D-11 AA Boys’ Basketball: Griguoli’s big night leads Marian past Schuylkill Haven
Photo by Karlee Feger
MINERSVILLE — The third time was the charm for Marian Catholic.
After falling to Schuylkill Haven in both of their Schuylkill League Division II regular-season meetings, the Colts turned the tables on the Hurricanes in Wednesday’s District 11 Class AA boys’ basketball semifinals with a 63-50 victory at the Thomas Fitzpatrick Gymnasium.
Rocco Griguoli had a double-double on the night with a team-high 15 points and 20 rebounds.
“Rebounding is so important, it’s the No. 1 thing,” Griguoli said after the game. “After those two losses to them, we just put the work in at practice and had the mentality to win.”
The Hurricanes struck first as sophomore Alan Evans knocked down one of his four triples on the night. Evans and Bradyn Diehl scored 11 of Haven’s 12 first-quarter points.
Evans scored a game-high 21 points and Diehl had a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds.
Justin De La Cruz started the scoring for Marian, completing a three-point play. His twin, Jacob, scored six of his eight points, and Griguoli and Bryan Ferreira each chipped in a bucket to give the Colts a 13-12 lead after one period.
Ferreira led his Colts in the second, making two 3-pointers and a layup off a steal as Marian built an 11-point lead.
Schuylkill Haven came out of a timeout down 11 and cut Marian’s lead to two with two minutes remaining in the half. Diehl led Haven’s 10-2 run, going 2-for-2 from the foul line, nailing a three and hitting a baseline jumper.
Marian answered as Justin De La Cruz chipped in five points as the Colts led 31-22 at the half.
Yaniel Nunez heated up in the third quarter for the Colts, finishing around the rim and tallying six of his 13 points. Grigouli put up four points off offensive rebounds and the team went 3-for-4 from the foul line.
The Colts continued to drive hard to the basket and draw contact, putting the Hurricanes in foul trouble. Diehl and Justin Watcher each hit a 3-pointer and Evans scored four points in the frame, but the Hurricanes trailed by eight heading into the fourth.
Marian put up 20 points in the final quarter, nine coming from Grigouli. He took two trips to the free-throw line, going 3-for-4, and pulled five boards.
Gregory Tirpak scored three of his five points and Nunez added another five. The Hurricanes knocked down four 3-pointers, two from Evans and two from Watcher, but the deficit was too much to overcome.
“We had 17 days to change things up, put new sets in, and change defenses around,” Marian coach Scott Murphy said. “The boys were engaged and locked in. We knew we had to play well to win and they did a nice job.”
The win advances Marian (12-11) to Saturday’s championship game against top-seeded Tri-Valley at 6 p.m. at Martz Hall. The Dawgs downed Moravian Academy 45-30 in the other semifinal.
Schuylkill Haven ends its season 10-13.
