SHENANDOAH – Weatherly was looking for a little relief Saturday afternoon after having its eight-game winning streak snapped the night before.

But unlike Alka-Seltzer’s old jingle of ‘Plop-plop, fizz-fizz, oh what a relief it is,’ the Wrekers’ opponent only provided more discomfort.

Shenandoah Valley’s Luke Matta drained two crucial free throws with 17 seconds left on the clock to give his team a three-point advantage and an eventual 44-41 Schuylkill League victory.

Weatherly, who suffered a lopsided loss to Nativity on Friday, still had time to try and forge a tie, but the Blue Devils’ do-it-all guard Owen Kosar made sure there wouldn’t be a dramatic ending.

Kosar had the assignment of guarding one of the league’s best offensive players in the Wreckers’ Scotty Zoscin and held the scoring ace to 15 points, including none in the final eight minutes.

“Last week (Owen) was honored for his offensive play, and I challenged him to be the best defensive player this week going into our game,” said Shenandoah head coach Robbie Miller. “Without his defense, I don’t know if we are right there to get (the win).”

Weatherly unsung player Trevor Lowman came close to rescuing his team in the final quarter. Lowman, who has the uncanny ability to bury triples via an old-fashioned set shot, made a pair of three-pointers late in the game to revive his club.

Triples by Nick Mikita and Kosar (10 points) gave Shenandoah a 42-33 lead with 5:42 left to play. But Lowman connected from long range twice, the second one completing an 8-0 run that cut the gap to 42-41 with 2:38 remaining on the clock.

“The way Weatherly can shoot the trey, you can never get comfortable,” Miller said. “(Lowman) is deadly when he gets going; you saw what he did.”

Shenandoah couldn’t put the game away, missing foul tries on multiple occasions. That is until Matta converted late.

The junior had a big day in the Devils win, leading his team with 17 points and 10 rebounds.

“Luke gave us some big points down the home stretch,” Miller said. “He hits those two big free throws. Otherwise, they only need to score a basket; instead it forced them to go for a three.”

Before the final moments, Antonio Colecio was helping to keep Weatherly afloat. Colecio, who scored 11 first-half points, hit for seven of them in the second quarter as the Wreckers managed to gain a 19-15 lead. Shenandoah, however, closed the first half on an 8-0 run, including a couple treys from Matta, to take a four-point halftime advantage.

The Devils (3-3; 3-2) extended their margin early in the third frame by hitting three straight triples, one each from Kosar, Kaleb Maksimik and Bobby Boris.

Weatherly (8-3; 4-3) came to life later with an 11-4 spurt, with Zoscin jacking in seven points and Colecio accounting for the other four.

But in the end, the leg-weary Wreckers just couldn’t find the stamina to overhaul Shenandoah Valley.

“We’ll be back come Tuesday,” were the only words offered by Weatherly head coach Corey Gerhart.

Ironically, Shenandoah Valley will again be the opponent, this time in the Wreckers’ home gym.

ADD ‘EM UP … Weatherly shot 15-of-49, while SV went 14-for-47, with 11 of its makes coming behind the arc.

OFF THE GLASS … Wreckers had a big edge in rebounding, 39-29. Colecio, who scored a team-high 18 points, finished with nine.

GETTING ANOTHER ‘W’ ... Weatherly’s junior varsity team continues to play well. It rang up a 54-28 victory in the opener, led by Frank Willis and Ian McLaurin, who both scored 12 points.

WEATHERLY

Colecio 8-0-0-18, Zoscin 5-2-2-15, Lowman 3-0-0-6, Ramirez 0-2-2-2, Berkofskie 0-0-0-0, Willis 0-0-1-0, Solonoskie 0-0-0-0. TOTALS: 15-4-6-41.

SHENANOAH VALLEY

Matta 4-5-8-17, Kosar 4-0-1-10, Maksimik 2-0-0-6, Mikita 2-0-0-5, Boris 1-0-0-3, Alvarez 1-0-0-3. TOTALS: 14-5-8-44.

Weatherly 12 7 11 11 - 41

Shenandoah 8 15 13 8 - 44

Three-pointers: Weatherly - Zoscin 3, Colecio 2, Lowman 2; Shenandoah - Matta 4, Kosar 2, Maksimik 2, Boris 1, Mikita 1, Alvarez 1.