Williams Valley's Ella Kobularik (10) defends during a PIAA Class AA second-round girls' basketball game Tuesday at Mechanicsburg High School. The Vikings defeated the Flames 23-18 (Photo by Eli Doyle).

MECHANICSBURG — Williams Valley girls’ basketball coach Shane Zellers had a plan, and the Vikings made it happen.

The plan was relatively simple — close the paint and force the Shalom Christian Academy Flames to shoot from the outside.

Mallory Miller tied a game-high with nine points and Sage Smeltz chipped in six to power Williams Valley offensively as the Vikings defeated Shalom Christian Academy 23-18 in a low-scoring, defensive PIAA Class AA girls’ basketball contest Tuesday at Mechanicsburg High School.

“We held (the Flames) to 18 points, and defensively, we executed our game plan,” Zellers said. “We wanted to make them beat us from the outside. That is a well-coached team, and as athletic as you can be. We wanted them to shoot the ball. We wanted to take away driving lanes and passing lanes. We knew what they wanted to do, and the girls responded, the girls executed and we got the win.”

After a close third quarter saw Shalom Christian (18-5) climb back into the contest, Williams Valley (24-3) had its seven-point halftime lead quickly diminish to just two.

Williams Valley’s 2-3 zone defense swarmed to the ball throughout the contest, holding Shalom Christian scoreless in the first quarter.

Sage Smeltz wasted no time getting the Vikings on the board in the third, netting a bucket in the paint just eight seconds into the second half. Miller added another score with a runner for Williams Valley, but the Flames raced back into the game following a pair of 3-pointers by Sydney Moore. The Vikings led 12-9 with 5:22 left in the third quarter as Shalom Christian continued to answer.

Jasmine Hechler, a senior, grabbed a steal for the Vikings, and Miller finished with a bucket on the other end. Hechler, who battled an injury throughout the season, returned for Williams Valley in the Vikings’ 49-46 first-round win over Northeast Bradford. She provides solid depth off the bench for Williams Valley.

“Having Jasmine back is huge,” Zellers said. “Having her complement Ireland (Kasper), both offensively and defensively, is huge. When they get a little winded, we can sub one out and put the other in. But yes, (Jasmine) is stepping in, handling the ball late, and helping out when needed. It’s a total team effort, and I give her a lot of credit for coming back from injury and embracing that role.

“She could sulk, she could pout, she could be mad about it, but she just wants to win,” Zellers added. “She’s a senior who doesn’t want her season to be over. So, I give her credit, and I give Ireland a lot of credit too because we went six to eight games where she didn’t come out of the lineup. But that little break — reset and recharge — and you saw what happened.”

Still, the Vikings couldn’t start celebrating yet, with plenty of time left in the third quarter.

Shalom Christian added three late points after Maya Lehman split a pair of free throws, and Addison Adams added a steal and a score—all while Williams Valley remained scoreless for the final 3:20 of the third quarter. The Vikings held onto the lead as time expired in the frame, taking a 14-12 advantage into the fourth.

After an empty possession on each side to start the fourth quarter, Kasper nailed a 3-pointer to push Williams Valley ahead 17-12. Moore responded with a triple for Shalom, as both teams battled back and forth down the stretch. Kasper added a foul-line jumper a possession later, increasing the Vikings’ lead to 19-15 with 2:00 remaining.

Following another empty possession by the Flames, Quin Smeltz launched a half-court pass from the inbound to a streaking Miller, who was fouled and eventually sank both free throws.

Adams answered a few possessions later with her third 3-pointer for Shalom Christian, cutting the Vikings’ lead to 21-18 with 38.1 seconds left. Quin Smeltz went 2-for-4 from the free-throw line in the final 30 seconds of regulation, sealing Williams Valley’s 23-18 second-round victory.

“We have to finish around the rim, and we have to hit some foul shots late,” Zellers said about areas for improvement.

In the first half, points were hard to come by.

Sage Smeltz scored the only two points of the first quarter as Williams Valley’s 2-3 zone defense gave the Flames fits. In the second quarter, the Vikings found more offensive success and jumped ahead 8-3 at halftime.

Williams Valley now advances to face District 2 Class AA champion Mountain View (23-4) in the quarterfinals on Friday at a site and time to be announced. The Eagles defeated Renaissance Academy 45-33 in the second round.

Game Summary

PIAA Class AA
Second Round
At Mechanicsburg High School

WILLIAMS VALLEY (23) — Kobularik 0 0-0 0, Hechler 0 0-0 0, Miller 2 4-6 9, Q. Smeltz 0 2-4 2, S. Smeltz 3 1-4 7, Kasper 2 0-0 5. Totals — 7 7-14 23.

SHALOM CHRISTIAN ACADEMY (18) — Lehman 1 1-2 3, Thomas 0 0-2 0, Rebook 0 0-0 0, Myers 0 0-0 0, Adams 2 1-2 6, Moore 3 0-0 9, Diller 0 0-0 0. Totals — 6 2-6 18. 

WV (24-3) 2 … 6 … 6 … 9 — 23

SCA (18-5) 0 … 3 … 9 … 6 — 18

3-Point FGs: Hechler, Kasper, Moore 3, Adams

Officials: Stiffler, Crabs, Bowors