Mar 14, 2025
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Loyalsock’s Alaina Dadzie drives the ball down floor on a fast break in the first half.
POTTSVILLE–After watching their classmates dominate the second half Friday night at Martz Hall, Loyalsock students who traveled 90 minutes made one more final, passionate request. Get Zaryah Hawkins the ball they pleaded.
Again, the Lancers brilliantly executed the plan. Mackenzie Miller whipped a pass Hawkins’ way, and the freshman drained a jumper, eliciting the night’s loudest ovation. Call it the perfect ending to a near perfect second half performance.
Countless hours have been sacrificed, and players have endured bumps, bruises and injuries. But through all the twists and turns, Loyalsock has made it back to where it wanted to be since leaving Shamokin’s gym last March. The Lancers wanted another chance and now have earned it.
Lacey Kriebel ignited a fabulous third quarter run, and scored a season-high 24 points, Jaekairah Harden fueled a ferocious defense, and every Lancer did her part as Loyalsock routed District 2 champion Dunmore, 60-36 in the Class AAA state quarterfinals. The Lancers (28-2) set a new program record for wins in a season and reached the Final 4 for a second straight year. There, they will play Imhotep next Friday at a time and place to be determined.
“It feels great,” Harden said after scoring 10 points and grabbing eight rebounds. “The feeling of losing in the Final 4 last year, it gave us the motivation to try and get back there to get another shot.”
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Loyalsock’s Lacey Kriebel (11), Alaina Dadzie (30) and Julie Ellis (2) congratulate each other after a big win over Dunmore in the PIAA Class AAA playoffs at Pottsville’s Martz Hall Friday.
“It’s hard. It’s very difficult to get here,” Loyalsock coach Curtis Jacobson said. “We just played our 30th game, and it’s a long season. It’s a grind but they want more.”
Loyalsock continued showing how bad it wants it by shining in all facets against an outstanding team which had won 18 straight games and was two years removed from capturing the state championship. Dunmore (24-3) led 8-7 after the first quarter, but Loyalsock surged ahead by seven at halftime and then produced a virtuoso third quarter performance, outscoring Dunmore, 27-7 and landing an early knockout blow.
Kriebel scored a whopping 16 points during that third quarter, while Alaina Dadzie, who will sing in the school musical Saturday, hit some sweet notes, producing 17 points, eight rebounds and four assists. Julie Ellis set an aggressive early tone, having a hand in the game’s first four points and dealing three assists; Jillian Kennedy excelled on both ends and reserves Addie Bastian and Madison Perry again produced quality minutes.
Different players did different things, but all placed their fingerprints upon this state quarterfinal victory.
“That was a huge win. I don’t think anyone expected us to do that,” Kriebel said after adding seven rebounds, five assists and three steals. “We just believed in what we thought we could do, and we did it.”
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Loyalslck’s head coach Curtis Jacobson directs his team during the third quarter.
“I feel like the second half we always try and come out with that first punch,” Ellis said while celebrating her 18th birthday in style. “We try and come out and land that first punch and don’t let down from there and that’s exactly what we did.”
Loyalsock landed enough third quarter haymakers to make a prime Mike Tyson smile. Considering the strength of the opponent, the Lancers may have played their best quarter all season in the third, making 11 of 17 shots, forcing five turnovers and displaying a super inside-outside game. They moved ball well enough to please fictional Hickory Huskers Norman Dale, unselfishly set each other up and kept their foot on the gas.
Five minutes into the second half, Loyalsock already had scored 22 points and Harden’s 3-point play had it up, 42-20. The lead continued to grow from there and when the dust settled, Loyalsock held a 49-22 advantage entering the fourth quarter.
“On three or four possessions in a row we were able to call something, and the girls executed it to perfection and knocked down a shot,” Jacobson said. “Once Lacey hit two 3s they called timeout and we’re drawing stuff up and saying let’s get the ball inside now and the girls did it. They handled everything Dunmore threw at us.”
Kriebel did her best Caitlin Clark impersonation in that game-changing third quarter, draining four 3-pointers and scoring 16 points. She hit 3-pointers on consecutive possessions to start the third quarter, then found Dadzie inside before hitting a hook shot inside. Just like that, Loyalsock led 32-15 just two minutes into the third.
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Loyalsock’s Alaina Dadzie (30) is congratulated by team mates after being taken out during the fourth quarter.
“When I saw the first one go through, I was like ‘OK, here we go,’” Kriebel said. “Credit my teammates for getting me the ball and if I was open, I was shooting it. Every time it went in, it felt so good.”
Harden was one of several players who kept the good times going. She scored five points that quarter, going coast-to-coast for a layup before fighting for an offensive board, scoring off the putback and adding a free throw.
Harden also fanned the flames for a stifling defense which swallowed up an explosive Dunmore offense. The Lancers ran different looks at Dunmore and 1,500-point scorer Sophia Talutto. While the dynamic point guard scored 18 points, Loyalsock never let her pile them up in spurts or allow the Bucks to get into rhythm.
So, while the Loyalsock offense opened up, the defense closed off Dunmore scoring opportunities. Quality shots were hard to come by and when the Bucks did earn them, Loyalsock effectively limited them to one, hitting the boards hard.
“The message at halftime was don’t let them go on a run,” Harden said. “Teams usually take halftime to get pumped up and they start going from there. We had to stop that before it started.”
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Loyalsock’s Jaekairah Harden (22) and Dunmores Amanda Dempsey (10) fight for a lose ball in the fourth quarter.
Although Loyalsock trailed after a quarter, encouraging signs stood out. The Lancers were getting the shots they wanted; they were just not falling. And after settling in those first eight minutes, Loyalsock started smoothly executing its offense while continuing to dig in defensively.
The lead changed hands eight times in the game’s first 11 minutes, but a Kennedy assist to Dadzie and Dadzie dish to Ellis put Loyalsock ahead to stay, 16-13. After making 3 of 16 first quarter shots, Loyalsock made 6 of 11 in the second quarter. It led 22-15 at halftime, but more important than the margin was the fact that the pieces were starting to fall into place.
The Lancers then came out and put the whole puzzle together in the third quarter.
“It was nothing but positive at halftime. We knew here and there we had some missteps, but they were all in good intentions,” Ellis said. “It wasn’t anything that was mentally bad. We all had good intentions with what we were trying to do.”
Good intentions produced enough good vibes to make the Beach Boys groove throughout the second half. Loyalsock kept going strong and a Kriebel 3-point play gave it its biggest lead, 56-28. From there, the starters began exiting, all receiving hearty and well-deserved ovations from a large crowd which kept pumping up the volume and the team.
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Loyalsock’s Jillian Kennedy(10) bats down a pass intended for Dunmore’s Sophia Talutto (2) in the third quarter.
The work continues and the challenge increases but reaching a Final 4 is incredibly hard. The fact Loyalsock had never reached that destination before last season highlights that. So, in front of so many fans, and on one of the state’s most hallowed courts, the Lancers certainly produced a moment to cherish.
“I looked out there and was like, ‘Wow, there are a lot of people here!’ It feels great to see everyone come out and support us,” Kriebel said. “I feel like people are starting to see what we’re made of; what we’ve worked on all year. I think they’re excited to watch us.”
DUNMORE (36)
Sophia Talutto 6 4-4 18, Amanda Dempsey 3 0-2 6, Michelle Nidoh 1 0-0 2, Jackie Brown 0 0-2 0, Lenna Conte 1 0-0 2, Ella Brier 0 2-2 2, Lizzie Mendola 1 0-0 2, Taryn Walsh 1 0-0 2. Totals 13 6-10 36.
LOYALSOCK (60)
Alaina Dadzie 8 0-0 17, Lacey Kriebel 8 4-7 24, Julie Ellis 2 1-2 5, Jaekairah Harden 4 2-3 10, Jillian Kennedy 1 0-0 2, Addie Bastian 0 0-0 0, Madison Perry 0 0-0 0, Mackenzie Miller 0 0-0 0, Maddie Wertz 0 0-0 0, Addi Barowy 0 0-0 0, Zaryah Hawkins 1 0-0 2. Totals 24 7-12 60.
Dunmore 8 7 7 14–36
Loyalsock 7 15 27 11–60
3-pointers: Dunmore 2 (Talutto ); Loyalsock 5 (Kriebel 4, Dadzie).
Records: Loyalsock 28-2. Dunmore 24-3.
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Loyalsock’s Julie Ellis (2) drives around Dunmore’s Amanda Dempsey (10) to shoot in the first half.
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Loyalsock’s Alaina Dadzie (30) shoots around Dunmores Michelle Nidoh (32) in the first half.
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Loyalsock’s Julie Ellis (2) shoots around Dunmore’s Jackie Brown (50) in the first half.
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Loyalsock’s Julie Ellis (2) splits the defense between Dunmore’s Amanda Dempsey (10) and Sophia Talutto (2) in the first half.
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Loyalsock’s Julie Ellis (2) drives around Dunmore’s Amanda Dempsey (10) in the first half.
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Loyalsock’s Julie Ellis (2) shoots around Dunmore’s Michelle Nidoh (32) in the second half.
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Loyalsock’s Julie Ellis (2) keeps an eye on Dunmore’s Sophia Talutto (2) in the first half.
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Loyalsock’s Lacey Kriebel shoots around Dunmore’s Sophis Talutto in the first half.
MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Loyalsock’s Julie Ellis shoots around Dunmore’s Sophia Talutto in the first half.
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