ORWIGSBURG — Three was the number for Schuylkill Haven’s boys basketball team.

Three times the Hurricanes faced Marian this season. Three times they won.

This one, Wednesday night at Blue Mountain High School, ended the Colts’ season with a 61-57 loss in the District 11 Class 2A semifinals.

The Hurricanes advance to the championship round against Tri-Valley, which defeated Moravian Academy 63-48, on Saturday.

Haven coach Fran Murphy knew beating Marian three times would not come easy. The Colts had eliminated the Hurricanes in this round the past two seasons.

“It’s tough to beat a good team three times,” Murphy said. “The last two seasons they beat us in this round.”

Was it a motivating factor?

Murphy did not elaborate.

“You know we’re a very young team, we start only one senior (Max Heim) so they responded for such a young team,” the coach explained.

Marian nearly pulled off another postseason win over its Schuylkill Boys Basketball League Division 2 rival.

The Colts trailed 33-21 at halftime. Haven extended the lead to 30-18 in the second quarter, and it briefly looked like a blowout.

Balance carried the Hurricanes. Nearly all five starters scored in double figures. Junior Justin Watcher led the way with 17 points. Sophomore Brayden Diehl added 15. Heim finished with 11, Alex Evans scored 10 and Kelly Brady had nine.

Marian struggled early, but responded late in the second quarter. Greg Tirpak scored a game-high 20 points, including five straight during the run. Jake De La Cruz and Jimmy Cannon each added 14 points. De La Cruz hit a basket that sparked the Colts, though Haven answered with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer by Evans to close the half.

“The way we came out in that third with an answer was a very bright start for us in that run,” said Paul Brutto, Marian’s first-year coach.

Marian opened the second half with energy, erasing Haven’s lead in the first three minutes. Brothers Justin and Jacob De La Cruz hit back-to-back 3-pointers. Cannon scored inside, and Tirpak added a corner 3 to give Marian momentum.

Haven answered with baskets from Brady and Diehl to hold a 37-35 lead. Cannon then hit a 3-pointer, and Justin De La Cruz converted a steal into a layup to give Marian a 40-39 lead with under five minutes left in the third quarter.

“We build leads, then give them back, we called a timeout and said to the kids we don’t need to be settling for perimeter shots all the time,” Murphy said.

Haven regained control but continued to trade baskets with Marian.

After Mitchell Knock made two free throws for a 50-49 lead, the Hurricanes pushed ahead 57-51.

Marian rallied again.

Justin and Jacob DeLa Cruz both scored, and Cannon made two free throws with 1:28 remaining to tie the game at 57.

Schuylkill Haven responded.

Heim and Watcher made key plays down the stretch to seal the win. The Hurricanes did not surrender the lead again.

BRUTTO’S TAKE ... “Overall, I was happy the way we played, they gave it a good effort. It just wasn’t our night,” Brutto said.

HIGHLIGHTS ... Haven’s athleticism proved decisive. Heim controlled the paint, and Marian struggled to defend the baseline.

NEAR PERFECT ... Marian shot 8-for-9 from the free-throw line. Haven was 15-for-27. The Hurricanes made five 3-pointers; the Colts had nine.

THE NUMBERS ... Marian shot 20-for-49 from the field and grabbed 31 rebounds, including 11 from Tirpak and nine from Cannon. The Colts committed 12 turnovers. Haven shot 21-for-41, and turned the ball over nine times. Heim led the Hurricanes with seven rebounds.

FAREWELL ... Marian graduates six seniors: the De La Cruz brothers, Tom Shigo, Jake Tom, Darren Paulino and Damian Rodino.

MARIAN

Shigo 0-0-0-0, Tom 0-0-0-0, Nunez 0-0-0-0, Ju. De La Cruz 3-0-0-7, Ja. De La Cruz 6-0-0-14, Tirpak 7-1-2-20, Knock 0-2-2-2, Cannon 4-5-5-14. TOTALS: 20-8-9-57.

SCHUYLKILL HAVEN

Evans 3-4-4-10, Diehl 6-0-2-15, Kelly 4-0-0-9, Watcher 4-8-11-17, Heim 4-3-5-11, Shafe 0-0-0-0. TOTALS: 21-15-22-62.

Marian 12 12 19 14 - 57

Sch. Haven 16 17 14 15 - 62

Three-pointers: Marian - Tirpak 5, Ja. De La Cruz 2, Cannon 1, Ju. De La Cruz 1; Schuylkill Haven - Diehl 3, Kelly 1, Watcher 1.

Records: Marian (10-13); Schuylkill Haven (16-8).