web1_TTL041417SolomonCreek2CMYK.jpg

Casey asks Trump for Solomon Creek wall funding

web1_TTL021418WBGH_1.jpg

Wilkes-Barre General debuts $40 million expansion

WRIGHT TWP. &#8212; They say turnabout is fair play.And Julia Makowski, along with her Crestwood teammates, turned Monday into a night to remember.Makowski scored her 1,000th career point among her game-high 25 as the Comets clinched the Wyoming Valley Conference Division 1 girls basketball title with a resounding 51-28 pounding of last year&#8217;s league champion Wyoming Valley West on Senior Night at Crestwood High School.&#8220;Everyone was saying this is the big game,&#8221; Makowski, a senior playing her last regular-season game at Crestwood, said. &#8220;I had in the back of my head, &#8216;This is the big game for me, too.&#8220;It feels nice.&#8221;Makowski, who entered the night needing 14 points for her milestone, hit the mark on the first basket of the second half &#8212; a layup that boosted Crestwood&#8217;s lead to 10 points.&#8220;It&#8217;s awesome,&#8221; said Comets senior point guard Sara Hopkins, who finished with 16 points. &#8220;Really exciting to get this win, especially on Senior Night and Julia getting 1,000 points.&#8220;Good night for us.&#8221;It got even better for Crestwood a few minutes later, when Pittston Area upended Hazleton Area 58-45.That secured the first league championship for the Comets (11-4) since the 2013-14 season, as Hazleton Area fell to 9-6 with entering Wednesday&#8217;s regular-season finales.&#8220;Oh, it was huge,&#8221; Crestwood coach Ed Stepanski said. &#8220;We could have been in a playoff situation with Hazleton. It&#8217;s good for the program, good for the girls. I&#8217;m really proud of them.&#8221;Crestwood&#8217;s victory also eliminated defending Division 1 champion Valley West, which dropped to 8-7, from taking hopes of a title repeat into the last day of the season.Which wasn&#8217;t lost on the Comets.&#8220;It was really nice,&#8221; Hopkins smiled. &#8220;Last year, when we played at their place, it was their Senior Night. And that&#8217;s when they clinched the conference.&#8220;It&#8217;s really exciting, really a fun night.&#8221;Hopkins helped get the party started quickly.With Valley West&#8217;s trapping and zone defenses clamping down on Makowski, Hopkins popped free for eight points in the first quarter and 10 in the first half. She gave the Comets a pair of seven-point leads, with her second 3-point field goal late in the first quarter and again on a layup early in the second.&#8220;There were a lot of openings on the perimeter and in the zone,&#8221; Hopkins said. &#8220;I tried to attack them as much as I could.&#8221;Then Makowski took over.She scored six points to lead Crestwood into a double-digit lead during the second quarter and finished with 12 in the first half, inching closer and closer to her 1,000-point plateau.&#8220;I don&#8217;t think we were too worried about it,&#8221; Hopkins said. &#8220;We knew she was going to get it eventually.&#8221;It came on one of Makowski&#8217;s patented moves, a hard drive to the basket and a strong finish for the deuce.&#8220;A lot of people were definitely reminding me about it,&#8221; Makowski said of her pre-game day. &#8220;I tried not to think about it. It was huge in this game. We needed this game.&#8220;It all worked out in the end.&#8221;Makowski was only beginning to give the Spartans a workout.After a pair of 3-pointers from Toni Amato pulled Valley West within eight points at intermission, Makowski scored eight points in the third quarter as the Comets charged into the fourth with a 41-25 lead. Then Makowski finished up with five points, putting an exclamation point on an electric night for her and fellow seniors Hopkins and Andrea Shipton.&#8220;It&#8217;s our chemistry and the way we really fight,&#8221; Makowski said. &#8220;It&#8217;s a good group of girls.&#8221;They banded together on defense to hold a dangerous Valley West offense to just two baskets &#8212; a pair of 3-pointers &#8212; and seven total points during the second half.&#8220;I think our defense is really coming together,&#8221; Stepanski said. &#8220;Tonight, they showed it. We are not an offensive powerhouse that&#8217;s going to blow people out of the gym. We just don&#8217;t have that kind of weapons. But if we do it on defense, I think we can compete with anybody in District 2.&#8220;I think we&#8217;re peaking at the right time.&#8221; Just in time to allow a group of excited seniors to celebrate a league title.&#8220;Me, Julia, Andrea have been playing together for close to 10 years,&#8221; Hopkins said. &#8220;It&#8217;s really awesome.&#8221;Hanover Area 61, MMI Prep 23Hanover Area&#8217;s Victoria Benning and Genisis Rodriquez combined for 24 points.Irene Altmiller led all Prepper scorers with seven points.Dallas 64, Coughlin 26Samantha Kern led the Mountaineers with 16 points.Ajalaya Butts paced Coughlin with seven points.Berwick 48, Lake-Lehman 35Renny Murphy scored 14 points for Berwick.Sarah Salus had 12 points for the Black Knights.Northwest 41, Meyers 39Northwest&#8217;s Brenna Babcock and Reagan Harrison combined for 24 points.Allycia Harris scored 11 points for Meyers.Nanticoke 67, Tunkhannock 47Amiah Lukowski led the Trojanettes with 19 points.Abby Ritz scored 19 points for TunkhannockPittston Area 58, Hazleton Area 45Alexa Noone hit six 3-pointers, scoring 24 points for Pittston Area.Virginia Yurchak had 14 points for Hazleton.Wyoming Seminary 51, GAR 33Mia Raineri scored 14 points and Julia Gabriel and Ally Vezendy netted 10 each as the Blue Knights defeated GAR.Olivia Prato scored 14 for GAR.Holy Redeemer 61, Wyoming Area 35Sam Yencha led the Royals with 23 points.Addison Orzel had 11 for Wyoming Area.Crestwood 51, Valley West 28VALLEY WEST (28) &#8212; Nicole Boutanos 0 4-6 4, Lindsey Gruver 3 0-2 9, Toni Amato 3 1-2 10, Grace Giza 0 0-0 0, Andi Blaski 2 0-0 5, Karaline Stelma 0 0-0 0, Aubry Boyd 0 0-0 0, Katlyn Rincavage 0 0-0 0, Kara Mackiewicz 0 0-0 0, Kylee Laudenslager 0 0-0 0, Megan Brody 0 0-0 0, Alina Tikhtova 0 0-0 0. Totals 8 5-8 28.CRESTWOOD (51) &#8212; Sara Hopkins 7 0-0 16, Julia Makowski 8 8-11 25, Bella Termini 1 2-3 4, Sarah Richards 0 1-2 1, Andrea Shipton 0 0-0 0, Helena Jardine 1 0-0 2, Riley Magin 1 0-0 3, Kristen Andrews 0 0-0 0. Totals 18 11-16 51.Valley West`10`11`4`3 &#8212; 28Crestwood`15`14`12`10 &#8212; 51Three-point goals &#8212; WVW 7 (Gruver 3, Amato 3, Blaski); CRE 4 (Hopkins 2, Makowski, Andrews).Wyoming Seminary 51, GAR 33GAR (33) &#8212; Olivia Prato 6 2-2 14, Lyann Pena 0 2-4 2, Jada Redditt 1 0-0 2, Emily Engle 2 1-2 5, Alana Germano 2 0-0 6, Simone Harris 1 2-2 4. Totals 12 7-10 33.WYO. SEMINARY (51) &#8212; Paige Parsons 1 1-2 3, Alex Wesneski 1 2-4 4, Mia Raineri 7 0-0 14, Julia Gabriel 4 2-3 10, Ally Vezendy 4 0-0 10, Olica Meuser 1 0-0 2, Maaike Reitsma 2 0-0 4, Mia Magnotta 0 0-0 0, Julia Iskra 0 2-2 2, Kate Getz 1 0-0 2. Totals 21 7-11 51.GAR`9`8`12`4 &#8212; 33Wyo. Seminary`14`16`11`10 &#8212; 51Three-point goals &#8212; GAR 2 (Germano 2), WS 2 (Vezendy 2).Hanover Area 61, MMI Prep 23HANOVER AREA (61) &#8212; Victoria Benning 5 3-4 13, Genisis Rodririquez 5 1-6 11, Sara Whitesell 2 1-2 6, Sarah Tuzinski 1 2-2 5, Lauren Blazaskie 2 1-3 5, Mary Slusser 2 0-0 4, Devin Karpovich 1 2-4 4, Alesha Dennis 1 0-0 3, Mary Slusser 1 1-2 3, Emily Bobos 1 0-0 2, Madison Hooper 1 0-0 2, Arianna Sillah 1 0-0 2, T. Hines 0 1-2 1, Corbett 0 0-4 0. Totals 23 12-29 61.MMI Prep (23) &#8212;Irene Altmiller 3 1-2 7, Kim Amentler 2 3-4 7, Jessica McClellan 1 2-2 4, Bailey Slusser 1 0-0 2, Maddie Perchak 1 0-0 2, Julie Amentler 0 1-7 1, Lindsey Braunstein 0 0-0 0, Lexi Zola 0 0-0 0. Totals 8 7-15 23.Hanover Area`20`11`19`11 &#8212; 61MMI Prep`5`1`8`9 &#8212; 23Three-point goals &#8212; HA 3 (Dennis, Tuzinski, Whitesell)Dallas 64, Coughlin 26DALLAS (64) &#8212; Samantha Kern 5 6-9 16, Gianna Centerella 6 1-3 15, Morgan MacNeely 3 2-4 8, Hanna Johnson 2 3-4 7, Haley Habrack 2 2-2 6, Emily Weiland 2 0-0 4, Deanna Wallace 1 2-4 4, Hannah Doran 1 0-0 2, Kendra Saba 1 0-0 2, Olivia Johnson 0 0-0 0, Julia Kocher 0 0-0 0, Claire Charlton 0 0-0 0. Totals 23 16-26 64.COUGHLIN (26) &#8212; Ajalaya Butts 3 1-2 7, Arianna Brittingham 2 1-2 6, Abby Cicon 3 0-0 6, Molly Poray 1 1-2 3, Le&#8217;June Berry 1 0-0 2, Yansel Perez 1 0-0 2, Abigail Kush 0 0-0 0, Kira Meager 0 0-0 0, Sanauta Loutaif 0 0-0 0. Totals 11 3-6 26.Dallas`9`17`18`20 &#8212; 64Coughlin`4`3`12`7 &#8212; 26Three-point goals &#8212; DAL 2 (Centerella 2); COU 1 (Brittingham)Berwick 48, Lake-Lehman 35LAKE-LEHMAN (35) &#8212; Sarah Salus 3 5-6 12, Madison Borum 4 1-2 9, Corinna Scoblick 3 0-0 7, Savannah Purdy 3 0-0 7, Jodie Salansky 0 0-2 0. Totals 13 6-10 35.BERWICK (48) &#8212; Renny Murphy 5 3-4 15, Reese Mensinger 3 7-9 13, Roni Isenberg 4 0-0 8, Katie Starr 2 2-2 6, Megan Dalo 2 0-0 4, Jadyn Michael 1 0-0 2. Totals 17 12-15 48.Lake-Lehman`5`17`8`10 &#8212; 35Berwick`10`10`12`16 &#8212; 48Three-point goals &#8212; LL 3 (Purdy, Scoblick, Salus); BER 2 (Murphy 2).Northwest 41, Meyers 39NORTHWEST (41) &#8212; Brenna Babcock 4 4-7 12, Reagan Harrison 4 4-5 12, Danielle Bowman 3 2-2 8, Jordan Harrison 2 0-0 4, Trista Babcock 0 3-8 3, Kendra Saxton 1 0-1 2, Hailey Taylor 0 0-0 0, Maddie Mclendon 0 0-0 0. Totals 14 13-23 41.MEYERS (39) &#8212; Allycia Harris 5 1-3 11, Erin Morris 3 1-2 8, Amanda Gray 2 1-2 7, Sarah Buttger 2 2-2 6, Ashley Bruno 2 0-0 5, Da&#8217;Nayia Ballard 0 2-2 2, Bella Gray 0 0-0 0, Selena Soto 0 0-0 0. Totals 14 7-11 39.Northwest`15`6`6`14 &#8212; 41Meyers`5`4`15`15 &#8212; 39Three-point goals &#8212; MEY 4 (Morris, Bruno, A. Gray 2).Nanticoke 67, Tunkhannock 47TUNKHANNOCK (47) &#8212; Abby Ritz 6 7-9 19, Jess Ell 4 1-2 12, Becca Avery 5 1-2 12, Sam Generotti 2 0-0 4, Liz Demarco 0 0-0 0, Kelly Barber 0 0-0 0, Courtney Yuhas 0 0-0 0, Sadie Trochak 0 0-0 0, Annalise Verbeek 0 0-0 0, Kassidy Shirtz 0 0-0 0. Totals 17 9-13 47.NANTICOKE (67) &#8212; Amiah Lukowski 6 3-4 19, Lisa Radziak 7 0-1 16, Alyssa Lewis 4 5-10 13, Maddy Grillz 2 0-0 6, Katie Butczinski 1 4-4 6, Lauren Casey 2 0-0 4, Jil Baron 1 1-2 3, Jean Kurkowski 0 0-0 0, Emily Haver 0 0-0 0, Bella Czeck 0 0-0 0. Totals 23 13-21 67.Tunkhannock`13`11`15`8 &#8212; 47Nanticoke`19`17`19`12 &#8212; 67Three-point goals &#8212; TUN 4 (Avery, Ell 3); NAN 8 (Grillz 2, Radziak 2, Lukowski 4).Pittston Area 58, Hazleton Area 45HAZLETON (45) &#8212; Virginia Yurchak 5 3-6 14, Maddie Mrochko 3 5-6 14, Brooke Burelski 2 1-2 6, Diamond Truluck 2 0-0 4, Faith Grula 1 1-2 3, Olivia Wolk 1 0-0 3, Kyra Antolick 0 1-2 1, Mia Cundro 0 0-0 0, Abby Valente 0 0-0 0, Erin Potoskie 0 0-0 0, Allie Zumar. Totals 14 11-18 45.PITTSTON AREA (58) &#8212; Alexa Noone 9 3-4 24, Leah Hodick 6 5-5 17, Portia Weidlich 4 0-0 8, Nicole Zambete 1 0-0 3, Andrea Ruby 1 0-0 2, Mary Silinskie 0 1-2 1, Emily O&#8217;Brien 0 0-0 0, Lily Savoy 0 0-0 0, Emma Coles 0 0-0 0, Brooklyn Pedana 0 0-0 0. Totals 21 9-11 58.Hazleton`12`14`8`11 &#8212; 45Pittston Area `18`10`14`16 &#8212; 58Three-point goals &#8212; HAZ 6 (Burleski, Wolk, Yurchak, Mrochko 3); PA 7 (Zambetti, Noone 6).Holy Redeemer 61, Wyoming Area 35HOLY REDEEMER (61) &#8212; Sam Yencha 9 5-6 23, Julia Andrejko 5 0-0 12, Cameron Marcinkowksi 4 0-0 9, Sam Razja 2 2-2 8, Lauren Wasiakowski 2 1-2 6, Alyssa Gushka 1 1-2 3, Sierra Hines 0 0-0 0, Sarah Kuderka 0 0-0 0, Ana Capaci 0 0-0 0, Lynzie Skoronski 0 0-0 0, Jordan Cicon 0 0-0 0. Totals 23 9-12 61.WYOMING AREA (35) &#8212; Addison Orzel 3 5-5 11, Cassidy Orzel 4 0-0 8, Sarah Holweg 3 1-5 8, Ellie Glatz 2 0-1 4, Aleah Kranson 2 0-0 4, Jalen Rhodes 0 0-0 0, Nicole Silinskie 0 0-0 0, Kelly Carroll 0 0-0 0, Krisit Skok 0 0-0 0. Totals 14 6-11 35.Holy Redeemer`14`18`13`16 &#8212; 61Wyoming Area`5`8`17`5 &#8212; 35Three-point goals &#8212; HR 6 (Marcinkowski, Wasiakowski, Andrejko 2, Razja 2); WA 1 (Holweg)<style>
.neFileBlock {
	margin-bottom: 20px;
}
.neFileBlock p {
	margin: 0px 0px 0px 0px;
}
.neFileBlock .neFile {
	border-bottom: 1px dotted #aaa;
	padding-bottom: 5px;
	padding-top: 10px;
}
.neFileBlock .neCaption {
	font-size: 85%;
}
</style>
<div class='neFileBlock'>
<div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/web1_wvw_crest2_faa.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Wyoming Valley West&#8217;s Nichole Boutanos pulls down a reboud as Crestwood&#8217;s Andrea Shipton stretches for it Monday at Crestwood High School. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/web1_wvw_crest2_faa.jpg</photo0><caption0>Wyoming Valley West&#8217;s Nichole Boutanos pulls down a reboud as Crestwood&#8217;s Andrea Shipton stretches for it Monday at Crestwood High School. </caption0><photoCredit0>Fred Adams|For Times Leader </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/web1_wvw_crest3_faa.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Julia Makowski goes for her 1000th career point, part of her 25-point night that helped Crestwood clinched the WVC Division 1 title with a 51-28 victory over last year&#8217;s league champ Wyoming Valley West on Monday in Wright Twp. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/web1_wvw_crest3_faa.jpg</photo1><caption1>Julia Makowski goes for her 1000th career point, part of her 25-point night that helped Crestwood clinched the WVC Division 1 title with a 51-28 victory over last year&#8217;s league champ Wyoming Valley West on Monday in Wright Twp. </caption1><photoCredit1>Fred Adams|For Times Leader </photoCredit1></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/web1_wvw_crest4_faa.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Julia Makowski (center) is congratulated after scoring her 1,000th career points during Crestwood&#8217;s WVC Division 1-clinching victory over Wyoming Valley West. Makowski received a hug from Helena Jardine as Andrea Shipton (left) and Kristen Andrews rush to celebrate with her at the start of the third quarter Monday in Wright Twp. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo2>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/web1_wvw_crest4_faa.jpg</photo2><caption2>Julia Makowski (center) is congratulated after scoring her 1,000th career points during Crestwood&#8217;s WVC Division 1-clinching victory over Wyoming Valley West. Makowski received a hug from Helena Jardine as Andrea Shipton (left) and Kristen Andrews rush to celebrate with her at the start of the third quarter Monday in Wright Twp. </caption2><photoCredit2>Fred Adams|For Times Leader </photoCredit2></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/web1_wvw_crest5_faa.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Nichole Boutanos of Wyoming Valley West has the ball knocked away by Crestwood&#8217;s Sarah Richards (13) and Bella Termini on Monday in Wright Twp. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo3>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/web1_wvw_crest5_faa.jpg</photo3><caption3>Nichole Boutanos of Wyoming Valley West has the ball knocked away by Crestwood&#8217;s Sarah Richards (13) and Bella Termini on Monday in Wright Twp. </caption3><photoCredit3>Fred Adams|For Times Leader </photoCredit3></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><subheadMeta>Makowski makes milestone, Crestwood clinches title</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>

Girls Basketball: Julia Makowski hits 1,000th point as Crestwood clinches title