6th-seeded Andover strings together 4th quarter run to pull away from No. 7 Whitesville to advance to Friday’s D2 Finals, will meet No. 1 Elba for 3rd time in 4 years

Whitesville junior Kate Pensyl, off-center, and Andover junior Kelsie Niedermaier, right, tangle over the loose ball during Monday night’s Class D2 Semifinal contest at Wayland-Cohocton. [Chris Brooks/WellsvilleSports.com]

Whitesville freshman Vanessa Hall (11) drives her way up to the basket against the defense of Andover junior Kelsie Niedermaier (23) during Monday night’s Class D2 Semifinal at Wayland-Cohocton. [Chris Brooks/WellsvilleSports.com]

Andover senior Emily Wahl, right, looks to drive her way inside against the defense of Whitesville freshman Vanessa Hall, left, during Monday night’s Class D2 Semifinal at Wayland-Cohocton. [Chris Brooks/WellsvilleSports.com]

Andover junior Livia Simon (20) looks to work around the defense of Whitesville junior Serina Button, left, on her way inside during Monday night’s Class D2 Semifinal at Wayland-Cohocton. [Chris Brooks/WellsvilleSports.com]

Andover senior Katie Calladine (12) drives the baseline toward the basket against the defense of Whitesville junior Kate Pensyl (21) during Monday night’s Class D2 Semifinal contest at Wayland-Cohocton. [Chris Brooks/WellsvilleSports.com]

Andover sophomore Tess Spangenburg (11) waits for a play to develop in front, as Whitesville sophomore Rachel Jackson (5) keeps watch during Monday night’s Class D2 Semifinal contest at Wayland-Cohocton. [Chris Brooks/WellsvilleSports.com]

WAYLAND — For the second straight year, two longtime Allegany County rivals saw each of their stars align in the Class D2 galaxy right in the very same spot as last season — the Semifinals.

For Whitesville, it was a chance to make a return trip back to the Finals on Friday. As for Andover, an opportunity to exact their revenge. Both teams charted on their collision course to Wayland-Cohocton, Monday night to settle the score for the third time this season, once and for all.

It would formulate a defensive battle from the beginning, and then evolve into a mad dash toward the finish line. With Andover leading by five heading into the final eight minutes of the contest, they made sure they kept Whitesville in the rearview mirror.

With multiple lead changes coming in the first half, the occurrences on the hardwood continued into the third quarter but the Lady Panthers made sure it stopped there, as their defense fastened their seatbelts to win the battle, and the war in the Class D2 Semifinal round whilst scoring six of the final seven points on the offensive end to outlast the No. 7 Lady Blue Jays with a 38-28 edging to move on to the championship round coming up this weekend.

The back-and-forth pace settled in rather quickly after Andover (17-6) set up shop with four of the first six points going in their favor, stemming off baskets from Katie Calladine and Kelsie Niedermaier to start it off. Whitesville responded with six straight of their own, including back-to-back baskets from Vanessa Hall and Kate Pensyl to tie it up.

From that point until the end of the quarter, multiple lead changes and ties were traded, right up to the point when Emily Wahl gave the Lady Panthers the edge after the buzzer, netting an inside basket immediately after the go-ahead basket was provided by the Lady Blue Jays.

In the second quarter, the defense dialed in. In the first three minutes of the period, just one basket was tallied, coming from Whitesville (16-7) and Hall to put them in the driver’s seat momentarily. After a timeout was called on the floor, Andover went forward to net the next go-ahead basket with Livia Simon finishing it off, taking a gorgeous pass from Calladine off to her left side in the paint to regain traction.

The Lady Panthers lead would grow as much as five at one point, behind another Simon basket. But it would come down to three when the first half clock expired, as Rachel Jackson helps net one of the last buckets the Lady Blue Jays put away toward the tail end of the quarter to trim down the deficit to 20-17 at the break.

“It was definitely a defensive battle,” Lady Panthers coach Jake Bannerman said. “Neither team shot the ball well at all, and I credit each team’s defense for that, for sure. Adrenaline and nerves got to both teams, but we were able to hit a couple of shots when we needed to, while holding them to one point in the fourth quarter. If you would have told me that we could hold Vanessa (Hall) to six points and no three-pointers, I would have thought you were crazy. Emily (Wahl) worked her butt off, and so did the others after a couple of adjustments.”

The defense game was carried over into the third quarter another time, as the Lady Panthers continued to build on their lead with Whitesville right on their coattails the entire way. As a result, a five-point lead for the No. 6 seeds was garnered, with the action now heading into the last eight minute period.

At that point, Andover’s defense raised the bar to a whole different level, as they clamped down on the Lady Blue Jays offense by holding it a near standstill, while the Lady Panthers offense continued their side of production with perhaps the biggest quarter of the game. Even though it was the smallest producing quarter for Andover, it was a 6-1 run that made all the difference to make sure they crossed the finish line first to capture the Finals berth.

Wahl led all Lady Panthers scorers with a game-high 15 points. Tess Spangenburg followed behind with a trio of three-pointers for nine points total. Kelsie Niedermaier totaled eight points, while Livia Simon finished with four.

On the other side, Kate Pensyl paced the front of the Whitesville offense with a team-leading 10 points. Hall and Kennedy Bledsoe each finished with six points, while Serina Button had four. The Lady Blue Jays season is officially over, as they wrap up their first season under head coach Aaron Rawady with a record of 16-7. The team will not graduate a single senior at the end of the year, as they will look to return their entire roster next season.

Next up on the docket for the Andover Lady Panthers is a date with destiny. The Class D2 Finals now await the No. 6 seeds, as they now square off in a showdown with the top-seeded Elba Lady Lancers for the championship brick. A matchup that is the third of its kind in the past four seasons. The Lady Lancers defeated No. 4 Hinsdale to mark their fourth straight return to the Finals with a 60-25 victory in the nightcap at Wayland-Cohocton.

Tip-off on Friday is scheduled for a 6 p.m. start from within the confines of Letchworth Central School.

“Based on what we’ve gathered so far, we’re two very different teams,” Bannerman said. “They have such great depth and fundamental skills. Coach (Tom) Redband does such an amazing job with them. It’s no fluke that they have won the last three years in a row. But we have some really good ball players here, and they are all hungry to get that patch.”

Whitesville          11  6   10  1 – 28

Andover              12  8  12  6 – 38

WHITESVILLE: Kennedy Bledsoe 3 0-0 6, Rachel Jackson 1 0-0 2, Vanessa Hall 2 2-4 6, Kate Pensyl 4 1-2 10, Serina Button 2 0-0 4. Totals: 12 3-6 28.
ANDOVER: Tess Spangenburg 3 0-2 9, Katie Calladine 1 0-0 2, Livia Simon 2 0-0 4, Emily Wahl 4 6-9 15, Kelsie Niedermaier 4 0-0 8. Totals: 14 6-11 38.

3-point goals: Whitesville 1 (Pensyl), Andover 4 (Spangenburg 3, Wahl).
Total Fouls: Whitesville 11, Andover 12. Fouled out: None.