HERSHEY, Pa. (AP) - One year after its runner-up finish, District 3 representative Cumberland Valley settled a score with Spring-Ford at the girls PIAA basketball championships Friday.
Sophomore swing guard Kelly Jekot scored 16 points and guard Taylor Sneidman chipped in 12 as the Eagles upended the defending Class AAAA champion Rams 49-30 at Giant Center.
Cumberland Valley (28-5) hauled in the program’s second Class AAAA title (2002), taking advantage of Spring-Ford’s uneven offense that produced just three field goals in the final 16 minutes. Lafayette recruit Sammy Stipa, averaging 13.7 points per game, finished with a team-high 11 points for the Rams (27-7), which trailed 23-14 at intermission. Spring-Ford never recovered.
Forward Maddie Torresin added nine points for coach Bill Wolf’s Eagles, a competitive 18 of 37 from the floor. Cumberland Valley shot better than 52-percent in the second half.
“It wasn’t any big revenge thing, it was more about us getting out here and winning a state championship,” said Wolf, who also guided Central Dauphin to the 2008 title. “We wanted to get the early lead and set the tone. I thought a big part of that was Sneidman’s 3-pointer just before halftime.”
Cumberland Valley, more comfortable in open space, rode the 6-1 Jekot’s hot hand early, leaning ahead 20-12 with under two minutes left in the opening half. Just before the horn, Sneidman’s triple made it a nine-point scrap. It helped that Eagles junior Jen Falconer was locked in on Stipa, Spring-Ford’s field general.
The Rams, who outraced Cumberland Valley 60-45 in the 2013 state final, also snapped the Eagles 10-game winning streak earlier this season, winning 52-37 in Royersford. Shelby Mueller added eight points and seven rebounds for coach Mickey McDaniel’s Rams.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.