From Staff Reports
Cumberland Times-News
FROSTBURG — The arena might be a little different, but Allegany High School is playing for a familiar prize when the boys and girls teams take to Frostburg State University for a shot to continue as the Maryland 1A West Region champions.
At 1 p.m. the Allegany girls will take to the court to play 19-3 Smithsburg, while the undefeated Alco boys will follow at 3 p.m. when they play Williamsport.
The Lady Campers (15-5) are looking for their third consecutive West Region title under the direction of head coach Jim O’Neal Jr. The junior-heavy girls played their way into the region finals by beating Southern 47-33 on Thursday in the west section championship. After earning a first-round bye, Allegany beat Mountain Ridge 57-35 in the sectional quarterfinals.
Last season the Campers beat Poolesville 53-29 to win the region before losing out to Digital Harbor in the state semifinals. In 2008, it was Allegany over Poolesville 54-47 for the region crown. The Campers then went on to beat Surrattsville 61-53 in the state semifinals before losing to Pocomoke 66-53 in the finals.
Allegany’s boys (22-0) will be playing the Wildcats for their second consecutive region title after handing Southern a 50-34 defeat Thursday evening. The Campers’ playoffs began with a first-round bye, and their first postseason action consisted of a 80-44 win over Fort Hill. In last season’s regional final the Campers put a 21-point, 77-56, beating on Brunswick before losing to Digital Harbour in the state semifinals.
Williamsport will face Allegany with a 20-4 record and is coming off a 68-59 win over Clear Spring in the east section finals. The Wildcats downed Brunswick in the semifinals 58-47 after receiving a bye in the opening round.
The Smithsburg Leopards beat Catoctin 60-38 on Wednesday during the section championship a round after beating Manchester Valley 62-28 in the semis.
Three of the four teams playing in for the west region were No. 1 seeds in their section. Only the Allegany girls weren’t named the top seed or their respective section. Northern earned that distinction, but was eliminated by Southern on Wednesday.
