RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Warrior Run's James Keifer (3) brings the ball into the paint around during a high school boys basketball game at Montoursville on Monday.

A year before they reached high school, the Warrior Run current seniors watched the varsity high school team win one game.

Tonight, those seniors take the floor as District 4 Class AAA champions, playing in the state tournament’s second round for a second straight year. What a climb it has been.

As far as they’ve come, the Defenders are hoping to continue ascending and play Audenreid for a spot in the state quarterfinals. Whatever happens, the heights reached are pretty remarkable considering where they started.

The thing is, that incoming group did not care what happened the previous season when they arrived. They only cared about blazing their own trail. An 11-win improvement that first season, as well as a district semifinal appearance was the first step.

The next was taken with a higher win total and return semifinal trip a year later and a huge one came last season. There, Warrior Run reached its first district final since 1999 and won a state tournament game for the first time since that same season.

Warrior Run ended a 37-year district title drought when it rallied past Southern Columbia in the district final 11 nights ago and thumped Dunmore, 72-54 in the state tournament’s opening round last Saturday. From the ashes, they have risen.

“I think it just stresses the hard work that you put in when you’re young to build yourself up to high school,” point guard James Keifer said following a 22-point, eight-assist performance against Dunmore. “It takes so much work, but when you get the results you want, it just makes it so much better. You’re so happy for it.”

That work has relentlessly continued throughout high school and really accelerated last offseason. The Defenders came within seconds of capturing a district championship a year ago and were willing to pay whatever price in terms of labor and sacrifice to make this final ride the most memorable one.

It certainly was not easy and Warrior Run had to overcome a seven-point fourth quarter deficit to defeat Southern, 70-65 in overtime, but it made that long effort worthwhile. And as electrifying as that win was, the team wants more.

They showed it with a super performance against a strong Dunmore team in the first round. Now, as was the case with the district final, Warrior Run has earned a second chance. It gets another crack at the Sweet 16 after West Catholic defeated it there a year ago.

“Back in the summer, we went to a bunch of tournaments and we were getting ready and we were having fun then,” Keifer said. “We’re having fun now and we’re just one big family.”

It sure appears that way with Warrior Run playing selfless basketball and every player making a key impact. Five scored in double figures Saturday and seniors Keifer, Ethan Balzer, Aiden McKee and Landon Polcyn all average in double figures.

But the team’s chemistry shows up in ways the stats cannot measure. That bond; that trust has really shined through in the toughest situations. The district championship was the best example, but Warrior Run also defeated Southern twice in overtime this season.

It won at Southern with Polcyn sidelined and at Loyalsock with two starters out. Warrior Run also rallied from an eight-point late third quarter deficit last December, defeating District 4 AAAA champion Lewisburg, 59-56. When Warrior Run lost its first game, to 4A second round qualifier Carver Engineering and Sciences, it erased a 12-point fourth quarter deficit and forced overtime.

“It’s a group that always sticks together,” Warrior Run coach Eric Wertman said. “That was our biggest issue last year. This year they’re so close and play so well together.”

“It’s so fun to play with this group of guys,” Keifer said. “I’m going to miss them for sure.”

The goal now is to stay together as long as possible. That Warrior Run would be in this position four years ago seemed far-fetched. These seniors and the three classes which preceded them turned it into reality.

Warrior Run captured its second straight HAC-III championship earlier this season, going undefeated there. That speaks volumes, too, since the three other district semifinalists were league rivals.

Whoever the opponent is, it does not matter. Sure, Warrior Run scouts and prepares. But at the end of the day it’s about the team doing its collective job and controlling what it can control.

“We just play,” junior guard Clayton Skokoski said following the Dunmore win. “No matter who is in front us, we always feel like we have a chance to win. We just have to prepare for it and work hard.”

That is a big part of the foundation this four-year run has been built upon. Each of the past four seasons, a new layer has been put down. A team that started at the bottom reached the District 4 summit and now has its sights set even higher.

“They all bought in from the time they were freshmen till now,” Wertman said. “It’s so cool to see the progress and growth. We have the right pieces to make some noise and we’re hoping we can keep going.”

However, this ride ends, it certainly has brought Warrior Run a long way. Winning is fun, but even more so when one comes so far, so fast.

The book continues being written. Warrior Run has made it a page turner thus far and hopes the last chapter becomes the most exciting.

“Going from 1-21 to 25-2 and a district championship and a first-round state playoff win is surreal,” Keifer said. “You have to love it.”