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War of words continues over cancelled Back Mountain event

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The roller coaster (and plane soaring, car racing, dream crushing) of science

All six Wyoming Valley Conference boys basketball teams playing for District 2 championships last weekend at Mohegan Sun Arena had one thing in common. No matter what happened, it wasn&#8217;t the end of the line.That changes this weekend in the PIAA state playoffs. There is no reprieve. Lose and it&#8217;s the end of the season, the end of some players&#8217; high school careers.Four teams won&#8217;t venture far from home as there are doubleheaders at Wilkes University on Friday and Saturday. Holy Redeemer and Northwest have to log some miles for their first-round games.It&#8217;s been so long since a WVC squad played for a state championship that the final school to do so &#8212; Bishop O&#8217;Reilly in 2005 &#8212; doesn&#8217;t exist anymore. The entrance of Philadelphia schools to the PIAA for the 2005-06 season has been a regular roadblock. The last nine WVC teams to make states have had their seasons end against Philly schools.Here&#8217;s a look at the five games involving the WVC:Hazleton Area (17-7) vs. Methacton (20-7)PIAA Class 6A First Round6 p.m. Saturday, Wilkes UniversityHazleton Area secured its third consecutive D2-6A title, but this team is very different from last season&#8217;s group that was a win away from playing for the Class 6A state championship. Senior forward Da&#8217;Mir Faison and senior point guard Sparky Wolk are the only returning starters. Junior guard Andrew Vayda was used to give starters a breather. Five guys moved up to the varsity to contribute to the success.Faison is averaging 19.7 points. He&#8217;s the only Cougar averaging in double figures; last season&#8217;s team had four players averaging 13 points or more on the way to a 26-2 record.Methacton had to battle through the playback round to earn District 1&#8217;s seventh seed. The Warriors did so with a 46-34 win over Perkiomen Valley. Seniors Dave Duda and Erik Timko scored 13 each in the win, and Duda has been the team&#8217;s top player throughout the postseason. Methacton also has 6-foot-10 Jeff Woodard, whose had some solid playoff games. He is listed at 270 pounds on a recruiting website, but the weight appears a bit generous.Methacton has lost five games by five points or less. It&#8217;s making its first state appearance since 2015.The winner plays Wednesday against the winner of the game between D12 second seed Boys Latin (22-5) and D1 fifth seed Norristown (21-6).Crestwood (20-7) vs. Frankford (13-13)PIAA Class 5A First Round6 p.m. Friday, Wilkes UniversityCrestwood is back in the state playoffs for the first time since 2009, this time as the D2-5A runner-up. The Comets always put a quality product on the court during their absence from states, but they always seemed to run into a hot team in districts. This year, they faced defending Class 5A state champion Abington Heights in the D2-5A championship game, losing 43-36. Crestwood was outscored by four points in the second quarter and by one in the other three.Ryan Petrosky had 16 points vs. Abington Heights, but any of the other starters &#8212; Camden Boris, Sean Murphy, Brad Papura and Mike Palmiero &#8212; are capable of strong offensive games.District 12 third seed Frankford&#8217;s record could be much better &#8212; or much worse. The Pioneers lost three games in overtime and two more by three points. However, they have five wins by three points or less.Frankford has decent size in a pair of 6-foot-4 seniors, Seydou Ndiaye and Jiair Bullard. Ndiaye averages 15 points and Bullard averages 13. Senior guard Jayquan Williams tosses in about 12 per contest.The winner plays Tuesday against the winner of the game between D11 champion Pottsville (23-3) and D3 fifth seed Lampeter-Strasburg (23-4)Nanticoke Area (21-7) vs. Montoursville (19-8)PIAA Class 4A First Round7:30 p.m. Friday, Wilkes UniversityThe most interesting aspect of District 4 third seed Montoursville is its coach &#8212; newly minted Hall of Fame pitcher Mike Mussina. The Warriors rallied from a 10-point deficit at halftime to defeat Mifflinburg 60-54 in the D4-4A third-place game. Dillon Young scored 18 and Dylan Bower added 10 in the victory. Bower is the only starter back from last season&#8217;s district championship squad.Montoursville hasn&#8217;t done well in states, posting a 4-13 record. The Warriors have lost their last five state games and their last state victory came in 1985.After qualifying for states as the D2-4A third seed the past two seasons, the Trojans enter as the D2-4A runner-up after a 47-41 loss to Scranton Prep. They led 15-6 after one quarter. Turnovers proved costly in Nanticoke Area&#8217;s first trip to a district championship game since 2003. The veteran lineup of seniors Nate Kreitzer, Trahjan Krupinski and Dylan Szychowski, junior Colby Butczynski and sophomore Jake Krupinski will be seeking a better outcome than last season. Nanticoke Area was ousted in the first round 71-30 by Bethlehem Catholic.The winner advances to the second round on Tuesday where it will play the winner of the game between D12 champion Bonner-Prendergast (18-5) and D3 fifth seed Littlestown (24-3).Wyoming Seminary (25-2) vs. String Theory (9-15)PIAA Class 3A First Round4:30 p.m. Saturday, Wilkes UniversityWyoming Seminary won the D2-3A title with a 48-47 victory over Holy Redeemer. The Blue Knights only losses this season were 52-50 to D2-5A champion Abington Heights and 61-47 to Redeemer.The Blue Knights have won consecutive D2-3A championships and are in states for just the fourth time. They qualified as a Class A team in 1986 and 1992. While WVC Division 3 MVP Dimitri Gnall gets plenty of credit, this a well-rounded team with fellow senior Nick Ganter, juniors Jeremy Callahan and Todd Phillips and sophomore Jake Koretz all contributing.D12 fourth seed String Theory is making its first state appearance. The school is located in center city Philadelphia and was founded in 2000. Its first freshmen class was in 2013.Senior guard Tyler Spann became the school&#8217;s second 1,000-point scorer this season. He was named to the phillytrib.com Liberty Division first-team all-stars. He has some similarities to GAR standout guard Will Johnson based on highlight tapes and averages over 20 points. Junior Kylil Turner brings size at 6-foot-5 and averages about 15 points. He was a phillytrib.com third-team selection.The winner plays Wednesday against the winner of the game between D12 champion Neumann-Goretti (19-7) and D3 fourth seed Lancaster Mennonite (14-12).Holy Redeemer (20-4) vs. Wellsboro (23-4)PIAA Class 3A First Round6:30 p.m. Saturday, Troy Area HSHoly Redeemer was two points away from being able to walk to a state playoff game. But the 48-47 loss to Wyoming Seminary in the D2-3A title contest sends the Royals on a trek of about 90 miles to meet their state opponent instead of a few blocks to Wilkes University.Seniors Collin Cook and Nick Prociak have anchored Redeemer this season. Freshman Justice Shoats came into the season highly touted and delivered. Prociak is 6-foot-7 and along with 6-8 Jared Piontkowski, Redeemer has a height advantage.Wellsboro is the second seed out of District 4 after a 70-36 loss in the title game to Loyalsock (27-1). The Hornets have made the state playoffs four times since 2013, all resulting in first-round exits.Wellsboro has some size with 6-foot-4 senior Brandyn Tuttle, who averages a double-double of 18.3 points and 11.1 rebounds, and 6-6 senior Andrew Brelo, who scores 12.1 per game. Sophomore guard Joe Grab adds 10.6 points.The winner plays Wednesday against the winner of the game between D3 champion Trinity (22-3) and D12 sixth seed High School of the Future (12-10).Northwest (15-10) vs. Millville (24-1)PIAA Class 2A First Round5:30 p.m. Saturday, Williamsport HSNorthwest will be making consecutive state playoff appearances for the first time since 2003 and 2004. Once again, the Rangers will be the D2-2A second seed after losing 46-25 to Holy Cross for the championship. Northwest was in trouble from the onset and the 25 points were the fewest they&#8217;ve scored this season.However, Northwest is a veteran team featuring seniors Bryce Koser, Sam Saxe, Tyler Stevens and Jaxson Yaple along with junior Walker Yaple. They have a victory over Class 6A Scranton under their belt and won&#8217;t be intimidated by Millville&#8217;s record.Since losing 50-47 to Neumann Regional Academy in the second game of the season, District 4 champion Millville has won 23 in a row. The Quakers have held 22 of those opponents under 40 points, including a 66-5 victory over one-win Benton. They avenged the loss to NRA with a 66-49 win on Feb. 14.Led by junior Will Holdren, Millville zipped through the D4-2A playoffs to make its third consecutive appearance in state. The Quakers played at Class A the past two seasons and were eliminated in the second round.The winner plays Wednesday against the winner of the game between D5 champion North Star (21-3) and D6 third seed Bishop McCort (12-12).<style>
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<div class="neCaption">Jared Piontkowski and his Holy Redeemer teammates have a long road trip Saturday when they play District 4 second seed Wellsboro at 6:30 p.m. at Troy Area High School in the PIAA Class 3A state first round. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/web1_hr_mv2_faa.jpg</photo0><caption0>Jared Piontkowski and his Holy Redeemer teammates have a long road trip Saturday when they play District 4 second seed Wellsboro at 6:30 p.m. at Troy Area High School in the PIAA Class 3A state first round. </caption0><photoCredit0>Fred Adams file photo | for Times Leader </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/web1_nw_hc4_faa-1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Bryce Koser and his Northwest teammates will be making their second consecutive appearance in the PIAA Class 2A state playoffs. The Rangers face District 4 champion Millville at 5:30 p.m. Saturday at Williamsport High School. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/web1_nw_hc4_faa-1.jpg</photo1><caption1>Bryce Koser and his Northwest teammates will be making their second consecutive appearance in the PIAA Class 2A state playoffs. The Rangers face District 4 champion Millville at 5:30 p.m. Saturday at Williamsport High School. </caption1><photoCredit1>Fred Adams file photo | for Times Leader </photoCredit1></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/web1_TTL030319HSBB-Hazleton-Scranton_5-1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Senior guard Sparky Wolk is one of two starters back from a Hazleton Area team which lost in the PIAA Class 6A state semifinals last season. The Cougars open state play against District 1 seventh seed Methacton at 6 p.m. Saturday at Wilkes University. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo2>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/web1_TTL030319HSBB-Hazleton-Scranton_5-1.jpg</photo2><caption2>Senior guard Sparky Wolk is one of two starters back from a Hazleton Area team which lost in the PIAA Class 6A state semifinals last season. The Cougars open state play against District 1 seventh seed Methacton at 6 p.m. Saturday at Wilkes University. </caption2><photoCredit2>Bill Tarutis file photo | for Times Leader </photoCredit2></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta>By John Erzarjerzar@www.timesleader.com</bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta>Reach John Erzar at 570-991-6394 or on Twitter @TLJohnErzar</shirttailMeta></div>

PIAA boys basketball preview: Six WVC squads ready for states