BETHLEHEM - “It was our last dance together,” said Skyler Searfoss, “but our friendships will last forever.”

Searfoss’ words following Jim Thorpe’s 57-44 loss to Archbishop Wood in the PIAA Class 4A state semifinal game at Liberty High School on Saturday afternoon summarized the bond that the Olympians’ success was built on.

Of course, in the state playoffs, there are no moral victories. The goal is to win and advance.

But the girls from Jim Thorpe were able to hold their heads high after a hard fought battle against the perennial state powerhouse.

Despite the loss, Thorpe managed to achieve what no other team had done against the reigning state champions from District 12.

• The Olympians scored double digits in three of the four periods Saturday, something no opponent had done in any one period during the Vikings’ first three state wins.

• Jim Thorpe’s 44 points were 17 more than the highest amount allowed by Wood (27) in the tournament.

• Wood’s 13-point margin of victory was significantly closer than its next closest game (23 points).

“It’s bitter sweet,” said Gauronsky. “It’s like you’re in the sixth grade and candy is falling from the sky, but no matter how hard you want it, you can’t have one.

“But take nothing away from these girls. They made their community proud, their school proud, and becoming the only public school to get to the ‘Final Four’ is an incredible accomplishment.”

The game began with Wood jumping out to a quick 4-0 lead on a layup and a put back by Deja Evans, but Leila Hurley’s three-pointer quickly cut the margin to one.

With 4:30 to go in the first, Olivia Smelas gave Thorpe its only lead of the game at 8-6 with a short jumper.

Mackenzie Yuhas would tie the game at 10-10, before Wood went on a 7-0 run that bridged the end of the first and the start of the second periods.

The Olympians battled to stay close after a Snisky three and a Smelas put back got them to within five at 20-15. A Smelas steal and full-court rush to the basket resulted in a foul on her layup attempt. A free throw reduced the Vikings’ margin to 20-16, but an 8-0 run capped by two of Allie Fleming’s five triples increased the Wood lead to 33-21.

Snisky hit a three, but Thorpe was unable to keep it under 10 when Wood scored the final five points before intermission to increase the lead to 35-23.

The Vikings maintained fresh legs by running out 10 players, and the heat of the gym appeared to wane on the endurance of the Olympians’ starting five.

In addition, the Olympians also had no answer for Evans.

“She definitely had us in a pickle,” said Gauronsky of Wood’s 6-2 junior. “When she was underneath, she was able to dominate the boards with her long arms, and when she came out to the high post, that set them up for her to pass for a side three or a back-door layup.”

In the third, the Olympians tried valiantly to make a comeback, but couldn’t get stops on Wood’s high-powered offense even after a Smelas three-pointer and two free throws by Searfoss made the score 42-28.

Wood finished the period with an 18-point advantage.

In the fourth, the Olympians could only whittle the lead back to 13 before the final buzzer ended the last dance of their season.

After the game, amid the cheers and tears for the Olympians, Gauronsky was obviously emotionally affected by the end of the season for this record-breaking, history-making team.

“Our four seniors (Searfoss, Hurley, Snisky and Smelas) had their last dance together, but the great memories they made will last forever,” Gauronsky said.

REVENGE AND REWARD ... On its way to a Schuylkill League title, a District 11 title and a ticket to the Final Four, Jim Thorpe avenged several previous disappointing setbacks. The Olympians beat rival North Schuylkill four times this season, including a win over the defending league champs in the title game. They won the district crown by defeating Allentown Central Catholic - the team they had lost to in the 2021 championship game - and they avenged their only regular season loss to Dunmore by knocking the Bucks out of the state playoffs.

PASSING THE TORCH ... Gauronsky took Smelas, Snisky, Hurley, and Searfoss out of the game with under two minutes left to a resounding standing ovation by the Jim Thorpe fans. Perhaps a fitting end to their super season occurred when Yuhas - next year’s lone starting returnee - stole the ball and drove the length of the court to score a layup for the final points of the contest.

JIM THORPE

Searfoss 4-4-4-13, O. Smelas 4-1-2-10, Hurley 2-4-4-9, L. Snisky 3-0-0-8, Yuhas 2-0-0-4, H. Smelas 0-0-0-0, B. Snisky 0-0-0-0, Cinicola 0-0-0-0, Hartman 0-0-0-0. TOTALS: 15-9-10-44.

ARCHBISHOP WOOD

Fleming 6-0-0-17, Allen 4-2-2-11, Evans 4-2-6- 10, Bowen 3-2-3-8, Meredith 1-1-2-4, Rennigner 1-0-0-3, Finnegan 1-0-0-2, Morgan 0-2-2-2, McCluskey 0-0-0-0, Tretter 0-0-0-0, Knouse 0-0-0-0, Windish 0-0-0-0, Duffy 0-0-0-0. TOTALS: 20-9-15-57.

Jim Thorpe 10 13 9 12 - 44

Archbishop Wood 15 20 15 7 - 57

Three- pointers: Jim Thorpe - L. Snisky 2, Hurley 1, O. Smelas 1, Searfoss 1; Archbishop Wood - Fleming 5, Rennigner 1, Allen 1, Meredith 1.