HYDE — Clearfield shook off a lackluster first half to outpoint Bald Eagle Area 39-13 in the final 16 minutes for a 54-30 victory in the first round of the Lady Bison Basketball Blast-Off Tournament in the Arthur J. Weiss Gym Friday night.
In the other game, Hanover also came from behind in the second half to defeat DuBois Central Catholic 42-38.
Clearfield will play Hanover in the championship game Saturday at 5 p.m. BEA and DCC will meet in the consolation game at 3:30.
Elizabeth Sopic and Alanna Luzier scored 10 points apiece to pace Clearfield, which overcame poor shooting with a 56-32 rebounding advantage. Sopic, who got into early foul trouble and picked up her fifth with 3:55 to play, pulled down nine missed shots, all on the offensive end of the court, while Juliana Howell and Nikki Collins grabbed eight and seven, respectively.
Danielle Reese\’s eight points topped the Lady Eagles, who struggled after jumping out to an 8-0 lead in the first 3:05.
Annie Janocko recorded Clearfield\’s first points with 4:39 left in the quarter, and Coach Joey Castagnolo\’s team closed the gap to 12-10 at the buzzer. BEA managed only one field goal in the final 17:25 of the half but retained the lead with seven free throws because the Lady Bisons were cold from the floor, too.
The game was tied four times in the third period, Sopic sparking the hosts with two putbacks and a jumper, before Luzier\’s three-pointer with 3:40 left put Clearfield in front to stay at 26-23. The junior guard connected on a jumper and another three-pointer in the final 2:12 to make it 31-25 going to the fourth quarter.
While BEA failed to score for more eight minutes, Clearfield ran off 12 points to lead 43-25 with three minutes remaining.
Trailing 25-20, Hanover outscored DCC 15-5 in the third quarter en route to its victory. Jenna Kincaid and Nikki Day had 10 points apiece for the Lady Nighthawks.
Marissa Ferraraccio led the Lady Cardinals with 10 points.
In the junior varsity prelim, Bald Eagle Area outscored Clearfield 8-0 in overtime for a 45-37 win. Julie Colesar and Amber Byerly scored eight points apiece for the Lady Bisons, who will play DuBois Central Catholic\’s jayvees at two o\’clock Saturday.
BALD EAGLE AREA — 30
Weaver 1 0-0 2, Kristofik 2 1-2 5, D. Reese 3 2-3 8, Masters 0 0-0 0, W. Giedroc 1 3-4 5, Doran 1 2-4 4, Mann 0 0-2 0, Granite 0 0-0 0, Hoover 1 4-4 6, Simpson 0 0-0 0. Totals: 9 12-19 30.
CLEARFIELD — 54
Collins 2 0-0 5, Howell 2 0-0 4, Jordan 3 0-0 8, E. Sopic 5 0-0 10, A. Janocko 1 0-1 2, M. Janocko 2 1-2 7, Luzier 4 0-1 10, Peters 2 0-1 4, Porter 0 0-0 0, Ryan 1 0-0 2, M. Sopic 0 1-2 1. Totals: 22 2-7 54.
Score By Quarters:
Bald Eagle Area 12 5 8 5 — 30
Clearfield 10 5 16 23 — 54
Three-Point Field Goals — Clearfield 8 (Jordan 2, M. Janocko 2, Luzier 2, Collins 1, Howell 1).
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DUBOIS CENTRAL CATHOLIC — 38
Coggins 5 3-5 13, Ferraraccio 3 3-4 10, Pernesky 2 0-1 4, Moyer 1 2-4 4, Yebernetsky 1 0-1 3, Thomas 0 0-0 0, Whitaker 1 0-0 2, Braun 0 0-0 0, Goldbach 1 0-0 2. Totals: 14 8-15 38.
HANOVER — 42
Aremtz 4 0-1 8, Kincaid 4 1-2 10, Beans 1 0-0 2, Fry 2 1-4 5, Kehr 2 1 -3 5, Day 4 2-2 10, Sunday 1 0-0 2, Cookerly 0 0-0 0. Totals: 18 5-12 42.
Score by Quarters:
DuBois Central Catholic 11 14 5 8 — 30
Hanover 12 8 15 7 — 42
Three-Point Field Goals — DuBois Central Catholic 2 (Ferraracio 1, Yebernetsky 1). Hanover 1 (Kincaid 1).