Greencastle-Antrim falls short against West York

 

By Ben Destefan

 

GREENCASTLE — It's hard to believe that it's over. Not just this season, but what has been a remarkable four-year run for the Greencastle-Antrim girls' basketball program.

 

Paired against a tough West York squad in Tuesday's first round of the District 3-5A playoffs, G-A fell behind early before having a late rally come up short in a 43-38 loss which ended the Blue Devils' campaign.

 

The defeat marked the final game of a history-making career for senior Jenay Faulkner, who finishes as the school's all-time leading scorer with 1,820 points.

 

Considering the tremendous amount of success during Faulkner's journey, the closing seconds of Tuesday's loss were all that more difficult, especially with G-A twice cutting its deficit to just two points in the last 30 seconds.

 

"Playoff basketball, this is how it is," G-A head coach Mike Rhine said. "It hurts for it to be over and it hasn't even sunk in yet. You have to give them credit, when they beat you twice, they're just a little bit better."

 

Rhine was referencing a 52-24 loss to West York earlier this season, making the first-round draw less than appealing. A two-point opening quarter compounded the concerns, eventually resulting in a 14-2 West York lead off the tip.

 

Beginning to find some type of rhythm, G-A (18-6) closed the half on a 14-4 run to make it a one-possession game at the break.

 

A back-and-forth third quarter ensued, with a jumper by Morgan Wagaman bringing the Blue Devils even at 21. Continuing the exchange buckets, another swish from Wagaman made it 28-27 before West York's Alayna Harris drained a deep 3 at the buzzer to put the Bulldogs up by four to start the fourth.

 

After pushing its lead to eight, West York (16-7) began working the clock midway through the frame, maintaining the cushion with less than three minutes remaining. A steal and finish by Faulkner paired with a Lydia Crist jumper cut the deficit to 39-35, causing G-A to begin fouling.

 

Unable to cash in from the stripe, West York's lead dwindled to 39-37 on another Wagaman basket with 25 seconds left. The sides made offsetting free throws for a 40-38 differential in the waning moments prior to West York's Angie Hawkins converting twice from the line to put the game out of reach.

 

"When you look at it, the difference was the start," Rhine said. "We got back, but it took a lot of energy to get back. You have to give them credit, they came out and took the lead right away which put the pressure on us."

 

Faulkner and Wagaman both finished with 13 points for eighth-seeded G-A. Makenna Hoffman, Catie McCarty and Paige Weekly each netted 10 points for West York, headlined by a trio of timely 3's from Hoffman in the second half.

 

With the win, the ninth-seeded Bulldogs punched a ticket to the state tournament while advancing to face top-seeded Harrisburg in Friday's quarterfinals.

 

"We really wanted to make another run to states," said Rhine, who coached the Blue Devils to the PIAA tournament the previous two seasons. "I guess it has to come to an end at some point. That just doesn't make it any easier."