Liberty and Bangor girls basketball teams vie to extend seasons in District 11 Class AAAA playoffs

FROM THE EXPRESS TIMES

The Bangor and Liberty girls basketball teams made emphatic statements over the past week: The Slaters and Hurricanes aren't done yet.

Bangor, the seventh-seeded team in the PIAA District 11 Class AAAA tournament, routed Pocono Mountain East, 51-25, in the first round and downed second seed and Lehigh Valley Conference North Division champion Northampton in the quarterfinals, 42-33.

No. 5 Liberty smothered No. 4 Emmaus, 37-24, in the quarterfinals.

Bangor plays third-seeded Whitehall 6 p.m. Tuesday at Nazareth Area High School followed by Liberty against top-seeded Mountain Valley Conference champion Pleasant Valley at 7:30 p.m.

The Slaters and Hurricanes need to win one of their next two games, which would include a consolation game or the district final, to qualify for the state tournament.

Bangor coach Dale Godshalk said that seniors like Sam Hopkins, Audrey Schiavone and Jessica Dentith are aware of what's needed to extend their season.

"They put a lot of time into the program and the team, and they know that they have a chance to win one out of our next two (to make the state tournament)," he said. "They definitely want to play for a district championship. They want to make it last as long as they can. One of the goals was to make it to states."
PLAYER OF THE WEEK:

Name: Audrey Schiavone

School: Bangor Area High School

Class: Senior

Position: Forward

Statistics: The 5-foot-8 Schiavone has been the catalyst to Bangor's early success in the PIAA District 11 Class AAAA tournament. She scored a season-high 21 points as the Slaters romped past Pocono Mountain East, 51-25, and tallied a game-high 13 in a 42-33 upset over second-seeded Northampton.

Honorable mention: Sr. G Jessica Pellechio, North Hunterdon; Sr. G Kim Olah, North Warren; Jr. G Loren Kaiser, Phillipsburg; Jr. G Shannon Croasdale, Delaware Valley; Sr. G Karine Polgar, Saucon Valley.

Audrey Schiavone headshotView full sizeExpress-Times File PhotoAudrey Schiavone is The Express-Times Girls Basketball Player of the Week
Schiavone, The Express-Times Player of the Week, has put together a pair of strong performances through the first two rounds.

"She's doing a real good job for us coming down the stretch," Godshalk said. "She's shooting the ball pretty well, she's seeing the floor well and getting Morgan (McCollian) some good looks, and she's playing defense well. She's stepped up her game overall at a good time for us."

Besides finding scoring opportunities for McCollian, the Slaters' leading point-getter, Bangor will need to find a way to slow down Whitehall guard Kayla Bet, who averages 13.8 points per game.

"She's going to have the ball in her hands so you can't limit her touches, that's for sure; the offense goes through her," Godshalk said. "We have to try to contest her shots and try to make sure she doesn't get the ball back when she gives it up."

On the other side of the Class AAAA bracket, Liberty is very familiar with its opponent. Besides bouncing Pleasant Valley from last year's district tournament, the Hurricanes downed the Bears, 67-63, Feb. 1 in a four-overtime game.

Coach Amy Yencho said that regular-season marathon provided plenty of items for Liberty's strategy in this week's semifinal.

"That four-overtime game, we didn't box out really well," she said. "They got second shots, they got into the paint, and they were able to use their dribble penetration to get the ball to (Kelecia Harris)."

Yencho is looking for her team, led by senior guards Jody Chickey, and J.J. and C.J. Hilliard, to work the ball inside more and not settle for attempts from the perimeter this time around. She's also wary of Pleasant Valley's drive to extract revenge on the 'Canes.

"I think they have a lot of motivation," Yencho said. "They definitely have a lot to play for and are going to come out and give us everything they've got."

Despite the disappointment attached to missing the LVC playoffs, the break might have been a blessing for Liberty's prospects of reaching states.

"At this point we're playing very good team basketball," Yencho said. "We had two very good weeks of practice to prepare for districts. You never want to say that you don't want to participate in the league playoffs, but we played seven games over the last two weeks of the regular season and practice time was limited. That two-week break before districts allowed us to really work on things that we needed to do better."

Refocused and carrying the experience of last season's state tournament appearance, Liberty now has a real shot at a district crown.

"If we want to continue our season we have to leave it all on the floor," Yencho said. "I do sense that urgency (in the players) and hopefully this week we can leave it on the court."

Being the fifth or seventh seed isn't always a great sign for longevity. But if Bangor and Liberty continue to play well, they won't be finished anytime soon.

REGION TOP 10

1. Central Catholic 24-1

2. North Hunterdon 22-5

3. Bethlehem Catholic 22-3

4. Southern Lehigh 22-3

5. Bangor 20-6

6. Whitehall 16-8

7. Northampton 19-5

8. Phillipsburg 19-4

9. Liberty 15-8

10. Emmaus 15-8
H/W/S stars

Much like the final four of the Hunterdon/Warren/Sussex bracket, the all-tournament team was filled with representatives from The Express-Times region.

Champion North Hunterdon boasted the most players with forwards Imani Martinez and Alissa Tarsi, and guard Jessica Pellechio honored.

Tarsi, who was also named Most Valuable Player, averaged 12.3 points per game during the tournament. Pellechio also averaged 12.3 points and Martinez averaged over seven points per contest and was a defensive standout with four blocks in the Lions' 41-33 victory Friday over High Point in the final.

Delaware Valley's Shannon Croasdale made the squad after scoring 12.7 points per game in the Terriers' three contests.

Loren Kaiser, of Phillipsburg, who is 31 points shy of 1,000 for her career, tallied 47 points in the three games for the Stateliners, who were eliminated by North Hunterdon in the semifinals. High Point's Emily Umbach was also named to the all-tourney team.

Editor's note: Originally, this story was mistakenly published online with last week's rankings. The rankings have now been updated.

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