Breaking News
Late Sports

Bobak uses swarming defense to create offense, helping Hughesville girls defeat North Penn-Mansfield

By Chris Masse 5 min read

HUGHESVILLE–Foul trouble cost Breanna Bobak ample second half time and eventually ended her night early. But by the time the Hughesville guard exited in the fourth quarter, what an impact she had made.

Bobak did a lot in a little time throughout the second half, turning defense into offense and having a hand in 10 straight points as Hughesville defeated North Penn-Mansfield, 55-22 at the Mike Fought Holiday Classic. Bobak’s second-half flurry broke open the game and she finished with 12 points, seven steals and three assists as the Spartans (6-2) earned a spot in Wednesday’s championship against Jersey Shore. Alli Anstadt scored a game-high 14 points and grabbed 14 rebounds as Hughesville won its fifth straight game.

“I like playing defense because defense gives you the offense,” Bobak said. “We really focus on defense. Everyone on the team does a good job with that.”

Bobak showed how true those words were, wreaking havoc with her defense and using that to ignite the offense after North Penn-Mansfield pulled within 24-15 at halftime. Bobak opened the second half with two quick steals, earning a trip to the line, making those free throws and then turning the next one into a layup. She next found Anstadt inside and the sophomore was fouled, hitting both foul shots.

Bobak then scored off a drive, converted another layup off her seventh steal and dished to Ava Snyder (14 points) for a 3-pointer. Just like that, Hughesville was up 34-16 and was well on its way to both another win and Wednesday’s final.

“That helps a lot. We wanted to push the tempo and when we did that, we were able to stretch the lead,” Bobak said. “That felt good.”

“Bre made a big impact. Bre’s a great defender. When she locks in, I don’t know if there’s anyone better right now,” Hughesville coach Justin King said. “Tonight, she really played well. There were certain stretches where she was really locked in and gave the team a lift. Bre is big for us.”

Bobak is a three-year starter and the most experienced Hughesville player. Anstadt and Snyder are coming off impressive freshman seasons and the team also features several promising freshmen. When all the pieces came together in the second half, North Penn-Mansfield was in trouble.

The Spartans continued playing ferocious defense and surrendered just four field goals, including one in the middle quarters. Hughesville used its full-court press to create 26 turnovers and utilized a deep bench. That depth allows Hughesville to keep the pressure on the whole game without worrying about a drop-off and it again paid huge dividends.

In each of its five wins during this streak, Hughesville has held every team to 32 or fewer points. The only problem during the first half was fouls, with Hughesville sending North Penn-Mansfield to the line 14 times. Once the Spartans cleaned that up in the second half, they took charge and outscored North Penn-Mansfield, 31-7.

“It (depth) helps because you can rest a little bit because people keep rotating in,” Bobak said. “You can keep attacking, take a quick rest and then pop right back in. It’s good knowing we have that.”

Hughesville also has some hard-working rebounders. The Spartans dominated the boards, outrebounding North Penn-Mansfield, 45-15. Anstadt helped Hughesville open a 15-7 first quarter lead and had 11 points with eight rebounds by halftime before recording a double-double by the third quarter.

Lucy Myers continues making a big contribution off the bench since returning from injury and was particularly strong in the second half, finishing with five points and nine rebounds. Freshman Allyssa King added five rebounds, so even when Hughesville missed, there often were players creating second and third-chance opportunities. Snyder, though, didn’t miss at all in the second half, making all three of her shots and finishing with four 3-pointers.

“We try emphasizing to them to shoot, shoot, shoot because we do a great job rebounding. You can’t rebound if you don’t shoot and we have girls that really get after it,” Justin King said. “Tonight, they just kept shooting. It wasn’t falling all the time, but we had girls right there to make up for it.”

North Penn-Mansfield features a young team but competes hard and hung though throughout the first half. The Tigers cut a 13-point deficit to nine at halftime and playing against a quality Class AAA team could help them continue progressing as the season continues. Addison Farrer scored nine points and McKenna Lightener added five rebounds.

Hughesville received a lift from Vivian Draper as it started pulling away in the second half. The freshman worked her way into the starting lineup early in the season and was all over the boards, grabbing eight rebounds. Draper scored a career-high in points in her previous game and is providing Hughesville another weapon with the HAC-III season starting next week.

“Vivian Draper is a player I think a lot of people are going to be hearing about,” King said. “She’s terrific under the basket and she’s aggressive. She’s just a strong presence and she does a great job for us.”

NP-MANSFIELD (22)

Addison Farrer 2 5-6 9, McKenna Lightener 0 3-8 3, Kameron Lightener 1 3-6 5, Addison Hill 1 0-0 2, Ella Swingle 0 3-4 3, Madalyn Farrer 0 0-0 0. Totals 4 14-24 22.

HUGHESVILLE (55)

Alli Anstadt 4 6-9 14, Breanna Bobak 3 5-6 12, Ava Snyder 5 0-0 14, Lucy Myers 2 1-3 5, Vivian Draper 2 1-2 5, Kylie Temple 0 0-0 0, Allyssa King 1 1-2 3, Sara Stroup 1 0-0 2, Alissa Hoffman 0 0-0 0. Totals 18 14-22 55.

NPM 7 8 5 2-22

Hughesville 15 9 15 16-55

3-pointers: Hughesville 5 (Snyder 4, Bobak).

Records: Hughesville 6-2. NP-Mansfield 1-7.

Starting at /week.