Jan 22, 2025 By the Herald-Standard 5 min read

Mykel Bruce-McCrommon totaled 20 points and eight rebounds as Gateway stormed back from a 12-point deficit to top visiting Laurel Highlands, 48-44, in a Section 1-AAAAA boys basketball battle Tuesday night.

Gateway (6-3, 8-7) led 13-10 after the first quarter and 22-19 at halftime before Laurel Highlands opened the third quarter with a 15-point run to go up 34-22.

The Mustangs led 36-24 when the Gators began their comeback, whittling the gap down to 37-32 by the end of the third and out-scoring Laurel Highlands 16-7 in the fourth.

Aiden Black paced the Mustangs (1-8, 4-12) with 15 points and Antwan Black followed with 14.

Geibel Catholic 87, Mount Pleasant 67 – Evan Strimel tossed in 20 points and the visiting Gators gradually pulled away for a non-section win over the Vikings.

Gary Tarbuk followed with three 3-pointers and 19 points and Seth Dolan added four treys and 14 points for Geibel (9-6) which also got 12 points from Eahn Stevenson.

The Gators led 25-16, 41-28 and 63-48 at the quarter breaks.

Jonah Townsend scored 15 points, Jordan Grieff followed with 12 and Brady Brooks had 10 points for Mount Pleasant (0-16) which also got nine points on three 3-pointers from Gage Vallone.

Waynesburg Central 59, Jefferson-Morgan 53 – Alex VanSickle scored a game-high 18 points and the host Raiders rallied in the second half to defeat the Rockets in a non-section game.

Jefferson-Morgan (10-5) led 14-13 after the first quarter and 28-26 at halftime before Waynesburg used a 15-7 edge in the third to take a 41-35 advantage. The Raiders pulled away in the fourth, out-scoring the visitors 15-7.

Cole Headlee added 15 points for Waynesburg (5-9) which also got 13 points and 14 rebounds from Alex Eck.

Jeremiah Robertson paced the Rockets with 12 points, Jase Bedilion had 11 and John Woodward chipped in with 10.

Penn-Trafford 74, Albert Gallatin 54 – The host Warriors built a 34-19 halftime lead and stayed in control the rest of the way, handing the Colonials their sixth loss in a row in a Section 1-AAAAA game.

Brayden Stone topped Penn-Trafford (5-4, 8-6) in scoring with 17 points, Ethan McDonald followed with 13 and Zach Feldman chipped in with 10.

Jason Jackson led all scorers with 23 points for Albert Gallatin (2-7, 7-9) which also got 12 points from Shymere Wilson.

Ringgold 71, Southmoreland 63 – Demetri Lowe racked up a game-high 35 points as the host Rams rode a strong third quarter to a non-section win over the Scotties.

Southmoreland (12-4) held a 38-37 halftime lead before Ringgold (4-10) surged to a 51-44 advantage in the third quarter and hung on from there.

Xavion Thomas (13) and Chris Wilson (11) also hit double digits for the Rams.

Noah Felentzer dropped in 32 points, including 25 with five 3-pointers in the first half, to lead the way for the Scotties, who also got 15 points from Brady Sherbondy.

Riverview 38, Frazier 33 – Alex Schultheis scored 13 points and Riverview out-scored the visiting Commodores 13-5 in the fourth quarter to pull out the Section 1-AA win.

Frazier led 11-10 after one quarter, Riverview (5-4, 7-9) bounced back to take a 16-13 halftime lead but the Commodores fought back to reclaim a 28-25 advantage after three.

Conlan Higbee scored 12 points for Frazier (1-8, 3-13).

Belle Vernon 81, Yough 35 – Trevor Kovatch scored 18 points as the visiting Leopards romped over the Cougars in a Section 3-AAAA victory.

Zion Moore followed with 11 points and Tommy Davis added 10 for Belle Vernon (7-1, 12-4) which jumped out to a 19-4 lead in the first quarter and never looked back. Jude Minitti chipped in with seven rebounds for the Leopards

Hayden Smith led Yough (0-8, 1-16) with eight points.

Hempfield 52, Connellsville 44 – Danny Husenits tallied 22 points as the visiting Spartans triumphed over the Falcons in a Section 2-AAAAAA game.

Drew Gordon and Max Williams added 13 points apiece for Hempfield (3-5, 8-7).

The Spartans led 15-6 after one quarter but Connellsville (0-9, 3-13) pulled to within 23-22 by halftime. Hempfield pulled away again in the third quarter with a 20-6 edge to make it 43-28 and withstood a strong Falcons finish.

Lucas Harwood and Christian Thomas both tossed in 12 points for Connellsville.

Girls basketball

Albert Gallatin 50, Gateway 30 – Grayce Panos rang up a game-high 17 points and Mya Glisan contributed 14 in the Lady Colonials’ non-section win over the visiting Lady Gators.

Ellie Seese added 10 points for Albert Gallatin (7-7) which led 10-3, 28-10 and 40-23 at the quarter breaks.

Rachel Szymanski had 11 points for Gateway (0-11).

Belle Vernon 49, West Mifflin 48 – Aubrey Brown rang up 11 points, 15 rebounds, nine assists and a blocked shot as the Lady Leopards edged the host Lady Titans in a non-section game.

Victoria Selembo also scored 11 points for Belle Vernon (8-8) and Mia Roebuck added 10.

West Mifflin (2-11) was up 17-13 after the first quarter and 25-20 at halftime before the Lady Leopards rode a 15-9 advantage in the third to a 35-34 lead. Both teams scored 14 points in the fourth quarter.

Ar’ryah Scott and 17 points for the Lady Titans who also got 13 points from Neraul Parms.

Ringgold 57, Southmoreland 32 – The Lady Rams’ lone senior, Rihanna Fordham, scored 11 points on senior night and Alayna Macioce tossed in a game-high 16 as Ringgold beat the visiting Lady Scotties (1-8, 3-13) in a Section 3-AAAA game.

Jada Gernot added 10 points for the Lady Rams (1-6, 7-8).

Yough 53, Frazier 22 – Hailey Bock scored 10 points as the Lady Cougars (9-7) topped the host Lady Commodores in a non-section game.

Allie Yauch led Frazier (5-9) with eight points.

South Park 55, Mount Pleasant 12 – Hayley Bennett scored 17 points in the Lady Eagles’ Section 3-AAAA win over the Lady Vikings.

Bella Stromberg and Addison Kerr both dropped in 10 points for South Park (6-2, 9-4).

Ryleigh Drzal led Mount Pleasant (3-6, 3-12) with four points.