MILTON — For nearly the entire game, Loyalsock had been chasing Southern Columbia by at least two scores. But late in the fourth quarter following a furious Lancer run, Loyalsock had finally got it down to a one-possession game with three minutes remaining in the game.

And possession after possession, the Lancers had the ball with a chance to take the league. Possession after possession, Loyalsock couldn’t quite to get the big shot to fall as it fell to Southern Columbia, 48-45, in the District 4 Class AAA semifinals at Milton High School on Tuesday.

“I couldn’t be more proud of them. A lot of preparation went into this game. We watched a lot of film,” Loyalsock coach Ryan Cioffi said. “There were a lot of little things we wanted to do, and for the most part, we did them. We were one layup short, one rebound short. It’s a good team and it was a super physical game. I’m proud of what they gave us.”

Loyalsock had plenty of great chances in the final few minutes to take the lead or tie, none bigger than a perfectly-executed play with 15 seconds remaining in the game. The Lancers got the switch they wanted on big man Saoj Jones, and he caught the pass and pivoted towards the middle for an open layup. But it clanged out, and Jones was shoved to the ground on the ensuing rebounds, but the referees did not blow the whistle.

Had they, it would have sent Jones to the line for two shots. The Lancers retained the ball on a jump ball, but would turn it over on the next possession, and did not get the rebound on an ensuing missed foul shot, ending the game.

“We executed perfectly. And sometimes it just doesn’t go. That’s basketball,” Cioffi said. “That’s life. What we tell these kids is the most successful people on this planet bounce back from adversity.”

That’s what Loyalsock did all night. Repeatedly it looked like the game was slipping away from the Lancers. Every time, they punched back with force. The Tigers took a nine-point lead in the early stages of the third quarter. But a surge — led by 3s from Brecken Gusick, Jahlil Coates and Jones — got it back to four heading into the fourth quarter after the Lancers had struggled on offense in the first half with just 21 points.

“They were face guarding Brayden (Cioffi), which we thought would open up the lanes for Jahlil (Coates and Saoj (Jones) as we tried to isolate those two and get them away from where the face guarding was to take the help away,” Cioffi said. “I thought we executed that really well in the second half.”

Defensively, the Lancers saved their best quarter for last, holding Southern Columbia to just seven points to help them get back in the game. Loyalsock could have quit after the Tigers got away with a blatant hold on Jones, who was attempting a defensive rebound, and got a three-pointer out of it to extend the lead to seven midway through the fourth quarter. But, they simply kept coming, falling just one or two plays short.

Loyalsock will take on Mifflinburg in the third-place game with a trip to states on the line at a time and place to be determined.

Southern Columbia 48, Loyalsock 45

LOYALSOCK (45)

Saoj Jones 3 0-0, Ryan Lingg 1 0-0 2, Issac Blackwell 2 0-0 4, Jahlil Coates 6 2-2 15, Brecken Gusick 6 0-0 16, Brayden Cioffi 0 1-2 1 Totals: 18 3-4 45

SOUTHERN COLUMBIA (48)

Nate Gallagher 6 5-7 20, Jake Gehret 1 0-0 2, Ben Gehret 2 1-2 6, Kissinger 1 0-0 2, Braydon Griscavage 2 1-2 7, Jace Malakoski 5 0-0 11

Loyalsock 12 9 14 10 — 45

So. Columbia 14 13 14 7 — 48

3-point goals: Loyalsock: 6 (Gusick 4, Jones 1, Coates 1), Southern 5 (Gallagher 2, Gehret 1, Griscavage 1, Malakosky 1).