GANT: Clearfield Boys and Girls Each Defeated

The Clearfield Bison boys squad had their six-game win streak snapped as they fell 54-48 to Central. The Clearfield Lady Bison also lost, as turnovers bit Clearfield in their 59-33 loss to Penns Manor.

(These articles were provided by our News Partner GantDaily.com.)

Boys Recap

MARTINSBURG, Pa. — Riding a lot of momentum with six consecutive wins, the Clearfield Bison were ready to get back to the court after going seven straight games before finally having an off-day. After having a day of rest, Friday night meant a trip to Martinsburg for a Mountain League showdown against the Central Dragons.

The first half saw both teams duel for 16 minutes and the score reflected how close both were. But, the Bison came out of the locker room flat, and it cost them dearly. Despite reeling in the opposition in the final quarter, the Bison win streak came to a close thanks to the Dragons, 54-48.

Clearfield fell behind in the first quarter, but managed to pull to within one in the second stanza. Heading into the locker room, Clearfield trailed 28-27.

But, when the teams exited the locker room, the Dragon offense, and defense, put the Bison in check, as nothing was going right for the visiting squad. Clearfield could not find the net but one time in eight minutes, while the Dragons would drain 18 points in the stanza, to put Clearfield in a hole that would be almost impossible to climb back from.

Still, the Bison didn’t give up, as Cole Miller got hot in the final quarter, finishing the night with 15 of his game-high 23 points to help pull Clearfield within striking distance. Karson Rumsky also assisted in bringing Clearfield back with a pair of buckets. He would finish with 19 points. But, Clearfield did not have many chances to get easy points as the Dragons played disciplined basketball in the paint. Clearfield only went to the foul line only four times on the night, making three of those shots, while hitting 19 shots from the field.

For Central, Seth Bean would pace the squad with 18 points.

Clearfield (6-2) is back in action on Tuesday night with a pair of back-to-back games in consecutive days against the Bald Eagle Area Eagles. Tuesday’s contest will be inside the Bison Gym with a tip-off for the varsity coming at approximately 7:30 p.m.

Girls Recap

HYDE, Pa. — The COVID-chaos of a schedule to start the 2021 season for the Clearfield Lady Bison came to its conclusion on Friday night with the fourth game in five days for Joey Castagnolo and his squad. The advantage for the final couple games in the stretch were that the contests would be played on the hardwood of the Bison Gymnasium, meaning no road trips and familiar surroundings. Friday night, the Lady Bison welcomed in the Lady Comets of Penns Manor for a non-league matchup.

Sadly for the Lady Bison, this game was one that saw the opposition capitalize on the boards, take advantage of turnovers, and in the end put up the better score as the Lady Comets walked away with a 59-33 victory, and handed Clearfield its third loss on the season.

“The emotions from that win (Thursday) I think got left on the court last night,” Castagnolo said. “We were flat in the second half. We only scored 10 points in the second half, and we got dejected after every miss.”

The Lady Comets got out to an early lead right from the opening tip, and ended the first quarter with a 21-11 gap that they never relinquished. As the game progressed, it became clear that Clearfield had a lot of effort, but could not keep a handle on the ball as turnovers became an issue. The Bison mishandled the ball nine times in the first eight minutes, and in the end saw 27 turnovers that became too much to overcome.

Clearfield could not get their footing in the second half, as they only managed 10 points in the final 16 minutes. Castagnolo felt his team played hard, but at the same time they have played four games in a matter of five days.

“We had four games this week, and I believe we got wore out…with that schedule, I wish I had a bigger bench. The girls were getting really tired after four games this week. We will bounce back,” Castagnolo said.

The bright spot for Clearfield was the play of Paige Rhine as she finished the night with a double-double, draining 14 points and adding in 11 rebounds. Emma Hipps also contributed to her teammates with six assists and a pair of steals.

Penns Manor was paced by Megan Dumm who had a game-high 23 points with seven rebounds, while Kassidy Smith accounted for another 18 points and seven rebounds. Anna Peterman led the Lady Comets with nine assists.

The Lady Comets also won the opening junior varsity contest, 49-26.

Clearfield’s schedule had a lot of games in a short period of time, however Castagnolo was pleased with how this early season has progressed. The Lady Bison sit 3-1 in Mountain League play, and overall have a record of 4-3. When compared to just a season ago, the Lady Bison are showing a lot of hope for what could be a successful 2021 campaign. However, Castagnolo also was happy to get a break in the upcoming week as Clearfield only has two games on the schedule. That means more time for practice, and it is something he believes his team needs, and can benefit from.

“Considering we won five games all last year, starting 4-3 is not bad,” Castagnolo said.. “But, we get to work on some new things this week. After four games, the girls and everybody knows what I’m going to call. So, we are going to work on some new things for next week.”