ORWIGSBURG — They began the season in a pit of despair but are now just one win away from taking home a piece of hardware.

Blue Mountain played host to the District 11 Class 2A girls semifinal, where second-seeded Marian and third-seeded Lincoln Leadership squared off.

The two squads met nearly two weeks ago with Marian gaining a victory, allowing the Fillies to leapfrog the Lions and earn the No. 2 seed.

On Tuesday, Lincoln got off to a quick start, but then Marian settled in defensively and took over, holding the Lions in check in the first half and cruising to a 59-30 victory.

A trey from Jocelyn Fuentes, and a layup from Aroyale Fields, opened the ballgame for an early 5-0 Lincoln lead. But Marian quickly responded with a 9-0 run, receiving triples from Brooke Hannis-Miskar and Deanna Pugh to go in front and ultimately stay in front the remainder of the game.

In the second quarter, the Fillies had its opposition figured out. They forced 11 turnovers in the frame, and outscored the Lions 14-2 on route to a 28-12 halftime lead at halftime.

While Lincoln struggled to get the bounces on its scoring chances, Marian got six points from Addy Marek, and another four from Pugh to give her 10 in the half. She eventually finished with 18.

“One of our main scorers didn’t get the output that we wanted from her, which kind of hurt us down the line,” Lions head coach Jarius Hosier said. “Marian did a good job adjusting (their) defense, and we responded very slowly.”

Hannis-Miskar knocked down back-to-back threes to open the second half before Marek took over with another 11 points in the third.

The Lions tried to make things interesting with a 15-4 run that carried into the fourth, but the Fillies shut the door and closed the game with a 13-0 run to seal the win.

Marek not only led all scorers with 21 points but also added nine rebounds, five blocks, and two assists as part of a solid overall performance.

“In order for me to reach those goals, I couldn’t have done it without everybody else around me in my corner,” Marek said. “Couldn’t do it without my coaches, my teammates, fans, all the work I’ve put in the past leading up to this moment, especially making it to the district championship.”

It’s hard to believe that Marian finds itself in this position following a 2-3 start to the season and a coach resignation. At a time where it looked as if the season was in peril, interim head coach Jeff Onushco had helped bring the program back to a place where very few thought it would be.

Since that time, the Fillies have gone 12-7, clinching a berth in the Schuylkill League playoffs, a spot in the state playoffs, and now have a chance to win a district title.

“Any time you see growth in players on and off the court, you have to be happy,” said Onushco. “They went through a lot ... Kids were struggling a little bit, and the team was struggling. From the day I took over, which we had one day before our first game, our kids have bought in and they got better ... But It’s not about me. It’s about these kids and how they’ve bought in.”

TITLE TIME ... Marian will face Williams Valley in the Class 2A championship game at Martz Hall in Pottsville at 6 p.m. on Friday. The Vikings defeated Shenandoah Valley 31-19 in their semifinal matchup. The Fillies fell to Williams Valley 48-28 in their first meeting, but responded with a 39-31 victory in the second contest between the two clubs.

LINCOLN LEADERSHIP

Taylor 2-0-0-4, K. Morales 0-0-0-0, DeJesus 1-0-0-2, Hamilton 0-0-0-0, Landis 1-0-0-2, Martinez 0-0-0-0, Sampson 1-1-5-3, Heregon 1-0-0-2, Fields 1-2-2-4, Rivera 2-0-0-4, Zapata 0-0-0-0, Fuentes 3-0-0-9, A. Morales 0-0-0-0. TOTALS: 12-3-7-30.

MARIAN

Pugh 4-8-10-18, Minzola 3-2-3-8, Hannis-Miskar 3-0-0-9, Knock 0-1-2-1, Kwon 0-0-0-0, Decosmo 1-0-0-2, Marek 8-4-13-21. TOTALS: 19-15-28-59.

Lincoln LA 10 2 14 4 - 30

Marian 14 14 18 13 - 59

Three-pointers: Lincoln Leadership - Fuentes 3; Marian - Hannis-Miskar 3, Pugh 2, Marek 1.

Records: Lincoln Leadership (13-9); Marian (14-10).