Sophomore Abbie Probst blocks the shot of a Niagara Wheatfield opponent during Orchard Park’s 65-63 loss to the Falcons Thursday. Photo / James Goller

Visiting Falcons score four points in final 5.9 seconds to defeat Quakers in Orchard Park’s home opener

Despite trailing for all but two minutes of its home opener versus Niagara Wheatfield Thursday, the Orchard Park girls basketball nearly pulled off an improbable comeback after trailing by 13 points at halftime.

After a slow first quarter where the Lady Quakers struggled to hit shots and rebound on their misses, the Quakers trailed, 16-8.

Despite turning up the offense in the second quarter, turnovers and foul trouble by the Quakers allowed Niagara Wheatfield to take a 38-25 halftime lead.

“We were all trying to stay positive,” sophomore Shaye Swiatek said of the team’s mood at halftime. “We knew we could come back.”

Defensive adjustments, long-range shots, and a commitment to hitting the offensive boards cut the NW lead to eight after three quarters.

“We weren’t trapping on our press,” junior Noelle Poloncarz said of the team’s first-half defense. “We picked it up on our rebounding, offensively and defensively, which opened us shots.”

Senior forward Jill Michael was particularly strong in the second half scoring 13 of 14 points after halftime.

With four minutes remaining in the game, Swiatek’s offensive rebound and put-back cut the lead down to two points. After a pair of outside baskets from junior Hannah Johnson (9 points), Swiatek hit a three-point shot to give OP a 61-59 lead.

Seventh grader Mariah Modkins hit a couple free throws to give the Quakers a 63-61 lead. After a missed shot by Niagara Wheatfield, the Falcons called timeout with possession of the ball under the basket and just 5.9 seconds left in regulation. The Falcons hit a shot to tie the game with three seconds.

The Quakers appeared destined for another overtime after playing an extra period versus Williamsville East on Tuesday. However, the Falcons subsequently stole OP’s in-bounds pass and cashed a jumper to steal the victory.

Poloncarz led Orchard Park scorers with 18 points. Swiatek finished with 12 points.

The loss drops Orchard Park to an 0-2 record. The Quakers will travel to play Jamestown on Dec. 12 before returning home to host Frontier on Monday, Dec. 17 at 7:30 p.m.

[NOTE: OP at Jamestown has been postponed]

View photos from the Niagara Wheatfield game

Mariah Modkins, a seventh grader, scored 8 points in her varsity basketball debut Tuesday. File photo / James Goller

In its opening game of the regular season, the Orchard Park girls basketball team suffered a 57-49 overtime road loss at Williamsville East Tuesday.

Despite leading 38-29 after three quarters, the Quakers were forced into overtime by the host Flames, who went on a 10-2 run to close out the extra period.

Junior Noelle Poloncarz led Orchard Park scorers with 13 points. She also earned four steals.

Sophomore Shaye Swiatek scored nine points, while senior Jillian Michael scored nine points and grabbed 14 rebounds.

Orchard Park will host Niagara Wheatfield on Thursday, Dec. 6 at 7:30 p.m.

Sectional basketball playoffs begin this week for Orchard Park. The boys team starts it off with a home contest versus Clarence tonight at 7 p.m., while the girls will travel to Niagara Falls on Thursday.

Orchard Park (#8) and Clarence (#9) split their regular season series with each team winning at the other team’s gym. The Red Devils defeated the Quakers in the first meeting, 70-64, with the Quakers winning the second meeting, 63-48.

The winner will travel to number-one Jamestown on Friday.

The Lady Quakers (#9) will make the trip to Niagara Falls (#8) to play a Wolverine team that OP hasn’t played in at least six seasons. (MaxPreps precedes my coverage of OP sports, but is only archived to the 2006-07 season).

Coverage: I will attending the boys game tonight. For updates of the game follow: @OrchParkSports on Twitter or refresh the feed on this site.

I will not be attending the girls game and depending what happens tonight for the boys, I will not be traveling to Jamestown. I would love to, but Mike Doughty is playing in Rochester.

Junior Julia Hardick reaches for a rebound in Thursday's win over Frontier.

The Lady Quakers will advance to the Class AA semi-final basketball championship with a 55-50 win over Frontier Thursday night.

After allowing 21 points in the first quarter, the OP defense stepped up and allowed just 29 points for the remainder of the contest.

OP started to challenge the outside shot and hit the boards to reduce second chance opportunities for Frontier while increasing its own.

Sophomore Jill Michael collected 11 rebounds. Taylor Swiatek grabbed seven. Kaitlyn Gauthier and Noelle Poloncarz each grabbed five.

“We’re definitely trying to work harder down low; getting rebounds and throwing them right back up,” said junior forward Julia Hardick after the game.

The shots that fell in the first quarter for Frontier weren’t falling much thereafter. As the Falcons continued to shoot from the outside, Orchard Park took the ball strong the hole. As a result, the Lady Quakers earned a total of 24 points from the foul line.

By driving to the basket and earning more chances from the foul line, Orchard Park was able to make the game a two possession contest, 53-48, when Laura Clesse knocked down two free throws with 28 seconds remaining.

Frontier hit a long two point bucket to come back, but Swiatek, who finished with a team-high 18 points, hit two free throws to clinch the victory and earn a trip to the semi-finals.

“I hoped our team would do well,” said Gauthier, a sophomore. “We brought it together and I’m glad we won.”

The Lady Quakers, the tournament’s number-five seed, will play top-ranked Jamestown at Kenmore West on Tuesday, March 1.