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MOUNT CARMEL--Central Columbia again climbed the championship ladder Friday night, cutting down the nets after securing a a second straight District 4 Class AAAA title and defeating Milton, 41-24.
Milton may not have experienced that ascension but what a climb it has made this year. Friday’s result at Mount Carmel High School does not diminish that
After going 11 years without a playoff win, Milton vanquished two higher-seeded teams, coming back twice to do so this postseason, while reaching the district final. The Black Panthers (12-13) also earned their first state tournament berth since 2011 and will likely host District 11’s runner-up, either Allentown Central Catholic or Jim Thorpe, in Wednesday’s opening round.
"I give Milton credit. They have gotten a lot better," Central coach Ryan Novak said. "They handled our pressure maybe better than anybody that we played."
Milton earned its spot in Friday’s final after overcoming second-half deficits against Jersey Shore and top-seeded Shamokin. The Black Panthers turned a 14-point halftime deficit into a 45-34 semifinal win and when it trailed Central by the same halftime score, 24-10, it felt like a potential omen.
Indeed, Milton stormed back, scoring nine straight points and pulling within 26-19 with 2 minutes, 25 seconds remaining in the third quarter.
Central, however, flipped the script. The Blue Jays turned up their ferocious defense and embarked on a game-breaking 11-0 run over the next three minutes and never led by fewer than 13 the rest of the way. Kiersten Stork scored 11 points, grabbed seven rebounds and added three steals.
All her teammates fought just as hard. Milton did not win the championship it coveted, but it certainly was not due to lack of effort.
"Milton is a very good team," Central forward Emmie Rowe said. "They battled back and battled hard, so we knew we couldn’t settle down when they were starting to get that momentum."
Rowe played one of her best high school games and capped a super district playoff run. After scoring 18 points in the semifinals, Rowe scored a season-high 20 and added nine rebounds and three assists.
Friday’s game was the third of a tripleheader and started 45 minutes late after the first one went to overtime. The wait only made Rowe better and she made 8 of 12 shots, including five straight between the first and second quarters when she scored 14 points and helped Central build its 24-10 lead.
"Emmie played really well tonight," Novak said. "That was her offensive breakout performance."
"We were all real excited to get into this game," Rowe said. "We were all kind of antsy because of the late start and it kind of all just came out at once."
Central (19-6) is state tournament bound for a third straight year and likely will host its first game Wednesday, playing District 3’s runner-up, either Delone Catholic or Berks Catholic. The Blue Jays rode their stellar defense to a repeat championship, holding all three district playoff opponents to 24 points or fewer while allowing just 20 points per game.
And while Milton effectively handled Central’s full-court press at times, the Blue Jays still rarely allowed clean looks and never surrendered more than nine points in a quarter. Defense also produced the game’s pivotal run with Alyx Flick making a steal and finding Haley Bull for a layup after Milton had pulled within seven.
"We have gotten to this point with our defense, so we weren’t going to back down even though we had some foul trouble," Novak said. "My approach has always been we like to pressure and to get a group like this that maybe likes to pressure more than I do is always fun."
Central competed just as hard on the glass and earned repeated second and third-chance scoring opportunities after grabbing offensive rebounds. Combine that with the defense and an unselfish offense and one has a championship formula.
"We always say we might not be the most talented and skilled-wise when it comes to basketball, but we’re always going to go out there and put all our effort in," Rowe said. "It feels great. We made this goal from the beginning of the season. This is what we’ve been reaching to try and get. Successfully completing that goal feels amazing."
CENTRAL (41)
Alyx Flick 3 0-2 6, Emmie Rowe 8 3-6 20, Maddy Blake 2 1-1 5, Haley Bull 2 0-5 4, Caitlyn Weatherill 1 0-0 2, Lindsey Bull 1 0-3 2, Ava Klingerman 1 0-0 2. Totals 18 4-17 41.
MILTON (24)
Morgan Reiner 3 0-0 7, Kiersten Stork 4 3-5 11, Leah Walter 0 1-4 1, Abbey Kitchen 1 1-2 3, Kyla Rovenolt 1 0-0 2, Brooklyn Wade 0-0 0, Amelia Gainer 0 0-0 0. Totals 9 5-11 24.
Central 14 10 9 8--41
Milton 4 6 9 5--24
3-pointers: Central 1 (Rowe); Milton 1 (Reiner)
Records: Central 19-6. Milton 12-13.