Whatever the sport, Emma McCormick is constantly running. So it was again during the final 10 seconds Saturday at Montoursville.

This time, it was a run to remember.

McCormick dribbled out the remaining seconds as an army of Muncy fans rose and applauded. Victory was Muncy’s and so was another district championship appearance.

McCormick scored 11 points, Rosie Zalonis produced 10 of her 16 points in the fourth quarter and Muncy played stifling defense as it defeated Northwest, 40-31 in the District 4 Class AA semifinals at Mike Mussina Court. The two-time defending champions earned both a spot against Southern Columbia in the final, as well as a third consecutive state tournament appearance while exacting revenge following last week’s Mid-Penn championship loss against Northwest.

“I saw eight seconds on the clock and was thinking, ‘I don’t want to shoot foul shots and go back on defense, so I said I’m just going to run around,'” McCormick said. “I saw the fans and it was just awesome. It was such a great feeling.”

This group has created a lot of wonderful feelings the past three seasons and all five starters helped Muncy repeat as champions a year ago. Saturday, all five playing as one helped it earn another district final opportunity. The Indians never trailed, built an 11-point halftime lead then thundered back after Northwest pulled within six midway through the third quarter.

The work continues, but Muncy (21-4) added another chapter in what has become quite an ongoing story these past three seasons.

“I joined the party a little late, but it’s been really fun,” said forward Alexis McKeta who joined the team last year after moving from Florida. “I love to play with these girls and am very excited to go back to the district championship.”

“The kids worked hard. They wanted to get back,” Muncy coach Craig Weaver Sr. said. “I can’t say enough about this group.”

Every player did her part with Zalonis brilliantly running the offense and adding four assists. McKeta was outstanding on the boards in the fourth quarter, Anna Zalonis hit two key 3-pointers and Ava Eyer played a massive role in helping erase Northwest’s inside game.

Muncy was less than a second from gutting out a win a week earlier, leading until the final second against Northwest despite being ravaged by illness throughout the week. A healthier team was a more dangerous team this time around, especially defensively. It was a repeat of last year when Muncy stormed back a week after Northwest beat it in the Mid-Penn final to thump it in the district semifinals.

It was not that Muncy did not play good defense last week, but it seemed a half step slower than usual. That explosiveness was back Saturday and Muncy limited Northwest to just two 3-pointers a week after it had had drilled seven. And that second 3-pointer did not come until midway through the fourth quarter.

Muncy held Northwest without a second quarter field goal and a 10-2 run there had it leading by 11. After Northwest scored eight straight third quarter points, the defense stiffened again and only a late fourth quarter Ali Miner flurry prevented Muncy from holding an opponent to fewer than 30 points for an 18th time.

“It’s a lot easier to play the game of basketball when you’re healthy. We’re still not totally healthy but we’re healthy enough to play like we did today,” Weaver said. “I told the girls (Friday) that I think tomorrow is going to be different because in practice the spunk; the quickness was there. We looked like ourselves during the season rather than that week when we were sick.”

That was especially true in the second and fourth quarters when Muncy forced 11 turnovers. Clean 3-point shots were rare and Muncy did a much better job this time limiting Northwest’s forays into the lane, especially excelling against Mid-Penn MVP Ashlyn Hermanofski.

“We came into this and said we really want this. This is everything we’ve been striving for all year,” McCormick said. “Coach went over our help-side which definitely helped a lot because they weren’t able to drive as much and get those easy baskets.”

McCormick didn’t get easy baskets Saturday, but she made it look that way at times with her skilled marksmanship. The senior guard has always been a relentless defender but has come lights years offensively this season and continues hitting big shots in key moments.

A defensive catalyst, McCormick drove the offense throughout the first half, scoring eight of her 11 points. Her third 3-pointer then gave Muncy its biggest lead, 21-7 early in the third quarter.

“I just feel more confidence. I didn’t have confidence in myself, and coach told me to shoot it when it’s there and that helped,” McCormick said. “It feels really good. It sets the tone for the game. It sparks the defense as well.”

“It definitely brings our attitudes up,” McKeta said. “It helps us get into the game and it gives us energy.”

Energy was not lacking but for a spurt communication was. Players pointed to a downturn in talking when Northwest scored eight straight points and quickly trimmed that 14-point advantage to six. A week earlier, the Rangers stormed back from eight down in the third quarter to win.

Muncy would not let history repeat itself. The talking started again and so did the ferocious defending. The Indians allowed just five field goals over the final 12 minutes and Anna Zalonis’s timely 3-pointer stopped the Northwest burst.

Rosie Zalonis then made a steal and went coast-to-coast for a buzzer-beating layup as Muncy moved ahead, 26-17 entering the fourth quarter.

“We’ve been working on talking. We were doing really well talking and then we got away from it and then we went back up with it,” McKeta said. “That’s a big emphasis that coach has for us and we didn’t do it toward the end of the third quarter, but we picked it up in the fourth quarter.”

Northwest had one more good run in it and closed within 31-26 on an Ali Miner 3-pointer. Rosie Zalonis, however, answered with two clutch free throws before drilling a 3-pointer and putting Muncy up 10. McKeta controlled the boards in those last four minutes as well, grabbing three straight rebounds on one-and-done Northwest possessions.

Earlier in the fourth quarter, Rosie Zalonis and McKeta teamed up with Zalonis finding McKeta for a 3-point play which made it, 29-19. It was that way throughout the game. Pick a moment and every Muncy player can point to it and see how she made a big impact there.

Championship opportunities are hard to come by. Muncy, though, has never shied away from paying the price. And that dedication has it playing for gold again come next week.

“They’re a joy to go to the gym with,” Weaver said. “They don’t know how to quit.”

NORTHWEST (31)

Ali Miner 5 1-1 12, Ava Ruckle 2 2-2 7, Natalia Ninotti 1 0-0 2, Ashlyn Hermanofski 1 6-6 8, Arheya Williams 1 0-0 2, Hartley Crawford 0 0-0 0, Callie Moyer 0 0-0 0. Totals 10 9-9 31.

MUNCY (40)

Ava Eyer 0 2-4 2, Rosie Zalonis 4 6-8 16, Emma McCormick 4 0-0 11, Anna Zalonis 2 0-0 6, Alexis McKeta 2 1-3 5. Totals 12 9-15 40.

Northwest 5 2 10 14–31

Muncy 8 10 8 14–40

3-pointers: Northwest 2 (Miner, Ruckle); Muncy 7 (McCormick 3, R. Zalonis 2, A. Zalonis 2).

Records: Muncy 21-4. Northwest 19-6.