KINGSTON — Wyoming Seminary’s Ella Stambaugh showed Tuesday night why she led the entire Wyoming Valley Conference in scoring this season.
And the Blue Knights showed why they are the top seed in the District 2 Class 2A girls basketball tournament.
Stambaugh scored a career high 40 points as Seminary overwhelmed eighth-seeded Lackawanna Trail early on the way to a 57-14 quarterfinal win.
“Over winter break when I had those two weeks off from school to work out, I was putting up probably 500 shots a day trying to get my shot consistent,” said Stambaugh, a 6-foot-2 junior, “because I was working towards this. It’s been a goal to make it to the arena (for the title game) since I was a little girl, so it was very important.”
Stambaugh had 16 points in the first quarter as Seminary (16-6) created 14 turnovers. She had 34 at halftime as the Blue Knights took a 47-8 lead into the locker room. Having achieved the 30-point mercy rule, the second half was played with a running clock except for a couple stoppages.
Now comes a more difficult — and rewarding task — on Friday at home when Seminary faces fourth-seeded Elk Lake (15-8). A victory would send the Blue Knights to the championship game at Mohegan Arena while also clinching a PIAA state playoff berth for the first time since 1999.
Seminary lost to eventual district champion Mountain View in overtime in the semifinal last season, but were without Ellie Kersey. Kersey, the second option on offense and a primary ballhandler, missed that game with a fractured wrist.
“It’s going to mean so much,” Stambaugh said. “We’re going to come out with so much energy. Last year, we didn’t have Ellie and I think that would have made a big difference in the game. All of us being healthy, I think we have a really good chance of getting to the arena this year.”
Trail (3-20) was in trouble early as Seminary’s press created an avalanche of turnovers. A 3-pointer by Kersey off a turnover put the Blue Knights ahead 11-2 less than two minutes in. Trail’s final turnover of the quarter led to a basket by Kaeleen Dougherty and a 25-4 lead.
Stambaugh had 18 more points in the second quarter and Trail had 12 more turnovers, resulting in the 39-point advantage at halftime.
“Not having played in 12 days, I though we had a great stretch of practices,” Seminary coach CJ Kersey said. “The girls continued to work hard. They had great attitudes and sometimes we a long break you don’t have that.”
District 2 Class 2A Quarterfinals
Wyoming Seminary 57, Lackawanna Trail 14
LACKAWANNA TRAIL (14) — Averie Higgins 1 1-2 3, London Lisk 3 2-3 8, Corys Williams 0 0-2 0, Kaitlyn Gerrity 0 0-0 0, Maddy Forrer 0 0-0 0, Kacie Antolick 1 0-0 3, Temple Shaw 0 0-0 0, Molly Gilroy 0 0-0 0, Alana Edwards 0 0-0 0, Sara Drake 0 0-0 0, Esme Otto 0 0-0 0, Elizabeth Harvey 0 0-0 0, Sophia Miller 0 0-0 0. Totals 5 3-7 14.
WYOMING SEMINARY (57) — Stella Ruiz 0 0-0 0, Natalina DeNaples 0 0-0 0, Ella Stambaugh 16 5-6 40, Ellie Kersey 2 2-2 8, Maya Gross 0 2-2 2, Liv Evans 0 0-0 0, Kaeleen Dougherty 3 1-6 7, Sydney Pane 0 0-0 0, Rhea Mascarenhas 0 0-0 0, Kathryn Eidam 0 0-0 0, Julia Williams 0 0-0 0. Totals 21 10-16 57.
Lackwannna Trail`4`4`3`3 — 14
Wyoming Seminary`25`22`8`2 — 57
Three-point goals LT 1 (Antolick). WS 5 (Stambaugh 3, Kersey 2).
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