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Hazleton Area imposes its will in girls basketball subregional victory

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Legislators discuss hot topics at League of Women Voters event

SALEM TWP. &#8212; For the past couple of years, Scott Campbell watched his cousins make their names in subregional postseason playoffs.Finally, he got a chance to make a mark on one of his own.So Campbell grabbed it, teaming with fellow reserve Ramddy Melendez to shake some life into a Hazleton Area team that ultimately dominated Delaware Valley, 61-40 in a District 2/4 Class 6A boys basketball subregional semifinal Saturday at Berwick Middle School.&#8220;My cousins, Jeff Planutis and Bobby (Planutis), were able to do things all these years,&#8221; Campbell said. &#8220;I&#8217;m happy I got to contribute to this as well.&#8221;His impact was hardly minor.With Hazleton Area struggling a bit at the start, Campbell came off the bench to bury a 3-point field goal that tied the score, 17-17 midway through the third quarter, added a regular bucket for a four-point Cougars advantage, then hit two more treys in the third quarter to help his team race to a 20-point lead.As a result, the defending District 2/4 champion Cougars coasted into the Class 6A championship game against Scranton at 8 p.m. next Saturday at Mohegan Sun Arena. The Knights outlasted Williamsport 61-60 in overtime in the other semifinal.&#8220;All I need is to feel confident,&#8221; said Campbell, who finished with 11 points. &#8220;The more confident I get, the rim gets even bigger.&#8221;He wasn&#8217;t the only one of Hazleton Area&#8217;s bench boys to make a big mark on the game.During that second quarter, Melendez entered the game and drove for two baskets &#8212; between dishing off to Campbell for a deuce. Their work helped Hazleton Area turn a three-point deficit midway through the second quarter into a 23-17 halftime lead for the Cougars.&#8220;Ramddy gave us tremendous energy,&#8221; said Hazleton Area coach Mike Joseph, whose team improved to 19-7. &#8220;He scored on a three (-point opportunity), a driving two, had an assist inside to Scotty.&#8221;In the end, Da&#8217;Mir Faison, one of two returning starters from Hazleton Area&#8217;s state semifinal team a year ago, finished with a game-high 16 points with two dunks. But nine of those points came after the Cougars built a 43-23 lead entering the fourth quarter.Meanwhile, first-year starter Kyle Franek hit a trio of treys to finish with 11 points and fellow first-year starter Warren Seigendall ripped down six of his eight rebounds in the third quarter as the Cougars put victory away.&#8220;As a coach, if you can have all of the players on the roster play as hard as Warren Seigendall does, it would make the coaching job a lot easier,&#8221; Joseph said. &#8216;He doesn&#8217;t score a lot of points, but he&#8217;s a big reason why we&#8217;re in this position to win a district championship.&#8220;The guys who weren&#8217;t a big part of our team &#8212; minutes-wise &#8212; last year, to have a chance to leave their own mark on this team, now they have a chance to win their district championship.&#8221;District 2/4 Class 6A boys subregional semifinalsHazleton Area 61, Delaware Valley 40DELAWARE VALLEY (40) &#8212; Aiden Oliver 2 0-0 6, Tom Raniero 3 0-0 8, Grant Berrios 2 0-0 4, Blake Gearhart 5 0-3 13, Jackson Shafer 2 0-0 4, Jackson Melnick 1 0-0 2, Michael Leonardo 0 0-0 0, Liam Sheldon 0 0-0 0, Peyton Robertson 0 0-0 0, Mark Cavallaro 1 0-0 3, William Sheldon 0 0-0 0. Totals 16 0-3 40.HAZLETON AREA (61) &#8212; Andrew Vayda 3 0-2 6, Sparky Wolk 1 0-0 2, Kyle Franek 4 0-0 11, Da&#8217;Mir Faison 6 3-3 16, Warren Seigendall 1 2-2 4, Scott Campbell 4 0-0 11, Jacxander Moronta 1 0-0 3, Alex D&#8217;Angelo 1 0-0 2, Ramddy Melendez 2 2-3 6, Jawarda Nieves 0 o-0 0. Totals 23 7-10 61.Delaware Valley`10`7`6`17 &#8212; 40Hazleton Area`9`14`20`18 &#8212; 61Three-point goals &#8212; DV 8 (Gearhart 3, Raniero 2, Oliver 2, Cavallaro); HAZ 8 (Franek 3, Campbell 3, Faison, Moronta).<style>
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<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>

Hazleton Area benches Delaware Valley in district boys basketball semifinal