel Catholic 65 – Rashad Davison paced four Prexies in double digits with 26 points and Washington swept its season series with the Gators.

Romone Barnes added 25 points, C.J. Baker 12 and Jock Wells 10 for Washington, which improved to 18-2.

Washington jumped out a 22-11 first-quarter lead and led 49-22 at halftime.

Geibel’s Rob Ramsey paced all scorers with 28 points, including four three-pointers, while Kellen Holmes (15) and Mario Fragello (12) reached double-digits as well.