By Tom Robinson, NEPASportsNation.com
FORMAT: The eight-team, three-round tournament uses home courts of higher seeds in the quarterfinals, semifinals and third-place game before moving to Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza for the final. The top three teams advance to the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association state tournament.
SCHEDULE CHANGE: The quarterfinal round was moved back from Wednesday to Thursday because of weather.
2022 RECAP: Second-seeded Riverside defeated top-seeded Western Wayne, 39-33, for the title. The other lower-seeded team winning in the seven-team tournament was fifth-seeded Lakeland beating Mid Valley, 40-35, in the quarterfinals.
HIGHEST SEEDS: 1. Dunmore; 2. Lake-Lehman; 3. Holy Redeemer; 4. Riverside.
REGULAR-SEASON CHAMPIONS: Dunmore won the Lackawanna League Division 3 title while Lake-Lehman won the Wyoming Valley Conference Division 2 and overall tournament titles.
RANKED TEAMS: The field includes the top three Small School girls teams in the Riverfront Sports Super Six Power Rankings of District 2 teams – No. 1 Lake-Lehman; No. 2 Dunmore; and No. 3 Holy Redeemer. It also includes fifth-ranked Western Wayne and sixth-ranked Elk Lake. Riverside and Mid Valley were ranked earlier in the season.
WINNING RECORDS: Dunmore 19-3, Lake-Lehman 21-4, Mid Valley 14-8, Elk Lake 14-8, Holy Redeemer 15-10, Riverside 13-9, Wyoming Seminary 11-10.
BEST OPENER: Mid Valley is seeded lower, but holds a season, home-and-home sweep over Riverside in a quarterfinal meeting of Lackawanna Division 3 rivals.
KEY GAME: The semifinals are likely to include the fifth meeting of the season between Lake-Lehman and Holy Redeemer. The Lady Royals won the first, but the Lady Knights won the second to force a division playoff, which it also won before also winning their rematch in the WVC Tournament final. Lake-Lehman ran out to 20-0 and 14-2 leads in the two playoff games, but was otherwise outscored by Holy Redeemer the rest of the way.
PLAYERS TO WATCH: Sophia Talutto, Cadie Lewis and Ciera Toomey from Dunmore; Lia Keefe, Ella Wilson, Brenna Hunt and Hailey Kline from Lake-Lehman; Mia Ashton and Jillian DelBalso from Holy Redeemer; Lillie Pon from Riverside; Elisa Larson from Mid Valley; Sydney Upright and Leah Traver from Elk Lake; Skylar Long from Western Wayne; Maddie Olshemski from Wyoming Seminary.
NOTEWORTHY: Dunmore has won 10 straight Lackawanna Division 3 titles. … Lake-Lehman has won the last three WVC Tournaments and last two Division 2 titles. … The top three seeds – Dunmore, Lake-Lehman and Holy Redeemer all spent the past two seasons in Class 4A. … Three-time, all-stater and North Carolina commit Ciera Toomey has been gradually increasing her playing time after missing 15 games while rehabbing from reconstructive knee surgery. … Lake-Lehman beat Dunmore, at home, in overtime, when Toomey played less than three minutes in just her second appearance of the season. … Elk Lake was 3-8 before winning all 11 games in the second half of the season. … Lake-Lehman relies almost entirely on is starting five.
QUOTABLE: Lake-Lehman coach Charlie Lavan on his starting five: “They are tough, tough kids. We ask them to do it and they just do it without even blinking an eye. Their motors are always running.”
