CLASS 2A GIRLS SEMIFINALS

No. 4 Marian (17-6) vs No. 1 Minersville (22-0)TIPOFF: Monday, Feb. 27 at Martz Hall at 8 p.m.COACHES: Marian - Paul Brutto (27th season); Minersville - Jared HomaLEADING SCORERS: Marian - Brenna Karnish (13.73), Emily Schaud (12.10), Gianna Agosti (5.65), Macy Alansky (3.87); Minersville - Abby Schoffstall, Sarah Nawrocki, Maggie WigodaGAME NOTES: Marian topped fifth-seeded Shenandoah Valley in the first round, 38 27 … These two teams met in January and the Battlin' Miners were victorious, 48-26. During the contest, Emily Shaud was the only Fillie to reach double figures, and Marian turned the ball over 22 times … The Fillies outscored Shenandoah Valley last week 22-8 in the second half to rally for the victory. Brenna Karnish and Shaud combined to score 26 of Marian's 38 points … Minersville has scored at least 70 points in 16 games this year … The Miners are the top 2A-ranked girls team in the state … Aside from two losses to Neumann-Goretti, Minersville hasn't lost to a different opponent since Feb. 13, 2015 (North Schuylkill) … The Miners are 9-6 against the Fillies since 2007, and have won eight straight. The last time Marian topped Minersville was Jan 9, 2012.QUOTABLE: "It's like having a lottery ticker. We punched our ticket; so let's see if we get to our number. We have great senior leadership, and that's key at this point in the season. I don't think that can be overstated … Defense gets you through these games. Teams will try to take away what you're doing." - Marian coach Paul Brutto.CLASS 2A BOYS SEMIFINALSNo 3 Moravian Academy (11-11) vs. No. 2 Marian (19-3)TIPOFF: Tuesday, Feb. 28 at Martz Hall at 6 p.m.COACHES: Moravian - Steve Gabryluk; Marian - John Patton (7th season)LEADING SCORERS: Moravian - Jordan Holmqvist (17.3), Callen Messman (10.5), Jovi Rodriguez (7.2); Marian - Brandon Mohammed (16.09), Tyler Fritz (10.86), Ryan Karchner (7.09), Noah Stauffer (7.00)GAME NOTES: Brandon Mohammed leads the area in scoring, but his status for Tuesday is up in the air. John Patton labeled him as a true game-time decision … The Colts are 5-1 against the Lions since 2006. However, Moravian won the most recent meeting by a 62-54 tally on Jan. 11, 2014 … Jordan Holmqvist has drained 69 three-pointers this year for the Lions. Marian's Tyler Fritz leads the TN area in three-pointers with 54 … Moravian is 1-9 playing away from home this season … Noah Stauffer and Fritz both lead the Times News Area in foul shooting at 82 percent … This was the first season that Moravian Academy qualified for their league tournament; the Colonial League tournament. Salisbury defeated the Lions during the competition in their most recent contest on Feb. 11.QUOTABLE: "It's hard to go from playing like we did, to not playing for 10 or 12 days. While you have a lot of time to look at your opponent, you can never duplicate what it's like to be out on the floor against another team. They have some quality kids. We saw them in person and have some film on them. They played well in the Colonial League. They've got some height, speed, and shooting abilities, so it's a little bit of everything. It's a great time of the year. These games are monumentally important, not only for the district championship, but to move forward into the state tournament. " - Marian coach John Patton.CLASS 4A BOYS SEMIFINALSNo. 6 Jim Thorpe (13-10) vs. No. 2 Salisbury (18-5)TIPOFF: Tuesday, Feb. 28 at 6 p.m. at AllenCOACHES: Jim Thorpe - Jason McElmoyle (3rd season); Salisbury - Jason WeaverLEADING SCORERS: Jim Thorpe - Chris Micciche (13.22), Matt Elmore (12.57), Brendan Carroll (9.52), Aaron Joyce (4.52); Salisbury - Jaxon Costello (19.0), Jack Reichenbach (15.2), Ryan Slutsky (11.8), Blake Jones (8.7)GAME NOTES: Jim Thorpe defeated Lehighton in a double-overtime thriller in the quarterfinals, 44-39 … Salisbury came away with an exciting 68-67 overtime victory against Octorora in the quarterfinals … With the win, Jim Thorpe has qualified for a state playoff berth … The Olympians are 0-3 against Salisbury since 2011. These two teams met last year in the District 11 playoffs and Salisbury won by five … Costello has attempted 135 free throws and is shooting 80 percent from the line. He has reached double figures in every game but once this season … Salisbury is 17-9 against Schuylkill League opponents since 2010. The Olympians have three players (Chris Micciche, Matt Elmore, Brendan Carroll) among the top-20 TN area scoring leaders.QUOTABLE: "I think we got some momentum when we went to overtime against Lehighton. We watched some film on them, and they're very good. We played those guys (Costello and Reichenbach) last year in the quarters. It's going to be a tough game. They're big and they have some shooters, so it's going to be a challenge for us. We have to be aggressive, and we can't let them dictate the tempo of the game. It has to be us forcing them to play the way that we want to. This is what you play for. You don't play to be mediocre; you play to be in these moments. Our guys are continuing to play hard and fight for another day." - JT coach Jason McElmoyle.