CURWENSVILLE — All the effort, the passion, and desire of the Curwensville Lady Tide all year long finally came to fruition on the first day of February. With the Harmony Lady Owls, a team that had already beaten the hosts twice on the season, making the trip from Westover into Patton Hall, everything seemed to fall into place. With timely transitions, tough play on the boards, and intelligent basketball movement, it was Curwensville finally getting the chance to experience the thrill of victory.
After the final buzzer, when asked about the 43-37 triumph over the opposition, Curwensville head coach Dawna Wheeler had four simple words to say before looking back on the night.
“How sweet it is,” she said with a smile. “Finally, we got there. We came out with energy tonight, knowing we really needed to play tonight. They knew we needed possessions, and every possession counted tonight.
Neither squad got out to a quick start, with the first points coming on a free throw by Harmony’s Jessayln Schneider, who then also got a quick bucket moments later. Yet, Curwensville would immediately tie it up at three with the lone three-point shot from the Tide. Harmony would continue to battle, with Curwensville matching the energy. Late in the first quarter, the Lady Tide would get their first lead of the game, and finished the first eight minutes with a 13-10 advantage.
Harmony would make for a challenge in the second quarter, finding a groove and limiting Curwensville to only four points, including just one shot from the floor. Despite taking a 20-17 advantage into the locker room, the Lady Owls were struggling from the floor. After two quarters, Harmony was only 8-for-34 in shooting.
“They were in the game the entire time, not letting up on us,” Wheeler said. “There was no relaxation, truly, from either team. Makes it a fun game to coach in a way.”
The game was won in the third quarter. Right from the get-go, when Skylar Pentz got the opening bucket, the Lady Tide began wearing down their opposition. Curwensville managed to find gaps in Harmony’s 1-2-2 zone, and that led to baskets near the net. Pentz would put up seven points in the quarter, part of a double-double effort as she finished with a team-high 12 points, coupled with 11 rebounds and a trio of assists. Addison Butler had a couple transition baskets, which fueled a huge quarter for Curwensville. After 24 minutes, the 33-26 advantage was the largest lead of the night for either team, and Wheeler began looking at her team and focusing on having them finish the game strong.
Harmony continued to battle, bringing the score within one possession, but began finding themselves in foul trouble. Jaylee Beck and Alyssa Passmore found themselves with seven fouls between them entering the fourth quarter.
Minutes into the final quarter, Passmore would foul out, and that forced a change in the offense for Harmony. The visitors had to rely on leadership and experience, and Sydney Winings stepped up, putting up eight of her game-high 14 points in the final quarter. Still, Curwensville held just enough of a lead to control the pace, and began knocking seconds off the clock. Those seconds turned into minutes, and time was running short.
Forced to foul, Curwensville would go to the line nine times, but only made four of those shots. For the game, neighter team was great at the line, shooting a combined 14-for-29.
“It was ironic that one of our biggest strengths all season has been foul shooting, yet tonight for some reason when we needed it, we struggled,” Wheeler said. “I think that fueled us to make those late possessions count.”
As the final seconds ticked away, the Lady Tide were jubilant, and the fanbase stood up to cheer the first win of the Wheeler era. Coach Wheeler herself was taken back from her team’s triumph, almost at a loss for words. But, at the same time, as much as she wanted her girls to savor the win, there was no time to.
“It doesn’t get easier. We have Williamsburg coming in tomorrow night,” she said. “That is going to be a massive challenge for us, but I think being able to get this win, get our confidence up, we’ll enter that game with a lot different mindset.
“I’m just so happy for these girls, right now. They worked all year for this moment. I’m letting them enjoy it.”
The battle between Williamsburg and Curwensville (1-17) will tip-off in Patton Hall at 6:30 p.m.
SCORE BY QUARTER
Harmony 10 10 6 11 – 37
Curwensville 13 4 16 10 – 43
Harmony – 37
Sydney Winings 6 1-2 14, Mariah Brothers 2 0-2 4, Alyssa Passmore 2 1-1 5, Jaylee Beck 4 2-4 10, Jessalyn Schneider 1 1-2 3, Jayden Fry 0 1-2 1. TOTALS 15 6-13 37.
Curwensville – 43
Skylar Pentz 5 2-3 12, Jaiden Weber-Herring 2 0-0 5, Addison Butler 3 0-0 6, Karleigh Freyer 3 2-6 8, Janelle Passmore 1 1-3 3, Brooklynn Price 0 0-0 0, Nicole Wischuck 3 3-4 9, Jovee Elensky 0 0-0 0. TOTALS 17 8-16 43.
GAME STATISTICS
Harmony/Curwensville
- Shooting: 15-58/16-70
- Rebounds: 25/36
- Fouls: 15/11
- Turnovers: 19/19
- Three-Point Shots: Winings/Weber-Herring
