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Lady Hornets top rival Mansfield to NTL Showdown semis
The Wellsboro Varsity Girls Basketball team put together a 26-point fourth quarter to beat rival North Penn-Mansfield 50-34 in the NTL Showdown semi-finals on Thursday, February 14.

Both teams struggled to score in the first quarter as they combined for just 6 total points, with Mansfield leading 4-2 after the opening 8 minutes. Both teams settled down in the second and were able to connect on more shots with the Lady Hornets holding a slim 13-12 lead at halftime. Wellsboro opened up a little distance between themselves and Mansfield in the third quarter as they outscored the Lady Tigers 11-5 to lead 24-17, then exploded in the fourth quarter to put the game firmly in their control.

Wellsboro scored 26 points in the final 8 minutes, with nearly half of them coming from the foul line as the Lady Tigers tried to extend the game and make the Lady Hornets earn their points the old-fashioned way. Wellsboro did so, shooting 14-for-17 from the line, en route to their 5th straight victory.

Senior Emma Poirier tied her season and career-highs with 28 points on the night to lead all scorers. Junior Liza Manning added 10, sophomore Jena Boyce scored 6, junior Cathryn Brought scored 4, and senior Dani Hunt added 2 points.

Jaime Palmer (11) and JoAnne McNamara (10) led the Lady Tigers while Lizzi Welch scored 6, Jeanette Montefusco added 3, and Shaelyn Berguson and Emma Palmer added 2 points each.

The win improves the Lady Hornets’ record to 14-9 on the season and sends them back to the Showdown finals for the second striaght year. This time they will take on Sayre, 55-32 winners over Athens, at Mansfield University on Saturday, February 16 at 6:00 p.m.

North Penn-Mansfield will await their upcoming opponent in next week’s District IV Class AA playoffs.
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Hornets top Liberty in NTL Showdown semi-finals
The Wellsboro Varsity Boys Basketball team is heading back to the NTL Showdown finals after a 60-47 win over North Penn-Liberty on Thursday, February 14.

The Hornets controlled the first quarter and led 12-4 after the opening 8 minutes of play, but the Mounties battled back and outscored Wellsboro 14-11 to trail 23-18 at halftime.

Wellsboro extended their lead back up to 8 points, 38-30, after the third quarter, then turned up the pressure in the fourth as they outscored Liberty 22-17 to claim their 20th straight win, and book their third straight trip to the NTL Showdown Finals.

Senior Brandyn Tuttle put up his 35th career double-double with a 22-point and 10-rebound performance to lead all scorers on the night. Tuttle has now tallied 700 rebounds for his career.

Sophomore Joseph Grab scored 12 points, senior Andrew Brelo added 10 points, senior Hunter Brown finished with 6, senior Tanner Button contributed 5, junior Andrew Larson pitched in 3, and senior Holden Kennedy added 2 points.

Grab added 5 rebounds and 3 steals to his point total, while Button had 4 assists and 2 steals, and Kennedy and Tuttle added 3 steals each.

Duncan Zeafla led North Penn-Liberty with 15 points, including 3 three-pointers, and Brandyn Choplosky finished with 11. Brandon Thompson had 6 and Nick Grinnell and Noah Spencer added 5 each.

The win improves the Hornets’ record to 20-2 overall while Liberty falls to 13-9. Wellsboro will be back in action for their final regular season game later tonight against Troy, then will face the winner of tonight’s Northeast Bradford/North Penn-Mansfield Showdown semi-final at Mansfield University on Saturday, February 16.

North Penn-Liberty will await their opponent in next week’s District IV Class A playoffs next week.
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