BETHLEHEM — Upper Dublin got Hazleton Area into unfamiliar territory late in Friday night’s PIAA Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal.
Once there, Megan Ngo and Tamia Clark put the Cougars in enough uncomfortable positions to carry the Lady Cardinals down the stretch for a 51-42 victory.
Ngo and Clark helped Upper Dublin score the game’s last 12 points while holding Hazleton Area scoreless over the final 3:30.
Hazleton Area trailed most of the game but had the lead from the 5:35 mark of the fourth quarter until Ngo put Upper Dublin ahead with 1:27 left.
“How can you be critical with what we’ve done,” Cougars coach Joe Gavio said. “They gave us everything. They’re feeling bad.”
Hazleton Area’s top players were usually comfortably sitting on the bench watching the end of the latest runaway in a season that produced another Wyoming Valley Conference Division 1 and District 2 Class 6A title.
“We haven’t been in those games where we have to hold the ball,” Gavio said. “We had two or three really bad turnovers.
“ … We did some things that we don’t normally do, but we were not in that position. When you’re not in that position, you don’t know what’s going to happen.”
Ngo handled the ball, solving Hazleton Area’s pressure, and Clark repeatedly hurt the Cougars on the boards.
The go-ahead free throws were part of Ngo going 9-for-10 from the line in the fourth quarter for her only points. Seven of those free throws came in the final 1:51.
Clark had four of the points in the closing run, including delivering the crushing blow when she turned her 10th offensive rebound of the night into a basket for a 49-42 lead with 45 seconds left. She finished with 21 points and 15 rebounds.
Bridget DeMartile added 10 rebounds for Upper Dublin, which won the battle on the boards 47-29. Most importantly, that edge was 15-4 in the fourth quarter.
Alexis Reimold led Hazleton Area with 13 points and nine rebounds. Kaitlyn Bindas added 11 points. Sophia Benyo had nine points, eight rebounds, five assists and five steals.
The Cougars struggled early and were behind 11-3 with a minute left in the first quarter.
“We could have rolled over there,” Gavio said. “They’re a quick team. They’re athletic. They’re good.
“But, I liked the way we came back.”
The Cougars scored the last seven points of the half, the last four by Benyo on free throws, including two with no time on the clock, to cut the deficit to 23-20.
Bindas hit a 3-pointer and followed it up with a basket on the fastbreak for a 29-28 lead with 2:14 left in the third quarter. That score was followed by six more lead changes over the next four minutes.
Upper Dublin, the District 1 champion, advances to Monday’s state semifinals where it will put its 27-2 record on the line against District 12 champion Archbishop Carroll (24-5). Archbishop Carroll defeated Red Lion 57-45.
Hazleton Area (26-3) had its season end in the state quarterfinals for the third time in school history and the second straight year. The two quarterfinal trips come after making it to the second round in 2024.
PIAA Class 6A Quarterfinals
Upper Dublin 51, Hazleton Area 42
UPPER DUBLIN (51) — Bridget DeMartile 3 0-0 8, Tamia Clark 8 5-10 21, Megan Ngo 0 9-10 9, Emilia Coleman 2 5-6 10, Morris 1 0-0 3, Lexi Ngo 0 0-0 0. Totals 14 19-26 51.
HAZLETON AREA (42) — Mariah Martolo 0 1-2 1, Sophia Benyo 1 7-8 9, Kaitlyn Bindas 4 0-0 11, Kayla Lagowy 1 1-2 3, Alexis Reimold 6 0-0 13, Addison Fritz 1 0-0 2, Molly Temchatin 1 1-1 3, Sofia Rodgers 0 0-0 0, Juliana Silva 0 0-0 0. Totals 14 10-13 42.
Upper Dublin`14`9`10`18 — 51
Hazleton Area`8`12`12`10 — 42
Three-point goals – UD 4 (DeMartile 2, Coleman, Morris), HAZ 4 (Bindas 3, Reimold)
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