Boys Basketball - Penn-Trafford vs Hempfield

Zach Rocco's Jumper Lifts Penn-Trafford Boys to 58-56 OT Win over Hempfield 

If Penn-Trafford's Zach Rocco's plan was to to lull Hempfield to sleep for three quarters, he certainly was a nightmare for them in the fourth. The Warriors' junior guard went scoreless for three periods before exploding for 11 points in the fourth, then hit the game winning jump shot in overtime, as Penn-Trafford beat Hempfield 58-56 in a key section game at home. 

Hempfield held a 16-10 lead after one quarter on the strength of Christian Zilli's 9-point opening performance. Penn-Trafford spread a 15-point second quarter output among 4 scorers to trim the Spartans' lead at the half to 26-25. Zilli, after going scoreless in the second quarter, found his groove again in the third, hitting for 10 of Hempfield's 15 as the Spartans opened a 41-35 lead after three quarters. Finally it was time to fire up the good sized, evenly-partisan crowd and cue the Zach Rocco show. Rocco hit for 11 of the Warriors' 15 fourth quarter points, outpacing Hempfield's 9 points in a back-and-forth quarter that was deadlocked at 50 after Reed Hipps' shot in the final seconds missed the mark and Jules Nichols' put-back wouldn't fall as regulation time expired.  

Penn-Trafford controlled the overtime tip-off and Brayden Puskar floated a jumper into the hoop to give the Warriors a 52-50 lead. PT bumped the lead to four before Hempfield came back to tie following a Mike Hosni free throw and Reed Hipps converted field goal with a foul shot. Chris Abreu put the Warriors up by a pair before Zilli scored on a layup with just under a minute remaining in overtime. Penn-Trafford worked the clock for a final shot, setting up Rocco on the right side for the game winning jumper with 5 seconds to play. Hempfield was unable to get off another shot as the Warriors celebrated the victory in an emotional game on both sides.

Rocco's late game heroics in the final 12 minutes added up to 13 points for Penn-Trafford. Kevin Stinelli was the only other Warrior in double figures with 10, as eight Penn-Trafford players had markers in the scorebook. Zilli's 26 points for Hempfield led all scoring as Hosni added 10 for the Spartans. 

Penn-Trafford holds down third place in the Class 6A Section 3 standings with a 5-3 section record and 11-7 mark overall. Hempfield falls to 1-7 in section play with an overall record of 8-10. Both teams are back in action with conference play on Friday as Penn-Trafford travels to Fox Chapel and Hempfield hosts Connellsville.          

Watch this link for a full gallery of action photos available for purchase or sharing the day after the game.