Mairan Haggerty loved the way her shot looked in pregame warmups Saturday and hoped it would carry over to Neshannock’s WPIAL playoff opener against Charleroi.
“It was a good day for my shot,” Haggerty said.
And in turn, it was a great day for Neshannock.
Haggerty, one of the WPIAL’s top players, connected on eight 3-pointers — all in the first half — and scored a career-high 40 points while leading No. 3 Neshannock to a 73-29 home blowout of No. 14 Charleroi in a WPIAL Class 3A first-round game.
A 6-foot-1 guard-forward, Haggerty had a mammoth first half, knocking down all of those 3-pointers and scoring 34 points. The eight 3s actually aren’t a personal record. She made nine in a game last season.
“I don’t know, my shot just felt smooth and the 3-pointers just kept going in,” said Haggerty, a Seton Hill recruit who was fourth in the WPIAL in scoring during the regular season with 22.3 points a game.
Neshannock (17-6), last year’s WPIAL and PIAA Class 2A champion, raced to a 28-6 first-quarter lead and held a 29-point lead at the half. Aaralyn Nogay chipped in 12 points for the Lancers, who have won their past eight games. Bella Carroto led Charleroi (11-10) with 10 points.
Other Class 3A girls
• Regan Atkins scored 34 points and tied a school record with seven 3-pointers to help No. 2 Laurel (21-2) roll to a 64-36 home win against No. 15 Burrell (10-13). Danielle Pontius added nine points for Laurel, which led by 16 at the half. Julianna Fisher paced Burrell with 10 points.
• Kaley Rohanna finished with 31 points, 8 assists and 5 rebounds while leading No. 8 Waynesburg (20-3) to a 64-55 home win against No. 9 Seton LaSalle (13-10). Mallory Daly, the fifth-leading scorer in the WPIAL, scored 13 points, eight below her average. Tiara Curry led the Rebels with 22 points.
• In the only upset of the day, Aricka Young’s 17 points propelled No. 11 Mohawk (15-8) to a 55-41 win at No. 6 Apollo-Ridge (19-4). The Warriors also got 15 points from Erynne Capalbo and 11 from Alexa Kadilak. Sydney McCray scored a team-high 13 points for Apollo-Ridge, which had won 12 of 13 games.
• Freshmen Maggie Spell and Karis Thomas combined for 45 points in No. 1 Shady Side Academy’s 57-46 home win against No. 16 Beaver Falls. Spell scored 24 points and Thomas added 21 for Shady Side (21-2). Kamriona Mobley and Bria Harris scored 10 points apiece for Beaver Falls (10-12), which was outscored, 19-8, in the first quarter.
• Kyleigh Nagy’s 20 points vaulted No. 5 Our Lady of the Sacred Heart (17-6) to a 51-38 win against No. 12 Mount Pleasant (14-9) at Peters Township. Nagy was 12 of 14 from the free-throw line for the Chargers, who jumped to an 18-3 first-quarter lead. Mount Pleasant’s Tiffany Zelmore, the WPIAL’s second-leading scorer in the regular season, finished with 26 points.
• No. 4 Avonworth (16-5) extended its win streak to nine by defeating No. 13 McGuffey, 48-30. Greta O’Brien and Becca Goetz each scored 14 points for the host Antelopes and Mia Velilsaris had 10. Lexi Ewig, with nine points, paced McGuffey (15-8).
• Keystone Oaks (16-7), the No. 7 seed, raced to a large lead and held on to beat No. 10 South Park, 61-57. The Golden Eagles led, 22-7, after one quarter and got a big performance from Eriona Neal, who scored 26 points. Alayna Wagner added 17, while Maddie Graham led South Park (11-12) with 17.
Girls scores
Class 3A first round
Avonworth 48, McGuffey 30
Keystone Oaks 61, South Park 57
Laurel 64, Burrell 36
Mohawk 55, Apollo-Ridge 41
Neshannock 73, Charleroi 29
Our Lady of the Sacred Heart 51, Mount Pleasant 38
Shady Side Academy 57, Beaver Falls 46
Waynesburg 64, Seton LaSalle 55
For WPIAL postseason basketball brackets, results and schedules, go here.
Brad is a sports writer at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at beverett@unionprogress.com.