Pictured above: Hayden Hosie
By Tom Robinson, NEPASportsNation.com
EAST STROUDSBURG – All layups are not created equal.
Hayden Hosie and Nick Calciano converted layups with high degrees of difficulty at key moments Saturday afternoon, lifting Holy Cross from the lowest of its lows to the highest of its highs during a 64-57 victory over Dock Mennonite in a Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association Class 2A boys basketball state semifinal.
The plays by Hosie and Calciano came early and late in a 10-minute span of the second half in which Holy Cross outscored Dock Mennonite, 27-8. That stretch gave the Crusaders the surge they needed to get past the Lansdale team, which was ranked No. 1 in the state in Class 2A by suburban Pittsburgh media outlet www.TribLive.com.
Dock Mennonite opened the second half on a 13-2 run to take its biggest lead, 38-31, with 3:24 left in the third quarter.
Hosie’s drive, coming out of timeout, stopped that streak.
The Crusaders went from allowing 8 straight points to scoring 15 in a row, thanks to a big boost from the play that came next.
Hosie made a steal, drove down the middle, cut sharply left and executed a high-speed, reverse layup while taking a hit for a foul that made it into a three-point play.
“Hayden made an incredible left-handed layup, twisting and turning,” Holy Cross coach Al Callejas said. “ … Then, Matt (Lyons) hit a three to put us up by one.
“We had the momentum, then we locked down defensively pretty much for the rest of the game. Late in the fourth quarter, they got a few.”
Before those late scores, Calciano did his thing.
Another Hosie steal sprung Calciano ahead of the pack on a fastbreak.
With Tony Martin gaining ground and bearing down on him from behind on his right side, Calciano took off, turning his shoulders as he rose, shielding Martin’s block attempt while drawing a foul and still making the layup.
Calciano did not make the free throw, but his finish gave Holy Cross the first of the game’s double-figures leads. The Crusaders controlled the rebound on his miss and Logan Tierney scored for a 58-46 lead, providing the cushion needed to hold off Dock Mennonite for the final 1:37.
“Our kids got it done when they needed to,” Callejas said. “ … That’s the second game in a row that Nick made something like that.
“You could hear the crowd erupt and that fired the whole team up.”
The Crusaders needed those plays and more to get past Dock Mennonite, the District 1 champions who made half of their 3-point attempts.
Nathan Lapp and Vaughn Martin each made 3 shots from beyond the arc while scoring 19 points to lead 3 Pioneers in double figures.
Holy Cross countered with four double-figures scorers, led by Hosie, who scored 20 points while going 7-for-10 from the floor, 1-for-2 on 3-pointers and 5-for-5 from the line.
Matt Lyons came off the bench to add 15 points by going 6-for-9 from the floor, including 2-for-4 on 3-pointers.
Lyons said the team was prepared for this to be its toughest test of the postseason to date.
“From their past, what we heard about them, watching film and studying the brackets, we knew this could be tough,” he said.
Logan Tierney and Gabe Gonzales each provided 10 points and 5 offensive rebounds. Tierney had 13 total rebounds and Gonzales 8.
The Crusaders built advantages of 16-4 in offensive and 35-21 in total rebounds.
Lyons also grabbed three offensive rebounds. Calciano had four assists and three rebounds.
They gave Holy Cross statistical bench advantages over Dock Mennonite’s three reserves of 17-0 in points, 7-0 in rebounds, 4-2 in assists and 1-0 in steals.
“It was such a team effort today,” Callejas said. “We had four guys in double figures. Nick Calciano came in and was incredible on defense. He’s all over the place.
“That’s what it takes at this time of year – a team effort. I’m so proud of them.”
Hosie, who made two steals, and Gonzales also had four assists each.
Holy Cross (21-5) used the win to reach Tuesday’s 6 p.m. state semifinals at Pottsville’s Martz Hall against District 3 champion Lancaster Mennonite (19-8).
“We’re playing out best basketball at the most crucial time of the year,” Callejas said. “They should be unbelievably confident at this point and I’m sure they will be.
“They showed a lot by digging deep when they were down by seven. They all have each other’s back.
“It’s fun to be a part of; fun to watch.”
