The Tigers got off to a strong start, using a pair of Andy Hermansen 3-pointers to take a 13-11 lead after the first quarter of play. 

Mansfield would hit eight threes in the game .. which may have been more of a testament to the presence of Warrior Run’s Aiden McKee in the post, as the 6’ 8” junior blocked five NPM shots in the game and altered many other Tiger attempts throughout the night.

Hermansen and Tate Strange each had three 3’s as Strange finished as the lone Tiger in double figures, scoring 11 points to lead Mansfield in the loss while Hermansen, Alex Davis and Brady Stetter each had 9 points, Cooper Shaw had 7 and Jason Harer had 5 points in Mansfield’s fourth lowest offensive output of the season. 

Mansfield and Warrior Run traded buckets to start the second quarter, with Davis opening the period with a jumper and hitting his only 3-pointer of the night to put the Tigers up 18-14 a minute and a half in. 

A three by WR was followed by a jumper from Harer, a Defender free throw and a put back ‘and-1’ by Harer to give the Tigers their biggest lead of the night at 23-18 with under four minutes left until the break. 

Warrior Run cut it to a one-point lead with two minutes left before Shaw scored, then the Defenders again got to within one, only for Hermansen to hit his third three of the game at the halftime buzzer to give Mansfield a 28-24 lead going into the locker rooms. 

The Tigers’ lead was short-lived, however, as Warrior Run opened the second half with an 11-0 run, punctuated with a McKee dunk that gave the Defenders a 35-28 lead with just over four minutes left in the third quarter. 

Strange ended the run with a three to make it 35-31, and after a WR score, the Tigers scored 6 straight as Stetter scored off a nice pass from Davis, Shaw finished at the hoop and Davis came up with a steal and laid it in at the other end to tie the game at 37-all with 1:17 remaining in the third.

Warrior Run ended the quarter with another McKee dunk and a free throw to take a 40-37 advantage into the final frame, then opened the fourth with five straight points to go up by eight at 45-37.

Stetter hit a pair of free throws to cut the deficit to six with 5:45 left, but it was as close as the Tigers would get, as the Defenders put together another 6-0 run and then held Mansfield off by making 5-of-6 free throws down the stretch to seal the win, despite a pair of threes by Strange and one from Shaw. 

North Penn-Mansfield drops to 21-5 on the season with the semifinal loss, but the Tigers aren’t finished. With three District IV teams qualifying for States, Mansfield will look to earn a berth in the PIAA Class 3A Championships when they face Southern Columbia .. losers to Troy in the other semifinal Tuesday .. later this week. 

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