Seneca Valley forward Dalton Peffer looks to make a move around Pine-Richland's Dan Petcash during the Raiders' 61-51 loss to the Rams Tuesday night. Peffer scored nine points as SV led in the fourth quarter, but couldn't hold on.

JACKSON TWP — Seneca Valley had moved past the adversity and Pine-Richland — only to be caught by both in the second half.

After being on the short end of a noticeable disparity in fouls and rebounding in the first half, the Raiders clawed their way to a 6-point lead by the end of the third quarter.

But the period was costly as senior guard Chris Hart went down with a left ankle injury. He tried to return, but came out of the game for good moments later.

SV saw its lead dwindle and when Pine-Richland junior Greg Shulkosky drained a 3-pointer with 2:24 left in the game, the Rams took a lead they would not relinquish in a 61-51 section victory at SV's William Paul Gymnasium.

The victory moved the Rams (8-3, 3-1) into a tie for second place with Butler.

Just before Shulkosky's 3-pointer, Seneca's Jake Bunofsky had rebounded a missed shot by the Rams and appeared to be fouled near Pine-Richland's free throw line. Instead, a jump ball was called and the possession arrow favored the Rams and they made the most of the chance.

“Pine-Richland won the game. You can't blame the officials,” said SV coach Victor Giannotta, who watched the Rams drain nine 3-pointers in the game.

In fact, Pine-Richland missed 12 straight field goal attempts from inside the arc during a span in the third and fourth quarters. But outside shooting, particularly three treys from Shulkosky in the fourth period, helped the Rams move ahead.

“We lost guys in transition,” said Giannotta. “We talked at halftime about keeping (the deficit) at single digits and getting the lead in the third quarter, which we did. But it wasn't a big enough lead.”

The Raiders, who trailed 33-28 at halftime, outscored the Rams 17-6 in the third period. Pine-Richland, in turn, won the fourth period 22-6.

“We just weren't jelling tonight,” said Rams' coach Jeff Ackermann. “It's been a weird situation for us with guys coming in from the football team (which won a state championship last month). We kinda came apart in the third quarter, couldn't find a rhythm. I couldn't find a combination of five players that was working for us. Then in the fourth quarter, it was the exact opposite.

David Ritchie led the Raiders (8-3, 2-2) with 14 points, Marcus Might added 11 and Hart 10, all before his injury.

Shulkosky led all scorers with 22 points while Dan Petcash scored 20 points and grabbed 18 rebounds.

“He (Petcash) was the best player on the court tonight, no doubt,” said Ackerman. “And we got a nice contribution from our bench.”

PINE-RICHLAND 61

Greg Shulkosky 7 2-2 22, Colin Luellen 1 0-0 2, Dan Petcash 6 6-7 20, Kenny White 0 2-2 2, Kyle Polce 0 2-2 2, Sebastian Kosanovich 3 0-1 7, Phil Jurkovec 3 0-1 6, Dawson Goltz 0 0-0 0. Totals: 20 12-15 61.

SENECA VALLEY 51

Jake Bunofsky 2 0-0 4, Josh Rupert 1 0-0 2, Chris Hart 5 0-0 10, Gabe Lawson 0 1-2 1, Marcus Might 5 1-2 11, David Ritchie 6 2-2 14, Dalton Peffer 4 1-2 9, Zac Zajacs 0 0-0 0. Totals: 23 5-8 51.

Pine-Richland 22 11 6 22 — 61

Seneca Valley14 14 17 6 — 51

3-point goals: Pine-Richland 9 (Shulkosky 6, Petcash 2, Kosanovich).

Friday: Seneca Valley at North Allegheny