Mar 23, 2013 4 min read

HERSHEY – The Beaver Falls defense came in waves, and it didn’t stop whether the team was down 12 or surging ahead in the fourth quarter.

The Tigers’ pressure finally wore down Holy Cross late, especially with the Crusaders’ 6-6 center Josh Kosin in foul trouble.

The Tigers took advantage of Kosin’s absence by attacking the basket, hitting 3-pointers and making clutch foul shots down the stretch to rally for a 69-63 victory Saturday to win the state Class AA title.

“We just ramped up the pressure a little bit to a level perhaps that they hadn’t seen,” Tigers coach Doug Biega said. “I’m just very proud of how our team closed the game.”

Micoy Mason hit two late 3-pointers and finished with 14 points for the WPIAL champions, who lost in the finals last year to Imhotep Charter, this year’s Class AAA champ. Four Tigers finished in double figures.

But the Tigers (28-3) pride themselves especially on defense. They limited the Scranton-area Crusaders (27-6) to 36 percent shooting in the second half after Holy Cross hit 60 percent before halftime.

Having Kosin (25 points, 11 rebounds) hampered with four fouls for much of the second half didn’t help. Holy Cross led by eight at the half and 48-41 after three quarters thanks in large part to Kosin.

He understandably plays a huge part in stabilizing Holy Cross on the offensive end, and provides a defensive presence down low.

But the Crusaders seemed to lose aggressiveness as Kosin and frontcourt-mate Casey Gaughan (10 points) battled foul trouble. Gaughan also entered the fourth with four fouls and eventually fouled out.

Beaver Falls got its last seven points at the foul line, including a pair of big shots by Drew Cook with 10 seconds left.

Just seconds earlier, Cook missed two foul shots with his team leading by three. The errant free throws breathed new life into Holy Cross’ hopes for a miracle comeback. But Cook (15 points, six rebounds) dashed those hopes by sinking both shots.

Beaver Falls finished 8-of-21 shooting from 3-point range, including the three 3s in the final five minutes – two by Mason.

Class AAAA

Lower Merion 63, Chester 47: B.J. Johnson had 22 points, and Jaquan Johnson’s hustle sparked Lower Merion’s fourth-quarter defense on Chester to help win the Class AAAA title, 63-47.

Baird Howland added 12 points and a couple key 3s off the bench for the Aces (30-3), who snapped a three-game losing streak against their fellow southeastern Pennsylvania power and held Chester to a season low in points.

After losing the championship game last year to Chester, Lower Merion got its revenge.

The Clippers (27-4) were saddled by 31 percent shooting despite getting some good looks at the bucket. Chester drew to within 43-38 early in the fourth quarter, and fans wondered if the Clippers would make a patented late charge.

Instead, Lower Merion pulled away down the stretch.

Girls results

Class AAA

South Park 53, Bethlehem Catholic 38: Shelby Lindsay scored 20 points and South Park won its first PIAA girls basketball title with a convincing 53-38 win over Bethlehem Catholic.

The WPIAL champion Eagles used 16 first-half points from Lindsay to build a 10-point cushion at the half on District 11 champion Bethlehem Catholic (28-3).

South Park (28-2) used a 17-4 run that started late in the first quarter and carried over to the halfway point of the second to seize control. Lindsay had 10 of those 17 points.

Lindsay finished 8-of-13 shooting, and Alison McGrath added 10 points for South Park.

Bethlehem Catholic sophomore Kalista Walters led all scorers with 22 points.

Class A

Tri-Valley 59, Vincentian 42: Tri-Valley won its first girls’ basketball state championship on the strength of a big second half from 6-4 senior Tara Nahodil.

The Seton Hall recruit scored 17 of her 19 points in the second half as the District 11 champion Bulldogs outscored WPIAL winner Vincentian by 16 the final two quarters to claim a 59-42 victory.

Tri-Valley (28-3) used a 12-0 run the final 3:18 of the third quarter to open a 14-point lead. The Bulldogs also scored 11 of the initial 13 points of the fourth quarter.

Senior guard Juli Weber also had 19 points to share the team-high for Tri-Valley. The 5-7 Division I softball recruit bound for the University of South Florida in the fall also had 10 steals and nine rebounds.

Sophomore Brenna Wise scored all nine Vincentian (29-2) points in the second quarter to keep the Royals in the hunt. She finished with a team-high 18 points.