Farrell reaches district semifinals with win over Mercyhurst Prep

The Steelers beat Mercyhurst Prep, 58-53, in their first venture into District 10.
By BILL ALBRIGHT
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
MEADVILLE -- For the Farrell Steelers, the matchup with Mercyhurst Prep marked their first venture into the playoffs as a member of District 10 after winning seven state titles as a member of the WPIAL.
Friday night at Meadville High School's "House of Thrills," the Steelers made the most of their new surroundings as they advanced to the district semifinals with a 58-53 win over the Lakers.
The Steelers (22-2) will face the winner of the Fairview-Seneca game at a date, site and time to be determined.
"I am sure they [the Farrell players] felt a little pressure on them," Farrell coach Roland Shannonhouse said. "Even with the success we had during the regular season, we are still not getting a lot of respect, especially from the teams up north.
"They [the northern teams] are very competitive, but we feel we can play with them and that is all we can ask for."
Now owning a win over the defending District 10 Class AA champions, Shannonhouse is hoping to gain some of the respect he feels his team deserves.
"I am hoping. I am really hoping," Shannonhouse said. "Maybe we can get a little respect now and we will take whatever we can get."
Leading the way
During the regular season, Farrell has been led by the likes of junior Donald Jackson and seniors Josh Williams and Josh DeCarmen. For the Steelers, the trio, along with Torlando Hopson, was once again a driving force.
Jackson led the Steelers with 16 points, Hopson added a dozen, DeCarmen finished with 11 and Williams chipped in with 10.
"There is no doubt about the effort we got from those guys," Shannonhouse said. "All the seniors did well tonight because they didn't want this to be their last game. They stepped up and made free throws, they defended and I am just so proud of their effort. They did a nice job."
Although he hit double figures, DeCarmen admitted it was difficult due to the swarming Laker defense.
"It was difficult to get a lot of good shots off," he said. "But we got some rebounds, worked it around to either get easy lay-ups or get to the foul line."
The Steelers, who led by as many as 11 points in the second quarter, kept the lead in the 8-10 point range until they held a 50-41 lead with slightly more than two minutes left in the game.
Clutch foul shooting
However, Mercyhurst, on the strength of three 3s, cut its deficit to as few as four (47-51). That is where DeCarmen came up big for the Steelers as he connected on seven of eight from the line down the stretch to clinch the win.
"I finally started knocking down some free throws and they came at a time when it kept us in the game," DeCarmen said. "I have been missing them all year, but tonight, I just tried to concentrate a little more tonight.
"That is the best I shot them for a while."
For Prep (16-9), Thurman Schaetzle led all scorers with 17 points, San Hvezda added 14.