The Jefferson High hoopsters closed out their 2019 with two days of a tough, exciting games that showcased high school basketball at its finest. Both varsity squads came away with splits.
First up: A trip to Whitehall, where the boys won in overtime and the girls lost in a see-saw match. The Lady Panthers fell behind 17-12 in the first quarter, then fought back and took a 20-17 lead on a three-pointer by Rachel Van Blaricom. The teams traded leads during the second period and before Grace Jones hit a two with 37 seconds left to knot the score at the half.
Laurynn Armstrong’s free throw put the Panthers up by four early in the second half, and they still clung to a 45-43 edge with 5:47 left in the game. But Whitehall took over in the last two minutes and notched the win, 62-56. Van Blaricom led the Panthers with 21 points.
The boys’ game was a thriller, as well. Whitehall put down the first 5 points and held a 9-4 lead with a little over four minutes left in the first before Tyler Harrington started a Panther rally; buckets by Avery Stiles and Derek Nygaard put the Panthers up 15-14 at the end of one. Stiles started the second with a three, then Nygaard drew a roar from Panther fans with a three from the top of the key. At the half, it was 27-20, Panthers.
Jaxson Yanzick made a great fake to get a clear shot that upped Jefferson’s lead to 10 with 5:42 left in the third. But Whitehall inched back, closing to within a point at the end of three and then taking a 45-39 lead with 5:08 left in the fourth. Yanzick tied the game at 45 with two straight three pointers at 45, but the Trojans struck back to take a five-point edge with 43 seconds left.
But the Panthers weren’t done. Harrington hit two baskets to narrow the gap to two. The Trojans made it 56-53 with five seconds left, before Jefferson coach Anthony Connole called a timeout. Inbounding from under their own basket, the pass went to Stiles, who sank a contested three from the corner to tie the game at 56 at the end of regulation.
Overtime was all Trent McMaster. The sophomore hit a two and two free throws to give the Panthers a 60-57 lead – and then, with nerves of steel, connected on four more free throws in the last 13 seconds seal a 64-61 win. Stiles led the squad with 17 points, and McMaster ended up with 12.
On Friday night, Jefferson took on Manhattan at home. The Lady Panthers were up first. They took control early on back-to-back baskets by Jones, a pair of three-pointers by Van Blaricom, and an Armstrong free throw. The hot streak continued in the second, with a 9-3 run fueled by Dakota Edmisten, Abbie Youde, Armstrong, Van Blaricom and Mykala Edmisten that left the Panthers up 22-8. Manhattan made a run — but Van Blaricom, facing double coverage most of the game, finished out the half with a three, a steal and score and a pair of free throws for a 29-18 Panther lead.
Jefferson held onto a 35-26 lead after a low-scoring third quarter. But they poured it on in the fourth, as buckets by Aston Oxarart, Sam Zody, and Becca Nelson made it 50-33 with 2:12 left. Final: 52-41. Eleven of 13 Panthers scored, as Van Blaricom led the way with 20.
The boys’ game was a rough battle. Jefferson took an early lead on a Harrington three, and the first period ended 15-15. Manhattan started the second with a 13-3 run to go up 28-18, but a Joey Visser bucket cut the deficit to six at the half.
The Panthers pulled to within 38-33 at the end of three. And in the fourth Josiah Williams hit a two and Jaxson Yanzick a three to make it a two-point game with 6:40 remaining. Harrington kept things close with another bucket, and with 53 seconds left, the deficit was just two points. But those last 53 second were all Manhattan: A three-pointer and six free throws made the final 58-48. Harrington led Jefferson with 11 points, while Stiles and Yanzick each added nine.
