Feb 11, 2016 4 min read

It was an unforgettable regular season for Jefferson-Morgan.

The program won its first outright section title, had a 1,000-point scorer, recorded marquee non-section wins over playoff teams and suffered just one loss.

It’s a résumé fit for a top seed in the Class A girls basketball playoffs. The WPIAL basketball steering committee, however, did not agree. Jefferson-Morgan (20-1) received the sixth seed and only a few days to prepare for No. 13 Winchester Thurston (11-10), which it will face Saturday in a first-round game at Trinity (noon).

The Rockets were passed over by two-second place teams, despite them being just one of four 20-win teams in the WPIAL.

“I expected a higher seed and the girls deserved a higher seed, but you have to play with the cards you’re dealt,” Jefferson-Morgan head coach Chris Niemiec said. “I’m going to use it as bulletin-board material and play the disrespect card a little bit. In essence, we were kind of disrespected. We have better records than two higher seeded teams and it was against equal competition.”

Four other local teams open the postseason tonight in preliminary round games, including the Trinity boys’ against Mount Pleasant at Peters Township (8 p.m.).

Vincentian – one of the two second-place teams seeded higher than J-M – is the defending WPIAL champions and a perennial power. However, Jefferson-Morgan was overlooked for Cornell, which it defeated in the WPIAL playoffs last season. It wasn’t for a lack of a winning reputation, either. J-M has gone 40-5 over the past two seasons.

The Rockets beat arch-rival California twice in Section 3-A play, plus own wins over three Class AA playoff teams Their only loss is to Washington, which won the Section 4-AA title.

“I can’t see how that many teams were seeded above them,” California head coach Chris Minerd said. “I knew North Catholic and Vincentian would be one and two, but I give a lot more weight to section winners. You are supposed to be rewarded for winning your section and I don’t think they were.”

The thought is that many believe Section 3-A was the weakest, but coaches’ thoughts and some scores dispute that. California, which is seeded ninth and will face Riverview Wednesday at Gateway, finished in second place, followed by No. 12 West Greene and No. 15 Fort Cherry.

The Trojans lost to J-M twice by a combined 18 points, while West Greene played both teams close until the fourth quarter, but the section also included two three-win teams.

“Every section probably has three solid teams,” Minerd said. “I really don’t know why we don’t get the respect, but obviously I think that’s an issue and it’s not only this year. It was that way in the past. We can only play our schedules and in Jefferson’s case, they lost one game. What more could they have done?”

Despite returning the bulk of their roster from a WPIAL quarterfinal appearance last season, the Rockets were an afterthought in Class A.

Now, they will face Winchester Thurston, the third-place team from Section 4-A, which enters the postseason on a five-game winning streak, but have not faced an opponent such as the Rockets, who allow just 31 points per game.

Jefferson-Morgan has balanced scoring, a rarity in Class A basketball, which is filled with playoff teams which rely on one scorer, such as Dayna Rouse of the Ellis School and Cali Konek of Imani Christian.

The Rockets are led by senior guard and 1,000-point scorer Kayla Yorko, who averages almost 15 points per game. The rest of the roster averaged 5 to 10 points per game, including senior guard Nikki Venick and senior forward Ally Bogden.

Though Yorko’s outside shooting draws the attention of opposing coaches on film, it is Bogden who Niemiec believes could be the key to proving the doubters wrong. Despite missing time with a shoulder injury, she averages eight points and 10 rebounds per game.

“We are night and day with and without her,” Niemiec said. “She’s playing with a torn labrum, but when she’s full strength as much as she can be, she’s a difference maker. At full strength, she’s probably the most complete player in our section.”

They’ll need a balanced effort to return to the quarterfinals and though the Rockets are focused on advancing, the perceived disrespect will act as motivation throughout the postseason.

“The seeding doesn’t take away form undefeated section champions and 20 wins,” Niemiec said. “We’re still going to celebrate that and move forward. They can’t take the numbers down from the banner.”