NTL GIRLS BASKETBALL: TOWANDA'S SECOND HALF RALLY COMES UP SHORT AGAINST MCA DURING PLAYOFF ACTION (February 20, 2026)

BY CHRIS MANNING
Northern Tier Sports Report
TOWANDA — In a rematch of last year’s thrilling District IV, Class AAA third place game Towanda struggled with Mount Carmel’s length, and though they were able to rally in the second half they fell to the Red Tornadoes, 42-29, in the district quarterfinals.

“Their length really affected us tonight, which I fully expected,” said Towanda coach Rob Gentile. “I had a feeling they were going to play that extended 1-2-2 zone, and make it difficult for us to score inside. They obviously had an advantage there, and they did a super job.”

It was 8-6 Mount Carmel halfway through the first quarter when they went on a 19-1 run the rest of the half to take a 22-point lead into the locker rooms.

“They were well prepared for our pressure,” Gentile said. “We dug ourselves a big hole, gave up second chance opportunities, and had some breakdowns in our rotations defense, but we were also trying to be super aggressive because we knew that we had to make some defensive plays to get us some momentum, and it just never happened. We scored seven points in the first half; obviously, the kids were a little upset, probably a little embarrassed. At halftime our talk was simple, whatever happens were going to fight until the end.”

The Knights would out score them 10-8 in the third, then score nine straight to start the fourth quarter to cut the deficit to 11 with 5:46 left to play.

Mount Carmel, though, scored five straight as they held the Knights scoreless for over four minutes to drain out the clock.

“We made the run, hit a couple threes, and the kids just didn’t quit,” remarked Gentile. “The kids kept fighting, even at the end they were fighting, and we gave up some easy buckets, and a couple fouls but I was really proud of them. That’s a solid basketball team - they’re battle tested. They play against teams as good as them, if not better, all year long, and they’ve been playing really good basketball down the stretch.”

Reese Sullivan had eight points and two steals to lead the Knights, with Brynn Woodruff adding seven points, six boards, and two blocks.

Payton Perry netted five points, with Mya Maynard getting four points, and seven boards. Ali Hollett had three points, as Maris Cobb, and Kennedy Heyer netted one point each, with Cobb also getting four steals.

Karis Flynn chipped in with two steals.

Raina Paulson had 15 points to lead Mt. Carmel, with Hannah Fourspring netting 11. Samantha Seigrist netted eight, Tessa Fourspring scored six, and Brooklyn Torres rounded out their scorers with two.

The Tornadoes scored six points in their first three possessions to go up 6-0, and eventually 8-0 as Hannah Fourspring had six of her team’s points.

Towanda had five turnovers in their first five possessions but a 3-ball from Sullivan 3:30 into the quarter sparked the Knights.

On their ensuing possession Woodruff had an And-1 for an 8-6 ball game.

It stayed like that for three minutes until Hannah Fourspring went on a 5-0 spurt in the final 20 seconds for a 13-6 Mt. Carmel lead.

The Red Tornadoes then went on a 12-0 run to start the second as they held Towanda scoreless for over nine minutes going back into the first quarter.

A Heyer free throw broke the drought with 2:13 left in the half, but by then it was 25-7 Mt. Carmel.

The Red Tornadoes went on a 4-0 run to end the quarter for the 29-7 lead at the break.

Seigrist got a bucket to start the third quarter for a 24-point lead, but jumpers from Maynard and Sullivan cut it to 31-13.

The two teams then traded buckets for a 33-13 score halfway through the third frame.

After a Seigrist put back the Knights got an old fashion 3-point play from Sullivan, followed by a free throw out of Cobb to make it 35-17.

With five seconds left in the quarter, though, Seigrist got a bucket for a 37-17 score.

It didn’t affect the Knights as they came out of the quarter break firing, beginning with back to back 3-balls from Woodruff and Hollett.

Perry then had an And-1 to make it an 11-point game with enough time left to complete the comeback.

At the other end, though, Paulson got the free throw line, making 1-of-2 as Mt. Carmel tightened up their defense.

She added two more free throws, while Torres had a steal and lay-up to re-extend the lead to 42-26 with just over three minutes left.

In the final minute and a half Woodruff got a free throw while Maynard added a lay-up for the 13-point difference.

Towanda will say good-bye to two starters in seniors Heyer and Woodruff, and Gentile knows they’ll be missed.

“When they were freshmen it was our last NTL championship team,” he said. “Brynn had a little larger role in terms of playing - she came in and we put her in the role Porschia had before and she did a fantastic job. But we graduated everybody, and we had really nobody here to kind of build that culture. I think, if you ask anybody, when you play Towanda you know you’re going to get 32 minutes of a battle. My kids are never going to quit, they’ve got great attitudes, they’re tough kids, they play with a lot of passion, and these two kind of helped create that. It’s hard to lose kids like that, but I think we were blessed to have them. They know how much I care about them, and I’ll always be there for them.”

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PHOTOS BY CHRIS MANNING

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