Maryland and West Virginia split all-star games

Apr. 17—FROSTBURG — In the 41st edition of the Maryland vs. West Virginia All-Star Classic, team Maryland won the girls game 49-44 while team West Virginia took the boys 57-51 on Sunday afternoon in Bobcat Arena.

In the girls game, Maryland never trailed and led by as many as nine points.

""It was a fun afternoon for the girls," Team Maryland and Mountain Ridge head coach Rob Duncan said. "A lot of times, your high school basketball career ends with a loss. They were all happy to say they finished their high school careers winning their last game."

West Virginia trailed by two late in the second half, but was unable to complete the comeback.

"It was great for the girls," Team West Virginia and Moorefield head coach Paul Keplinger said. "We have some talent in West Virginia. These girls have battled each other, to get to finally play together with some of the best in the area is good for them."

The Miners were known for their defense this season, holding opponents to under 40 points a game. Maryland opened the game with strong defense, taking a 17-8 lead midway though the first half. While Duncan didn't emphasize it early, the defense led Maryland.

"The only advice I gave them before the game was they're open to shoot the ball," Duncan said. "It wasn't necessarily about any defensive discussions, it was more about going out and competing. The rebounding and defense were from competing. If you go out there and compete in an All-Star game, you're gonna have fun and be successful."

West Virginia responded with a 15-7 run over the next seven minutes. It cut its deficit to 24-23 with 2:45 left.

"We got some easy buckets," Keplinger said. "We got out and we got physical. Maryland's got some nice players, we had to get up and play defense."

Maryland took a 29-25 halftime lead. Berlin's Gracyn Sechler and Mountain Ridge's Bayleigh Lamberson led Maryland with eight points.

West Virginia rallied in the second half, led by Kadie Colebank from Tucker County. She had three steals in the first two minutes and hit a pair of layups.

"We told them we need to get the ball to her more," Keplinger said. "The size advantage and athletic ability she has, we try and get the ball there."

West Virginia cut it to 34-31 early in the half. While Maryland maintained its lead, it never led by more than two possessions.

With five minutes left, a steal and layup by Pendleton County's Ana Young tied the game at 42.

"They played good defense, caused a couple careless turnovers," Duncan said. "We didn't change ends very well, sometimes in an All-Star game that happens."

Steals were a big factor in West Virginia's comeback. It forced seven in the second half, leading to six points.

"That was big for us," Keplinger said. "We get our energy back from those runouts. It gives us energy, that helped a lot."

A layup by Berlin's Jennifer Countryman with four minutes left gave Maryland the lead for good. Maryland outscored West Virginia 5-2 in the final four minutes to secure the win.

Both teams took pride in playing one final game. The intensity picked up in the final minutes. It was something both coaches praised their teams for.

"It was great to see," Duncan said. "It can turn into a situation where no one puts any effort in. I didn't think that was the case, I thought the girls played hard."

For Maryland, Sechler was named Most Valuable Player with 19 points. Lamberson scored eight while Northern's Madison Seese had seven.

"We played Berlin twice, so I knew exactly what we were getting," Duncan said of Sechler. "Gracyn and Jennifer are phenomenal players. You can see the teamwork, they run a lot of pick and roll. The same offense I saw them run against us. Gracyn's a solid player."

Lamberson played her final high school game under Duncan.

"You really need to have a motor to make anything go," Duncan said of Lamberson. "Every practice, every game she was the one getting the girls together. In our timeouts today, she took control of the huddle. That kind of leadership and enthusiasm is hard to replace."

For West Virginia, Ana Young led the team with nine points and was the team's Most Valuable Player. Hannah Ault from Hampshire scored seven while Petersburg's Braylee Corbin and Colebank scored six.

Duncan will not be returning to Mountain Ridge next season. In his final year, Mountain Ridge finished 20-7 and won the school's first region title, made its first appearance in the Final Four and in the Class 1A state title game.

"Anytime you enter the gym, you're gonna see 2023 state finalists," Duncan said. "It's a legacy, a lot of firsts. The opportunity for these girls to be the building blocks, hopefully it's something that will continue to grow."

West Virginia 57 Maryland 51

In the boys game, West Virginia held off a late Maryland rally to win.

"You play and coach against these guys, you admire how hard they work," Team West Virginia and Keyser head coach Scott Furey said. "Everyone of those kids were great kids to coach. Just as much fun to coach as you can imagine."

Maryland cut it to four with under two minutes left, but it was unable to complete the comeback.

"Games like this are always a lot of fun, especially for kids in our league," Team Maryland and Northern head coach Ron Opel said. "It's always neat to see how different personalities mesh and opponents are now teammates."

West Virginia led 5-2 early winning with defense. Pendleton County's Jacob Beachler blocked three shots in less than three minutes.

"He's a super active big," Furey said. "On top of him being long he's got springs. He can jump, he has a lot of good timing."

West Virginia led most of the first half. Down 13-6, Maryland scored six unanswered to cut it to 13-12.

Ethan Sebold of Northern scored all six points, giving Maryland a 14-13 lead a few minutes later on a layup.

"We got in a groove, remembered how to play basketball again," Opel said. "The shot started coming back, a lot of its muscle memory. Once they got that back, things starting falling."

West Virginia responded with a 15-8 run to end the first half and take a 29-21 halftime lead.

Hampshire's Easton Shanholtz and Sebold led all scorers with 10 points. Shanholtz has committed to Mount Union and was the Potomac Valley player of the year and first-team All-Conference.

Maryland opened the second half with eight unanswered points. Fort Hill's Owen Seifarth scored six points and assisted his Sentinel teammate Anthony Burns for the other score.

Most of the second half was a back-and-forth game. There were three lead changes and two ties.

"West Virginia had a lot more size," Opel said. "We were knocking down some perimeter shots, so we switched to zone to limit the inside shots. We were getting shots from the perimeter, but we couldn't rebound."

Neither team led by more than two possessions until midway through. Tied at 42, West Virginia scored seven unanswered and led 49-42 with 6:05 left.

Maryland responded and cut it to 55-51 with 1:42 left. In the final minutes, Maryland had a layup blocked and committed a turnover.

Similar to the girls' game, the intensity picked up in the final minutes.

"Everyone was in agreement, we weren't gonna let it become the NBA All-Star Game," Furey said. "They wanted to make sure their talents were put on display."

Clayton Kisamore, West Virginia's Most Valuable Player, finished with 16 points while Shanholtz scored 15. Beachler finished with 11.

"Easton's going to play at Mount Union for a reason," Furey said. "I've said to everyone who wants to listen, Clayton is one of the best players I've coached against."

Seifarth led Maryland with 21 points while Sebold scored 20. Burns finished with 10. Maryland chose not to name an MVP.

"This is what I've seen out of him for the last four years," Opel said of Seifarth. "Sebold, I was impressed he started knocking down his shots. That muscle memory comes back, he's been doing it for four years."

Furey coached Donovan Washington and Mike Schell in their final game. Washington scored two and Schell did not score. Schell averaged 9.7 points while Washington averaged eight this season.

"For them to know what we're doing as a system and to have your center and point guard right in rhythm, it was such a blessing," Furey said. "They all know how I feel about them. To be on the sideline for their last high school game and to be a win, it was super special."

Jordan Kendall is a Sports Writer for the Cumberland Times-News. Follow him on Twitter @JKendallCTN.