ATHENS — Sullivan County used an 18-6 fourth-quarter run to blow open a close game on its way to a 41-26 win over Athens here Monday night in non-league junior varsity girls basketball action.

Sullivan County led 8-4 after the first eight minutes, then extended the lead to five points, at 15-10, at the half.

The junior Wildcats trimmed the deficit to three points, at 23-20, entering the final eight minutes. Natalee Watson led the way in the third quarter with four points.

Mya Thompson and Watson led Athens with six points apiece, and Karlee Bartlow and Abby Champion added four points each.

Watson and Braelynn Wood led Athens with three rebounds apiece, while Emma Bronson had four assists and two steals, Bartlow had two steals and two assists, and Thompson registered three blocked shots and two steals.

Stella Harney led Sullivan County with 19 points, including 11 in the second half.

SATURDAY
Athens 31, Troy 21
At Troy, Athens raced out to a 16-point lead en route to a 31-21 win over Troy Saturday at the Troy Commons Building.

Karlee Bartlow scored seven points, and Braelynn Wood added four markers to power Athens in an 11-0 first-quarter run.

Bartlow added four more points in the second quarter to fuel a 10-5 spurt that gave the junior Wildcats a 21-5 lead at the halftime intermission.

Bartlow scored 16 points to lead Athens, while Emma Bronson had six points, four rebounds, two assists, and two blocked shots, Wood added six points, and Mya Thompson contributed five rebounds, three steals, two assists, and two blocked shots.

Athens, now 3-4, hosts North Penn-Liberty Wednesday.

TROY — Athens overcame some first-half shooting woes to post a 51-22 win over Troy here Saturday afternoon in NTL Large School Division girls basketball action at the Troy Commons Building.

“We struggled early making open jump shots,” said Athens coach Brian Miller. “But, we got our legs under us and made some nice shots and executed much better in the second half.

“And, shooting 19-21 from the foul line was outstanding,” added Miller.

Senior Kayleigh Miller scored four points in the first quarter, and senior Megan Collins added a 3-pointer to help Athens to a 9-4 lead after the first eight minutes.

Miller canned a 3-pointer and scored five points in the second quarter as Athens added two points to its advantage, taking an 18-11 lead into the halftime locker room.

Junior Caydence Macik took over in the second half.

Macik scored eight points in the third quarter, and Miller added four points to account for all the Lady Wildcats’ points in a 12-5 run that pushed their lead to 30-16.

Macik added nine more points, including a 5-for-5 effort from the free-throw line in the fourth quarter, and Miller added six points in a 21-6 blitz that blew the game open.

“Emma Bronson had a good second half,” said Miller. “She played the passing lanes, and was finding girls in transition.”

The Lady Wildcats made 13 of 14 free-throw attempts in the fourth quarter, and 19 of 21 in the contest. Miller was 8 of 9 from the line, and Macik made 7 of 8, while sophomore Emma Bronson and sophomore Braelynn Wood were both 2-for-2.

Macik led Athens with 21 points, 13 rebounds, four steals, and two blocked shots, while Miller had 19 points, six rebounds, and four assists, and Collins added five points, a team-high six assists, and four boards.

Sophomore Karlee Bartlow grabbed seven rebounds in the win, while Bronson had four steals, and three rebounds, and sophomore Natalie Watson chipped in with four boards.

Sydney Taylor led Troy with 11 points and Hannah Zimmerman was 7-for-8 from the free-throw line for seven points.

Athens, now 6-1, returns to action Monday when it hosts Sullivan County — the first of three home games next week for the Lady Wildcats.

ATHENS — Athens crowned four champions — juniors Gavin Bradley, Kaden Setzer, and Karter Rude, and sophomore Chris Bathgate — here Saturday at the annual Jarvis Memorial Wrestling Tournament.

The Wildcats also had one runner-up in senior Zach Stafursky, and four third-place finishers in juniors Lucas Forbes and Gavin McGrath, and freshmen Josh Courtney and Mason Vanderpool. Sayre sophomore Glen Romberger also recorded a third-place finish.

Bradley was 3-0 in march to first place at 113 pounds.

He recorded pins of 23 seconds over Mifflinburg’s Dylan Starr, and 4 seconds over Williamson’s Chelsea Hungerford.

Bradley finished his day with a 17-5 major decision of Benton’s Chase Burke.

Also at 113 pounds, Josh Courtney was 2-1 on the day to finish third.

Courtney forged a 14-0 major decision over Mifflinburg’s Dylan Starr in his first bout, lost via fall in 68 seconds to Burke in his next bout.

Courtney closed out the tournament with a pin of Hungerford in 28 seconds.

Setzer was dominant in his 138-pound title run, registering four falls — all in the first period.

He scored a 41-second fall over teammate Brock Dennison, and a 69-second fall over Benton’s Remington Morrow.

Setzer then decked Williamson’s Aiden Passerallo in 9 seconds, and finished off his day with a pin of Sayre senior Bobby Benjamin in 1:54.

Benjamin finished the day at 1-3, with a pin of Passerallo in 3:56 his only win. Dennison finished the day 0-4.

Rude also pinned his way to the 160-pound title, recording three first-period fall.

Rude pinned Williamson’s Cody Fleming in 1:54, then decked Benton’s Dereck Deitz in 28 seconds. He finished the day with a pin of Towanda’s Brandon Lantz in 77 seconds.

Bathgate went 3-0, including a pair of first-period falls to win the 152-pound title.

Bathgate pinned Towanda’s Zane McPeak in 1:20, and decked Benton’s Nick Stevens in 48 seconds. He also won via injury default over Towanda’s Evan Johnson.

Stafursky finished 2-1 to place second at 172 pounds.

Stafursky was pinned by returning PIAA place-finisher Nolan Lear (5th at 160 pounds) of Benton in 3:40 for his only setback of the day.

He pinned teammate Josiah Stringham in 1:28, and then edged Benton’s Mason Michael, 7-5, for his two wins

Stringham was 0-3 on the day.

At 120 pounds, Vanderpool was 2-2 to finish third, and sophomore Layla Bennett was 1-3.

Vanderpool pinned Williamson’s Mason Kelsey in 39 seconds, and Bennett in 1:50 for his two wins. He lost via fall to Benton’s Dylan Granahan and Mifflinburg’s Brady Struble, who finished 1-2 in the weight class.

Bennett’s win came via fall over Kelsey in 2:58.

McGrath went 1-2 to finish third in the 132-pound weight class. His lone win was a 34-second fall over Mifflinburg’s Jeremy Page.

He lost via technical fall to returning state qualifier Gable Strickland of Benton, and via fall to Williamson’s Nathaniel Welch. Strickland won the weight class with a technical fall of Welch.

At 145 pounds, Forbes went 2-2 to finish third in the weight class.

Forbes pinned teammate Jadon Rice in 3:20, and Towanda’s Garrett Chapman in 4:41 for his two wins.

He lost via second-period fall to Mifflinburg’s Troy Bingaman, and first-period fall to Benton’s Mason Smith. Bingaman was 4-0, including a technical fall win over Smith, to win the weight class.

Romberger finished 3-1 on the day to finish third in the 189-pound weight class.

Romberger registered falls over Athens junior Colin Rosh in 3:48, Williamson’s Ian Bump in 30 seconds, and Williamson’s Jonathan Melendez in 1:14.

His lone loss was via first-period pinfall to Benton’s Jake Bobersky, who won the weight class.

Rosh finished 0-4 on the day.

At 285 pounds, freshman Josh Nittinger was 1-2 on the day, logging a first-period fall of Towanda’s Jared Gunther for his only win.

Other champs on the day were Towanda’s J.B. Parker at 106 pounds, Mifflinburg’s Gabe Gramly at 126, Williamson’s Mike Sipps at 215, and Mifflinburg’s Emmanuel Ulrich at 285.

Athens returns to action Tuesday at Troy, while Sayre travels to Canton Tuesday.

ATHENS — Junior J.J. Babcock scored 11 points in the final 3 1/2 minutes of the game, including a pair of free throws with 10.2 seconds remaining, to help Athens erase a nine-point deficit, and post a 52-51 win over Wyalusing here Friday night in NTL boys basketball action.

“J.J (Babcock) took over at the end,” said Athens coach Jim Lister. “He has a lot of God-given talent, and he’s a hell of a player.”

The win marks the second Friday in a row, the Wildcats needed a major fourth-quarter comeback. Last week, Athens trailed Wellsboro by 16 with 5:07 remaining, and rallied for a 54-53 win.

Lister said he’s hoping it doesn’t become a habit.

“It’s frustrating. It’s like we struggle for 3 1/2 quarters, then we wake up. This is the third time this has happened,” he said.

“We did not play very good basketball, but the one thing I will say about these kids is, they don’t quit — they play right to the very end.

“I wish I had the answers, but it seems to come together in the fourth quarter,” added Lister.

Junior Tucker Brown, off a feed from Babcock, gave Athens a 2-1 with 6:49 remaining in the first quarter. It would be the Wildcats’ only lead until the final minute of the game.

A 3-pointer by Grayden Cobb gave the Rams a 6-3 lead with 5:23 left in the first quarter. A 3-pointer by Hunter Moss, and another by Cobb pushed the lead to 14-7 about 2 1/2 minutes later.

A bucket by Babcock, an old-fashioned three-point play by junior Troy Pritchard, and a free throw by Brown trimmed the lead to 14-13 with 2:03 left in the first quarter, but the Rams closed the quarter with a 6-0 spurt, capped by a 3-pointer by Moss to make it 20-13 after the first eight minutes.

Lister and Babcock, off a nifty pick-and-roll with Brown, scored buckets to open the second quarter, and trim the deficit to 20-17.

The teams traded scores until Isaiah Way knocked down a shot in the lane to give the Rams a 28-23 lead with 4:20 left in the first half.

Way added four free throws, and Kashawn Cameron scored on a driving lay-up to complete an 8-2 first-half ending spurt that sent the Rams to the halftime locker room with a 34-25 lead.

Lister credited Wyalusing for its patient offense in the first half.

“They run that weave at the top (of the key), and try to get you to fall asleep,” he said. “They make you play defense, and when you take a second off, they cut to the lane, or kick it out.

“We worked on it at practice for an hour last night, and we still struggled with it.

“(In the first half) I was just trying to find the right combination that would work,” added Lister. “Honestly, what worked in the fourth quarter was full-court man-to-man; that’s what got us back in the game.”

Lister also pointed to his team’s shooting woes in the first half. The ‘Cats made 8 of 32 shots (25 percent) from the field.

“We had good, high-percentage shots in the first half,” he said. “We just weren’t making them. We were missing lay-ups, the shots we have to make, we weren’t making.”

A driving lay-up by Mitchell Burke midway through the third quarter gave Wyalusing its biggest lead of the game, at 49-37.

A conventional three-point play by Babcock, and a free throw by junior Nalen Carling trimmed the deficit to 49-41 with 54 seconds remaining, but a driving lay-up Burke pushed the lead back to 10.

A point-blank jumper by Pritchard with 20 seconds remaining, pulled Athens within eight points, at 41-33, entering the fourth quarter.

A pair of free throws by Abram Bennett gave Wyalusing a 48-37 lead with 4:14 remaining, but Burke fouled out of the game 13 seconds later, and the Wildcats closed the game with a 15-3 blitz.

“Credit Athens, it was a great effort to get back in the game,” said Wyalusing coach Brent Keyes.

“When the game got going up-and-down, we got in foul trouble, and it took some of our leadership off the floor,”” he noted.

“We got sped up, and turned the ball over,” added Keyes. “We gave too many possessions away in the second half.”

Babcock started the run with a short jumper with 3:30 left in the game. After a pair of Wyalusing turnovers, Babcock scored on a baseline drive, and added a free throw to complete the three-point play, trimming the deficit to 48-42 with 2:59 left in the game.

After a Wyalusing time out, Babcock came up with a steal in the Ram end, and scored on a breakaway lay-up to make it 48-44 with 2:21 left in the game.

Following another Wyalusing turnover, Brown was fouled on a drive to the bucket, and converted both free throws to trim the deficit to 48-46 with 1:53 remaining.

After both teams came up with defensive stops, Babcock recorded a steal, and found Carling in the lane with a shovel pass for an open jumper to tie the game at 48-48 with 1:04 remaining.

With both teams in the double-bonus, Bennett made 1 of 2 free throws with 57 seconds remaining, but Babcock tipped in an Athens miss16 seconds later to give the Wildcats a 50-49 lead.

With 29.7 seconds remaining, Way went to the line and drained a pair of free throws to give the Rams a 51-50 lead.

With 10.7 seconds remaining, Brown found Babcock open in the lane, and he was fouled. Babcock drained both free throws to provide the final margin, but the game didn’t end without a bit more drama.

Wyalusing in-bounded the ball, and called timeout when it cleared half court with 4.3 seconds. After the time out, a baseline jumper by the Rams was long, and Blake Morningstar was johnny-on-the-spot on the weak side with an offensive rebound, but his short jumper spun off the rim as the buzzer sounded.

Babcock led Athens with 21 points, 13 rebounds and five assists, while Pritchard scored nine points, Brown had seven points, sophomore Mason Lister added five points, and senior James Benninger-Jones chipped in with four points.

Way led a balanced Wyalusing attack with 12 points, six rebounds, and one blocked shot, while Burke had 11 points and four rebounds, and Moss scored seven points.

Cobb scored six points for the Rams, while Morningstar added five points, five rebounds, three steals, and one blocked shot, Cameron had four points and three rebounds, and Bennett chipped in with four points.

Athens, now 6-2, returns to action Tuesday at North Penn-Liberty.

ATHENS — Athens took an early lead, and pulled away during the middle two quarters for a 41-18 win over Wyalusing here Friday night in NTL junior varsity boys basketball action.

Lucas Kraft scored six points in the first quarter to help the junior Wildcats to a 12-5 lead after the first eight minutes.

Chris Mitchell scored four points in the second quarter, Carson Smith knocked down a 3-pointer, and Kraft added an old-fashioned three-point play to account for the scoring in a 10-3 run that pushed the lead to 22-8 at the half.

The junior Wildcats duplicated the 10-3 run in the third quarter, with four points by Smith and a 3-pointer by Conner Mosher doing most of the damage. They led 32-11 heading into the final eight minutes.

Korey Miller buried a 3-pointer and scored five points in the fourth quarter as Athens added two points to its lead.

Mitchell led Athens with 11 points, while Kraft and Smith scored nine points apiece, and Miller and Mosher chipped in with five points apiece.

Trenton Hugo and Nick Vanderpool led Wyalusing with five points apiece.

TIOGA JUNCTION — Athens exploded for 47 first-half points, and cruised to a 62-23 win over Williamson here Thursday night in NTL girls basketball action.

“Caydence (Macik) and Kayleigh (Miller) shot the ball great tonight,” said Athens coach Brian Miller. “We had over 20 assists as a team, so that shows we executed our offense and shared the ball with each other.”

The Lady Wildcats shot 57 percent (26 of 46) from the field, with Macik making 10 of her 13 shots, and Miller knocking down 8 of her 13 shots, including 3 of 6 from behind the three-point arc.

Miller canned a pair of 3-pointers and scored 12 points in the first quarter, and Macik added six points to fuel a 23-6 first-quarter run.

Macik scored eight points, and Miller added seven points in the Lady Wildcats’ 24-8 blitz that pushed the lead to 47-14.

Macik had 21 points, six rebounds, six blocked shots, and two steals, and Miller had 21 points, three rebounds, three assists, and two steals to lead the Lady Wildcats.

Sophomore Karlee Bartlow had eight points, three assists, and two steals in the win, while Natalee Watson scored six points, senior Megan Collins doled out a team-high six assists, sophomore Emma Bronson dished out five assists, and freshman Mya Thompson grabbed three rebounds, and blocked one shot.

Lateisha Peterson led Williamson with 11 points, and Taylor Rae Jones added 10 points.

Athens, now 5-1, returns to action Saturday at Troy in a noon start.

ATHENS — Athens earned a pair of forfeit-filled wins over Northeast Bradford and Sayre here Thursday night in NTL wrestling action.

The Wildcats improved to 7-3 season, including a 3-1 mark in the NTL.

Athens 63, NEB 6
Athens won both bouts on the mat, and picked up nine forfeits in a 63-6 win over Northeast Bradford.

Freshman Josh NIttinger gave the Wildcats a quick 6-0 lead with a pin of NEB’s Kamden Ricci in 28 seconds at 285 pounds.

Six consecutive forfeits — to freshman Josh Courtney, at 113 pounds, junior Gavin Bradley (120), freshman Mason Vanderpool (126), sophomore Jake Courtney (132), junior Kaden Setzer (138), and junior Lucas Forbes — gave Athens a 42-0 lead.

In the only other contested weight class, Athens sophomore Chris Bathgate earned a hard-fought, 8-4, win over Jack Shumway.

Forfeits to junior Karter Rude (160), senior Zach Stafursky (172), and junior Collin Rosh (189) extend the Athens lead to 63-0.

Kenric received a forfeit at 215 pounds for NEB’s only points.

Athens 60, Sayre 12
The Wildcats won two of three bouts on the mat, and picked up eight forfeits in a 60-12 win over Sayre.

Athens junior Kaden Setzer opened the match with a pin of Sayre senior Bobby Benjamin in 1:32 at 138 pounds.

Forfeits to Lucas Forbes (145) and Chris Bathgate (152) made it 18-0, and Athens junior Karter Rude decked Sayre’s Kaden Bennett in 13 seconds at 160 pounds to extend the Wildcat lead to 24-0.

Senior Zach Stafursky gave Athens a 30-0 lead with a pin of Sayre’s Aiden Reid in 2:32 at 172 pounds.

The Redskins got on the board at 189 pounds when sophomore Glen Romberger pinned Athens junior Collin Rosh in 3:38.

After neither team sent a wrestler to the mat for the 215-pound bout, Athens freshman Josh Nittinger picked up a forfeit at 285, and Sayre freshman Kendrick Ross had his hand raised at 106 pounds.

Josh Courtney, at 113 pounds), Gavin Bradley (120), Mason Vanderpool (126), and Jake Courtney (132) received forfeits for the Wildcats to close out the match.

Athens hosts the Jarvis Tournament Saturday, starting at 10 a.m.

ATHENS — Athens won all four contested weight classes, and received five forfeits in a 54-18 win over Northeast Bradford here Thursday night in NTL junior high wrestling action.

Karson Sipley won the first bout to take to the mat, pinning NEB’s Mason Alexander in 2:33 at 94 pounds.

At 138 pounds, Keegan Congdon pinned Jayden Crawford in 1:29.

Matthias Welles recorded a 28-second fall over NEB’s Conner Eastabrook at 170 pounds.

And, Cooper Robinson scored a fall over Hunter Comstock in 1:54 at 108 pounds.

Eli Chapman, at 115 pounds, Sean Peters (122), Trey Souder (130), Kolsen Keathley (145), and Caleb Nason (250) received forfeits for the junior Wildcats.

Athens gave up six points at 80 to NEB’s Anaiah Kolesar, at 101 to Russell Martin, and at 190 to Dominick Clark.

ATHENS — Athens used a 14-0 second-quarter run, fueled by eight points in 50 seconds from junior Shayne Reid, to overcome an early deficit on its way to a 78-61 win over North Penn-Mansfield here Wednesday night in NTL Large School boys basketball action.

The Wildcats built an 18-9 lead with 2 /12 minutes remaining in the first quarter, but the Tigers closed the stanza with 13 straight points, then scored a quick bucket in the second quarter to take its biggest lead of the game, at 24-18.

“We came out of the gate strong tonight, right from the get-go,” said Lister. “We were rolling, then we just took our foot off the gas, and let them get back in the game.

“I wasn’t real happy, so I gave the guys a real hard time, and they responded,” added Lister.

The Wildcats forced NP-M into 20 turnovers, which created plenty of fast-break opportunities in the contest. They combined for 19 assists.

“We moved the ball well, and we were attacking the rim — our transition game has been really good,” said Lister. “And, we’ve been playing really good defense.

“I keep going back to that same old formula: if you play defense, you make lay-ups, and you make free throws, you win basketball games. That’s what we’re doing right now,” added Lister.

Twelve of Athens’ 19 assists came from the Wildcats’ big men — juniors Austin Lister, J.J. Babcock, and Nalen Carling.

“It’s something we work on in practice,” said Lister. “It’s a team game, I want to pound it inside. I want my bigs touching the ball. When that happens, good things happen, and it did tonight.”

Babcock pumped in 12 points, and junior Nalen Carling added a pair of buckets as Athens jumped out to an 18-9 lead, but Alex Stein scored seven of his 12 first-quarter points in a 13-0 Tiger run to end the quarter.

Freshman Carson Dominick gave NP-M a 24-18 lead on its first possession of the second quarter, but it would be nearly five minutes before they scored again. By that time, Athens led 32-24.

Carling triggered the Athens run with a putback on the offensive boards, then added a lay-up in transition, as well as a free throw to convert the old-fashioned three-point play that trimmed the deficit to 24-23.

Babcock, off a feed from Lister, gave Athens the lead for good with a fast-break bucket, and a Carling steal moments later turned into a lay-up by junior Tucker Brown to give the Wildcats a 27-24 lead.

Reid then scored on a driving lay-up in transition, and drained a 3-pointer to cap the run.

After a 3-pointer by NP-M’s Curtis Craig, Reid answered with another 3-pointer to make it 35-27.

“If someone’s feeling it, get him the ball,” said Lister. “Shayne (Reid) was feeling it today.

“It was his best game of the season so far,” he noted. “He was pushing the ball hard, he was making things happen, and his jump shot was there today.

“I keep saying it about this team: it could be anyone,” added Lister. “I have nine or 10 kids who can play basketball, and on any given night one of those kids can step up and deliver, and tonight was Shayne Reid’s night.”

A pair of free throws by Stein cut the lead to 35-29, but junior Troy Pritchard answered for the Wildcats with two free throws, and Lister and Reid followed with back-to-back buckets to make it 41-29.

Dominick scored on a shot jumper to make it 41-31, but Brown and Reid scored on drives to the bucket in the final 30 seconds of the half to give the Wildcats a 45-31.

Brown, off a feed from Carling, and Carling, off a feed from Brown, scored in transition in the opening minute of the second half, and moments later Lister buried a 3-pointer to make it 52-31.

The teams would trade buckets, with Tucker Brown’s lay-up giving the Wildcats a 60-41 lead, until the Tigers reeled off nine straight points to make it 60-50 with 20 seconds left in the third quarter.

Reid stopped the bleeding with a driving lay-up off the glass to give the Wildcats a 62-50 lead heading into the final eight minutes.

Athens kept it going in the opening minute of the fourth quarter with buckets by Carling, Reid and Babcock to make it 68-50.

The closest NP-M would get the remainder of the game is 13 points, at 74-61.

Babcock pumped in 21 points — on 10 of 14 shooting from the field — and had six rebounds, five steals, three assists, and one blocked shot for the Wildcats, while Reid tallied a career-high 18 points on an 8 of 12 shooting performance, and Brown scored 15 points on 7 of 7 shooting from the field, with three rebounds and three assists.

Carling contributed 13 points, five rebounds, and four assists in the win, while Lister added seven points, 10 rebounds, and seven assists, and senior James Benninger-Jones grabbed four boards.

The Wildcats shot 49.3 (34 of 69) percent from the field.

Athens, now 5-2, has won four straight after losing two of its first three.

“I’m gonna go back to Tucker Brown’s 3-pointer against Wellsboro when we were down 16 in the fourth quarter,” said Lister. “Whatever was in that shot was magic, and the guys have responded ever since.”

Dominick led Mansfield with 20 points, while Stein scored 16, and Craig added 11.

Athens returns to action Friday when it hosts Wyalusing in a game that will be broadcast on Choice 102.1.

ATHENS — Athens raced to a 20-point first-quarter lead, stretched it to 33 at the half, and cruised to a 55-17 win over North Penn-Mansfield here Wednesday night in NTL Large School Division junior varsity boys basketball action.

Seven different players put their name in the scorebook in the first quarter for the junior Wildcats, led by six points from Carson Smith, and four apiece by Chris Mitchell and Lucas Kraft in a 24-4 blitz.

Smith scored five more points in the second quarter, and Mitchell and Connor Mosher added four apiece in a 15-2 run that put Athens ahead 39-6 at the half.

Smith led Athens with 11 points, while Nicholas Jacob scored 10 points, Mitchell had eight points, Mosher had seven points, Daven Spencer added five points, and Kraft, Korey Miller and Ryan Thompson chipped in with four points apiece.

Athens returns to action Friday when it hosts Wyalusing.

MANSFIELD — The Athens defense held North Penn-Mansfield scoreless for nine minutes to start the game, and built a 16-point halftime lead en route to a 52-25 win here Tuesday night in NTL Large School girls basketball action.

The first quarter was a defensive struggle with NP-Mansfield playing a defense designed to stop Athens senior Kayleigh Miller.

“Mansfield came out and played box-and-one on Kayleigh most of  the game,” said Athens coach Brian Miller. “We adjusted from the second quarter on to get some good offensive looks.”

Senior Megan Collins buried a 3-pointer and junior Caydence Macik added a bucket to give the Lady Wildcats a 5-0 lead after the first eight minutes.

Macik scored five points, including an old-fashioned three-point play, and Collins knocked down another 3-pointer in the second quarter to fuel a 16-5 blitz that put Athens up 21-5 at the break.

In the third quarter, senior Kayleigh Miller buried a pair of 3-pointers, and Macik added four points as Athens added one point to its lead, taking a 34-17 advantage into the fourth quarter.

Macik scored eight points in the final eight minutes and Miller added four as Athens put the game away with an 18-8 run.

Macik led Athens with 20 points, nine rebounds, three steals, and one blocked shot, while Miller had 12 points, six steals, and five rebounds, and Collins added eight points and four assists.

Natalie Watson chipped in with four points and four rebounds in the win, while Mya Thompson had four rebounds and three steals, and Karlee Bartlow dished out four assists.

“Freshman Mya Thompson played a good game floor game tonight,” said Miller.

Elizabeth Kohl led NP-M with six points.

Athens, now 4-1, returns to action Thursday at Williamson.

ATHENS — The Athens swim teams both recorded wins over Towanda on “Senior Night” here Tuesday afternoon in NTL swimming & diving action.

“The seniors had a great night and lots of fun,” said Keister. “We had several very close races that made are nearly empty pool area roar. 

“Senior Emma Roe and junior Raven McCarthy-Gardner tried out some new dives,” he added. “And, we had an all seniors boys medley relay.

It wasn’t all about the seniors, though.

“The freshmen also did well,” said Keister. “For example, Grace Cobb dropped nearly 23 seconds in the 500 free from last week.”

GIRLS
Athens 110, Towanda 51
Sophomores Taegan Williams and Taylar Fisher won four events apiece, and junior Raven McCarthy-Gardner and freshman Emily Marshall were each triple-winners to lead Athens to a 110-51 win over Towanda.

Williams won the 200-yard IM in 2:40.98. She also won the 500-yard freestyle in a time of 6:04.97, and Cobb was second in 7:15.44.

Fisher won the 100-yard butterfly in a time of 1:16.59, and Marshall was second in 1:26.08. Fisher also won the 100-yard backstroke in a time of 1:13.56.

Marshall led a sweep in the 200-yard freestyle in a time of 2:33.02, while freshman Isabella Potter was second in 2:33.97, and Cobb was third in 2:38.64.

McCarthy-Gardner won the 100-yard breaststroke in a time of 1:25.03, and Potter was third in 1:35.77.

Williams, Fisher, McCarthy-Gardner, and Marshall teamed to win the 200-yard freestyle in a time of 2:00.59, while Fisher, Williams, McCarthy-Gardner, and sophomore Macaria Benjamin teamed to win the 200-yard medley relay in a time of 2:17.36.

Marshall, senior Kaitlin Kisner, Cobb and freshman Rebeca Gifeisman teamed to win the 400-yard freestyle relay in a time of 5:06.18.

Senior Emma Roe won the 1-meter diving competition with 153.7 points, and McCarthy-Gardner was second with 103.75 points.

Kisner finished second int he 50-yard freestyle in a time of 31.23, and Benjamin was third in 34.36 seconds. Kisner was also second in the 100-yard freestyle in a time of 1:09.74.

BOYS
Athens 75, Towanda 54
Senior Mason Henderson won four events and sophomore Chris DeForest was a triple-winner to lead Athens to a 75-54 win in the boys meet.

Sophomore Ethan Denlinger and senior Zac Gowin were double-winners for the Wildcats.

Henderson won the 200-yard IM in 2:37.11. He also won the 100-yard freestyle in a time of 58.6 seconds.

DeForest won the 200-yard freestyle in a time of 2:08.76, and sophomore Joe Blood was third in 2:31.95. DeForest also won the 100-yard butterfly in a time of 1:05.8.

Denlinger won the 500-yard freestyle in time of 6:0903, and Gowin was second in 6:19.89.

Henderson and Gowin teamed with seniors Joe Toscano and Lucas Aquilio to win the 200-yard medley relay in a time of 2:07.16.

Henderson, DeForest, Gowin, and Denlinger teamed to win the 200-yard freestyle relay in a time of 1:48.11.

Toscano finished second in the 50-yard freestyle in a time of 26.32 seconds, and Aquilio was third in 30.71 seconds. Toscano also finished second in the 100-yard backstroke in a time of 1:11.57.

Aquilio finished second in the 100-yard breaststroke in a time of 1:31.43, and senior Asher Ellis was third in 1:37.16.

Athens is scheduled to swim against Danville at Towanda Saturday.

WYALUSING — Junior Gavin Bradley and sophomore Jake Courtney set the tone early, and senior Zach Stafursky clinched the win late in Athens’ 40-25 win over Wyalusing — the Wildcats’ first win over the Rams in 12 years — here Tuesday night in NTL wrestling action.

Athens coach Shawn Bradley, who has been with the Wildcat program in one capacity or another for more than two decades, could not recall the last time they had beaten the Rams.

“Honestly, I don’t remember the last time we beat them. It sucks that I have to say that, but it’s true” laughed Bradley. “Hats off to them, they have a good program.

“I told our guys after the match, the difference between this year’s team, and years in the past is that every kid went out there and battled their butt off,” noted Bradley. “There were two matches we should have won, and two more we were in.

“I’m proud of the guys. They are all working hard in the room,” added Bradley. “These guys really pushed themselves, and gave a great effort today.”

A major key to the Athens win was bonus points. Athens scored 13 bonus points to Wyalusing’s one.

“Our guys battled, and kept every match close,” said Bradley.

After an Athens forfeit at 106 pounds, and Wyalusing forfeits at 113 and 120, Gavin Bradley, who placed seventh at Hershey last year, and sixth as a freshman, took the mat against Wyalusing’s Hunter Manahan.

Bradley scored a takedown just 14 seconds into the bout, and rode Manahan for the remainder of the period, unable to turn him for additional points.

Bradley scored a takedown five seconds into the second period, and forced Manahan to his back with a turk for three near-fall points, and a 7-0 lead. He rode top for the final 80 seconds of the period.

Bradley escaped nine seconds into the third period, and scored a takedown 10 seconds later for a 10-0 lead.

Over the next 89 seconds, Bradley cut Manahan loose and scored takedowns until he secured a 20-5 technical fall at 5:56.

“Gavin (Bradley) had to give up 12 pounds, but if we’re going to beat that team, that’s what we have to do,” said Bradley. “We need to rely on our two-time state medalist to get it done, and he did.”

“Gavin wrestled very well,” added Bradley. “The best thing about that win is the kid who beat him first at States last year was about 6-foot tall … (Manahan) is quite a bit taller, so it was good to see Gavin handle him the way he did.”

Jake Courtney was next at 132 pounds for the Wildcats.

He fell behind Owen Hadlock, 4-2, after the first two minutes, but used three takedowns in the second period, including one with 3 seconds remaining following a scramble, to take an 8-6 lead into the final two minutes.

Courtney led 10-7 when he locked Hadlock up in a cradle for a fall at 4:45.

“Jake got a really big win for us. He started slow, but he has a huge gas tank, he has that Courtney gas tank,” said Bradley. “He kept scoring points, and kept wrestling.

“He wrestles hard in practice … now if we can get him to start a little bit faster, he’ll be there with some really good guys,” added Bradley.

With Athens up 23-6, junior Kaden Setzer put on a dominating display with a series of trap-arm tilts for a 16-0 technical fall of Cade McMicken to make it 28-6. The final two-point tilt came at the first-period buzzer.

Skyler Manahan gave the Rams their first win on the mat at 145 pounds, with a 10-2 decision over Lucas Forbes.

Manahan built a 4-0 lead with takedowns in each of the first two periods, and led 4-1 entering the third period after being dinged for a stalling point.

Leading 5-2, Manahan scored a five-point move in the final 10 seconds for the majority decision to trim the Athens lead to 28-10.

At 152 pounds, Wyalusing’s Nick Woodruff earned a hard-fought, 4-2, decision over Chris Bathgate to cut the Wildcat advantage to 28-13.

Woodruff scored a takedown midway through the first period, but Bathgate tied the bout at 2-2 with a reversal with just 18 seconds remaining in the second period.

Woodruff took a 4-2 lead on a takedown with 1:12 remaining in the third period, and was able to ride top for the remainder of the bout.

The Rams crept a bit closer at 160 pounds, thanks to Colbrin Nolan’s 7-5 win over Karter Rude.

After a scoreless first period, Nolan escaped to start the second, but a five-point move by Rude gave him a short-lived, 5-1, lead. Nolan reversed Rude to his back moments later to tie the bout at 5-5.

In the third period, Nolan scored a takedown on a go-behind with 52 seconds remaining, and rode out the remainder of the bout.

At 172 pounds, Wyalusing’s Brian Arnold scored a reversal midway through the second period to take a 2-0 lead, but Zach Stafursky was able to escape moments later to trim his deficit to 2-1.

With 1:10 remaining in the third period, Stafursky registered a reversal to take a 3-2 lead, then locked in a cradle for the fall at 5:16 to give Athens an insurmountable, 34-16, lead with three weight classes remaining.

“(Zach) finished that match nicely. He got it done when he had to,” said Bradley. “Now, if we can get him going in the first two periods, he’ll be tough.”

At 189 pounds, Wyalusing’s Alex Hunsinger turned in a workmanlike performance in a 10-4 win over Colin Rosh to cut the Athens lead to 34-19.

Hunsinger scored takedowns in each of the first two periods, and led 5-2 entering the final two minutes.

In the third period, he scored two more takedowns to secure the decision.

After an Athens forfeit at 215 pounds cut the Wildcat advantage to 34-25, freshman Josh Nittinger put the finishing touches on the win for Athens with a pin of Dereck Baldwin in 33 seconds to provide the final margin.

After the match, Bradley succinctly summed up the feelings of most coaches and wrestlers.

“I’m just glad we’re getting the chance to wrestle.”

Athens, now 5-3, returns to action Thursday when it hosts Sayre and NEB, while the Rams, now -1-1, travel to Towanda Friday.

——————

IN PHOTO 1: Athens junior Gavin Bradley. … PHOTOS BY DAVID ALLIGER — TRAVELING PORTRAITS.

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ATHENS 40, WYALUSING 25
106: Clayton Carr (W) won by forfeit;
113: Joshua Courtney (A) won by forfeit;
120: Mason Vanderpool (A) won by forfeit;
126: Gavin Bradley (A) tech. fall over Hunter Manahan (W), 20-5 @ 5:56;
132: Jacob  Courtney (A) by fall over Owen Hadlock (W), 4:45;
138: Kaden Setzer (A) tech. fall over Cade McMicken (W), 16-0 @ 2:00;
145: Skyler Manahan (W) major dec. Lucas Forbes (A), 12-2;
152: Nicholas Woodruff (W) dec. Christopher Bathgate (A), 4-2;
160: Colbrin Nolan (W) dec. Karter Rude (A), 7-5;
172: Zachary Stafursky (A) by fall over Brian Arnold (W), 5:16;
189: Alex Hunsinger (W) dec. Colin Rosh (A), 10-4;
215: Zachary Shaffer (W) won by forfeit;
285: Joshua Nittinger (A) by fall over Dereck Baldwin (W), 0:33.

MANSFIELD — North Penn-Mansfield held a slim lead after the first eight minutes, but pulled away thanks in large part to a 14-5 third-quarter run for a 38-23 win over Athens here Tuesday night in NTL junior varsity girls basketball action.

The junior Tigers led 9-8 after the first quarter, and 17-12 at the half, before stretching their advantage to 31-17 heading into the final eight minutes.

Mya Thompson led Athens with seven points, five rebounds, and three steals, while Karlee Bartlow had five points, two assists, and two steals, and Natalee Watson had five points and seven rebounds.

Abby Champion added three rebounds and two blocked shots for the junior Lady Wildcats, while Braelynn Wood grabbed four rebounds, and Izzy Davis had three boards.

Athens, now 2-3, returns to action Thursday at Williamson.

SAYRE — Athens used a 15-5 run that bridged the third and fourth quarters to blow open a close game en route to a 54-41 win over crosstown rival Sayre here Monday night in NTL boys basketball action.

The Wildcats were successful getting out in transition and converted several breakaway lay-ups throughout the contest.

“We really talk about pushing the ball, and attacking every time we have the ball,” said Athens coach Jim Lister.  “We have the speed and we have the size. We need to take advantage of that and use it … we did that at times tonight.

“It helps having kids who are 6-3, 6-4, 6-5,” added Lister. “It helps us get down the court, it helps us see over the defender, the press isn’t really bothering us.”

Sayre coach Devin Shaw also pointed to Athens’ fast-break success as the difference in the contest.

“I think our biggest problem was, we got beat on the fast break a lot tonight,” he said. “(Athens) got a lot of leak-out points, and I think that was the big difference.

“They built a lead, and it’s hard to come back, especially against a good team that can do that,” added Shaw.

Lister also pointed to his team’s performance on the defensive end of the floor, especially his big men getting out on Sayre’s shooters.

“I thought we had a good defensive night tonight,” he said. “Holding a team to 40 points is going to win you a lot of ball games.

“You have to look at the match-ups. Sayre likes to shoot the ball from the outside,” added Lister. “We had to take that away, and I thought we did a pretty good job of that tonight.”

Sayre’s Lucas Horton buried a 3-pointer to give Sayre a 3-2 lead about 90 seconds into the game, and the teams traded buckets for the next 2 1/2 minutes.

Sayre senior Connor Young’s short jumper in the lane gave Sayre a 7-6 lead with 4:02 remaining in the first quarter. It was the Redskins’ last lead of the game.

Moments later, junior Mason Lister scored on a driving lay-up to give the Wildcats an 8-7, and sparking an 8-0 spurt.

Junior J.J. Babcock made it 10-7 with a putback on the offensive boards, then scored back-to-back uncontested lay-ups in transition to push the lead to 14-7 with 2:20 left in the first quarter.

“I thought we did a good job of attacking the rim in the first quarter, and played some really good basketball,” said Lister. “Then, we got a little complacent in the second quarter.”

After the teams traded buckets to end the first quarter at 18-11, Sayre junior Dom Fabbri drained a 3-pointer to start the second quarter and trim the deficit to 18-14.

Babcock then blocked a shot on the defensive end, and then finished off the fast break on the other end. Moments later, junior Nalen Carling scored in transition to make it 22-14.

Sophomore Jackson Hubbard scored on the offensive boards for the Redskins to spark a 7-0 spurt that was capped by senior Connor Young’s putback to trim the Athens lead to 22-21 with 2:31 remaining int he first half.

After a defensive stop, the Redskins had a chance to take the lead, but missed an open jumper. Athens junior Troy Pritchard rebounded the miss, and found junior Tucker Brown open downcourt with a baseball pass for an easy lay-up to make it 24-21.

Junior Shane Reid scored with 1.2 seconds remaining to give Athens a 28-23 halftime advantage.

Shaw took note of the play of Hubbard and Young.

“You need guys to be able to come of the bench and play a role, do their job when their number is called,” said Shaw. “(Jackson Hubbard) gave us a spark, and helped keep us in the ball game.

“And, Connor (Young) did a great job in the post,” added Shaw. “He’s getting better every day.”

The Redskins held Athens scoreless for nearly four minutes to start the second half, and again trimmed the deficit to one point, at 28-27, but Reid’s runner in the lane with 4:07 sparked a 6-0 spurt that ignited the decisive run.

Young scored from point-blank range with 1 second remaining in the third quarter, but Pritchard and Lister scored buckets in the first minute of the fourth quarter to give the Wildcats a 38-29 lead.

After Sayre senior Matt Lane knocked down a 3-pointer, the Wildcats used an 8-2 spurt that featured a pair of old-fashioned three-point plays by Brown to stretch their lead to 46-34 with 4:12 left in the game.

The Redskins had one final run in them as Fabbri made four consecutive free throws, and Lane added two to trim the Athens lead to 46-40 with 2:37 left in the game.

On Athens’ ensuing possession, Babcock popped open in the paint on an in-bounds play under the bucket for an easy score with 1:57 left in the game to make it 48-40.

After Sayre made 1 of 2 free throws 12 seconds later, Athens put the game away, scoring the final six points of the game.

Lister was pleased with the win, but notes there’s is room for improvement.

“I would just like to see us attack the basket a little bit more,” he said. “We just need to be more efficient on offense, and a little bit sharper, and attack the rim.

“Was it a perfect game? No, we still have to work on getting better,” added Lister. “This league is way too good, you just can’t take a night off.”

Babcock led Athens with 18 points, four rebounds, six assists, and four blocks, while Carling had 10 points and nine rebounds, and Pritchard added with points, three rebounds and three assists.

Brown had eight points and two steals in the win, while Lister had four points, four rebounds, and five assists, and Reid chipped in with four points and five boards.

Fabbri led Sayre with 12 points, while Young posted a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds, Hubbard added nine points and five rebounds, and Lane chipped in with five points.

Athens improves to 4-2, and has won three straight, while Sayre falls to 1-3, and has lost three in a row.

Shaw remains positive despite the losses.

“They were all winnable basketball games,” he said. “Obviously, Athens is a good team, but we’re still competing.”

Athens returns to action Wednesday when it hosts North Penn-Mansfield, while Sayre hosts Cowanesque Valley.