Mar 6, 2020 3 min read

It had been a long wait for the Belle Vernon High School boys basketball program.

That wait – 39 years to be exact – came to an end Friday night.

Holding off a second-half rally from District 9 champion Clearfield, Belle Vernon won its first state tournament game in 39 years with a 65-60 victory over the Bison in a PIAA Class 4A first-round game Friday night at St. Mary’s High School.

The last time the Leopards won a state playoff game was March 18, 1981 against Punxsatawney.

Belle Vernon (20-7) had its nine-point lead with 3:10 left in regulation reduced all the way to one point, 61-60, when Clearfield’s Cade Walker made a free throw with less than one minute left.

Daniel Gordon made a pair of foul shots and Thomas Hepple then scored for the Leopards to secure the victory.

Both Gordon and Hepple finished in double figures with 10 and 14 points, respectively. Devin Whitlock led the Leopards with 15 points and 11 assists. Jake Haney added 12.

Clearfield (15-9) trailed by 15 after the first quarter and 11 points at halftime before making a push in the final two quarters.

Kauson Romsky scored a game-high 20 points for the Bison. Walker chipped in 18.

Belle Vernon will play Lancaster Catholic next Tuesday at a site and time to be determined.

Muhlenberg 72, South Fayette 66: Kate St. Ledger scored 17 second-half points as South Fayette stormed back but had its comeback bid fall short, 72-66, in a PIAA Class 5A first-round game against Muhlenberg at Milton Hershey High School.

Muhlenberg (22-6), the District 3 champion, led 42-25 at halftime and extended its lead to as much as 20 points with 5:10 left in the third quarter.

South Fayette (16-9) didn’t go away. The Lions cut their deficit to six points by the end of the third quarter. In a back-and-forth fourth quarter, Connor Mislan made a three-pointer with 28 seconds remaining trim the lead to two points, 66-64.

The Muhls clung to their lead with strong foul shooting. They made all eight of attempts in the fourth quarter, including the final few in the waning seconds to pull away.

Tyler Kipp and Jake Stoudt each finished with 15 points for Muhlenberg. T.J. White added 13 points and Jordan Espinoza scored 11 points, all in the first half.

St. Ledger finished with a game-high 21 points for South Fayette.

Ringgold 59, Lancaster Catholic 56: A three-pointer from Ringgold in the final seconds rimmed out as Lancaster Catholic held on to defeat the Rams, 59-56, in a PIAA Class 4A first-round game at Warwick High School.

Trailing by two points, Ringgold (14-11) called a timeout with 10 seconds remaining to set up for the potential game-winning shot. Lancaster Catholic, the District 3 champion, got the rebound and Nevin Roman made a free throw to seal the victory.

Ross Conway scored 21 points off the bench for Lancaster Catholic (24-3).

The Rams were within striking distance of an upset most of the game, trailing just 30-28 at halftime and 45-41 entering the fourth quarter.