YAIAA basketball tournament: Boys' and girls' semifinals set

After an exciting night Friday, the YAIAA semifinal matchups are set on the boys' side.

Things were a bit more lopsided in the girls' quarters Saturday night, with only one close game.

On the boys' side, York High will play West York at 6 p.m. Tuesday at York County Tech. Eastern York will play Central York at the same day and location, 7:30 p.m.

On the girls' side, Dallastown and Red Lion will square off at 6 p.m. Wednesday at York County Tech. Central York and Delone will follow that game at 7:30 p.m.

Here's a recap of the action from the quarterfinals this weekend.

Boys' tournament

Eastern York 57, Littlestown 49: Before the season, Eastern York head coach Justin Seitz reminded his players they had more YAIAA tournament experience than any other team in the league.

That’s why the coach still felt confident entering Friday’s quarterfinal matchup against Littlestown. Even with his team having lost five of its last seven to drop from first to second place in YAIAA Division II.

That experience seemed to pay off Friday. Eastern York trailed for much of the third quarter but rallied for an eight-point win at Red Lion.

“Every one of our guys was on the floor last year in pressure situations,” Seitz said. “And now being older it helps.

“We learned from what happened the last couple weeks.”

Eastern led by 10 point at one point in the first half, but Littlestown rallied and drew within one at halftime when 6-foot-8 Christopher Meakin banked in a halfcourt shot at the buzzer.

The Bolts opened the third on a 11-3 run to take a seven-point lead.

But Eastern tied the game at the end of the third quarter on a 3-point play from Levi Ayala. The Knights got a number of key plays from role players throughout the game.

Still, Eastern York’s star combination of 6-foot-4 senior Austin Bausman (18 points) and 6-foot-6 sophomore Carter Wamsley (15 points) carried the Knights down the stretch. Bausman scored five points in a three-possession sequence to give Eastern the lead with about five minutes left in the game.

Meakin led Littlestown with 24 points, while Zyan Herr had 12. Meakin dominated the middle of the contest but Eastern seemed to slow him down in the fourth.

Eastern has yet to play Central York this season but has the size and shooting to compete with the tournament favorites. The Knights are healthy and have senior starter Jack Weaver back in the lineup after missing him the last 10 games.

“It was a battle,” Seitz said. “It was a physical game like we expected. Since we lost Jack, every one of our guys had to have a big role. Now we’re getting them back in their normal roles by getting Jack back. They’re more comfortable and they have more experience.”

West York 35, Dallastown 29: Different year, same teams, same result.

Wildly different game.

A year after West York held off Dallastown in a 86-76 triple overtime thriller in the league quarterfinals, the two teams slogged their way through a defensive battle Friday night at Red Lion.

After rallying back for the win last year, West York needed to hang on in the fourth quarter this time. The Bulldogs held a team averaging 59 points a game to less than 30.

It was quite an accomplishment considering Dallastown "is athletic and we are not," according to West York coach Garrett Bull.

Dallastown showcased that athleticism early on and raced out to a 14-5 lead at the end of the first quarter. But the Wildcats didn't score in the second quarter and scored just nine and six points in the final two quarters.

West York shot poorly most of the night and scored less than 10 points in three quarters, but still won thanks to a defensive adjustment after the first quarter and an equally poor shooting performance from Dallastown.

"The game plan was to pack it in and protect the rim and they got 14 points (in the first quarter) off layups," Bull said. "Some of those were in transition but we only made them take one jump shot. We had to make them shoot some tough 2s and contested 3s and keep them from getting to the rack."

After making less 3-pointers than any team in YAIAA Division I in the regular season, Dallastown made just one shot behind the arc Friday. D.J. Smith led the Wildcats with 12 points before fouling out late in the fourth quarter.

Smith's final foul was the pivotal moment in the contest. After trailing by six, Dallastown got two straight buckets off steals and trailed by two with 1:59 to play. Smith drove to the basket and collided with West York's Braedyn Detz as he went airborne to attempt a layup. Smith was called for a charge, and West York extended its lead the next possession.

Bull agreed with the call while Dallastown head coach Mike Grassel declined to comment on it.

"We got out in transition and attacked the rim early, but we didn't knock down shots. That's the name of the game," Grassel said. "If you told me we'd hold them to 35, I'd say we win that nine out of 10 times when we've averaging almost 60 a game. We had open looks but credit to West York because they executed down the stretch."

West York 6-foot-5 center Jovan DeShields led the Bulldogs with 15 points and hit several key buckets in the second half.

The Bulldogs are still in position to defend their YAIAA championship from last season. However, they will be tested against an extremely athletic York High team and will need to score more on Tuesday.

"We'll figure something out," Bull said. "Hopefully we'll shoot a little better."

York High 68, York Catholic 49: The Bearcats were the favorites in this contest and proved to be the better team from the start.

York High led by 12 after the first quarter and by 22 at halftime. Junior guard Juelz Tucker finished with 28 points to lead the Bearcats.

York High will now play West York for the first time this season.

Central York 70, Susquehannock 52: After a tight first quarter, the Panthers eventually overwhelmed the upstart Warriors at West York Friday night.

The game was tied 10-10 after the first quarter but Central led 29-18 at halftime. The Panthers led by 19 after the third quarter.

Ben Rill led the Panthers with 23 points while Greg Guidinger had 21 and Ben Natal had 12. Josh Franklin led Susquehannock with 15.

Girls' tournament

Central York 50, York Suburban 38: Sean Potts was concerned Saturday night was going to be too emotional for the Central York team. With opposing players and coaches, as well as plenty of fans, joining the Panthers in wearing "Win for Wisner" shirts, there was a constant reminder of the man who wasn't there.

Longtime Central York coach Scott Wisner was forced to leave the bench in January for medical reasons.

Potts said after a T-shirt campaign was launched to raise money for the Wisner family, he suggested people wear them to Saturday's games. York Suburban coach Jess Weaver and her staff were wearing the shirts, as well as each one of her players.

Most of Central's student section had them on, as well as a number of fans on both sides of the gym.

"I was worried that it would be overwhelming for the girls," Potts said. "I'm not used to this role, they need their leader. But they played with effort and tenacity, like they always do."

It was obvious from the tip, that it was going to be a physical, defensive game. That was exactly what Weaver was hoping for.

"We wanted to slow the pace of the game down, and defend with man-to-man," Weaver said. "We just didn't hit enough shots."

Central's tough zone defense had something to do with those missed shots. Weaver said Central's length on defense created all kinds of problems for her team on the offensive end.

The Trojans only managed two buckets in the first quarter, as Central jumped out to an eight-point advantage after the first quarter. They increased that to 13 points at the break, and the Panthers maintained that edge through the second half.

Jazmine Parker and Mackenzie Wright-Rawls provided a strong inside punch, knocking down a combined 27 points from the paint or free-throw line. Bella Chimienti and Bre'ijha Painter were the outside threats, knocking down the team's three 3-pointers.

That Parker dominated the paint on both ends of the floor wasn't a surprise to Potts.

"I think Jazmine is a lot like Moses Malone," he said of the NBA Hall of Famer. "You know she is going to get you the rebounds. And she is a finisher."

Even though Central held a comfortable edge throughout most of the game, Potts knew Suburban wouldn't give up.

"With that coaching staff, you know they are going to have a plan, and they are going to make a run," Potts said. "I haven't seen a team that goes all out from the start to the finish like that team."

It wasn't exactly a run that Suburban had in the second half, but they matched the Panthers point for point in the fourth quarter and outscored them 14-13 in the third.

Janay Rissmiller, Alyssa Dougherty and Amaya Miller provided nearly all of the Trojans' points in the second half. Rissmiller, who is equally skilled from the paint and beyond the arc, scored 14 of her game-high 21 points in the final quarters.

Dougherty and Miller each scored six points, all in the second half.

Delone Catholic 50, Eastern York 33: Eastern coach Jason Seitz got exactly what he expected.

Delone hit the Knights with a smothering defense on one end, and hit outside and inside shots on the other end.

"There's a reason they are 21-1," Seitz said. "You can't get behind a team like that. They are so well coached, and so well-balanced. We pulled to within six with three minutes left in the first half, and then they went on an 11-0 run."

Eastern came out in a zone because Seitz wasn't comfortable going at such a strong team with a man defense, but the Squires responded by knocking down five 3-pointers in the first half. Megan Jacoby, who led all scorers with 20 points, and Reece Meckley each had a pair of 3s.

When the zone didn't work, Eastern switched to man. That worked better in the second half against the long-distance shots, but the Squires just pounded the inside to get baskets or free-throw attempts.

And as difficult as their offense was to handle, Delone's defense was even better. Seitz said he was hoping his team would find success in a strong transition game, because he didn't want his team to attempt a half-court offense against the Squires.

"But really, we had nothing to lose," Seitz said. "We weren't expected to win. But give credit to the girls, because they played hard. We just wanted to throw it out there and see what they can do."

The win puts Delone in a semifinal against Central York, a team that strongly resembles the Squires.

"That's a pretty darn good team," Delone coach Gerry Eckenrode said of the Panthers. "They present a lot of problems because they are very athletic. I'm lucky I have three days to try and figure it out."

Eckenrode was happy with his team's play, especially the way they handled Eastern's top scoring threats, Arianna Seitz and Kendall Felix. Seitz finished with 16 points, nearly four points off her average, and Felix didn't score after a bucket in the first quarter.

Dallastown 49, York Catholic 45: The Wildcats held a four-point lead after the first quarter, and increased it to seven by the half. But the Irish didn't go away in the second half.

Behind eight points from Mariah Shue and 10 from Paige O'Brien, the Irish inched closer in the second half. But the Wildcats used 70 percent free-throw shooting in the fourth quarter to maintain an edge.

Kiara McNealy and Haley Jamison each scored 13 points to lead Dallastown.

Now the Wildcats face Division I foe Red Lion in a semifinal. The teams split their two meetings in the regular season, with the home team winning by five in each game.

Red Lion 74, Northeastern 57: The first game of the postseason was similar to the end of the regular season. The Lions are still riding a winning streak (now at seven) and the Bobcats continue to slide (three-game losing streak).

The Lions came out hot and never let up. They used three 3-pointers from Grace Masser and eight points from Bhrooke Axe to take a 13-point advantage into the second quarter.

The teams played even in the second quarter, and Northeastern gained a bit of ground in the third quarter, when they cut the deficit to single digits behind three 3-pointers Laralye Kennedy.

But Red Lion increased the lead again in the fourth quarter thanks to a combined 11 points from Brooke Carr and Kamauri Gordon-Bey.

Masser led all scorers with 21 points, all coming from beyond the arc. Axe wasn't far behind with 18. Nyleh Davis led Northeastern with 17 points.

This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: YAIAA basketball tournament: Eastern, West York advance to semifinals