SHALER TWP — Defense was the name of both games for the Seneca Valley boys and girls basketball teams Friday night.

Both squads entered the doubleheader at Shaler with a section record of 2-3, but both came away with big wins that were made possible by big defensive efforts.

In the girls contest, the Raiders gave up just 20 points in the first half and used one final defensive stand to preserve a 47-46 win.

SV's boys frustrated the Titans' offense, surrendering just 41 points in a 50-41 victory.

SV's girls found themselves down 46-45 when junior Kelsey Patsilevas was fouled and went to the free throw line with a little more than 14 seconds remaining.

The shooting guard drained both attempts for a one-point edge.

In its final possession, Shaler rebounded its own miss with two seconds remaining, but SV's Megan Gebrosky stole the ball and the Titans' hopes.

The Raiders' deficit stood at six points (40-34) with 3:10 left in the game.

"This win is huge," said Patsilevas, who led the Raiders with 13 points. "To be down and come back and win, it's amazing. It feels so good right now."

Patsilevas' free throws capped a great night at the line for the Raiders, who went 14-of-16 for 87 percent.

Patsilevas (4-of-4), Gebrosky (5-of-6) and Aly Eagle (2-of-2) all had a hand in the Raiders' 11-of-12 performance in the final period.

"As a team, we were shooting 58 percent from the line coming into this game," said Seneca Valley coach Kelly Mathews. "About a week ago, we came up with a free throw chart and every player is responsible for shooting 25 free throws every day on their own. It's something we've really tried to focus on."

The Raiders' win did not cure all of the team's ills. In fact, SV (5-8, 3-3) had a horrendous night in the turnover department with 39.

But Mathews will take an ugly win over a pretty loss any day.

"Even with all of those turnovers, we found a way to win," she said. "Hopefully, we can carry this into the rest of the season."

Jackie Mangola added 11 points for the Raiders.

The Titans (7-7, 2-3) committed 37 turnovers.

Boys Basketball Seneca Valley 50, Shaler 41

SV coach Vic Giannotta had his defense focus on two of Shaler's players Friday night: Dan Wirkowski and Ben Altmeyer.

And by stopping one of the two, the Raiders won the game.

Both Wirkowski and Altmeyer average more than 15 points per game.

The former had a good night, scoring 17 points. But Altmeyer, a senior guard, scored only five points.

"The way we saw it, Wirkowski is going to get between 15 to 20 points every game no matter what you do," said Giannotta. "We were more concerned with stopping Altmeyer, and we did."

The Raiders accomplished this by running a box-and-one defense most of the night.

"I'd bet that Wirkowski and Altmeyer combined for no more than 10 points in their halfcourt offense," said Giannotta. "Most of Wirkowski's points came on fast breaks off of turnovers."

C.J. Brown led SV with 22 points and Nate Herrmann added 13.

The Raiders trailed 22-21 entering the second half, but quickly took the lead with an 8-2 run in the first 1:20 of the third period, prompting Shaler coach Howie Ruppert to call a timeout.

"We come out, turn the ball over on two straight possessions, take a bad shot and give up another basket. ... It wasn't a good way to start the second half," Ruppert said.

Though the Titans (7-6, 2-3) remained within striking distance, they never held the lead after giving it up early in the third quarter.

The Raiders (9-4, 3-3) had turnover problems of their own in the fourth, helping to turn a 42-33 Shaler deficit into just 44-41.

"Five straight possessions we turn it over," said Giannotta. "It's like, 'Here we go again.'

"We've been preaching and talking about it," he added. "It's a hump we've got to get over."

But, like Mathews, Giannotta is pleased with the win.

"This puts us right in the thick of the playoff race," he said.

GirlsSENECA VALLEY 47Aly Eagle 2 2-2 8, Megan Gebrosky 0 5-6 5, Alyssa Miller 1 0-0 2, Kelsey Patsilevas 4 4-4 13, Shayna Elser 1 0-0 2, Nicole Roche 0 2-2 2, Jackie Mangola 5 1-2 11, Catherine Messmer 2 0-0 4. Totals: 15 14-16 47.

SHALER 46Maria Bozzo 1 0-0 2, Sarah Knaus 3 1-3 7, Olivia DiNucci 6 6-10 19, Val McQuade 0 1-2 1, Hillary Sauer 4 0-0 8, Ashley Hohman 0 2-4 2, Jackie Sauer 0 4-6 4, Jenna Conrad 1 1-2 3, Erika Frank 0 0-0 0, Haley Sauer 0 0-0 0, Holly Knaus 0 0-0 0. Totals: 15 15-27 46.

Seneca Valley 16 6 8 17—47Shaler 10 10 13 13—463-point goals: Seneca Valley 3 (Eagle 2, Patsilevas); Shaler 1 (DiNucci).

Saturday: Seneca Valley at Greensburg Central Catholic

BoysSENECA VALLEY 50John Fitzpatrick 3 2-4 8, Sean Gress 1 0-0 2, C.J. Brown 10 2-4 22, Nate Herrmann 4 4-4 13, Dan Rohm 1 0-0 3, Christian Durbin 0 2-2 2, Ryan Turner 0 0-0 0, Matt Vogt 0 0-0 0, Dustin Anewalt 0 0-0 0, Tony Treser 0 0-0 0. Totals: 19 10-14 50.

SHALER 41Ben Altmeyer 2 1-2 5, Jesse Della Valle 3 0-0 6, Dan Wirkowski 7 2-3 17, Dan Taylor 1 0-0 3, J.T. Schwartz 4 1-1 10, Matt Pendleton 0 0-0 0, Jeff Szczypinski 0 0-0 0, Drew Stanny 0 0-0 0, Feehan 0 0-0 0. Totals: 17 4-6 41.

Seneca Valley 14 7 17 12—50Shaler 9 13 10 9—413-point goals: Seneca Valley 2 (Herrmann, Rohm); Shaler 3 (Wirkowski, Taylor, Schwartz).

Saturday: Seneca Valley at Taylor Allderdice