Skip to main content

Area players have scoring frenzy at Blue Mountain All-Star games


MERCERSBURG >> It was a scoring frenzy inside James Buchanan High School on Saturday night.

Fourteen different players finished in double figures, and five of those racked up double-doubles at the 24th annual Blue Mountain Senior All-Star Classic.

"It was definitely just a fun game," JB's Jennae Piper said. "There wasn't any pressure or anything, and it was nice to go out there and play again, especially on my home court."

The showcase pitted the top seniors from Franklin and Fulton counties against one another in a girls and boys doubleheader.

The girls game was the ultimate roller coaster, featuring 17 lead changes and 10 ties, but the Red squad ultimately defeated White, 74-69. The Red boys team also earned a 91-84 victory.

With about three minutes remaining in the girls game, the scoreboard was knotted at 64-64 before Piper hit a long 3-pointer. She then reeled off three straight free throws, and Fannett-Metal's Melissa Zeger added a layup to give Red an eight-point lead, the largest for either team all night.

"It was weird playing with everyone, but it was cool," Piper said. "I play soccer with Sam (Roberts), and Melissa and Amanda (Laye), we know them from playing at Fannett-Metal so much. It was kind of neat because we all kind of know each other, so it was cool to actually play together."

Piper and Zeger were the driving forces behind Red's victory, combining for 61 of the team's 74 points. Piper had 23 points in the second half to finish off a 33-point performance, earning her the MVP nod for the Red team. She hit eight 3-pointers and was 5-for-5 from the foul line. Zeger contributed 28 points, 16 rebounds and three steals.

But there were quite a few offensive showcases for White, namely Shalom Christian's Tori Yoder. She was one of the most dominating players on the court and earned her team's MVP honors. She finished with 27 points, 14 rebounds, six steals and four assists. Chambersburg's Jenn Grove also finished with a double-double, pouring in 12 points and pulling down 10 boards, and Shippensburg's Drew Lovett added 12 points.

McConnellsburg's Sam Roberts won the 3-point shooting contest, knocking down six trifectas in 30 seconds.

But the high-scoring girls affair was nothing compared to the boys' game. Six players for Red alone finished with at least 12 points, and four contributed double-figure points for White.

Although the Red team led for most of the game, it was never more than a 10-point lead, and with just four minutes remaining, White trailed by just one point. But a nine-point run in the final minutes led Red to the victory.

The streak was started by a layup from CV Christian's Conner Chapman. James Buchanan's Aaron Nagy then added his fifth 3-pointer of the night. McConnellsburg's Tyrelle White hit a pair of free throws, and JB's Shamar Pates got a steal and layup to build up another double-figure lead that White never recovered from.

The All-Star voting was extremely close for both teams. The honor for Red went to Shippensburg's Nick Jacoby, who finished with 13 points, nine rebounds and six assists, while White's MVP was Greencastle-Antrim's Josh Ehko, who led the team with 17 points, including 10 in the second half.

"This was a lot of fun, and it's great that they do this for us," Jacoby said. "It's nice to get the seniors back out together one last time. Unfortunately Emmitt (Geiger) didn't come today (although he was nominated). It would've been nice for us to finish up with our group of seniors, but it was a great experience. I'll remember this for a long time."

Red was led by Nagy, who totaled 17 points. Tyrelle White had the game's only double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds. CV Christian's Jeremiah Graves, Chapman and Ship's Bryce Hastings each contributed 12 points for Red.

The white team got point productions from Waynesboro's Jake Neterer (13 points), Chambersburg's Allan Bernard (11) and Forbes Road's Nick Keller (10).

Shippensburg's Zaen Miller won the dunk contest. He was the only player out of six to actually complete his dunk, and he notched two of his three attempts.

"The dunk contest is another fun thing," Jacoby said. "It's something to keep people involved, and keep the crowd engaged. I mean, I liked the idea, but it was too bad I couldn't actually get one down."

Girls

RED TEAM (74)

Amanda Laye 1 0-2 3, Melissa Zeger 10 8-9 28, Jenna Carbaugh 1 0-0 2, Susan Mackling 1 0-0 2, Jennae Piper 10 5-5 33, Sam Roberts 3 0-0 6.

Totals — 26 13-16 74

WHITE TEAM (69)

Jenn Grove 5 0-2 12, Jess Becker 3 0-0 8, Braylin Hohamn 3 0-2 6, Drew Lovett 4 2-2 12, Denice Lovett 2 0-0 4, Tori Yoder 12 2-3 27.

Totals — 29 4-9 69.

Halftime — White 33-30; 3-point goals — Red 9 (Piper 8, Laye), White 5 (Grove 2, Becker 2, Yoder).

BOYS

RED TEAM (91)

Jeremiah Graves 4 1-2 12, Conner Chapman 4 3-3 12, Shamar Pates 1 0-0 2, Aaron Nagy 7 0-2 17, Ryan Hissong 0 0-0 0, Tyrelle White 4 4-4 13, Bryce Hastings 5 1-1 12, Nick Jacoby 5 2-4 13, Zaen Miller 4 0-0 8.

Totals — 35 11-16 91

WHITE TEAM (84)

Lifson Dessame 3 0-1 6, Brock Broadwater 1 4-6 6, JJ Martz 1 0-0 2, Nick Keller 2 4-6 10, Josh Ehko 8 1-2 17, Aaron Peer 2 1-2 6, Logan Springs 3 0-0 7, Ethan Mohn 1 4-5 6, Jake Neterer 5 0-0 13, Allan Bernard 5 1-1 11.

Totals — 31 15-23 84

Halftime — Red 42-40; 3-point goals — Red 10 (Nagy 5, Graves, Chapman, White, Hastings, Jacoby), White 7 (Neterer 3, Keller 2, Peer, Springs).