The third seeded Tigers saw their season come to an end in a 52-46 loss against Shanksville in the District 5A Consolation Finals on Wednesday night at the University of Pittsburgh Johnstown.  

The Vikings jumped out to an early 8-2 lead in the opening minutes of the first quarter.  A late quarter surge by the Tigers pulled them with one point, trailing 10-9 at the end of the quarter.  Evan Wingert had 5 points in the period.  

In the second quarter the Vikings found some success against the Tigers zone defenses as they knocked down three treys to go into the half leading 28-16.  The Tigers Landon Arnold hit a three and layups by Parker Lantz and Jake Coffman is all the Tigers offense could muster in the second quarter as their offense continued to struggle.  “We came out about as flat as you could in the first half.  The confidence just didn’t seem to be there in the early going and we dug ourselves a hole.” Coffman said.  

At halftime the Tigers talked about what they needed to do to get back in the game.  “I could tell they were extremely disappointed in their first half performance, and the seniors especially didn’t want to go out that way”, Coffman said.  In the second half the Tigers were the better team.  They switched to a man defense and started chipping away at the Vikings lead.  With the defense getting multiple stops, the Tigers transition game came to life and the Tigers played their way back into the game.  Point Guard Broc Hostler who had 8 assists in the game hit Wingert, Lantz and Arnold with fast break layups to pull the Tigers to within one.  With less than two minutes to go in the quarter, Jake Coffman received an outlet in transition, drove the lane and passed to Arnold under the basket for a lay up to put the Tigers in the lead.  The Vikings however made a short run at the end of the quarter to lead 34-31 at the end of the third.  Arnold had 8 of his game high 19 points in the quarter. 

The 4th quarter was back and forth with both teams getting big buckets.  The Tigers remained within striking distance but every time the Tigers would make a bucket the Vikings seemed to have an answer.  A few costly missed scoring opportunities and a couple turnovers late in the 4th gave the Vikings a little breathing room pushing the lead to six points.  The Tigers don’t have a deep bench and you could see the fatigue taking its toll as they worked so hard to get back in the game.  The Vikings would go on to close out the game as the Tiger’s season came to an end 52-46.  

“This group of seniors is a very competitive bunch of kids.  They have been very successful at everything they do and they will carry that success with them in life.  They have been a part of a lot of big wins and also some disappointing losses in their careers, but they have built lasting relationships and memories that will last a lifetime.  It’s been a pleasure for us coaches to be a part of their journey, Coffman said.  

The Tigers will graduate six seniors; Landon Arnold, Jake Coffman, Parker Lantz, Broc Hostler, Tucker Seibert, and Evan Wingert.