Glendale falters in fourth in playoff loss by Rob Longo

FLINTON — After a combined four wins the previous three seasons, Glendale was in uncharted territory in the first round of the boys District 6 2A playoffs Friday against Penns Manor.

And although the Vikings didn’t look lost with their hot start, they couldn’t sustain the success they found in the first quarter, falling to fifth-seeded Penns Manor, 61-55.

“We had a lead early off our motion offense, but give Penns Manor credit; they have some big boys and they play hard,” Glendale coach Steve Sinclair said. “Someone had to lose and it sucks it had to be us, but it is what it is.”

Glendale looked like it belonged in the postseason right from the start. The Vikings controlled the opening tip and Loegen Smeal drilled a 3-pointer eight seconds into the contest to give Glendale an early lead. The Vikings had it up to 11 points early, forcing Penns Manor to call a timeout three minutes into the game. Glendale led 20-12 after the first quarter and took a five-point lead into the locker room at halftime. But with six seconds left to go in the half, Josh Potutschnig picked up his third foul roughly 45 feet away from the basket. By that point, Glendale still had its starting five on the bench.

“I would put Jacob (Jasper) and Josh up against anyone we played all year; they’re phenomenal guards,” Steve Sinclair said. “When one goes off, it puts a lot of pressure on the other kids.”

The foul trouble didn’t subside in the second half, as Potutschnig picked up his fourth foul on a charge midway through the third quarter. The senior had to sit for the rest of the period, which allowed Penns Manor to gain momentum.

“It was pretty tough; I was pretty down on myself,” said Potutschnig, who finished with 11 points, nine coming in the first quarter alone.

Despite Glendale not using a substitution until two minutes into the third quarter, the Vikings kept Penns Manor at bay. However, the Comets used an 8-2 run to start the final stanza, and took the lead with under six minutes to play thanks to Brandon Baird, who stole the inbounds pass and finished with a dunk at the other end of the floor, igniting Penns Manor.

Glendale committed a travel at the other end of the court, and the Vikings called a timeout to stop the bleeding. Glendale kept it close late, but could never retake the lead down the stretch. Penns Manor was led by Garrett Grimaldi, who finished with a game-high 23 points. Tommy Hamilton also chipped in with 17 and Baird finished with 14 points.

But after a 1-21 record last season, the only way up this year was up for Glendale. The Vikings finished 14-9, and can thank Jasper, Potutschnig, Nick Blake and JJ Kitko for their contributions as seniors, all of which played valuable minutes. Potutschnig credited baptism by fire his freshman year to get the program where it is today. The Vikings went 0-14 that season.

“We brought the program up from there,” Potutschnig said. “We got thrown out there as freshmen; we got our butts handed to us every night. As we worked up we got better and better.”

As four seniors graduate, the future still looks bright for Glendale. Steve Sinclair’s son Ryan is a sophomore and led the Vikings with 17 points.

“I just try to work the post and get rebounds and score,” Ryan Sinclair said. “(The seniors) are great leaders, they taught me how to win.”

Penns Manor (61): Baum 0 0-1 0, Lieb 0 2-2 2, Hamilton 6 4-7 17, Grimaldi 8 7-10 23, Baird 7 0-2 14, Hill 2 0-0 5, Chiodini 0 0-0 0, Lightner 0 0-0 0. Totals 23 13-22 61.

Glendale (55): Jasper 1 2-4 4, Potutschnig 5 0-0 11, Blake 3 0-0 8, Smeal 3 0-0 7, Sinclair 8 1-5 17, Kitko 3 0-1 8. Totals 23 3-10 55.

SCORE BY QUARTER:

Penns Manor 12 15 14 20 — 61

Glendale 20 12 14 9 — 55

3-point goals: Penns Manor 2 (Hamilton, Hill); Glendale 4 (Potutschnig, Smeal, Blake 2).

Records: Penns Manor (12-11); Glendale (14-9).

Officials: Keith Redfoot, Jim Cushion, Lynn Smith.