Eleven area teams in quarterfinals

Nine quarterfinal round games, involving 11 Times News area teams, will take place over the next three days.

Action begins tonight with a pair of games, three more games will take place Friday, and four games featuring area teams are Saturday.

Boys Class 1A Quarterfinals

No. 3 Nativity (12-10) vs. No. 6 Weatherly (10-12)

TIPOFF - Thursday, Feb. 22, 6 p.m. at Minersville

COACHES - Nativity: Mike Walborn; Weatherly: Corey Gerhart

LEADING SCORERS - Nativity: Casian Flowers (15.5 ppg), Raphael Mudrow (13.9), Sincere Walker (10.6), Quandre Latimer (9.8); Weatherly: Scotty Zoscin (13.3), Steph Yurchak (9.97), Zack Moon (6.7)

GAME NOTES ... These two teams are familiar with each other as they faced off on January 19 with Nativity earning a 69-56 victory … Nativity had four players in double figures in the game with Muldrow leading the way with 19 … Weatherly was led by Gabe Miller, who had 18 and Yurchak, who added 14 … The Wreckers will look much different than the last time they played Nativity with Gabe Miller (12.11) and Julian Miller (8.56) being dismissed from the team because of non-academic eligibility issues … Throughout the season, Weatherly and Nativity have played seven common opponents. Nativity has gone 4-8 against those common foes, while Weatherly has gone 4-6 … Weatherly is looking for its first district championship since the 2001-02 season, while Nativity last won a district title in 1995-96.

QUOTABLE: “We have to be able to take care of the ball, which we didn’t do a good job of against them the last time. We also have to be more efficient on the offensive end and finish when we have scoring opportunities. If we can do that we’ll be just fine.” - Weatherly head coach Corey Gerhart.

Girls Class 6A Quarterfinals

No. 8 Pleasant Valley (12-8) vs. No. 1 Easton (20-3)

TIPOFF - Thursday, Feb. 22, 7:30 p.m. at Whitehall

COACHES - Pleasant Valley: Nadia Gauronsky; Easton: Dave Lutz.

LEADING SCORERS - Pleasant Valley: Masani Francis (10 ppg), Madison Rosenberg (7.9), Cameron Caffrey (7.7); Easton: Leanna Deegan (15.3), Kyla Smith (9.1), Jahnel Oliver (8.1).

GAME NOTES … As the top seed, Easton had a bye in the pigtail round to reach the quarterfinals … No. 8 seed Freedom took down top seed Easton 55-51 in the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference quarterfinals. The loss ended the Red Rovers’ 18-game winning streak … Pleasant Valley is 7-11 all-time in District 11 quarterfinal games. The wins have come against PM East (2014), PM West (2012), Allen (2006), Freedom (2003 and 2001), and Stroudsburg (2002) … The Pleasant Valley girls have played 12 different teams (PM East, Parkland, PM West, Liberty, Emmaus, Allen, Easton, Freedom, Stroudsburg, Northampton, Central Catholic and Bethlehem Catholic) in the district quarterfinals. The PV girls are 1-3 all-time against Easton in district playoffs. Bears suffered quarterfinal losses in 2005 and 2004, and a semifinal loss in 1999. The only win against Easton in the playoffs was in 2003 in the championship game … While Pleasant Valley forced 20 turnovers in Monday’s 50-44 win over Pocono Mountain West, the Bears also committed 20 turnovers. ... Easton defeated Pleasant Valley 60-31 on Jan. 5. The Red Rovers led 20-6 after the first quarter. Kyle Smith scored a game-high 15 points for Easton, while Leanna Deegan added 11. Cameron Caffrey paced the Bears with eight points. Madison Rosenberg added seven.

QUOTABLE - “Our team is very young, but we’re scrappy and we’re feisty and if we can play to our potential and our ability I think we can compete with Easton. No team is unbeatable, and we know Easton is a great team and they’re very well coached - hopefully our girls can come out and respond in the game and the environment and play well,” Pleasant Valley head coach Nadia Gauronsky.

Boys Class 4A Quarterfinals

No. 3 Tamaqua (16-6) vs. No. 6 Jim Thorpe (12-10)

TIPOFF - Friday, Feb. 23, 7 p.m. at Panther Valley

COACHES - Tamaqua: Jim Barron; Jim Thorpe: Jason McElmoyle

LEADING SCORERS - Tamaqua: Thad Zuber (14.27 ppg), Lucas Gregoire (12.64), Brayden Knoblauch (9.56); Jim Thorpe: Justin Marykwas (11.14), Nathan Rosahac (9.75), Nick Rosahac (7.85).

GAME NOTES ... The Schuylkill League Division 1 rivals have met twice this season with Tamaqua scoring double digit wins in each game, 55-39 and 47-35 … Tamaqua has done a good job defensively against the Olympians in the two-previous match-ups, holding them to just 37 points per game, which is 10 points below Thorpe’s season average … A big key for the Olympians will be to stop the Gregoire brothers from having success downlow. Luke and Gabe combined for 21 points in the first meeting and 22 points in the second meeting … JT will be looking to get Marykwas going early from the outside to open up its offense and allow it to set up pressure on the defensive end. The senior has 51 three-pointers on the season and had four triple in Thorpe’s first matchup with the Raiders … The Olympians and Raiders both qualified for the District 11 4A playoffs a season ago, with Thorpe putting together a magical run that ended with a loss to Becahi in the championship, while the Raiders lost to Saucon Valley in the quarterfinals.

QUOTABLE - “In our first two match-ups we were able to have success pounding the ball inside and that’s a testament to our post players, especially Luke and Greg. Those guys work hard for the ball and on the boards. We were also able to control the offensive glass and get some put backs. Also, against Thorpe you must take care of the ball. They have quick guards and they will throw a lot of traps at you, so that will be key for us as well.” – Tamaqua head coach Jim Barron.

“There’s no doubt we need to do a better job on the Gregoire boys. We have to make it harder for them to catch the ball, because they hurt us in the last two games. Offensively, we need to score the basketball. Any time we’ve finished or made some jump shots, we’ve been really competitive and beat some good teams, so that’s important for us.” - Jim Thorpe head coach Jason McElmoyle.

Boys Class 4A Quarterfinals

No. 7 Northwestern (12-10) vs. No. 2 Lower Moreland (18-7)

TIP-OFF - Friday, Feb. 24 at Lower Moreland, 7 p.m.

COACHES – Northwestern: Billy Hallman; Lower Moreland: Seth Baron.

LEADING SCORERS – Lower Moreland: Dan Shimon, Shane Cohen, Forrest Keys, Jake Himmlestein, Bryce Horn; Northwestern: Sam Yadush (15.6 ppg), Deven Bollinger (12.1), Luke Hallman (11.0), Devin Thomas (10.6), Sam Seyfried (6.0)

GAME NOTES ... You’ve probably heard of at least one famous alum of Lower Moreland. Current United States Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein graduated from the school in 1982 ... Northwestern is without Luke Hallman, who tore his ACL just after the midway point of the season. Devin Thomas and Sam Seyfried are both healthy again and will play for the Tigers ... Northwestern is playing in districts for the first time since 2008.

QUOTABLE - “I’m not saying ‘we’re just happy to be here,’ because that’s not the case. We are happy to have made it this far, but we’re not conceding anything. We want to go as far as we can and we’ll have to see how this goes. We’ve accomplished a lot and we knew that coming in as a seventh seed, we’d have a tough draw and that’s what we’ve got.” - Northwestern coach Billy Hallman on returning to districts for the first time in 10 years.

Class 3A Girls Quarterfinals

No. 7 Palmerton (9-13) vs. No. 2 Saint Basil (19-5)

TIP-OFF - Friday, Feb. 23 at LaSalle College High School, 7 p.m.

COACHES - Palmerton: Ralph Andrews. Saint Basil: Terry Mancini.

LEADING SCORERS - Palmerton: Linnaea Leister (13 ppg), Baylee Guedes (6.6), Kayla Cincilla (5.8), Emily Recker (4.4), Casi Papay (4); Saint Basil: Casey Remolde, Denae Carter, Cheryl Remolde, Jules Gura.

GAME NOTES - Winner of this game moves on to play No. 1, North Schuylkill in 3A semis ... Saint Basil (located near Jenkintown), won the last two Athletic Association of Catholic Academies league titles ... It defeated Villa Maria for the title ... Casey Remolde is a junior who leads team in scoring and had 19 points in league championship game over Villa Maria. She is the all-around leader of the squad, as she can do nearly everything for the team ... St. Basil is riding a nine-game win streak and has a record of 4-2 this season when playing at neutral sites ... The Lady Bombers last won a district championship in 19997 ... Linnaea Leister, who leads the team in scoring, recently scored her 1,000th point ... Head Coach Ralph Andrews says scouting reports show his team has its work cut out for it.

QUOTABLE - “We’re looking to get pressured quite a bit against them. They play a tough man-to-man defense, once the ball is put in play, they pressure. So we’re hoping to keep the mistakes low. They’re extremely quick, athletic, unselfish and they shoot a lot from the perimeter, so we are going to have our hands full.” Palmerton head coach, Ralph Andrews.

Boys Class 3A Quarterfinals

No. 6 Northern Lehigh (11-11) vs. No. 3 Catasauqua (14-8)

TIP-OFF - Saturday, Feb. 24 at Northampton High School, 6 p.m.

COACHES - Northern Lehigh: Jeff Miller; Catasauqua: Eric Snyder.

LEADING SCORERS - Northern Lehigh: Brandon Hess (17.4 ppg), Gio Colon (10.3), Preston Kemery (8.7), Nick Seier (6.1), Nate Keller (5); Catasauqua: Isaiah Graves (Colonial League MVP, 26.4 ppg), Jaylen Green (11.4), Cullen Bond (7.1).

GAME NOTES - Winner of this one moves on to play the bracket’s No. 2 seed, Notre Dame of Green Pond in the semis ... Catasauqua qualified for the Colonial playoffs, dropping a first-round decision to Wilson ... At one point, the Bulldogs were 10-7, and in their final five games went 1-4 to finish 11-11 on the season ... Northern Lehigh battled adversity with sickness all season, and finally seems to be healthy and on the same page ... Last time Northern Lehigh won a district championship was 2007-08 ... These two teams played against each other two other times this season - on Dec. 20, the Bulldogs lost, 62-59 in overtime (second overtime loss in consecutive nights), and on Jan. 12, lost a 54-42 decision at Catty ... Northern Lehigh’s ability to spread the ball out on offense is known throughout their opponents, especially with their ability to hit from three.

QUOTABLE - “We need to come out and play well against them, and we’ll need to try and limit Graves and keep him from getting big numbers. We have to try and make someone else beat us, we have to limit our own turnovers, and we have to be able to score against their matchup zone.” - Northern Lehigh head coach Jeff Miller.

Boys Class 3A Quarterfinals

No. 5 Palmerton (11-11) vs. No. 4 Pine Grove (13-9)

TIP-OFF - Saturday, Feb. 24 at Blue Mountain High School, 1 p.m.

COACHES - Palmerton: Ken Termini; Pine Grove: Frank D’Augustino.

LEADING SCORERS - Palmerton: Nate Dougherty (16.5 ppg), Justin Hosier (11.90), Ryan Yacone (7.6), Kody Kratzer (5.8), Eric Baumgardt (4.4); Pine Grove: Jacob Leininger (11.7), Andrew Griffiths (9.5), Dawson Ibarra (8.3), Jordan Pena (7.2).

GAME NOTES ... Winner moves on to play Valley Forge Military Academy, the bracket’s No. 1 seed on Feb. 28 ... Palmerton qualified with a 51-41 win over rival Northern Lehigh in both teams’ regular season finale, and also moved ahead of the Bulldogs in the District Class 3A rankings with the victory ... This is the first time the Bombers have made it to districts since 2002 ... Last time Palmerton won a district championship was the 1988-89 season ... Blue Bombers won five of their final seven games in order to get to this tourney ... Pine Grove won three of their last four games of the regular season, sporting a 13-9 mark on the season ... Since the two squads didn’t face each other, some common opponents of the two teams are Lehighton (both teams defeated twice) and Jim Thorpe. The Bombers dropped a 49-45 decision to the Olympians, while the Cardinals split (won, 59-51, lost at JT, 45-41).

QUOTABLE - “Pine Grove is a tough, gritty team that has won a lot of close games this year. They have a lot of good guards that can step out and hit the outside shot, and their big guys are strong, as well. We’ll need to play our best in order to get a win.” - Palmerton head coach, Ken Termini.

Girls Class 4 Quarterfinals

No. 7 Tamaqua (11-11) vs. No. 2 Northwestern (18-5)

TIP-OFF - Saturday, Feb. 24 at Northern Lehigh, 2:30 p.m.

COACHES - Tamaqua: Erika Davis (3rd year). Northwestern: Chris Deutsch (15th year).

LEADING SCORERS - Tamaqua: Emma Kuczynski (17.7ppg), Emily Titus (10.9), Kirstin Jones (7.2), Jamie Zuber (4.0), Sophia Boyle (3.7). Northwestern: Leighanna Lister (11.5), Jess Williamson (8.3), Sydney Sevrain (8.2), Gabby Sevrain (7.9), Abby Chisdak (6.1)

GAME NOTES - Tamaqua last won a district title in 2011 when they were in the 3A class. Northwestern last won a district title in 2006 as a 2A school ... Tamaqua went just 4-10 in the Schuylkill League, but went 7-1 in their non-league games to qualify for districts ... Both teams could be a little rusty. Tamaqua hasn’t played since Feb. 9 when it lost to Pottsvill, and Northwestern hasn’t played since Feb. 10 when it lost to Wilson in the Colonial League quarterfinals.

QUOTABLE - “This is that point where if you lose, some of these girls will have played their last high school game, and we want to prolong that as long as we possibly can, hopefully for a while. That’s why we want to be as prepared as possible coming into this as we can be so that we can know that we did everything that we could do to win.” - Northwestern head coach Chris Deutsch.

“We have to play with urgency right from the tip and not get off to a sluggish start, putting 32 solid minutes together. Offensively, we need to execute, take care of the ball, and play with confidence. Defensively, we have to communicate and limit them to one and done possessions.” - Tamaqua head coach Erika Davis.

Boys Class 4A Quarterfinals

No. 4 Lehighton (15-8) vs. No. 5 Blue Mountain (13-9)

TIPOFF - Saturday, Feb. 24, at Northern Lehigh, 1 p.m.

COACHES - Blue Mountain: Ruth Weidman; Lehighton: Joe Berezwick

LEADING SCORERS - Blue Mountain: Kasey Dean (7.4 ppg), Emily Fasnacht (7.3), Zara Albertini (6.3); Lehighton: Skylynn Faust (22.87), Aubrey Blasiak (14.52).

GAME NOTES ... Both Schuylkill League Division 1 members, Lehighton and Blue Mountain have faced off twice this season, with the Tribe getting the best of the Eagles on both occasions. The Indians defeated Blue Mountain 45-34 and 49-34 … Skylynn Faust, who is one of the top scorers in all of District 11 this season, was the catalyst for the Indians in their two victories against the Eagles, as she’s averaged 20.5 points per games over those two games … When Lehighton has been able to get a third player to step up and score along with 1,000-point scorers Faust and Blasiak, it has been hard to beat. Against the Eagles this season, Emily Miller has done just that. Miller is averaging close to nine points per game against Blue Mountain … Defensively, against Blue Mountain you can’t focus on just one player, as it’s one of the more balanced scoring teams in the Schuylkill League. After Dean, Fasnacht, and Albertini, the Eagles have three other players that average between 5-6 points per game … The Tribe’s last playoff win was in 1997 when it beat Southern Lehigh in the opening round of the District 11 Class 3A tournament.

QUOTABLE - “Rebounding will be big for us because of their size and their balance. As always, finding that third scorer will also be key. We have plenty of girls capable of stepping up, we just need that third person to help out Skylynn and Aubrey. We’re just really excited for the opportunity to play postseason basketball, and our girls are focused and determined to play as long as we can.” - Lehighton head coach Joe Berezwick