Holiday season may be over, but Michael Santicola still had one gift left in his bag Tuesday night for the Moon boys.
Trailing by two with less than five seconds remaining, Elijah Guillory drove the length of the court before dishing the ball to Santicola on the wing. After catching the ball with less than two seconds left, Santicola calmly knocked down a 3-pointer as time expired to lift the Tigers (5-3, 1-0) to a dramatic 46-45 win at South Fayette to open section play.
“We found a way to win. We’ve been preaching to keep grinding it out. The game is never over,” first-year Moon coach Gino Palmosina said. “Michael didn’t have his best night, but we told him just to keep playing. … I think it’s a night he’ll remember for a long time.”
Santicola finished with 11 points, while Guillory scored a team-high 17 for the Tigers. Elijah Hill led all scorers with 23 points for the Lions (6-3, 0-1).
“I think the biggest thing when you get to section play is, every game is going to be a war. You’re going to have to play 32 minutes or even more,” Palmosina said about competing in Class 5A Section 4. “I think it is the best section in the WPIAL. It’s a dogfight night in and night out, but it’s fun to be a part of. A lot of chess matches. So many good coaches.
“That’s what makes it exciting. I think our section will beat each other up.”
Other boys games
• Norwin needed some late-game heroics to knock off Canon-McMillan (3-7, 0-1) on the road in its section opener, and Ryan Edwards delivered with a last-second corner 3 to give the Knights (7-2, 1-0) a thrilling 46-45 win. Adam Bilinsky led Norwin with 19 points while Evan Morris also finished with 19 for the Big Macs.
• In one of the WPIAL’s highest-scoring games in recent memory, Thomas Jefferson (5-4, 1-0) needed three overtimes to outlast Peters Township in a 105-100 thriller. Evan Berger led all scorers with a school-record 43 points for the Jaguars, while Jack Dunbar finished with a team-leading 37 for the Indians (7-3, 0-1).
• Bryce Epps scored a team-high 22 points for South Allegheny (9-0, 1-0) in a 55-42 home win against Avonworth (4-5, 0-1), helping the Gladiators remain perfect while starting off section play with an impressive victory.
Girls games
• Shady Side Academy coach Jonna Burke joined an exclusive club in her second year with the team, earning win No. 500 of her coaching career that includes lengthy stints at Butler and Bethel Park. The Bulldogs (8-1, 1-0) opened section play with a 66-34 home win against Apollo-Ridge (8-2, 0-1), led by a game-high 20 points from Maggie Spell. Brinley Toland paced the Vikings with 19 points.
• Kendall Berger and Ava Kobus spearheaded a balanced attack for Norwin (9-1, 1-0) in a 53-32 home win against North Allegheny in the section opener for both teams. Berger and Kobus contributed 14 points apiece for the Knights, while Lauren Palangio chipped in 11. Jasmine Timmerson finished with a game-high 20 points for the Tigers (4-3, 0-1).
Three stars
*** — Halena Hill scored a game-high 30 points while knocking down five 3-pointers to power Oakland Catholic to an 86-51 home win against Albert Gallatin, extending the Eagles’ winning streak to six.
** — Vinnie Cugini continued his ongoing pursuit of Tom Pipkins’ all-time WPIAL scoring record with a 47-point performance for unbeaten Aquinas Academy in an 87-75 win at Summit Academy. Cugini is averaging 43.9 ppg and now is 321 points away from the record.
* — Owen Norman surpassed the 1,000-point plateau for his career with a 20-point effort for Fort Cherry in a 73-28 win against Frazier, becoming the ninth player in school history to reach the milestone.
Hot from deep
Players with 3 or more 3-pointers: Alena Fusetti, Blackhawk, 6; Cameron Epps, South Allegheny, 5; Halena Hill, Oakland Catholic, 5; Randy Wilkerson, Central Catholic, 5; Amber Sallee, Bentworth, 4; Ava Capozzoli, Chartiers-Houston, 3; Donovan Carney, Butler, 3; Giontae Clemmons, Propel Braddock Hills, 3; Chaz Cobbs, Woodland Hills, 3; McKenna DeUnger, Charleroi, 3; Mia Grisafi, Our Lady of Sacred Heart, 3; Kaley Rohanna, Waynesburg, 3; Jack Valasek, Armstrong, 3; Alexa Washington, Oakland Catholic, 3; Nate Wesling, Baldwin, 3.
Boys scores
Aliquippa 71, South Side 34
Aquinas Academy 87, Summit Academy 75
Beaver 59, Central Valley 52
Belle Vernon 73, Southmoreland 58
Bethel Park 74, Ringgold 47
Burrell 68, Derry 57
Butler 53, Seneca Valley 49
Carmichaels 54, Beth-Center 41
Central Catholic 63, Pine-Richland 36
Chartiers-Houston 67, Bentworth 44
Chartiers Valley 78, West Allegheny 46
Eden Christian 61, Winchester Thurston 39
Ellwood City 71, Mohawk 67
Fort Cherry 73, Frazier 28
Gateway 74, McKeesport 65
Greensburg Central Catholic 83, Leechburg 57
Hampton 73, Highlands 58
Indiana 63, Greensburg Salem 48
Keystone Oaks 63, South Park 55
Knoch 63, Freeport 60
Laurel Highlands 80, Elizabeth Forward 58
Lincoln Park 87, North Catholic 71
Monessen 63, Geibel Catholic 44
Moon 46, South Fayette 45
Mount Pleasant 43, Charleroi 40
Mt. Lebanon 46, Baldwin 44
Neshannock 50, Beaver Falls 41
New Castle 59, North Allegheny 49
Northgate 59, Sewickley Academy 36
North Hills 75, Mars 42
Norwin 46, Canon-McMillan 45
Our Lady of Sacred Heart 54, Sto-Rox 46
Penn Hills 49, Fox Chapel 37
Propel Braddock Hills 69, Propel Montour 35
Riverview 72, Springdale 49
Rochester 58, Cornell 23
Serra Catholic 77, Clairton 66
Shady Side Academy 49, Valley 23
Shaler 59, Plum 44
Shenango 69, Laurel 26
South Allegheny 55, Avonworth 42
Steel Valley 77, Brentwood 54
Thomas Jefferson 105, Peters Township 100
Trinity 65, Connellsville 31
Union 62, Carlynton 60
Uniontown 81, Albert Gallatin 37
Upper St. Clair 87, Hempfield 32
Washington 70, Brownsville 25
Western Beaver 76, Avella 37
West Mifflin 49, Montour 47
Woodland Hills 57, Armstrong 43
Yough 72, Waynesburg 23
Girls scores
Belle Vernon 47, Uniontown 15
Blackhawk 55, Central Valley 18
Burgettstown 70, Northgate 4
Canon-McMillan 36, Beaver 31
Chartiers-Houston 54, Bentworth 29
Deer Lakes 43, Ligonier Valley 26
Franklin Regional 62, Penn Hills 51
Greensburg Salem 71, Valley 35
Hampton 56, Freeport 51
Kennedy Catholic 42, Indiana 39
Kiski Area 32, Gateway 29
Mapletown 41, Jefferson-Morgan 26
Mars 68, Fox Chapel 51
McKeesport 71, Connellsville 24
Monessen 33, Geibel Catholic 20
Norwin 53, North Allegheny 32
Oakland Catholic 86, Albert Gallatin 51
Our Lady of Sacred Heart 53, Keystone Oaks 43
Penn-Trafford 68, Thomas Jefferson 48
Propel Montour 56, Neighborhood Academy 25
Riverview 43, Leechburg 15
Shady Side Academy 66, Apollo-Ridge 34
South Fayette 65, Moon 22
South Side 71, New Brighton 8
Upper St. Clair 73, Peters Township 56
Waynesburg 65, Charleroi 55
Winchester Thurston 64, Ellis School 22
Steve is a sports writer at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at srotstein@unionprogress.com.
