IRWIN - Johnstown's pressure floored Mars early.

The Trojans' one-two punch of Crystal Andrews and Jill Maurer never let the Planets get back to their feet Saturday at Norwin High School.

Maurer scored 23 points and grabbed seven rebounds while Andrews had 21 points, eight steals and seven boards in Johnstown's 60-41 first-round PIAA Class AAA girls basketball tournament victory.

"Those two put on quite a show," Johnstown coach Steve Warner said. "But they couldn't have without the help of their teammates.

"Our defense set everything up early for us offensively and we just rode the momentum."

Mars (23-5) suffered 10 turnovers in the first quarter. Six of Andrews' eight steals came in the first frame.

The Planets had seven turnovers in the first three minutes - setting up transition buckets the other way - as Johnstown bolted to a 12-0 lead.

The Trojans were hot from the floor in the first period as well, sinking eight of 11 shots, including four 3-pointers. Jenn Ravida had three of them.

Ravida, Maurer and Ravida again sank treys on three straight possessions to give their team a 21-4 lead with 2:48 left in the quarter. Mars closed to within 12 at halftime, but got no closer the rest of the way.

"Everything just clicked for them early," Mars coach Dana Petruska said. "When you shoot as well as they did early, it opens up a lot of other things.

"We knew Andrews was a great player. She made things happen for them."

Ravida's treys didn't hurt, either.

"Her early 3-pointers were big because they loosened up their defense," Warner said.

Andrews averages 19 points per game and Maurer 16. Both are seniors and will be playing for the University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown next year.

"Those two are the leaders of this team and they showed it today," Warner said.

The Planets fell behind by as many as 25 (54-29) with 44 seconds left in the third quarter.

Johnstown (18-7) suffered 31 turnovers Saturday, including 14 in the final quarter. The Trojans scored only six points in the final stanza. Mars had 26 turnovers.

"We lost our composure against their press," Warner said of the fourth quarter. "That shouldn't happen. It's something we'll work on."

Ashley Bean paced Mars with 18 points and eight rebounds. Freshman Maggie Bulman added six boards as the Planets held a 30-26 rebounding edge despite the absence of injured center Taryn Adamski.

"Ashley played a great game," Petruska said. "She played the way a senior should play."

Johnstown will play Corry (20-8) - a 53-41 winner over Punxsutawney - in the next round. Mars will prepare for next season after starting two freshmen and a sophomore Saturday.

"That was part of it," Petruska said of her young lineup facing a veteran opponent. "But we'll be even younger next year because we only have one junior.

"I never predict how we'll do from year to year. You doom yourself to failure that way. We'll regroup, come back and see what happens."

Mars has not won a PIAA tournament game since 1977.

JOHNSTOWN 60

Crystal Andrews 8-14 4-4 21, Danielle Burkhart 1-2 1-2 3, Vera McDaniel 0-1 0-0 0, Jenn Ravida 4-8 2-2 13, Jill Maurer 9-12 1-2 23, Tami McKinley 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 22-37 8-10 60

MARS 41

Abby Marshall 1-5 0-0 2, Julie Utz 1-8 3-4 5, Megan Gibson 1-3 0-0 2, Cara Hudac 0-3 0-0 0, Jessica Pappas 2-9 2-2 7, Ashley Bean 7-17 4-5 18, Alina Hudac 1-4 2-2 4, Heather Carpenter 1-1 1-3 3, Maggie Bulman 0-3 0-0 0. Totals: 14-53 12-16 41

3-point goals:

Andrews, Ravida 3, Maurer 4; Pappas