Altoona, Hollidaysburg add more titles to their resumes

WINGATE — The Altoona Lady Lions captured their third consecutive District 6 Class 6A girls basketball championship Friday night.

Standout forward Brionna Hudson, a freshman, wasn’t on the Altoona roster for the program’s previous two titles, but she certainly played a monumental role in Altoona’s latest championship.

Hudson scored a game-high 22 points and grabbed a game-high eight rebounds as Altoona made it a trifecta for district gold medals by staving off State College, 41-37, at the Bald Eagle Area High School gymnasium.

It was a night of special milestones for Altoona, which improved its season record to 23-2 by reeling off its 20th straight victory, while earning Chris Fleegle his 100th career victory in his tenure as Altoona’s coach. The Lady Lions also celebrated their 32th District 6 girls championship in program history.

“It doesn’t get old,” Fleegle said of his program’s three-peat in district championships. “This is the enjoyment of all the hard work that we have put in as a group starting last summer and continuing into the fall leading up to the season.

“This is our reward during this part of the season,” Fleegle added.

The game was in the balance late in the fourth quarter, after State College (18-5) put together a 9-3 run capped off by junior guard McKenna Whitehurst’s 3-pointer from the top of the circle to tie the score, 37-37 with 3:05 left.

Hudson, who scored 15 of her 22 points in the second half, then came up with the biggest field goal of the night by sinking a mid-range jumper from the right of the upper key to put Altoona on top to stay, 39-37 with 1:30 left.

“It was nice that my team put it upon me to take that shot, and I was able to get open and knock it down,” Hudson said. “It feels great to win this. We’ve been preparing for this game as a team all season, and it’s great to be out there celebrating this with all of my teammates.”

Altoona was able to preserve its lead when junior Samantha Harpster grabbed a big rebound with 33 seconds remaining and Hudson, who was eventually fouled with 18 seconds left, stepped to the foul line and made both shots to seal the deal.

“She’s unbelievable,” Fleegle said of Hudson. “She has lived up to all of the hype that has surrounded her, and she is an even better kid than she is a basketball player — and that says a lot. She has worked really hard, and she proved that this stage wasn’t too big for her.”

Altoona trailed by as many as seven points, 15-8, early in the second quarter, but got the upper hand in the game with an 11-1 run that began late in the second quarter and extended well into the third.

Senior guard Lanie Wilt drained a 3-ball early in the third to give Altoona a 20-18 lead, before Hudson took over. She came up with a steal and drove down the court for a layup, followed with a jumper from the right side, converted another steal into a layup, and finished off a fast break with another layup to stake Altoona to a 28-19 lead.

“We didn’t win districts my freshman year, but it feels great to get three in a row,” Wilt said. “The underclassmen really came through for us tonight, especially Brionna. We knew at halftime that we just needed to clean a few things up in the second half, and we would be fine. We did, and we were.

“We got some big stops defensively in the third quarter, and our offense flourishes when our defense performs well,” Wilt added.

Sophomore guard Sienna Wilson led State College with 12 points, including three 3-pointers.

“They’re a great team,” State College coach Allie Mock said of Altoona. “But I think we’re a great team as well. In terms of our defensive effort tonight, I think that this is the best that we’ve played all season, and I’m really proud of our players.”

Altoona held a slim 29-25 edge in rebounds over State College, which was led by sophomore guard Sheree Wilson’s seven.

State College converted 15 of 44 field goal attempts for 34.9 percent, while Altoona made 15 of 42 for 35.7 percent.

Altoona will have a two-week respite before hosting the WPIAL runner-up in the first round of the state playoffs on Friday, March 7.

“I love this group of kids,” Fleegle said. “The hardest thing for me, my coaching staff and the players would have been to say that tonight was our last game. I think this group can do something really special in the state playoffs.”

STATE COLLEGE (37): Hawbaker 2 0-0 4, Whitehurst 3 2-4 9, Sheree Wilson 2 0-0 4, Sienna Wilson 4 1-2 12, Tate 1 0-0 2, Roan 1 0-0 2, Risha 2 0-0 4, Mobley 0 0-0 0. Totals -15 3-6 37.

ALTOONA (41): Wilt 3 2-2 9, M. Eyer 1 2-2 4, Nguyen-Moore 2 0-0 4, Hudson 8 5-8 22, Harpster 0 0-0 0, R. Eyer 0 0-0 0, Cogan 1 0-0 2. Totals — 15 9-12 41

SCORE BY QUARTERS

State College 12 6 8 11–37

Altoona 8 9 15 9–41

3-point goals: State College 4 (Sienna Wilson 3, Whitehurst); Altoona 2 (Wilt, Hudson).

Records: Altoona (23-2); State College (18-5).

Officials: Tracy Cornelius, Denny Detwiler, Brad Martz.