It was a short sequence, but it revealed a lot. Not every shot will fall, but Akers keeps fighting. Her role has changed a lot this season and she is now looked at as a team leader and is excelling there.

She’s pretty darn good on the court, too.

Akers proved it again Friday at Montgomery, scoring 24 points, making nine steals, and grabbing eight rebounds while helping South defeat the Red Raiders, 48-31. Ella Moore scored 10 of her 12 points in a pivotal third quarter run and Kaitlyn Apker (8 points, 8 rebounds) made a run at a double-double as South (5-9, 5-3 Mid-Penn) won for the third time in four games, while boosting its playoff hopes.

“This year I have a different mindset,” Akers said. “It’s a different team, so I have to step up a lot more.”

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent South Williamsport's Abby Akers (1) looks for a way past Montgomery's Haylie Heverly during a girl's high school basketball game at Montgomery on Friday, Jan. 26, 2024. South won 48-31.

Akers is doing just that. She is averaging 17 points per game and also is among team leaders in every key category. More important than the numbers are how Akers is producing them.

The junior guard is competing hard and not backing down despite defenses geared toward slowing her. She is playing poised but hard. Her relentless play was contagious Friday and helped South shake off a six-point first quarter, go ahead by four at halftime and break things open in the third quarter.

Akers set the tone and her teammates followed, outscoring Montgomery, 36-19 in the middle quarters while leading by as many as 20 points.

“She’s really learned that if they are focused on her, ‘What do I have to do to help my teammates win the game? That’s what she’s concerned with,” first-year South coach Aaron Green said. “She wants to win games and that’s where you want your leader’s mindset to be. To have somebody who is an elder statesman even though she’s just a junior, that’s key because the other girls feed off her energy sometimes.”

That was the case against Montgomery as Akers scored 12 second quarter points and helped South build a 20-16 halftime lead. It was her scoring which helped the Mounties take that lead, but it was everything else which really helped change the game’s complexion.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Montgomery coach Mark Hauck reacts to a play during a girl's high school basketball game against South Williamsport at Montgomery on Friday, Jan. 26, 2024.

Akers excelled in all facets and her energy spread throughout the court and bench. Montgomery limited Akers to four points in the third quarter, but she hurt in every other way, dealing three assists, making five steals and adding three rebounds as South took over, opening the half on a 20-4 run and going ahead by 20.

“We’re getting a lot closer and working together a lot more,” Akers said. “In past games we let our heads down if we fall against certain teams, but we really fought through it this game.”

“She’s the leading scorer but she does so much than just score. Because she’s the leading scorer, you know they’re going to throw the kitchen sink at her, but she doesn’t feel overwhelmed by it think that she has to do this, that or this,” Green said. “Everybody has a role on the team, and she’s embraced that role as a leader.”

Green is a first-year coach and has five new starters this season with Akers being primarily the first reserve off the bench the past two years. It’s a growing process, but South showed at Montgomery that it not only is improving, but looking like a team which could be dangerous going down the stretch.

Nearly every player on the team, including all five starters, has been part of district championship teams in basketball, soccer, volleyball and/or softball. It’s a different sport, but having a winning mentality helps provide a nice foundation and South has a lot of big-game experience, something which could help it if it reaches the playoffs. It also is a group which likes a good fight, something the soccer team proved when it went from 0-5 to winning districts and reaching the state quarterfinals last November.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent South Williamsport's Ella Moore (13) moves past Montgomery's Rubi Salano during a girl's high school basketball game at Montgomery on Friday, Jan. 26, 2024. South won 48-31.

“I think once we get really working together and becoming a team it will be a lot different,” Akers said. “We have the mindset to win.”

That shined through against Montgomery. Seemingly everything which could go wrong, did go wrong in the first quarter. South turned the ball over 13 times and two starters were in foul trouble, but it still was tied 6-6. Instead of buckling or panicking, South fought back. The Mounties had fewer turnovers over the final three quarters than they did in the first and every player started contributing.

That included reserves Maddie Reidy and Mylee Morrison who provided key minutes off the bench. Reidy scored during the second quarter and Morris grabbed six rebounds. South warmed up in the second quarter and really turned on the heat in the third quarter, going on a 22-9 run.

“At halftime I was ready to break a clipboard because you get frustrated when they don’t perform up to their standards, but they knew,” Green said. “They were saying stuff I was going to say before I said it. They’re coming together and that was good to see.”

Everything worked in the third quarter as Moore scored 10 points and Apker six. Akers twice found Moore for 3-pointers, Apker asserted herself inside and Moore (6 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 steals) put South up 40-20 when she went coast-to-coast for a layup while drawing a foul. Moore and Akers were standouts on South’s soccer team which repeated as district champions last fall and their chemistry was evident throughout the third quarter as they contributed to 20 points, whether through scoring or via assists.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Montgomery's Addison Muhl (24) snags a rebound away from South Williamsport's Mylee Morrison (20) looks for a way past during a girl's high school basketball game at Montgomery on Friday, Jan. 26, 2024. South won 48-31.

“There always has been that connection,” Akers said. “Being best friends helps. We trust each other out there.”

Like South, Montgomery (5-10) is a young team which has made steady progress throughout the season. The Red Raiders have made a three-win improvement thus far and played a strong first half. They simply could not get their shots to fall but that did not dent the team’s determination.

Falin Reynolds made six first-half steals and Rubi Solano and Addi Muhl each grabbed eight rebounds. Madison Shrimp played one of her best games, scoring seven points, pulling down seven boards and making three steals before fouling out.

Montgomery executed well, but this was more about what South did right over the last four quarters than what it did wrong. This is a new-look Mountie team, but it is starting to produce some familiar results and is excited about its direction.

“I tell them at practice every day it’s a marathon, it’s not a sprint. Sometimes it’s an old country road with potholes and everything else. It’s not a freeway,” Green said. “You’re going to have obstacles and injuries and foul trouble and they’re learning that when there is adversity, they have to rise above that, and they did that tonight.”

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Montgomery's Rubi Salano (21) reaches to block a shot by South Williamsport's Abby Akers (1) during a girl's high school basketball game at Montgomery on Friday, Jan. 26, 2024. South won 48-31.

SOUTH (48)

Abby Akers 8 6-16 24, Ella Moore 5 0-1 12, Mikaiya Hills 0 2-2 2, Kaitlyn Apker 4 0-0 8, Maddie Pinkerton 0 0-0 0, Maddie Reidy 1 0-0 2, Mylee Morrison 0 0-0 0, Brielle Borgess 0 0-2 0. Totals 18 8-21 48.

MONTGOMERY (31)

Falin Reynolds 1 5-12 8, Rubi Solano 2 1-3 6, Addi Muhl 1 3-6 5, Haylie Heverly 0 0-0 0, Madison Shrimp 3 1-2 7, Anali Pick 1 0-0 2, Autumn Fry 1 0-0 2, Gabby Hill 0 1-3 1. Totals 9 11-26 31.

South 6 14 22 6–48

Montgomery 6 10 9 6–31

3-pointers: South 4 (Akers 2, Moore 2); Montgomery 2 (Reynolds, Solano).

Records: South 5-9, 5-3 Mid-Penn. Montgomery 5-10, 3-6.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent South Williamsport coach Arron Green reacts to a call during a girl's high school basketball game at Montgomery on Friday, Jan. 26, 2024.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Montgomery's Rubi Salano (21) reaches for a loose ball as South Williamsport's Ella Moore tries to maintain control during a girl's high school basketball game at Montgomery on Friday, Jan. 26, 2024. South won 48-31.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Montgomery's Haylie Heverly (10) brings the ball down court during a girl's high school basketball game at Montgomery on Friday, Jan. 26, 2024. South won 48-31.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Montgomery's Maddison Shrimp (4) eyes a shot during a girl's high school basketball game at Montgomery on Friday, Jan. 26, 2024. South won 48-31.