SHARON — Hoping to extend its season to Saturday’s state quarterfinals, the Mars girls basketball team instead met with a harsh reality in the first half against Cathedral Prep.

The Planets misfired on their first 10 shot attempts from the floor and had turned the ball over eight times before their first make, Lauren Atwell’s bucket with 3:29 left in the second quarter.

The Ramblers had no such troubles, led 28-4 at halftime and cruised to a 51-24 win Wednesday in a Class 5A second-round decision at Sharon High School.

“Cathedral Prep is really good. They’re so much bigger and stronger than we are,” said Mars coach Dana Petruska. “Things did not go our way in the first few minutes and our girls started pressing.

“That’s a big difference from our (first-round) game against York Suburban (a 49-40 win). We were able to jump on them quickly, get that cushion.”

Prep guards Lena Walz and Jayden McBride and forward Addie Biel set the tone early, combining to score 22 of their team’s 28 points over the first two quarters.

Walz scored a game-high 17 points in the victory.

Prep heads to the quarterfinal round with a 23-1 record, the only loss coming by two points in early January to North Catholic, which has reached the Class 4A quarterfinals.

“It’s all heart and determination,” said Ramblers’ coach Doug Chuzie. “We share the ball well and get a consistent effort. We take pride in that.”

Ava Day scored seven points to pace the Planets (18-9), who shared the Section 2 title this season after senior guard Alexa McDole was lost for the year in the third game with a knee injury.

“She brought so much more to the team than just her scoring,” said Petruska. “Her experience and will were big factors for us. This is a bittersweet end, but I never thought we’d win the section without her.”

MARS 24

Ava Day 2 2-3 7, Lauren Atwell 2 2-4 6, Vita Vargo 1 0-0 3, Olivia Donnelly 1 2-2 4, Cecilia Christy 1 2-2 4, Mya Moore 0 0-0 0, Alexis Cashdollar 0 0-0 0, Carmella McDole 0 0-0 0. Totals: 7 8-11 24.

CATHEDRAL PREP 51

Addie Biel 5 2-2 12, Jayden McBride 6 2-2 16, Tori Mayes 1 0-0 2, McKenna Valone 2 0-0 4, Lena Walz 6 2-2 17, Ava Lucarotti 0 0-0 0, Abigail Corsale 0 0-0 0. Totals: 20 6-6 51.

Mars 2 2 11 9 — 24

Cath. Prep 17 11 14 9 — 51

3-point goals: Mars 2 (Day, Vargo); Cathedral Prep 5 (Walz 3, McBride 2).