2-18-26
By Corey Gesford
Elk Lake used the poise of a champion to notch a pair of wins and secure its second straight
Lackawanna League Division III title. With both teams entering the contest with 11-1 records, fans packed the Susquehanna gym knowing the night’s winner between Elk Lake and Susquehanna could take control of the division.
The Warriors vowed not to let the long trek to Susquehanna affect them, jumping out to a 15-8
advantage in the first quarter and never looked back in their second big matchup with the Sabers winning 69-52.
Chase Pond led the Warriors scoring 28 points, 15 of those from behind the three-point arc. John Heitsman finished with 17 points and classmates Kendel Jones and Brayden Miller added
13 and nine respectively.
Elk Lake’s Chase Pond sneaks a shot past Montrose’s Jai Herman in the Warriors’ regular season finale. Pond finished with 12 points and had 28 earlier in the week versus Susquehanna. Photo courtesy Karin Dorman
Griffin Fisk provided the offensive punch for the Sabers scoring a game-high 34 points, but no other Susquehanna player finished in double figures.
On Senior Night, Elk Lake wrapped up the Division III title outscoring Montrose 33-17 over the
middle quarters to take control of the game for a 65-41 win.
The Meteors came out inspired in the first quarter and took a 16-14 lead. But John Heitsman
finished the night with 16 points in leading the Warriors to their second straight title. Chase Pond
added 12 points while Kendel Jones and Parker Upright each contributed eight points.
Jai Herman led Montrose with 14 points and Sawyer Aukema finished with nine.
Blue Ridge built up a 63-47 lead through three quarters and withstood a Carbondale rally to
defeat the Chargers 72-65.
The Raiders overcame a three-point first quarter deficit and put up 49 points between the
second and third quarters.
Paxton Pingarelli had 20 points to lead Blue Ridge while Landon Bishop connected on six
three-pointers to finish with 18 and Travis Rutter had 12. Jack Parks added nine and Brendan
Marvin provided eight. Sawyer Brown led a balanced attack as Montrose provided the upset of the week handing Lackawanna Trail a 45-39 loss.
Brown scored 12 of his team-high 16 points in the middle quarters as the Meteors took the lead.
Jude Adams and Jai Herman each finished with 12 for the Meteors.
Montrose’s Jai Herman surveys the floor as he’s defended Elk Lake’s Kendel Jones. Photo courtesy Karin Dorman
Mountain View scored 45 points in the second half to overcome a five-point halftime deficit and
defeat Forest City 71-60. Aidan McCloskey scored 21 points to lead the Eagles while Hudson Bain finished with 18 and Gavin Travis added 17. TJ Collins had 17 to lead the Foresters while Jayden Carter and Wyatt Reynolds each had 11.
Lackawanna Trail scored 44 points in the first half and kept Forest City searching for its initial
win in a 64-27 win. TJ Collins had nine points to lead the Foresters. Jordan Jagger was fouled on an inbounds play and made two free throws to put Mountain View ahead to stay in a 60-58 win over Carbondale on Senior Night.
Hudson Bain had 18 points in his final game at J. William McGlaughlin Gymnasium to lead the
Eagles while Jagger finished with 17 and Aidan McCloskey had 11.
Susquehanna closed out its regular season by outscoring rival Blue Ridge in each of the first
three quarters with a balanced attack in a 75-57 win.
Mason Keyes had 19 points to lead the Sabers while Griffin Fisk finished with 17 points. Jaxon
Downton and Hudson Stengel each nailed three three-pointers and finished with 13 and 11
points respectively, and Senior Linden Baker added 11.
Paxton Pingarelli had a game-high 27 points for Blue Ridge and Landon Bishop finished with
10.
Blue Ridge and Mountain View closed out their seasons with make-up games from December.
Blue Ridge nearly equaled visiting Sayre’s output in the second quarter to roll to a 79-35 win on
Senior Night. Leading 12-4 after the first quarter, the Raiders exploded for 32 points in the second to take control of the game. Paxton Pingarelli led the Blue Ridge charge with 23 points, 10 coming in the pivotal second stanza and was joined in double figures by Landon Bishop and Travis Rutter, who combined for seven three pointers and each finished with 13 points.
Old Forge doubled up Mountain View in each of the first two quarters to close out their regular
season with a 63-43 win. Leading 14-7 after the first quarter, the Blue Devils scored 20 points in the second quarter to head into the locker room with a 34-17 advantage. The Eagles continued to fight in the second half as Old Forge outscored them 29-23 for the final margin.
Aidan McCloskey scored 12 points to lead Mountain View while Hudson Bain added 10 and
Gavin Travis finished with nine points.
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