Jan 29, 2024 3 min read

By Joe Tuscano

For the Observer-Reporter

newsroom@observer-reporter.com

CLAYSVILLE – Someday, McGuffey High School’s girls basketball team will find a way to defeat rival Waynesburg.

Monday night was not that time.

Kaley Rohanna, the Raiders 5-5 sparkplug at guard, scored 13 points as Waynesburg held onto first place in Section 4 of Class 3A with a 65-40 victory over McGuffey.

The top four teams from the section and all ties qualify for the WPIAL playoffs. Waynesburg, which locked up a playoff spot a while ago is still in first place with a 7-0 record and is 17-1 overall. McGuffey entered the game tied for fourth play with a 3-4 record. The Highlanders are 13-5 overall.

“I thought we played really good defense,” said Waynesburg head coach Chris Minerd. “We moved the ball around good. When Addison Blair is on, she’s pretty hard to stop.”

Blair led Waynesburg with 17 points. She had five of Waynesburg’s eight three-point field goals.

Rohanna was held to nine points in the first half, and finished with 13.

“The last few games we’ve had balance, which I like,” said Minerd. “Rohanna coming out and scoring 25 is fine but I much rather have four players score in double figures. It’s not for a lack of trying (for Rohanna). We have players who are capable of scoring.”

In the first meeting this season, Rohanna poured in 26 points in a 62-32 rout of the Highlanders.

“It’s the team mentality,” said Minerd. “She just wants to win. That’s why she is a good leader.”

When Rohanna went crashing to the floor near the end of the game, Minerd had to be holding his breath. But Rohanna leaped to her feet and ran down to her spot on defense.

“She wants to play and I don’t want to penalize her for us having a big lead,” Minerd said. “Plus, she is also chasing the (scoring) record. My words to her is we need to keep winning. Then she’ll have a shot at it.”

Rohanna is second in scoring in the program’s history and she will probably need a couple postseason games to pass the all-time leader, Tammy McIntire.

“It’s like having another coach on the floor,” Minerd said of Rohanna’s ability. “When you have five seniors, four of whom start, that’s what you expect. Basketball is a game of runs. McGuffey had a run before half time, so I told the girls to put it away in the third quarter and we did.”

A 10-0 run at the end of the first period and to start the second quarter gave Waynesburg a 26-7. Just when you thought the game might turn into a Mercy Rule affair in the second half, Taylor Schumacher came to McGuffey’s rescue by scoring all McGuffey’s points, 15 of them, in the second quarter to keep McGuffey within shouting distance of Waynesburg, 35-22.

But McGuffey managed just two points in the third quarter, free throws from Schumacher, who finished with a game-high 22 points.

“We’ve got three section games left and they are all tough games, Minerd said. “I told the girls to take it one game at a time.”

McGuffey head coach Andrew Kurzawski was unavailable for comment. Madison Gaso had 11 points for McGuffey.