Shenandoah Valley head coach Laura Bradley talks with her players during Monday's Schuylkill League Division II game at Marian (Photo by Leroy Boyer).

Vikings-Devils, Hurricanes-Cardinals, Spartans-Eagles among 6 local games

It was the most surprising score of the 2025-26 girls’ basketball regular season.

It sent shockwaves through the Schuylkill League Division II ranks, with word of the upset victory spreading quickly to other games in progress that evening.

Shenandoah Valley 35, Williams Valley 23.

The Blue Devils’ win that Jan. 15 evening in Shenandoah ended Williams Valley’s nine-game win streak and ultimately changed the season outlook for the defending Division II co-champion Vikings.

Williams Valley dropped its next two games after falling to Shenandoah Valley, with another loss two weeks later preventing the Vikings from making a return trip to the Schuylkill League playoffs.

Tonight, the Vikes get their chance at revenge.

Williams Valley and Shenandoah Valley square off at 5 p.m. tonight in a District 11 Class AA semifinal at Martz Hall. It’s the opening act of a District 11 hoops tripleheader at the Mecca, with the Schuylkill Haven-Pine Grove girls following at 6:30 p.m. and the District 11 Class 5A boys’ semifinal between Blue Mountain and Selinsgrove capping it off at 8 p.m.

All three games can be heard live on T-102 (101.9 FM). To access T-102 online, click here: https://player.aiir.com/wavt/

Also tonight, Marian tangles with Lincoln Leadership in a Class AA girls’ semifinal at 6 p.m. at Blue Mountain High School.

Wednesday features three more girls’ semifinal games involving local teams:

Class A, Weatherly vs. Notre Dame-East Stroudsburg, 6 p.m., Pleasant Valley HS

Class 4A, North Schuylkill vs. Blue Mountain, 6 p.m., Martz Hall

Class 5A, Pottsville vs. Southern Lehigh, 6 p.m., Executive Education HS

Advance tickets for all District 11 playoff games cost $8 (plus applicable fees) and can be purchased online at www.districtxi.com. Cash sales are available at the door for $10 per ticket. There is no senior citizen or student discount.

Quarterfinal upset wins by Pine Grove (3A) and Blue Mountain (4A) allowed the Schuylkill League to advance nine of its 11 District 11 qualifiers to the semifinals. Only the Mahanoy Area and Tamaqua girls saw their seasons end in the quarters.

Those upsets also set up three games between Schuylkill League division rivals in the semifinal round, with the Devils and Vikings meeting in Class AA, Division I foes Schuylkill Haven and Pine Grove battling in Class 3A, and Division I rivals North Schuylkill and Blue Mountain squaring off in Class 4A.

Here’s a brief look at all six District 11 girls’ semifinal games involving Schuylkill League teams.

Tonight’s games

Class AA Semifinal

No. 1 Williams Valley (16-6) vs. No. 4 Shenandoah Valley (11-11)

Where/When: Martz Hall, 5 p.m.

Game Breakdown: Third meeting this season between these two Schuylkill League Division II foes. …. Williams Valley won first meeting 49-22 on Dec. 9 in Tower City. Mallory Miller scored 18 points for the Vikings, while Ireland Kasper had 14 and Ella Kobularik tallied 10. Vikings used a 33-11 run through the middle quarters to lead 41-13 after three frames. …. Shenandoah Valley took the rematch 35-22 on Jan. 15 in Shenandoah. Gianna Donovan had 13 points, while Jocelyn Chagolla netted 11. Intense pressure defense helped Devils open game on 12-3 run and lead 20-10 at halftime. Miller was held to just two points before fouling out in fourth. …. So, how do the first two meetings impact the third? First, both teams haven’t played in more than three weeks, and neither have played this season at Martz Hall. Whichever team shakes off the rust, gets used to shooting at Martz Hall and controls things early will be a big factor. …. Second, how does Shenandoah Valley’s pressure work on a bigger floor. …. Third, Williams Valley needs to get Miller going offensively. She averages 15.2 points per game and leads the league in 3-pointers with 50. …. Finally, both teams only play 5-6 girls. Foul trouble, fatigue from running the big floor will be big critical factors tonight.

Up Next: Winner advances to Friday’s championship game against the Marian-Lincoln Leadership winner and qualifies for PIAA Tournament. Loser is eliminated.

Class AA Semifinal

No. 2 Marian (13-10) vs. No. 3 Lincoln Leadership (13-8)

Where/When: Blue Mountain, 6 p.m.

Game Breakdown: These teams played just two weeks ago, with Marian claiming a 52-35 victory in Hometown. DeAnna Pugh scored 19 points, Addy Marek added 15 and Haley Minzola tallied 10 as the Fillies built a 25-18 halftime lead and then pulled away in the fourth quarter. Arielle Taylor had a team-high 8 for Lincoln. …. Marek (16.1 ppg, 39 3s) and Pugh (11.3, 27 3s) have been the leaders of Jeff Onushco’s club all season and will need to shine in playoffs. If the Fillies get some production from their other starters — Minzola, Katie Knock (25 3s), Brooke Hannis-Miskar (19 3s) — they could be a sleeper in this Class AA field.

Up Next: Winner advances to Friday’s championship game against the Williams Valley-Shenandoah Valley winner and qualifies for PIAA Tournament. Loser is eliminated.

Class 3A Semifinal

No. 2 Schuylkill Haven (21-4) vs. No. 6 Pine Grove (14-9)

Where/When: Martz Hall, 6:30 p.m.

Game Breakdown: Hurricanes and Cardinals meet for the third time this season, with Schuylkill Haven sweeping both Schuylkill League Division I matchups. Haven won 40-30 on its home floor Jan. 9, then 50-36 at Pine Grove on Feb. 2. …. Schuylkill Haven enters contest having won 13 straight games and 10 straight at Martz Hall. …. First District 11 playoff clash between the schools since 2006. …. Pine Grove holds a 51-10 all-time advantage over the Hurricanes, but Haven has won last four. Most of the previous matchups came prior to 2008. …. In first meeting, Kylie Siket had 16 points and Mckenna Runkle 10 as Schuylkill Haven overcame an early 10-2 deficit. Haven hit six 3-pointers. Meadow Umbenhauer paced Pine Grove with 22 points. …. In second clash, Runkle had 18 points and Audrey Hutchinson scored 17 as Haven stormed out to a 34-17 halftime lead and never looked back. Again, Hurricanes hit six 3-pointers. Hollyn Sampson had 14 points and Lainey Fidler 10 for Pine Grove. …. Named the Division I MVP by the Schuylkill League coaches, Runkle has been dominant through the postseason. She scored 32 points in Friday’s rout of MaST Community Charter, including the 1,000th of her career. She is averaging 15.8 ppg this season. …. Sampson sparked Pine Grove’s 36-31 win over Catasauqua in Friday’s quarterfinals with 20 points. Cardinals will need to have her very involved in the offense to be successful tonight.

Up Next: Winner advances to Friday’s championship game against the Notre Dame-Green Pond-Executive Education winner. Loser drops to Friday’s consolation game against the NDGP-Executive loser. Both teams have already qualified for the PIAA Tournament.

Wednesday’s games

Class A Semifinal

No. 3 Weatherly (7-15) vs. No. 2 Notre Dame-East Stroudsburg (7-15)

Where/When: Pleasant Valley HS, 6 p.m.

Game Breakdown: The Wreckers and Spartans clash in a semifinal matchup of two teams with losing records. Weatherly averages just 22.2 points per game and features a small roster led by senior Kelly Reiner. The Wreckers’ wins came over winless MMI (twice), 2-20 Nativity (twice), 8-11 Salem Christian and 2-20 CMVT (twice). Combined record of those teams is 12-73. …. NDES won its final four games and five of its last six. Spartans average 32.6 points per game. Like Weatherly, however, Notre Dame notched wins over subpar teams: MMI (twice), Salem Christian, 0-15 Lehigh Christian Academy, 1-20 Moravian Academy (twice) and 1-21 East Stroudsburg North. Combined record of those teams is 10-89. …. Expect a low scoring game. First one to 40 wins.

Up Next: Winner advances to Saturday’s championship game against the Bethlehem Christian-Salem Christian winner and qualifies for PIAA Tournament. Loser is eliminated.

Class 4A Semifinal

No. 5 North Schuylkill (17-8) vs. No. 8 Blue Mountain (13-11)

Where/When: Martz Hall, 6 p.m.

Game Breakdown: Third meeting between these two Schuylkill League Division I rivals after they split their regular-season contests. …. North Schuylkill won 49-34 on Dec. 19 in Orwigsburg. Monica Selgrade paced the Spartans with 17 points, while Gianna Capone added 11. Callie Peel led Blue Mountain with 11 points. …. Eagles returned the favor Jan. 28 in Fountain Springs, prevailing 46-41. Peel paced Blue Mountain with 19 points, while Karley Koch added 10. Jadelin Stitzer had 12 and Conti 10 for North Schuylkill. …. The third meeting comes down to the two Ts — Tempo and Turnovers. In the first meeting, Blue Mountain committed 32 turnovers and allowed North Schuylkill to run the floor and play at its pace. The second time around, Blue Mountain was much better handling the basketball and controlled things early. …. Blue Mountain closed the regular season by winning three of its final four games, then became the Cinderella of the Class 4A field by rallying past Saucon Valley 39-36 in the first round and dumping top-seeded Lehighton 49-34 in the quarterfinals. Peel was the star for the Eagles in the win over Lehighton, scoring a game-high 26 points that included a 10-for-12 effort at the foul line. …. North Schuylkill, meanwhile, won a rubber match with Tamaqua in the quarterfinals, using a 16-3, third-quarter run to overcome a 10-point first-half deficit and take a 46-40 victory. Conti led the way with 20 points, while Capone had 10. …. Can the Eagles’ Cinderella run continue by slaying the Spartans? Or will North Schuylkill turn Blue Mountain’s clock to midnight?

Up Next: Winner advances to Saturday’s championship game against the Palmerton-ACC winner and qualifies for the PIAA Tournament. Loser drops to Saturday’s consolation game against the Palmerton-ACC loser. That game is a PIAA play-in game as only three teams advance in Class 4A.

Class 5A Semifinal

No. 3 Pottsville (7-15) vs. No. 2 Southern Lehigh (11-12)

Where/When: Executive Education HS, 6 p.m.

Game Breakdown: As Herb Brooks said during his historic pre-game speech in the movie Miracle, “Great moments are born from great opportunity.” That’s what Pottsville has in this contest … a great opportunity. Despite winning just seven games in the regular season, the Tide can claim a spot in the PIAA Tournament with one strong performance against the Spartans. …. After sitting at 5-7 on Jan. 9, Pottsville lost seven straight games before ending the regular season with two wins in its final three games. …. Jes Siminitus (9.2 ppg) and Jo Barnhart (8.5 ppg) lead the Tide in scoring. Lauren Brennan ranks fourth in the league in 3-pointers with 40. …. Pottsville hasn’t played since Feb. 6, so Tide will need to shake off rust quickly. …. Southern Lehigh closed the regular season with four straight losses, then got smoked 64-33 by Notre Dame-Green Pond in Colonial League quarterfinals.

Up Next: Winner faces either Bangor or Bethlehem Catholic in Saturday’s championship game and qualifies for states. Loser is eliminated.