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Kayla Aufiero helps Nanticoke Area shoot into District 2 Class 3A semifinals

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<p>These girls basketball playoffs are sure getting testy.</p><p>Two days after an altercation during one game, another ended with two coaching staffs involved in a heated argument.</p><p>And now, the PIAA District 2 committee wants to find out why tempers boiled over during its girls postseason.</p><p>The district will launch an investigation into a postgame encounter between members of the Carbondale Area coaching staff led by head coach Will Reckless and Holy Redeemer coach Chris Parker following Redeemer&#8217;s 49-37 victory Thursday in a Class 2A quarterfinal game at Wyoming Area High School.</p><p>&#8220;We are looking into it,&#8221; District 2 chairman Frank Majikes said, &#8220;investigating it with the school administrators before we determine how to proceed.&#8221;</p><p>Parker said he was pushed during the incident, but resisted any urge he may have had to retaliate.</p><p>&#8220;I wasn&#8217;t in an argument,&#8221; Parker said. &#8220;There was no argument. It was their coaches who were upset. The entire game, their coaches were acting inappropriate. Why I was confronted, I don&#8217;t know. I wasn&#8217;t involved in a confrontation at all. I handled myself in a very professional manner. It was obvious to everyone who was at the game.&#8221;</p><p>Parker said he wasn&#8217;t sure what drew the ire of the Carbondale coaches, who were quickly escorted away by security staff at Wyoming Area.</p><p>&#8220;I was actually shaking the one coach&#8217;s hand during the incident,&#8221; Parker said. &#8220;Their assistant coach pushed me and I didn&#8217;t even respond. Anyone who says I was in a confrontation is wrong. There was no confrontation on my part. All of the security got right in the middle quick. I was shocked. Their coaches were escorted out of the gym by the sheriffs. I wasn&#8217;t escorted out. It was my job to make sure my girls got back to the locker room safely and that&#8217;s what I did.</p><p>&#8220;I didn&#8217;t do anything wrong.&#8221;</p><p>Reckless apologized for the actions of his staff.</p><p>&#8220;I believe we lead by example. Looking back at the situation, I feel badly about the example that was set,&#8221; Reckless said. &#8220;The particulars of what happened, the things that were said that caused us to react that way I can&#8217;t talk about because there&#8217;s an ongoing investigation. The particulars will come out (at the end of the investigation) and people will understand why we reacted the way we did when they get the facts.&#8221;</p><p>Reckless alluded to an aggressive nature of the game, which may have triggered an irate reaction from the Carbondale coaching staff.</p><p>&#8220;It got a little rough (Thursday) night,&#8221; Reckless said. &#8220;They (the Royals) played physical the entire game.&#8221;</p><p>The top-seeded Royals (20-3) advanced to face Mid Valley in Monday&#8217;s district semifinal round, but needed a gallant fourth-quarter rally to do it. Redeemer trailed ninth-seeded Carbondale by two points at halftime and the game was tied entering the final eight minutes.</p><p>&#8220;My girls played their hearts out,&#8221; Reckless said. &#8220;I can&#8217;t take anything away from the way our girls played. I&#8217;m extremely proud of them. It can&#8217;t be forgotten, how they played. And their sportsmanship was showing by how they played.&#8221;</p><p>Parker agreed, complimenting the Chargers on their effort against his top-seeded team.</p><p>&#8220;I thought it was a great game and it was played hard,&#8221; Parker said. &#8220;I congratulated their kids on how well they played.&#8221;</p><p>Whatever punishment, if any, District 2 determines the situation may warrant won&#8217;t be handed down until the conclusion of the District 2 girls and boys basketball championships next weekend.</p><p>&#8220;Not during the playoffs,&#8221; Majikes said. &#8220;It won&#8217;t be until after districts. These investigations take time.&#8221;</p><p>The coaching standoff followed a District 2 Class 4A quarterfinal battle between Scranton and Wyoming Valley West that was marred when Scranton&#8217;s Georgia Miller connected with a punch to the face of Valley West&#8217;s Colleen Cwalina at Holy Redeemer High School on Tuesday. Cwalina took an errant swing back and both players were given double technical fouls and ejected from the game.</p><p>While the district committee has no plans to further punish those players involved, the sudden swing of anger that led to two incidents in the same district playoff week has Majikes concerned.</p><p>&#8220;I have to admit, it seems to be getting worse instead of better,&#8221; Majikes said. &#8220;Sportsmanship needs to be looked at as the duty of school officials. We teach sportsmanship, and this is not the the proper way of displaying that to young people.&#8221;</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Holy Redeemer girls basketball coach Chris Parker and members of the Carbondale Area coaching staff exchanged words Thursday following a District 2 Class 2A quarterfinal game, triggering an investigation into the incident by the District 2 committee. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/web1_hrneumann08-1.jpg</photo0><caption0>Holy Redeemer girls basketball coach Chris Parker and members of the Carbondale Area coaching staff exchanged words Thursday following a District 2 Class 2A quarterfinal game, triggering an investigation into the incident by the District 2 committee. </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Paul Sokoloski</p><p>psokoloski@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Paul Sokoloski at 570-991-6392 or on Twitter @TLPaulSokoloski</p></shirttailMeta></div>

District 2 opens investigation of incident between Holy Redeemer and Carbondale girls basketball coaches