PUNXSUTAWNEY– The Christmas holiday is always about the joy of being with family and friends, and seeing the smiles on children’s faces when opening their gifts underneath a brightly lit tree. It is about surprising someone with that one gift they never expect, and bringing joy for those that don’t have much of a holiday to celebrate.
But, one other thing that happens over the holiday season is the many high school basketball tournaments. While students may be out of school, they are hitting the hardwood.
The Curwensville Golden Tide had the honor of being a part of the Punxsutawney Tournament for the 2011 holiday season and made the trip to go head-to-head with the host team, the Punxsutawney Chucks.
Unfortunately, the trip for head coach Shane Pentz and his team was one that left a sour taste in everyone’s mouth. The Tide were out-performed and could not get any momentum during the second half, being outscored 24-8 during the final two quarters of play as they fell to the Chucks by a final of 50-20.
Tanner Elansky led both the Tide and the game in scoring with 13 points, but he scored the first points for Curwensville on the night after the Chucks got out to a 11-0 lead to start the game.
Punxsutawney was led in scoring by Brandon Mancuso with eight points. Daniel Triponey, Garrett Zimmerman, and Alex Fedigan all added another six points each in the game.
Curwensville will head back on the road tomorrow night to face Glendale.
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Curwensville    3  9  4  4  –  20
Punxsutawney  17  9  14  10  –  50
Golden Tide Scoreboard:
| Date | Opponent | Score | Record |
| 12/13 | BROCKWAY | 31 – 73 | 0 – 1 |
| 12/16 | @ Ridgway | 21 – 60 | 0 – 2 |
| 12/22 | @ Harmony | 28 – 40 | 0 – 3 |
| 12/28 | @ Punxsutawney | 20 – 50 | 0 – 4 |
| 12/30 | @ Glendale |
