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Cusat sworn in as Hazleton mayor, city watchdog Cuozzo replaces him on the council

WILKES-BARRE &#8212; As if Holy Redeemer&#8217;s endlessly-long league winning streak wasn&#8217;t enough of a deterrent, the Nanticoke Area Trojans kept getting tripped by other obstacles to open the 2015-16 Wyoming Valley Conference girls basketball season.They lost the glue of their team to foul trouble with just under three minutes left. They watched a game they were leading comfortably get nail-biting tight in an instant. They had what looked to be a pivotal basket waved off and a trio of free throws bounce out of the basket.In the end, they overcame it all.Kayla Aufiero scored 12 points Monday and smoothly shut off the alarms, Roberts scored 11 points and won a battle of big girls inside and Nanticoke Area relied on its relentless defense to stun Holy Redeemer, 41-36 to start conference play at Holy Redeemer High School.&#8220;Our main goal this year was just to beat Redeemer,&#8221; Aufiero said, &#8220;and have a better record then we did last year.&#8221;The first part was accomplished right from the start.Nanticoke Area&#8217;s victory snapped a string of 37 consecutive Wyoming Valley Conference victories for Holy Redeemer - dating back to Jan. 7, 2013. That loss also came at the hands of Nanticoke Area, 45-35, in the second league game of the 2012-13 season - which was Alexis Lewis&#8217; sophomore year.But Lewis - now playing as a freshman for Iona - isn&#8217;t around anymore, and the Trojans rallied around their unbreakable resolve to stop a Redeemer team that returns four seniors from a two-time PIAA semifinalist and was ranked as high as the No. 4 Class 2A team in the state by some polls.&#8220;We got out-played, out-hustled, mentally, physically, in every aspect of the game,&#8221; Holy Redeemer coach Chris Parker said. &#8220;Nanticoke out-played us. We got beat by a better basketball team.&#8220;It hurts.&#8221;The Trojans defense did the most hurting.With Roberts and help clamping down on Redeemer&#8217;s 6-foot center Rebecca Prociak - who led the Royals with nine points - Nanticoke Area forged a 19-16 lead by halftime and built it to 30-19 when Roberts sank two foul shots midway through the third quarter.&#8220;The defensive end, I think, won the game for us,&#8221; Nanticoke Area coach Alan Yendrzeiwski said. &#8220;I thought we had a nice plan coming into the game on how we wanted to defend their bigs and their shooters. The girls couldn&#8217;t have executed it any better.&#8220;Give a ton of credit to our defense.&#8221;Give just as much to Aufiero, who sparked the scoring.After a sluggish first quarter that saw both teams score just two baskets apiece, Holy Redeemer started to pull away with a five-point lead in the opening minutes of the second.But Aufiero hit a tough layup on the right from straight under the basket, then drilled a 3-point field goal. She scored her first seven points in the second quarter, Roberts added six in the first half, and Nanticoke Area held a 19-16 lead by intermission.&#8220;Once I hit that layup, the shots started coming,&#8221; Aufiero said.They came even faster for the Trojans in the third quarter, as Amber Grohowski and Aufiero hit 3-pointers before two free throws from Roberts gave Nanticoke Area a 30-19 lead.But Lydia Lawson led a charge of 10 consecutive points for the Royals to end the quarter, and Nanticoke Area went into the final eight minutes clinging to a one-point lead.That taught the Trojans a valuable lesson.&#8220;Just to not panic, be strong with the ball,&#8221; Aufiero said.Nanticoke Area had every reason to go a little nuts when Roberts was hit with a charging foul that not only erased her layup, but took her from the game with her fifth foul with 2:48 to play. But the Trojans not only held onto their three-point lead, they built on it - hitting nine foul shots down the stretch despite watching three more attempts roll out.&#8220;We needed this,&#8221; Yendrzeiwski said. &#8220;We needed to do this. We needed to show we could do this in a big game like this.&#8221;Meanwhile, the Royals believe they need to go back to the drawing board.&#8220;We&#8217;re going to make some changes, flip things around a little,&#8221; Parker said, &#8220;and give some other kids some opportunities. We&#8217;re not that good of a basketball team that we can just show up and beat teams. We have two losses already in seven games. That&#8217;s unfamiliar territory for us.&#8220;I&#8217;m very concerned.&#8221;Dallas 59, Hazleton Area 56Maddie Kelly was 5 for 7 from the free-throw line and hit 10 field goals to fuel the Mountaineers&#8217; season-opening upset of the defending WVC Division 1 champion Cougars.Dallas built a 35-22 halftime lead, but lost it when Hazleton Area stormed out of halftime and rattled off 25 points in the third quarter to grab a 47-44 advantage with eight minutes remaining.But the Mountaineers recovered down the stretch - serving notice from the start they intend to be a serious division contender this season.Four players hit double digits for Hazelton Area, with Mackenzie Yori&#8217;s 15 leading the way. Maddie Morochko followed with 13, Ashley Martincek had 12 and Kendra Pfeil finished with 10 for the Cougars.Wyoming Seminary 61, MMI Prep 19Wyoming Seminary held MMI Prep to just three points in the first half and cruised past the Preppers. Maya Kornfeld hit 10 baskets and collected 21 points on the night, while Paige Allen added 12 more for the Blue Knights.Maddie Perchak topped MMI Prep with eight points.Wyoming Valley West 55, Berwick 29Gabbie Smicherko hit four 3-pointers and scored 27 points to lead the Spartans. Jordan Reilly also pitched in with nine points in the victory.Taylor Montana hit seven field goals and one free throw to tally 15 for the Bulldogs.Crestwood 58, Coughlin 20Both Maddie Ritsick and Kate Snipas had 14 points each as they combined to help lead Crestwood past Coughlin. Snipas hit four three-pointers while Abby Macko hit a 3-pinter as well, adding 11 points to the Comets&#8217; total.The Crusaders were led by Claire Curtis, who tallied 11 points during the game.Pittston Area 44, Tunkhannock 33Marley O&#8217;Brien and Taryn Ashby both scored 15 points as they combined for more than half of Pittston Area&#8217;s total points in the Patriot&#8217;s defeat of Tunkhannock.Northwest 57, Meyers 47Northwest was led by Brenna Babcock&#8217;s 24 points, which included a trio of 3-pointers, as the Rangers topped Meyers.Meyers saw both Erin Morris (10 points) and Giana Skaff (11 points) tally double figures.Nanticoke Area 41, Holy Redeemer 36NANTICOKE AREA (41) &#8212; Kayla Aufiero 3 4-6 12, Amber Grohowski 2 3-3 9, Chaquanna Zendarski 1 3-4 5, Gianna Roberts 4 3-5 11, Katie Butczynski 0 2-3 2, Alexis Pyzia 1 0-0 2, Miranda Dunn 0 0-0 0. Totals 11 15-21 41.HOLY REDEEMER (36) &#8212; Sara Flannelly 0 0-0 0, Lydia Lawson 3 0-0 6, Kayla Hons 1 0-0 3, Meghan Corridoni 2 2-4 6, Rebecca Prociak 3 3-4 9, Sam Rajza 3 0-0 7, Talia Kosierowski 2 1-3 5. Totals 14 6-11 36.Nanticoke Area`5`14`11`11`&#8212;`41Holy Redeemer`6`10`13`7`&#8212;`36Three-point goals &#8212; NAN 4 (Grohowski 2, Aufiero 2); HR 2 (Rajza, Hons).Dallas 59, Hazleton Area 56HAZ (56) &#8212; Kendra Pfeil 3 4-4 10, Ally Yale 0 0-0 0, Mackenzie Yori 7 0-0 15, Maddie Morochko 6 1-2 13, Rachel Wech 0 0-0 0, Erika Book 0 0-0 0, Alyssa Shamany 3 0-0 6, Ashley Martincek 6 0-0 12. Totals 25 5-6 56.DAL (59) &#8212; Maddie Kelley 10 5-7 29, Courtney Hoats 1 0-2 2, Hanna Johnson 0 1-2 1, Sara Lojewski 4 2-3 11, Olivia Johnson 0 0-0 0, Kendra Saba 1 3-4 5, Nikki Wren 5 1-6 11. Totals 21 12-24 59.Hazleton Area`14`8`25`9`&#8212;`56Dallas`15`20`9`15`&#8212;`59Three-point goals &#8212; HAZ 4 (Yori 1, Morochko 3); DAL 2 (Kelley 1, Lojewski 1).Wyoming Seminary 61, MMI Prep 19WS (61) &#8212; Therese Young 0 0-0 0, MT Lehman 1 0-0 2, Annemaaike Reitsma 3 0-1 6, Maya Kornfeld 10 1-1 21, Christina Kilyanek 1 0-0 2, Julia Gabriel 1 0-0 2, Cobie Wise 0 0-0 0, Brenna Satkowski 3 0-0 6, Alex Nguyen 0 0-0 0, Sophia Adeghe 0 0-0 0, Mia Raineri 0 0-2 0, Olivia Meuser 1 0-0 2, Miranda Pace 4 0-0 8, Julia Iskra 0 0-0 0, Paige Allen 6 0-0 12. Totals 30 1-4 61.MMI (19) &#8212; Kryslyn Postupack 3 0-0 6, Maddie Perchak 4 0-0 8, Jessie McClellan 0 0-0 0, Bailey Slusser 1 2-2 4, Jessica Smith 0 0-0 0, Emily Mundorf 0 0-0 0, Maddie Fryfoos 0 1-4 1. Totals 8 3-6 19.Wyoming Seminary`18`14`19`10`&#8212;`61MMI Prep`0`3`12`4`&#8212;`19Three-point goals &#8212; WS 0; MMI 0.Wyoming Valley West 55, Berwick 29BER (29) &#8212; Reese Mensinger 1 0-0 3, Tori Talanca 1 2-2 4, Taylor Montana 7 1-4 15, Karen Boone 0 0-0 0, Mikayla Davis 1 1-2 3, Payden Montana 1 0-0 2, Hannah Woodeshick 1 0-0 2. Totals 12 4-8 29.WVW (55) &#8212; Erin Gibbons 2 0-0 5, Natalie Frover 1 0-2 2, Amanda Scarcella 1 0-0 2, Kiersten Wiedwald 1 0-0 2, Gabbie Smicherko 10 3-6 27, Colleen Cwalina 3 0-0 6, Grace Giza 1 0-0 2, Jordan Reilly 3 3-4 9. Totals 22 6-12 55.Berwick`6`5`7`11`&#8212;`29Home`16`16`9`14`&#8212;`55Three-point goals &#8212; BER 1 (Mensinger 1); WVW 5 (Gibbons 1, Smicherko 4).Crestwood 58, Coughlin 20CGH (20) &#8212; Emily Cicon 0 0-0 0, Savanah Robinson 2 2-6 6, Claire Curtis 5 1-3 11, Victoria Phillips 0 0-0 0, Niasha Sherry 1 0-0 3, Kira Meager 0 0-0 0. Totals 8 3-9 20.CRES (58) &#8212; Riley Magin 1 0-0 2, Marlee Dillion 0 1-2 1, Sarah Hopkins 1 1-3 3, Kate Snipas 5 0-0 14, Abby Macko 5 0-0 11, Emily Shiplett 0 0-2 0, Julia Makowksi 4 2-3 10, Ally Muse 1 0-0 2, Abby Murphy 0 1-2 1, Maddie Ritsick 4 6-9 14. Totals 21 11-20 58.Coughlin`3`4`8`5`&#8212;`20Crestwood`20`16`14`8`&#8212;`58Three-point goals &#8212; CGH 3 (Sherry 3); CRES 5 (Snipas 4, Macko 1).Pittston Area 44, Tunkhannock 33TUNK (33) &#8212; Sydney Faux 3 0-0 7, Kelly Barber 0 0-0 0, Julie Frisco 1 0-0 2, Megan Manglaviti 2 0-0 4, Amanda Hardy 4 0-0 8, Christine Rossi 2 5-8 10, Sam Generotti 0 0-0 0, Izzy Robinson 1 0-0 2. Totals 13 5-8 33.PIT (44) &#8212; Kirsten Durling 2 2-4 6, Jamie Chisdock 1 2-4 4, Megan Cummings 1 2-2 4, Rachel Ferrance 0 0-0 0, Alexa Noone 0 0-0 0, Marley O&#8217;Brien 6 3-7 15, Taryn Ashby 4 5-6 15. Totals 14 14-23 44.Tunkhannock`4`14`7`8`&#8212;`33Pittston Area`5`14`13`12`&#8212;`44Three-point goals &#8212; TUNK 2 (Faux 1, Rossi 1); PIT 2 (Ashby 2).Northwest 57, Meyers 47MEY (47) &#8212; Erin Morris 3 3-8 10, Amanda Gray 0 2-4 2, Tiffany Muniz 3 1-2 8, Bella Skaff 2 2-2 6, Alaena Lloyd 2 3-4 8, Devon Keiper 1 0-0 2, Gianna Skaff 4 0-0 11. Totals 15 11-20 47.NW (57) &#8212; Brooke Mendegro 0 0-0 0, Cassidy Foley 0 0-0 0, Trista Babcock 2 5-8 9, Brenna Babcock 7 7-8 24, Liz Gurzynski 1 2-6 5, Jill Kondrosky 3 2-2 8, Danielle Bowman 1 0-0 2, Hannah Wisniewski 3 3-6 9. Totals 17 19-30 57.Meyers`6`11`10`20`&#8212;`47Northwest`10`21`12`14`&#8212;`57Three-point goals &#8212; MEY 6 (Morris 1, Muniz 1, Lloyd 1, G. Skaff 3); NW 4 (B. Babcock 3, Gurzynski 1).<style>
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<div class="neCaption">Nanticoke Area&#8217;s Kayla Aufiero, left, and Holy Redeemer&#8217;s Talia Kosierowski go after a rebound during their season-opening WVC game at Holy Redeemer High School on Monday night. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/web1_GirlsBasketball1.jpg</photo0><caption0>Nanticoke Area&#8217;s Kayla Aufiero, left, and Holy Redeemer&#8217;s Talia Kosierowski go after a rebound during their season-opening WVC game at Holy Redeemer High School on Monday night. </caption0><photoCredit0>Sean McKeag | Times Leader </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/web1_GirlsBasketball2.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Lydia Lawson, of Holy Redeemer, makes a pass during the game against Nanticoke Area on Monday night. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/web1_GirlsBasketball2.jpg</photo1><caption1>Lydia Lawson, of Holy Redeemer, makes a pass during the game against Nanticoke Area on Monday night. </caption1><photoCredit1>Sean McKeag | Times Leader </photoCredit1></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/web1_GirlsBasketball3.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Meghan Corridoni (right), tries to block a pass from Chaquanna Zendarski (33) of Nanticok Area during the game on Monday night. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo2>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/web1_GirlsBasketball3.jpg</photo2><caption2>Meghan Corridoni (right), tries to block a pass from Chaquanna Zendarski (33) of Nanticok Area during the game on Monday night. </caption2><photoCredit2>Sean McKeag | Times Leader </photoCredit2></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><subheadMeta>Nanticoke hands Redeemer its 1st WVC loss in nearly 3 years</subheadMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta>By Paul Sokoloskipsokoloski@www.timesleader.com</bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta>Reach Paul Sokoloski at 570-991-6392 or on Twitter @TLPaulSokoloski</shirttailMeta></div>

Kayla Aufiero and Gianna Roberts spark Nanticoke Area’s opening-day girls basketball upset of Holy Redeemer