Weatherly girls rout Forest City in semis

The Weatherly girls showed their dominance Tuesday, routing Forest City 58-29 in the District 2/11 Class 1A subregional semifinals.

The Wreckers hadn’t won a district playoff game in 22 years, and hadn’t reached the PIAA state tournament since 1986.

But both streaks were snapped with the victory.

“Four years ago, I didn’t know the girls and I was showing them PowerPoints, and now we are checking off those boxes,” said Weatherly head coach Kevin Kringe, whose team will now meet Nativity on Friday night for the district title. “Make the playoffs, check. Win a district playoff game, check. Win a district championship, almost check.

“All the things I showed on that PowerPoint four years ago are finally coming true.”

Both teams started slowly as the first points of the game didn’t come until after a three-minute stalemate.

Once the scoring started for the Wreckers, though, it didn’t stop.

Paced by five points from Megan Peifer, Weatherly jumped out to a 12-0 run.

The Wreckers also showed off their defense, holding the Foresters to only three points in the first quarter.

“I felt like if we played the right way we could jump them early, which we did,” said Kringe. “Things worked out our way.”

Weatherly’s leading scorer Emily Zoscin began to take control in the second quarter.

The junior scored six points in the first three minutes of the frame and increased the Wrecker lead to 18 points. That dominance carried into halftime, with Weatherly holding a 32-10 advantage.

The Foresters, led by senior guard Mackenzie Hartman, showed some fight coming out of the break, going on a 6-2 run.

Despite the Foresters early third-quarter scoring, Peifer’s hot hand allowed the Wreckers to maintain its large margin.

“We were electric and flying all over the place, and that’s what we do best,” said Kringe. “I know they scouted us, but it’s one thing to see it and another thing to be in it.”

As shots rolled out of the basket for the Foresters, they kept falling for Weatherly.

The Wreckers shared the wealth in the fourth quarter, getting points from Tabby Hinkle, Lindsey Hoffman, and Ashley James.

“We want Nativity,” said Kringe. “They knocked us off last year ...They want us, and we want them. It’s gonna be a war. I can’t wait for it,” said Kringe.

Weatherly and Nativity will meet at 6 p.m. at Martz Hall on Friday.

REVENGE ... The Wreckers lost to Nativity during last year’s district playoffs, 58-38. Weatherly will look to re-write the script this year.

MVP ... Weatherly’s Emily Zoscin was all-state in Class 1A last year and already has over 1,000 career points even though she’s only a junior.

LONG TIME COMING ... It’s been over two decades since Weatherly last won a district game. The Wreckers’ last D-11 victory was in 1996 when they beat Pius X in the opening round

NEVER SAY DIE ... The Foresters’ Hartman led her team with 13 points. Hartman also reached the 1,000-point club earlier this season.

FOREST CITY

Kowalewski 2-0-0-5, Kelleher 0-0-0-0, Graham 0-0-0-0, Urban 1-0-0-3, Dishong 2-1-2-5, Bailer 1-0-2-2, Keller 0-1-2-1, Hartman 4-5-8-13, Pleska 0-0-0-0, Calabro 0-0-0-0. TOTALS: 10-7-14-29.

WEATHERLY

Zoscin 8-1-2-18, T. Hinkle 1-1-5-3, Hoffman 3-0-0-6, G. Hinkle 0-0-0-0, James 4-2-2-12, Strouse 0-0-0-0, Heister 0-0-0-0, Ache 0-0-2-0, Peifer 7-3-3-17, Hernandez 0-0-0-0, Miller 1-0-0-2, Cichon 0-0-0-0. TOTALS: 24-7-14-58.

Forest City 3 7 10 9 - 29

Weatherly 16 16 11 15 - 58

Three-pointers: Forest City - Kowalewski 1, Urban 1; Weatherly - James 2, Zoscin 1.