United sweeps Boswell Area Jaycees Tournament titles

Dec. 30—BOSWELL — United coach Matt Rodkey described the final two minutes of Thursday's Boswell Area Jaycees Tournament championship game as intense, and rightfully so.

The Lions held an eight-point advantage that North Star trimmed to one with just under a minute remaining, but United was able to stave off the Cougars' late rush and hold on for a 60-57 victory.

"We definitely fought through some adversity," said Rodkey, whose team won its third consecutive Boswell tournament title. "Our guys were able to get the ball in the hoop by being strong and pushing through contact."

United was in front 56-50 until a 3-pointer from Andy Retassie and a layup by Brady Weimer with 58 seconds remaining cut the lead to one point.

Tyler Robertson and Brad Felix went a combined 4-for-4 at the free-throw line to keep United in front, reviving the Lions after missing their previous three attempts.

"It wasn't an easy win, but we got there," said Felix, who scored a game-high 21 points and was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player. Felix's father, Joe, won the award while playing for North Star in 1988, marking the first father-son duo to be named MVP in the tournament's 56-year history.

"We have a great group of guys that really came through in the end to get the win. We got a few key buckets and made our late free throws."

North Star (4-4) led by as many as seven points late in the third quarter. United answered with three consecutive baskets, including Dylan Dishong's putback at the buzzer, to trail by just two going to the fourth.

United (10-0) then scored the first five points of the final frame on a three by Dishong and a Joseph Marino layup to regain the lead for the final time.

Neither team held more than a five-point lead until North Star's 40-33 edge in the third.

"We talked about being better on the boards and playing well defensively," North Star coach Randy Schrock said. "I absolutely think we played hard tonight. These guys are really turning the corner on what it takes to win. We were right there where we wanted to be. We just have to learn how to close out games."

Brady Weimer led the charge for the Cougars in the fourth quarter, scoring 10 of his 16 points in the final frame. Ethan Smith scored a team-high 17, while C.J. Biery tallied 12. Smith and Weimer were named to the all-tournament team.

United had four players score in double figures, with Dishong, Robertson and Marino tallying 14, 11 and 10 points, respectively, to go along with Felix's game-high mark. Dishong and Felix also earned all-tournament nods.

For the third consecutive year, United solidified itself as the top girls team at the Boswell tourney.

The Lions utilized an early offensive push to grab a commanding lead over Tussey Mountain and coast to a 60-36 victory in the 56th edition of the championship game at North Star High School.

"Slow starts have been an issue for us this season," United coach Paul Hall said. "It's hard to get behind in basketball and make up 10, 15 points.

"We did well getting ahead early and setting the tone for the game."

The Lions hit five of their first six shots from the field to jump in front 9-3 and force a Titans timeout just two minutes into the game.

United finished the first quarter making 8 of 13 shots to hold a 19-5 advantage.

"It was a great team win today," said Lions sophomore Maddison McGinnis, who scored eight of her 10 points in the first quarter and was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player.

"We were able to work the ball very well on offense and hit a lot of shots. Then we turned it around and didn't let them get a lot of chances to score defensively."

Tussey Mountain kept pace with United in the second to trail by 10 at halftime, but the Lions opened the third on an 11-0 run to go in front 38-17, before scoring 13 of the first 14 points in the fourth to get their largest lead of the game at 26.

United finished with four players in double figures, led by Mollee Fry's team-high 14 points.

Aleah Bevard tallied 12 points for the Lions, while McGinnis and Delaney Perrone each added 10.

United's Donelson, Perrone and McGinnis were all named to the all-tournament team.

Karli Lucko also earned a selection after scoring a game-high 15 points for Tussey Mountain.