Breaking News
Late Sports

Lancer Lightning strikes in second half as Loyalsock pulls away for season-opening win

By Chris Masse 6 min read

Just a few seconds remained when Rian Glunk took the inbound pass, dribbled and found Jaylen Andrews. Andrews released a 3-pointer a split second before the buzzer went off, swished the shot and gave Loyalsock momentum entering halftime Friday night.

Just 15 seconds into the third quarter, Andrews hit another 3-pointer. Then Glunk did. Then Andrews was fouled shooting behind the arc and connected on all three free throws. In just 93 seconds, Loyalsock scored 13 points and turned a tenuous 3-point lead into a more comfortable 13-point margin.

And the Lancers just kept going from there, dominating the third quarter, invoking the mercy rule and defeating Lewisburg, 73-53 in this battle of defending District 4 champions at Ron Insinger Gymnasium. Loyalsock gave legendary manager Pedie McDonald quite a 63rd birthday present as it opened a 30-point third quarter lead after trailing by six in the first, while looking like a team eager to defend its Class AAA crown.

“We knew the first half wasn’t us. We just had to get some jitters out,” Jaylen Andrews said after scoring a game-high 20 points and making six steals. “We knew we were a better team than that. That third quarter we were ready to go and that made a big impact.”

“When we play with high energy, we’re very effective, and our press is something to deal with,” Insinger said after winning his 1,091st career game as he starts his 49th season. “We just have to learn to be more consistent with that.”

Loyalsock was consistently explosive throughout the third quarter, scoring 33 points and going on a 33-9 run to impose the mercy rule with a minute remaining. The Lancers turned defense into offense, forcing 11 turnovers that quarter and produced 20 points in the first four minutes. Five different players scored, too, highlighting this team’s balance.

Nate Bauman (5 rebounds, 5 assists) dominated throughout the third quarter, scoring 11 of his 15 points and making all six of his shots from the field and line. Rian Glunk (11 points) and Gage Patterson (10) joined Andrews and Bauman in double figures as Loyalsock showed it has five serious scoring threats on the court at all times.

Tyler Gee added six points and five rebounds, while Tarik Abdul-Hakim played well off the bench, scoring six points. Patterson helped spark a swarming defense, making seven steals, and Loyalsock forced 23 turnovers the first three quarters. There’s a long way to go, but this was kind of start Loyalsock was hoping it could produce.

“I was so nervous coming into this game because they had three games under their belts. I couldn’t sleep. I was like a kid on Christmas,” Insinger said. “I’m pleasantly surprised and very pleased with their overall performance. We didn’t shoot a high percentage, but we made some strides.”

That is exactly what Lewisburg is striving for moving forward.

The defending District 4 Class AAAA champions lost four starters from last year’s team, and all were 6-foot or taller. This is a smaller team, but also a quick one. The Dragons (2-2) gave 4A favorite Shamokin a battle last week and have shown some promise.

That was the case early against Loyalsock as Henry Harrison (11 points, 3 assists) and Devin Bodden hit consecutive 3-pointers and helped Lewisburg take an 8-2 lead. The game was tied after one quarter and Lewisburg cut a 10-point deficit to three late in the half. Andrews’ 3-pointers bridging the second and third quarters, however, were like quick jabs and Loyalsock soon started landing rousing haymakers as it blew things open.

“We have to find our identity. We have to figure it out,” Lewisburg coach John Vaji said. “Luckily, we don’t play until next Thursday. We have the weekend to relax and think about this, and it gives us a chance to make some adjustments from a defensive standpoint and figure out some things offensively that we want to tweak.”

Jack Blough scored 10 points, joining Harrison in double figures. Noah Pawling (8 points) and Neyshawn Mabry (6 rebounds) revealed their potential with quality efforts off the bench. Cam Michaels and Wade Young each dealt three assists. When Lewisburg was able to set up and run its offense it was efficient, making more than 50 percent of its shots in each of the first three quarters.

The problem was Loyalsock kept wearing on Lewisburg and forcing those mistakes. Clean those up, gain more experience and Lewisburg could again become a dangerous team come the postseason.

“We’ve been at it since November 18 and we came in with a scheme, and it’s worked out a couple games and a couple of games against stronger teams it hasn’t worked out as well,” Vaji said. “We’re going to sit back and re-evaluate personnel, re-evaluate what we want to do.”

Loyalsock took the lead for good early in the second quarter when Glunk, playing his first game in two years, hit a foul-line jumper. He found Gee for a basket a few seconds later and fueled a 14-4 run.

Andrews did not score until the second quarter but once he did the points came fast. He produced six during a quick 45-second burst and then started changing the game’s complexion with his buzzer-beating and third quarter starting 3-pointers. The all-state football candidate produced 18 of his 20 points in the middle quarters and everything collectively clicked as the Lancers made 21 of 36 shots during that time.

“It feels good knowing I have the responsibility I do this year,” said Andrews, one of four returning juniors who either started or contributed a lot off the bench last year. “I know I have to step up each and every game. We started off a little slow, but the jitters started going away from it being our first game. My teammates continued to trust me after I was struggling at first. That third quarter we made a difference with all our hard work and hustle and heart.”

Loyalsock’s grit was best shown during that third quarter by its work on the boards. The Lancers frequently grabbed offensive rebounds and scored eight of its first 21 points that quarter off offensive putbacks. Loyalsock is not the tallest team, but all five starters are at least 6-feet, athletic and fast.

That formed quite a blend last Friday.

“Our first five are strong and our bench is strong,” Andrews said. “I think we can be hard for teams to stop, knowing that all five are able to score.”

LEWISBURG (53)

Cam Michaels 2 0-0 5, Henry Harrison 4 1-1 11, Jack Blough 5 0-1 10, Wade Young 2 0-2 4, Devin Bodden 3 0-0 8, Charlie Landis 0 0-0 0, Dylan Dershem 1 0-0 3, Noah Pawling 3 2-2 8, Neyshawn Mabry 2 0-0 4. Totals 22 3-7 53.

LOYALSOCK (73)

Jaylen Andrews 7 4-5 20, Nate Bauman 7 1-1 15, Gage Patterson 5 0-0 10, Tyler Gee 3 0-0 6, Rian Glunk 5 0-0 11, Tarik Abdul-Hakim 1 4-4 6, Alec Kulp 0 0-0 0, Krish Patel 1 3-3 5. Totals 29 12-13 73.

Lewisburg 12 13 14 14-53

Loyalsock 12 19 33 9-73

3-pointers: Lewisburg 6 (Harrison 2, Bodden 2, Michaels, Dershem); Loyalsock 3 (Andrews 2, Glunk).

Records: Loyalsock 1-0. Lewisburg 2-2.

Starting at /week.