Berlin Brothersvalley bewilders West Branch in Inter-County Conference championship game

CLAYSBURG — Berlin Brothersvalley raced out to a 20-point halftime lead over West Branch in the boys' Inter-County Conference championship game and cruised to a 73-44 victory.

Senior Pace Prosser poured in a game-high 27 points to guide the Mountaineers to the title in their first year in the conference.

"It's nice to get a couple more games and get ready (for the playoffs)," said Prosser. "I feel like we didn't play as well as we could have tonight. We didn't shoot the ball really well. We played pretty good defense throughout the game and eventually we're going to make enough shots, so as long as our defense is good enough, we'll score enough points."

Senior Craig Jarvis and junior Haydon Hutzell each chipped in 17 points for Berlin, which made 10 3-pointers as a team.

The Mountaineers (22-2) opened the game with 11 unanswered points, including eight by Prosser.

Berlin led 19-8 after one.

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The Mountaineers began the second on an 12-3 run to take a commanding 31-11 advantage. They closed the frame on a 7-2 spurt and carried a 40-20 lead into the locker room.

West Branch (21-3) trimmed the deficit early in the third with a 9-0 run to make it 42-29. However, Berlin answered with nine unanswered, including six from Hutzell to regain a 20-point advantage.

The Mountaineers led 55-31 after three. Berlin outscored West Branch 18-13 in the fourth to seal the victory.

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Even with three new starters, Berlin appears as if it is gearing up for another deep playoff run.

"All the new guys step up and play their role well," Jarvis said. "It's definitely nice to get two more games in, nice to get the first championship. There's two more we really want. We're going to prepare and do whatever we can to get there."

Veteran Berlin coach Tanner Prosser is eager for the postseason like his senior leaders.

"It's playoff time, now," Coach Prosser said.

Berlin will be the top seed in the upcoming District 5 Class 1A playoffs. The 4-time defending champs, which finished PIAA runner-up last season, will not play again until Feb. 27, in the semifinals.

"I'm excited," Pace Prosser said. "We talked about it before this week, we want three championships. This is the first step. Now, next step is D5. (We're) just taking it one game at a time."

Adam Ripple is the Daily American sports editor. He can be reached at 814-444-5926. Follow him on X (Twitter) @ARipple_DAsport. Follow Daily American Sports on Facebook and @dailyamericanmedia on Instagram.

This article originally appeared on The Daily American: Berlin Brothersvalley topples West Branch for 1st Inter-County title