POTTSVILLE — On Jan. 14, West Perry dropped a 58-54 double-OT gut-puncher decision to Camp Hill in a Mid-Penn Capital game, and the Mustangs’ record stood at 6-5.
West Perry’s players weren’t exactly doing cartwheels at practice the next day.
On Feb. 19, the Mustangs played in the District 3-AAA playoffs against Capital rival Middletown as the No. 10 seed in the bracket.
Hey, they were in, certainly with nothing to lose.
Seventeen wins in a row and a district championship later, the Mustangs were at Martz Hall on Saturday for a PIAA-AAA state quarterfinal game against District 2 No. 3 seed Holy Redeemer.
Back on Jan. 14, West Perry was hoping just to make the district playoffs.
On Feb. 19, the Mustangs were hoping just to win and advance and get to play another day.
Oh, they won and advanced, all right, and got to play many, many more days.
But West Perry’s joyride — the 17 wins in a row, the program’s first district title since 1995, two games in the Giant Center, the bus rides, the happy parents and the fun, green-clad student cheering section — came to an abrupt end Saturday, when the Mustangs fell to press-happy Holy Redeemer 53-41.
So that’s the end of the gold-paved, long and winding road for West Perry, which did some magical things in the last two calendar months.
They went 2-0 playing in pressure-packed district playoff games in the Giant Center — not the easiest place in the world to play, by the way — knocking out 15-time district champ Lancaster Catholic and No. 1 seed Susquehannock to clinch the championship.
They also beat defending district champ Palmyra along the way. And District 6-AA runner-up and two-time reigning Tri-Valley League champ Juniata. Plus West Perry handed Middletown its lone Capital loss, while picking up more steam down the stretch heading into the postseason.
And there were two thrilling state-playoff wins: 69-26 over Freire Charter before an overflow crowd at Northern York, and 51-35 over Abington Heights in the Mustangs’ first of two trips to Martz Hall in four days.
There was Caitlyn Lavenberg, always laughing and keeping everyone loose, yet always reduced to tears of joy doing postgame celebrations. Kid wears her heart on her sleeve, and she genuinely cares about her teammates and the program.
There was Megan Smith dropping 30 points on Lancaster Catholic in the district semifinals in the Giant Center, making the court her own personal playground with the lights shining brightest.
There was Madison Urich dribbling through traffic for 18 points and a pair of 3s in the win over Freire Charter, when seemingly the whole town of Elliottsburg was packed into Northern like a can of sardines that night.
There was freshman Gracie Stauffer dropping 10 points and grabbing six boards in the win over Abington Heights before a wide-eyed, raucous crowd at Martz Hall.
Saturday, there were tears and hugs, red eyes and blank stares.
And one last media session for coach Scott Moyer, who was asked many different ways to try and sum up the last two months for he and his Mustangs.
“There are a lot of tears,” he said, trying not to get choked up himself. “It was a great run. I know I had some doubts about certain teams or games we’ve been in. Our kids, they never had any doubts. They’d look at a little film and swear that they could beat the next team.”
For 17 unforgettable games — two months, a district title, two games in the Giant Center, two games at Martz Hall and a pair of PIAA wins — that’s exactly what the Mustangs did.
And they provided their fans — and especially themselves — with a lifetime of memories.
WHAT THEY SAID
West Perry senior Megan Smith on Mustangs’ miscues — “At halftime (assistant coach Mike) Urich told us we had 14 turnovers, and we usually like to keep it under that for an entire game. That definitely hurt us in the first half. They pressured us, and we kept trying to throw the overhead pass, and it just wasn’t working.”
Smith on West Perry’s unforgettable ride — “It’s been so amazing. I couldn’t have asked for a better senior season. And I couldn’t be more proud of us for how far we were able to go. I don’t think anyone would have guessed this, so it’s really special.”
West Perry coach Moyer on Redeemer’s full-court press — “I was disappointed with how we were handling their pressure. I thought we tried to pass over the top of it too much. Not only were we turning the ball over, but also we were giving up quick points at the other end. That really killed us early on. And it’s even more disappointing because we worked really hard in practice for their press. And to give up that many points to them off of their press, well, I thought that was a big key.”
Moyer on West Perry’s turnover woes — “First of all, we needed them to get off to a slow start, and they didn’t come out and make a bunch of shots right away or anything. So for us to keep giving them the ball was disappointing. I thought they gave us a chance to stay in the game or even take a lead early. But you’re not going to do that if you’re throwing the ball away that many times. I guess we didn’t handle the pressure very well.”
Moyer on his favorite memories — “The district championship at the Giant Center. That was special. And our fans; they’ve been amazing. They have signs up around the community and the school has done so much for the kids. Just so much. I’ll remember that. This was certainly a fun, fun group to be with.”