CLARION, Pa. (EYT) – Karns City has punched its ticket into the Keystone Shortway Athletic Conference championship game with a 62-49 victory over Clarion on Thursday evening.
(Pictured above, Taite Beighley holds up the plaque after being named ExploreClarion KSAC Hager Paving Incorporated Player of the Game)
The Gremlins were led by a 21-point performance out of junior point guard Taite Beighley. His efforts earned him ExploreClarion KSAC Hager Paving Player of the Game honors.
The difference came from Karns City’s bench, which stepped up in a crucial semifinal tilt. Sophomore forward Shane Peters, who came off the bench for the Gremlins, finished second on the team in scoring with 14 points.
Karns City will take on the winner of Clarion-Limestone and Union on Saturday at 6 p.m.
The game started just as Karns City had hoped, with Beighley connecting on a three. A reverse layup by Clarion’s Devon Lauer then made things 3-2 in the early going.
Karns City capitalized on a pair of free throws from Jacob Callihan, before Micah Rupp got on the board with a put-back layup, extending the Gremlins’ lead to 7-2. Two more free throws from Hobie Bartoe pushed the lead out to 9-2.
Clarion seemed to gain some momentum midway through the first quarter with a steal-and-score by Lauer. However, Karns City would manage to hold a 19-9 lead after one quarter of play.
The Bobcats were able to chip away at Karns City’s lead in the early stages of the second quarter. Smail, Lauer, and Simko teamed up on a 9-3 run to set the score at 25-18 with just over 3:40 to play in second quarter.
Four points from Peters and a bucket from Rupp put the score at 33-20 at halftime.
Both teams traded a few buckets out of the break before Beighley’s layup made the score 37-26 midway through the third. The Gremlins used a turnover soon after to gain some much-needed momentum, heading down the stretch of the third quarter.
Bartoe came up with two straight buckets to make it 41-26 before a three from Beighley and another layup capped off a 7-3 run to end the quarter.
As the lead sat at 46-29 for the Gremlins at the beginning of the fourth quarter, Clarion refused to go down without a fight.
The Bobcats chipped into the lead with a jumper by Dawson Smail before some full-court pressure led to a steal-and-score, making the score 46-33 and causing Karns City head coach Zach Kepple to burn a timeout.
The Gremlins came out of the timeout with a coast-to-coast score by Bartoe, followed by three straight buckets from Peters, stretching the lead to 56-35.
Clarion would manage to string together an 11-4 run in the waning minutes of the fourth quarter, but it was not enough as Karns City held on for the win.
Bartoe finished with 10 points while Callihan tallied nine points, and Rupp eight.
Bryce Brinkley and Gabe Simko led the way for Clarion, tallying 13 points apiece while Derek Smail and Lauer each had seven.
