Seneca Valley girls basketball wins first WPIAL playoff game in 20 years, beating Pine-Richland to make 6A semis
PINE TWP — Nobody currently involved with Seneca Valley girls basketball seemed to be aware it had been 20 years since the Raiders won a playoff game.
Natalie Hambly certainly wasn’t, but it was her two free throws with 3.2 seconds left in Friday’s WPIAL Class 6A quarterfinal playoff game that proved to be the difference in a 31-29 victory over host and No. 4-seed Pine-Richland.
The Rams had one last chance to win or tie. Junior guard Zoe Cook caught a long inbounds pass and had an open look from beyond the arc, but she chose to drive to the hoop, where her shot attempt from the right of the basket bounced off the rim as time expired.
SV players and fans celebrated, knowing nothing of the drought the team had just ended.
The Raiders’ previous playoff win came Feb. 21, 2006, when they defeated Hempfield in the WPIAL first round.
“I didn’t know it had been that long,” said Hambly, who drained the two late free throws with a rambunctious Rams’ student section just feet behind the basket. “Where there is chaos, there’s calm. The noise is canceled out.”
Hambly’s conventional three-point play had given the Raiders (14-6) a 29-26 lead before Cook drained a 3-pointer to tie the game with 4:18 left.
SV held possession for much of the remaining time and was settling for a late chance to score.
“There’s nobody I’d rather have at the line in that situation more than Natalie,” SV coach Dorothea Epps said. “She has ice in her veins.”
Section 1-6A foes, the Raiders and Rams had met twice in the regular season, with SV winning the first encounter 41-28 and the Rams taking the rematch 52-43 just 15 days ago.
In that rematch, Pine-Richland (15-8) had three players score at least 12 points, but Cook’s nine points paced the team Friday.
“We take a lot of pride in playing strong defense,” Epps said. “Our girls knew we had to guard much better tonight and couldn’t give up that many points. We settled on (man-to-man) a while into the game.”
SV led 9-4 after one quarter and 22-14 at halftime. The Raiders’ offense struggled in the second half, making just 2 of 13 attempts from the field.
“I think we rushed things a bit offensively, but we stuck together and kept fighting,” said senior Brooke Dufford, who was on the team the last two years when SV was dealt a first-round defeat. “This is my last year, and it feels good to advance.”
Hambly scored 13 points to lead all scorers and teammate Makayla Canty added 10.
The No. 5 Raiders will take on top-seeded Canon-McMillan in a semifinal Tuesday at a site and time to be determined. The Raiders are guaranteed two more games now and need to win one of them to make the PIAA tournament — WPIAL sends three to states in 6A.
SENECA VALLEY 31
Reece McFadden 1 0-0 2, Makayla Canty 3 4-4 10, Natalie Hambly 3 6-7 13, Brooke Dufford 3 0-1 6, Ella Omasits 0 0-2 0, Taylor Dixon 0 0-0 0, Erica Rebovich 0 0-0 0. Totals: 10 10-14 31.
PINE-RICHLAND 29
Maddie Meabon 1 0-0 3, Mia LeDonne 1 1-1 3, Zoe Cook 2 4-6 9, Rebekah Shaffer 3 0-0 6, Cate Gentile 1 0-0 2, Addison Buches 1 2-2 4, Maddie Gregorio 1 0-0 2. Totals: 10 7-9 29.
SV 9 13 4 5 — 31
PR 4 10 9 6 — 29
3-point goals: Seneca Valley 1 (Hambly); Pine-Richland 2 (Meabon, Cook).
Tuesday: Seneca Valley vs. Canon-McMillan, WPIAL Class 6A semifinal, site and time TBD
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Seneca Valley’s Brooke Dufford (25) passes the ball against Pine-Richland in a WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 20, at Pine-Richland High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Seneca Valley defeated Pine-Richland 31-29 in a WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 20, at Pine-Richland High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Seneca Valley defeated Pine-Richland 31-29 in a WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 20, at Pine-Richland High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Seneca Valley defeated Pine-Richland 31-29 in a WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 20, at Pine-Richland High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Seneca Valley defeated Pine-Richland 31-29 in a WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 20, at Pine-Richland High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Young fans hold up signs cheering on the Seneca Valley girls in a game against Pine-Richland in a WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 20, at Pine-Richland High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Seneca Valley’s Natalie Hambly (24) shoots the ball against Pine-Richland in a WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 20, at Pine-Richland High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Seneca Valley defeated Pine-Richland 31-29 in a WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 20, at Pine-Richland High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Seneca Valley’s Makayla Canty (3) shoots the ball against Pine-Richland in a WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 20, at Pine-Richland High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Seneca Valley defeated Pine-Richland 31-29 in a WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 20, at Pine-Richland High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Seneca Valley defeated Pine-Richland 31-29 in a WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 20, at Pine-Richland High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Seneca Valley defeated Pine-Richland 31-29 in a WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 20, at Pine-Richland High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Seneca Valley defeated Pine-Richland 31-29 in a WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 20, at Pine-Richland High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Seneca Valley defeated Pine-Richland 31-29 in a WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 20, at Pine-Richland High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Seneca Valley defeated Pine-Richland 31-29 in a WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 20, at Pine-Richland High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Seneca Valley’s Reece McFadden (2) passes the ball against Pine-Richland in a WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 20, at Pine-Richland High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Seneca Valley defeated Pine-Richland 31-29 in a WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 20, at Pine-Richland High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Seneca Valley defeated Pine-Richland 31-29 in a WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 20, at Pine-Richland High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Seneca Valley defeated Pine-Richland 31-29 in a WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 20, at Pine-Richland High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Seneca Valley’s Brooke Dufford (25) passes the ball against Pine-Richland in a WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 20, at Pine-Richland High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Seneca Valley’s Brooke Dufford (25) shoots over a Pine-Richland defender in a WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 20, at Pine-Richland High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Pine-Richland’s Mia LeDonne, left, and Seneca Valley’s Reece McFadden (2) battle over possession of the ball in a WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 20, at Pine-Richland High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Seneca Valley defeated Pine-Richland 31-29 in a WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 20, at Pine-Richland High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Seneca Valley defeated Pine-Richland 31-29 in a WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 20, at Pine-Richland High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Seneca Valley defeated Pine-Richland 31-29 in a WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 20, at Pine-Richland High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Seneca Valley girls basketball team celebrate a 31-29 win against Pine-Richland in a WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 20, at Pine-Richland High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Seneca Valley head coach Dorothea Epps celebrates after defeating Pine-Richland 31-29 in a WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 20, at Pine-Richland High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Seneca Valley defeated Pine-Richland 31-29 in a WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 20, at Pine-Richland High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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