WILKES-BARRE — Once the initial shock wore off, Holy Redeemer went about Friday night accomplishing what it had done the previous three years. The Royals ended Lake-Lehman’s season.
The offense came from an unexpected source in the second quarter and an expected source in the third quarter as Redeemer defeated Lehman 61-44 in a District 2 Class 3A girls basketball semifinal game.
Redeemer (18-7) advanced to the championship for a fourth consecutive season. And all four times, the Royals defeated Lehman (16-8) in the semifinals.
“I’d be heartbroken if I didn’t make it my senior year to the arena,” said Redeemer’s Bella Boylan, who along with McKenzie Chimock each scored 13 points. “I honestly just knew our whole team had to give it everything we had because the seniors wanted to go back one more time.”
The journey to Mohegan Arena — where second-seeded Redeemer will play top-seeded Dunmore (21-3) at noon Saturday, Feb. 28 — didn’t start as planned.
Lehman used the shooting of Kathryn Morgan and Kinley Purdy to take a 15-6 lead after one quarter. The two combined for 13 points. Redeemer shot poorly, with Kearney Quinn accounting for all three baskets.
“They took it to us,” Redeemer coach John Jezorwski said. “We had to settle down and get into our man side (offense). They hit us with big right hand and we came back.
“This is just a great win for our girls. They fought hard and showed heart and showed determination. It was a great team win. Everybody contributed.”
Redeemer took the lead for good, 23-20, when Chimock hit a 3-pointer with two minutes until halftime. The next seven points came from a player not known for scoring — Gillian Parsons.
Parsons’ main job is rebounding and she did that with a game-high 11 boards. Her seven-point burst to end the quarter — the final two on a steal and layup — nearly doubled her season scoring average of 4.1 points and gave Redeemer a 30-20 advantage.
“I realized halfway through the game our team needed to score. We needed to put points up on the board,” Parsons said. “I knew I had to take leadership and had to score in that quarter.”
Boylan, Redeemer’s leading scorer, sat the latter part of the second quarter after picking up her third foul. She made up for lost time with three baskets inside the first three minutes of the third quarter. Chimock’s three-point play after being fouled on a layup bumped the lead to 39-23 at 5:23.
Tessa Cegelka followed with a straight-on 3-pointer to give Redeemer a 42-23 lead midway through the third.
Lehman, which split two regular-season games with Redeemer, wasn’t able to get closer than 12 points the rest of the game. Purdy finished with 17 for Lehman and Morgan had 14.
District 2 Class 3A Semifinals
Holy Redeemer 61, Lake-Lehman 44
LAKE-LEHMAN (44) — Delcia Biscotto 1 0-0 3, Kathryn Morgan 5 4-9 14, Sofia Sparacio 0 0-2 0, Kinley Purdy 7 2-4 17, Olivia Oliver 2 3-9 7, Olivia Corcoran 1 0-0 3, Morgan Breslford 0 0-0 0, Asa Dorris 0 0-0 0, Steph Bradham 0 0-0 0, Brianna Wright 0 0-0 0, Amanda Battin 0 0-0 0. Totals 16 9-24 44.
HOLY REDEEMER (61) — Kearney Quinn 4 0-0 8, Tessa Cegelka 1 1-2 4, Bella Boylan 6 1-2 13, McKenzie Chimock 4 4-5 13, Gillian Parsons 3 1-5 7, Elizabeth Bilbow 1 1-2 4, Kira Millard 3 1-2 7, Kourtney Jezorwski 2 0-0 5, Olivia Dutko 0 0-0 0, Amara Makarczyk 0 0-0 0, Liv Sweet 0 0-0 0, Izzy Wasley 0 0-0 0, Cali Glasser 0 0-0 0, Irelyn Curley 0 0-0 0, Rylie Domashinski 0 0-0 0. Totals 24 9-18 61.
Lake-Lehman`15`5`15`9 — 61
Holy Redeemer`8`22`17`14 — 44
Three-point goals: LL 3 (Biscotto, Purdy, Corcoran). HR 4 (Cegelka, Chimock, Bilbow, Jezorwski).