Muncy girls fall to Minersville in close game

Ava Eyer of Muncy puts up a shot against Minersville during their PIAA Quarterfinal game at Hazelton Area High School. Minersville won, 28-21. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette
Addi Eyer jumped past a post player seven inches taller than her, grabbed an offensive rebound and converted a layup. Seconds later, freshman Emma McCormick went after a bigger player and stole the basketball.
The message was clear: Muncy feared nobody. Ultimately, that fight, and drive made it one of the state’s top eight Class AA teams.
Muncy put forth one last relentless performance Friday at Hazleton, giving District 11 champion Minersville all it could handle. The Miners, however, took a second quarter lead and did just enough against Muncy’s stifling defense from there to win the state quarterfinal, 28-21.
The Indians (19-9) concluded the deepest run in program history, reaching the state’s Elite 8 for the first time while winning the program’s first district championship since 2001. And they went down fighting.
“Our performance spoke about our entire season,” Muncy coach Craig Weaver Sr. said. “They laid it on the line. The way they played is a representation of everything they did this season.”
“The fact that we’re so close makes the difference,” Addi Gresh said after grabbing five rebounds and blocking four shots. “To be a team that is close and leaves it all out on the floor is really the reason why we’re here where we are.”
Muncy showed that collective heart all evening against an explosive Minersville team which will play Marion Center in Monday’s state semifinals. The Miners (25-4) average 60 points per game and had three players averaging more than 12 points per game. The Indians, though, put together a dominant defensive performance in a season filled with them, holding Minersville 32 points below that season average and letting no player reach double figures.
Muncy begrudgingly gave up points and surrendered just 13 in the second half after Minersville built a 15-10 halftime lead. In defeat, Muncy may have played its best defensive game this season and that says a lot.
“I was told by some that they are too explosive. That’s when you dig deeper and I told the girls that,” Weaver said. “For them to hold them to 28, that’s pretty amazing.”
“You don’t really notice it until the end of the game, what the score really is,” Gresh said. “But it’s awesome to hold a team like that to 28 points because they’re obviously a great team.”
So is Muncy.
The Indians showed it all season and especially down the stretch, winning nine straight games entering the quarterfinals, while winning five consecutive playoff contests. Muncy led 8-5 early in the second quarter but Minersville scored the next 10 points and never trailed again.
Muncy produced quality shots throughout the game and dictated the tempo. The shots simply didn’t fall this time. Still, the frustration never dulled the team’s determination and Eyer’s putback made it 26-21 midway through the fourth quarter after Minersville had built a nine-point advantage. The Indians had five chances to cut into that deficit but could not as Minersville sealed victory in the closing seconds.
Still, Muncy has no regrets about how it played because it did everything possible to win. The Indians turned the ball over just 11 times against a swarming defense and Eyer played an outstanding game in what has been an all-state caliber season.
Eyer scored nine points, grabbed six rebounds, dealt three assists and made three steals. She also turned the ball over just one time and masterfully controlled the offense against an opponent which has swallowed up many opponents this season.
“Addi Eyer has turned into a young lady who from last year to this year is totally two different people,” Weaver said. “You can’t ask for any more than she’s given out there on that floor.”
All her teammates followed that lead and Muncy never let a playoff opponent score more than 36 points. Nolah Moyer grabbed seven rebounds in the final game of her excellent high school career and Gresh’s presence inside gave Minersville problems throughout the first quarter. Ava Eyer scored six points and grabbed four rebounds and Anna Zalonis was all over defensively.
Late in the game Weaver had three freshmen and a junior on the court. That speaks to the team’s potential moving forward.
MUNCY (21): Addi Eyer 4 1-4 9, Nolah Moyer 2 0-0 4, Ava Eyer 2 2-4 6, Anna Zalonis 0 2-2 2, Addi Gresh 0 0-0 0, Kaylyn Rice 0 0-0 0, Rosie Zalonis 0 0-0 0, Emma McCormick 0 0-0 0. Totals 8 5-10 21.
Minersville 5 10 9 4–28
Muncy 6 4 7 4–21
3-pointers: Minersville 2 (Kopinetz, Castle).
Records: Minersville 25-4. Muncy 19-9.