North Schuylkill's Mya Conti (Photo by Kelly Wiley).
SCHUYLKILL HAVEN — Mya Conti’s big night has North Schuylkill sitting all by itself atop the Schuylkill League Division I girls’ basketball standings.
Conti fired in a game-high 25 points as the Spartans defeated Schuylkill Haven 58-37 in a first-place showdown Tuesday at the CACL Center.
The win leaves North Schuylkill (7-3, 6-0 D-I) unbeaten in Division I play, one game in the loss column ahead of Tamaqua (11-1, 4-1) and Schuylkill Haven (8-3, 4-1). The Spartans host Tamaqua on Friday to conclude the first half of the league slate.
Conti tallied 11 of her points in the first half as the Spartans built a 33-20 halftime lead. Gianna Capone netted 10 of her 12 points in the opening two frames.
Conti kept the heat on in the second half, scoring 14 points. She tallied two 3-pointers and shot 7-of-11 from the foul line. The two teams combined to shoot 56 free throws, with the Spartans connecting on 16-of-26.
Mckenna Runkle paced Schuylkill Haven with 15 points.
ORWIGSBURG — Callie Peel led a balanced scoring attack with 11 points as the Eagles snapped a four-game losing streak with a Division I win over the Cardinals.
Peel had five points in the second quarter as Blue Mountain built a 20-15 halftime lead. Mila Fleagle added nine points.
Hollyn Sampson paced Pine Grove with eight points.
TAMAQUA — Lauren Ligenza recorded a double-double with 17 points and 14 rebounds as the Blue Raiders fended off the Panthers in a Division I game.
Kendle Miller added 10 points and seven rebounds for Tamaqua, which used an 11-0 run to close the first half to build a 25-13 halftime cushion. Morgan Orsulak had 11 points and Lucy Kocha tallied 10 for Panther Valley, whose fourth-quarter comeback fell short.
The Panthers cut a 16-point deficit with 2:56 to play to five with 22 seconds left. Breanna McAndrew had 10 rebounds for PV.
POTTSVILLE — Keirra Jones led a trio of double-digit scorers with 13 points as the Crimson Tide downed the Miners in a Division I game at Martz Hall.
Jes Siminitus and Lauren Brennan each added 10 points for Pottsville, which picked up its first Division I win. The Tide led 13-4 after one quarter and never looked back.
SHENANDOAH — Brittany Tufts drained three 3-pointers and scored a game-high 22 points as the Blue Devils cruised past the Golden Girls in a Division II game.
Morgan Labosky added 17 points and Aubrie Monaghan added 11 for Shenandoah Valley, which raced out to a 28-3 lead after one frame. Labosky had 15 of her points in the first quarter.
NATIVITY (8) — Miller 0 2-4 2, McNamara 1 1-2 3, Fox 0 0-0 0, Del Rosal Siles 0 0-0 0, Stewart 0 3-6 3, Evans 0 0-2 0. Totals 1 6-14 8.