It certainly has not touched their hearts.

Shaking off sickness, a six-point deficit and a difficult opponent, Montoursville produced a comeback Saturday at Ron Insinger Gymasium which was as gutsy as it was impressive.

Shea Ulmer made a series of big fourth quarter shots; Zack Neill shined off the bench late and every player fought through adversity as Montoursville finished strong and defeated rival Loyalsock, 57-50 in the Pedie McDonald Christmas Tournament semifinals. Ulmer scored a game-high 18 points, Cam Cintron 12 and the Warriors (6-2) closed on a 17-4 run over the final 4 minutes, 7 seconds, while earning a spot in Monday’s championship against Selinsgrove.

“You can’t go into a game thinking everything is going to go perfect. So, when you get dug into those situations you have to work together; work with your coaches and work with your teammates,” Ulmer said after scoring eight fourth quarter points. “Our bench tonight was phenomenal. Every little thing you can do to get back into a game is what we preach every single day.”

Kingston Fisher of Montoursville puts up a shot as Saoj Jones of Loyalsock blocks it at Loyalsock High School. Montoursville won 57-50. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

All those little things, sprinkled in with a lot of determination, equaled a big win as Montoursville won its second straight thriller against the Lancers over the past two seasons. The Warriors trailed by six nearly midway through the fourth quarter before changing everything with an 11-0 run which took just 92 seconds.

Ulmer had a hand in the first nine points and Montoursville needed just 37 seconds to go ahead for good when Neill found Ulmer for a 3-pointer which made it, 49-46. The Warriors made all but two of their final 12 shots from the field and line during that comeback push.

“There were a lot of good things there at the end,” Montoursville coach Mike Mussina said. “You don’t want to put yourself in that position too often, but to fight back and find a way to get the lead and get contributions from different guys was big.”

“That’s everything you play for,” Neill said after scoring five points during the game-clinching flurry. “We have a very good chemistry, especially off the court. We all play hard and trust each other to go make the right play.”

Anything which went wrong over the game’s first 28 minutes, Montoursville made go right during the final four. The game was tied following the first and second quarters and Loyalsock (6-2) led, 39-38 entering the fourth before putting Montoursville up against the ropes in the fourth.

Kingston Fisher of Montoursville puts up a shot as Saoj Jones of Loyalsock blocks it at Loyalsock High School. Montoursville won 57-50. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

Defense ignited the offense and Cintron’s steal started flipping the switch. He passed to Ulmer who spotted Neill cutting from the right baseline. The junior guard let it fly from the corner and swished it, pulling Montoursville within three. Mussina called timeout, Montoursville went to a press which started giving Loyalsock fits near midcourt and everything started dramatically changing.

“Me and corner 3s do not go together well,” Neill said. “I’ve been working on it the last year to re-calibrate my shot, so they can’t make fun of me.”

Ulmer was quick to point out that Neill makes those shots when Montoursville needs them most and this one helped fan the flames which Ulmer would then turn into an inferno. Out of the timeout, Ulmer made a steal near halfcourt, raced in for a layup, was fouled and capped the game-tying 3-point play.

Neill made it three straight forced turnovers seconds later with a steal and found Ulmer for the go-ahead 3-pointer.

Montoursville forced five turnovers down the stretch and Neill capped the 11-0 run when he found Isaac Erlandson (8 points, 6 rebounds) for an inside bucket with 2:45 left. The Lancers twice made it a 3-point game, but Ulmer and Neill calmly sank free throws, pushing it back to five. Cintron added a foul shot and Brennen Imbro, a big reason Montoursville was in the game, made a game-clinching steal and free throw in the final seconds.

Kingston Fisher of Montoursville and Jalil Coates (center) and Saoj Jones of Loyalsock fight for possession of the ball at Loyalsock High School. Montoursville won 57-50. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

“I’m really proud of our guys. They found a way and that’s what you have to do in games like this,” Mussina said. “Changing things up, they took a couple shots they didn’t want to take on the offensive end and we got some rebounds and we hit a 3, and all the sudden they’re playing in the position we were two minutes earlier, so it can change fast.”

“Tonight, everything kind of flowed together,” said Ulmer, who added four assists. “People started to know their role; people started to know their place and everything flowed into one state. We were all feeling good.”

Loyalsock was feeling good after starting to gain some separation in the fourth quarter after the rivals swapped the lead four times in the third quarter. A Brecken Gusick 3-pointer put Loyalsock up, 39-38 entering the fourth and a 3-pointer by Braydon Cioffi and putback from Isaac Blackwell pushed the advantage to six, the biggest lead either team had held at that point.

Montoursville, however, controlled the final four minutes, snapping Loyalsock’s six-game winning streak. Still, the Lancers, who will play Bellefonte in the third place game, already have matched last year’s win total and can use this experience to improve as the season progresses.

“It was a good adjustment by them, and we need to be able to adjust a little better off those things,” Loyalsock coach Ryan Cioffi said. “It’s a learning experience and winning against really good teams–and they’re a really good, really well-coached team–takes playing four quarters.”

Cam Cintron of Montoursville puts up a floating shot against Loyalsock at Loyalsock High School. Montoursville won 57-50. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

Gusick had a big third quarter, scoring 10 of his 17 points. He twice hit 3-pointers which erased Montoursville leads, answering Jay Houseknecht’s go-ahead trey with one of his own in the closing seconds. Braydon Cioffi scored 12 points, Blackwell nine and Saoj Jones was a big defensive difference-maker, finishing with 11 rebounds and three assists.

Jalil Coates is the team’s lone senior and had to sit out the second quarter in foul trouble. It says a lot about Loyalsock’s growth that it did not lose any ground during that time. Obviously, the loss stings, but the Lancers know there are positives they can build on.

“The kids want to win and they have the will to win. That’s two different things, the want and the will, and they have it,” Ryan Cioffi said. “The locker room is not happy, but the message was we’ll watch the tape and learn from it and get better.”

That is Montoursville’s goal, too, regardless of the outcome. Both Ulmer and Neill mentioned not taking the, ‘rat poison,’ meaning as exciting as the win was, the Warriors understand it’s on to the next challenge when it faces a Selinsgrove team which edged it a year ago for the championship.

It likely will be another tough game, but Montoursville showed Saturday it is a pretty tough team.

Kingston Fisher of Montoursville puts up a shot as Saoj Jones of Loyalsock tries to block it at Loyalsock High School. Montoursville won 57-50. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

“There’s a lot of stuff going on; it’s that time of year,” Mussina said. “You need guys to step up and make a contribution, and that’s what happened.”

MONTOURSVILLE (57)

Cam Cintron 5 1-2 12, Kingston Fisher 1 0-0 2, Shea Ulmer 6 3-3 18, Elijah Eck 1 1-2 3, Brennen Imbro 3 1-4 7, Isaac Erlandson 4 0-1 8, Jay Houseknecht 1 0-0 2, Zack Neill 1 2-2 5. Totals 22 8-14 57.

LOYALSOCK (50)

Jalil Coates 3 2-2 8, Brecken Gusick 7 0-0 17, Braydon Cioffi 4 2-2 12, Isaac Blackwell 4 1-2 9, Saoj Jones 2 0-0 4, Ronnie Emery 0 0-0 0. Totals 20 5-6 50.

Montoursville 13 11 14 19–57

Loyalsock 13 11 15 11–50

3-pointers: Montoursville 5 (Ulmer 3, Cintron, Neill); Loyalsock 5 (Gusick 3, Cioffi 2).

Records: Montoursville 6-2. Loyalsock 6-2.

Brennen Imbro of Montoursville puts up a shot against Loyalsock at Loyalsock High School. Montoursville won 57-50. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

Brennen Imbro of Montoursville and Saoj Jones of Loyalsock fight for a loose ball at Loyalsock High School. Montoursville won 57-50. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

Saoj Jones of Loyalsock slam dunks the ball against Montoursville at Loyalsock High School. Montoursville won 57-50. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

Isaac Erlandson of Montoursville passes out of the steal attempt by Jalil Coates of Loyalsock at Loyalsock High School. Montoursville won 57-50. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

Shea Ulmer of Montoursville blocks the shot of Brecken Gusick of Loyalsock at Loyalsock High School. Montoursville won 57-50. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

Shea Ulmer and Isaac Erlandson of Montoursville put pressure on Ronnie Emery of Loyalsock at Loyalsock High School. Montoursville won 57-50. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

Montoursville head coach Mike Mussina talks with his team during a time out with 1:01 to go in the game against Loyalsock at Loyalsock High School. Montoursville won 57-50. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

Montoursville head coach Mike Mussina claps for his team as they celebrate a win over Loyalsock at Loyalsock High School. Montoursville won 57-50. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette