Menchanicsburg unable to maintain fast start in District 3 girls basketball semifinal loss to Greencastle

By Mike Reinhard on 2/27/23

GREENCASTLE — For the first four minutes of the District 3 Class 5A girls’ semifinal against top-seeded Greencastle-Antrim, everything went the way Mechanicsburg head coach Clay McAllister had drawn up in the game plan.

The Wildcats remained patient on offense, swinging the ball around the perimeter before finding the open shots.

On defense, they limited second chances for the Blue Devils’ high-powered attack, crashing the boards and swarming loose balls.

It led to an 8-0 lead for Mechanicsburg and forced a timeout from Greencastle-Antrim head coach Mike Rhine.

Whatever Rhine said in the 30-second break got through to the Blue Devils as they answered with an 8-0 run of their own to end the quarter. Greencastle-Antrim didn’t look back as it rode the wave of momentum for the next 24 minutes to secure the 42-24 win over Mechanicsburg.

The Blue Devils advance to the title game, looking for their second district championship and first since 2015. The Wildcats return to the hardwood in the Class 5A third-place game on Thursday evening against Northern York, 38-33 losers to York Suburban in the other semifinal.

“We came out and executed on the offensive and defensive ends,” McAllister said. “When Greencastle decided to turn it up, they sped us up, and it caused us trouble. But I felt like we were prepared. I felt like we were ready and early in the game did some good things.”

oul trouble wreaked havoc on the Mechanicsburg rotation as seniors Priya Loran and Gracen Nutt each picked up two early in the game. McAllister tried to mix and match the lineup, but when Loran picked up her third on a reach-in with 4:58 left before halftime, it sat his point guard and top ball handler down on the bench.

Led by Mia Libby, Greencastle-Antrim (22-1) wasted little time pressuring the Wildcat freshmen into turnovers and preventing them from getting comfortable setting up in the offensive zone. The Blue Devils outscored Mechanicsburg 14-2 in the period, including 7-of-11 from the free throw line.

“When something like that happens, we don’t have a huge bench,” Nutt said. “The girls that do get in are super young, and especially in an environment like this, having to step up like that is tough. We will have to play a little smarter and play with our heads more than we did tonight. In a setting like this, it’s hard to combat that.”

“We’re going to reap the rewards of the experiences that we’re getting,” McAllister added. “It’s just that simple. It becomes incrementally difficult without Priya on the floor because it just does.”

Mechanicsburg (18-7) responded after halftime with better flow, hitting three three-pointers but couldn’t cut into the Greencastle-Antrim lead as time ran out on the Wildcats’ hopes of reaching the championship game for the second straight season.

“We’re used to playing in that kind of an atmosphere, and, unfortunately, we didn’t play well enough,” McAllister said. “For those young kids, I know them long enough to know they’re tough kids. So we’ll get back in the gym tomorrow.”

Nutt led all scorers with 13 points as the senior banged home three 3-pointers. Lauren Lebo added five, while Maycee Yanoski and Bridget Edwards each chipped in three for the Wildcats.

Libby, Greencastle-Antrim’s leading scorer this season, had 12 points in the victory. Shainia Overcash posted nine, and Haley Noblit added eight for the Blue Devils.