When Panther Valley and Tamaqua square off in scholastic action, it's safe to call it a rivalry game. The two teams are close in vicinity, have a storied past of pride and tradition and the history of their games against each other have been battles, at times.

For the first frame of last night's Schuylkill League game, the rivalry took hold and the outcome seemed questionable.However, two crucial runs by the Blue Raiders lifted them to a somewhat easy 64-28 win over the Panthers, keeping the Raiders' league playoff hopes alive and dashing the Panthers' plans of playing spoiler.Tamaqua scored the game's first seven points, only to see the hosts close to within one, as the winners held a slim 7-6 edge after one session.However, that's when a 12-1 run by the Raiders opened up a 21-7 lead with just under five minutes left before halftime.Shots began to drop for the winners, and Panther Valley committed four straight turnovers that led to easy buckets, allowing the big run to occur."We definitely played a little sloppy in the first half, as a team," Raider leading scorer Bo Rottet (21 points), admitted after the game. "But then we regrouped and started to play a lot better on offense. Our defense also was good and that made up for it.""Panther Valley has been improving all season and I see what they've done recently," Tamaqua head coach Caz Kosciolek commended. "At the same time, every game is huge for us down the stretch. Early on, I think we had some poor shot selection and it was sloppy and I was disappointed with the way we played on offense in the first half."Fans in attendance could see the Blue Raiders' offensive ability improving as the game went on, as they outscored the Panthers 20-7 in the second frame for a 27-13 lead at the break."Tamaqua's a good team and they're long, athletic and defensively, they gave us problems match-up wise," Panther Valley head coach Pat Crampsie stated. "At halftime, I thought that our heads were where they needed to be and I thought if we made some stops, we'd get some opportunities. But, we didn't get that chance because they went on another run and it was a direct result of turnovers."In the beginning of the third, the last thing Crampsie and company wanted to happen, happened, as a 13-0 run out of the intermission gates turned a 13-point game into a 39-13 game with three minutes off the third period clock."We started to panic and not get to our spots and it snowballed," Crampsie added.The Blue Raiders (14-2 overall, 8-1 league), utilized a strong pressure that obstructed passing lanes, forced the Panther guards into uncomfortable spots, and yielded innumerable turnovers, which the winners translated into points.By the end of the third, the outcome was all but decided, as Rottet dropped 10 in the pivotal frame, leading his team to a 53-21 lead. Rottet also opened up the final session with five straight to add to the team's cushion, and spear-head the offensive attack.Rottet finished the game with 21 points, while teammate Bret Kosciolek added 14. "We are going to have to be more consistent on offense," Coach Kosciolek added. "We need to value our possessions more, move the ball side to side, and get better shot selection. With five league games remaining, we want to continue to improve."Meanwhile, for the Panthers, Ethan Vermillion led the way with nine points.Also, in the JV contest, the Panthers prevailed with a 39-29 win, as Sam Stanko and Nate Miller both scored nine.TAMAQUAShilko 2-0-2-4, Blaker 2-0-1-4, Miller 2-0-2-4, Rottet 7-3-4-21, Zuber 0-0-0-0, MacDonald 3-0-0-6, Murphy 0-0-0-0, Skripko 3-3-7-9, Kosciolek 6-2-2-14, Scott 0-2-2-2, Berezwick 0-0-0-0. TOTALS: 25-10-20-64.PANTHER VY.Keo 2-0-0-5, Dubosky 1-0-0-2, Vermillion 2-3-5-9, Stanko 0-0-0-0, Micholik 0-0-0-0, Nase 2-2-3-6, Miller 1-0-0-2, Hudicka 0-1-2-1, Blasko 0-1-2-1, Emmert 1-0-0-2, Morgans 0-0-0-0, Eickoff 0-0-0-0, Weng 0-0-0-0, Fisher 0-0-0-0, Mehmeti 0-0-0-0. TOTALS: 9-7-12-28.Tamaqua 7 20 26 11 - 64Panther Valley 6 7 8 7 - 24Three pointers: T - Rottet 4; PV - Vermillion 2, Keo 1.