District 2 Girls Basketball Playoff Preview
By: Nate Johns | Sportzwire | February 17, 2025 | Photo courtesy Jake Speicher
It’s playoff time in the PIAA and that means it’s time for playoff previews. It’s time to find out which teams will head to Mohegan Sun Arena and shortly after that, the state tournament.
District 2 will be awarding district championships in all six classifications this year. For states, both the champion and runner-up will earn a berth in the state tournament. The 1A bracket is a subregional with District 11, but the winner of MMI Prep and Susquehanna will be awarded the District 2 1A title. Because that matchup is finalized, it will not be included in the preview.
2A: Elk Lake, Mountain View, Wyoming Seminary, Holy Cross, Old Forge, Blue Ridge, Lackawanna Trail, Forest City.
Elk Lake earned the top seed by going 20-2 with only one loss against a District 2 opponent. Led by senior Leah Traver, who averaged over 16 ppg, and junior Kylie Shingler, who averaged over 10 ppg, the Lady Warriors are trying to get back to the arena for the first time in three seasons.
Mountain View is going for its third straight district title, although the last two have come at 1A. The reigning 1A state runner-ups have had a more challenging season than previous years, but still have the former 1A State Player of the Year, Addison Kilmer.
Outside of the top two seeds, Wyoming Seminary has seen a resurgence led by sophomore division one recruit Ella Stambaugh and is looking for its first playoff win since 2020. Holy Cross is the reigning 2A Girls Champion and no stranger to pulling off upsets in the postseason.
Elk Lake and Mountain View are the favorites to reach the championship, which would set up their third meeting of the season.
Championship game prediction: Mountain View vs Elk Lake
3A: Dunmore, Lake Lehman, Holy Redeemer, Riverside, Montrose, Western Wayne, Carbondale
The 3A bracket sets up very nicely for the one seed Dunmore to reach their fourth consecutive district championship. The Lady Bucks won 20 games and still have members of their 2022-23 state champion team on their roster in Sophia Talutto, Jackie Brown and Amanda Dempsey. They also will receive a bye to the semifinals after Lakeland opted out of postseason play.
Lake Lehman and Holy Redeemer have one of the best girls basketball rivalries in District 2. Their games always feature high stakes and their potential meeting in the semifinals would be no different. They have met in the playoffs the last two years, both meetings saw the Lady Royals emerge victorious. The Lady Black Knights won the season series 2-0, but the Lady Royals have seen this before, and with their experienced crew of Meagan Albrecht, Brooke Kroptavich, Isabella Boylan and Mckenzie Chimoch, they could do it again.
Championship game prediction: Holy Redeemer vs Dunmore
4A: Scranton Prep, Valley View, Honesdale, Mid Valley, Nanticoke, Tunkhannock, Wyoming Area
The 4A bracket initially appears to only have two contenders, but Honesdale can emerge as the dark horse of the group. The Lady Hornets went 18-4, and one of those losses came against Dunmore in overtime. Mid Valley also comes into the playoffs as a dark horse, and has been playing well having won seven of their final nine games.
The issue is that they will have to get past either Scranton Prep or Valley View. The two rivals met in the 4A Championship last March, and the Classics went on to the State Championship game before their run came to an end. The Classics return all five starters from that group, along with head coach Bog Beviglia. The Lady Cougars return 1,000 point scorer Giada Costa and Cora Castellani from last year’s state playoff team. The Classics only loss this season came against Blair Academy (NJ) and two of the Lady Cougars’ four losses came to the Classics.
Championship game prediction: Valley View vs Scranton Prep
5A: Crestwood, Pittston, Dallas, North Pocono, Abington Heights, Wallenpaupack, Berwick
Crestwood enters as one of the best teams in the district with a 19-4 record. Three of their losses came to undefeated Hazleton and the other to 6A powerhouse Scranton. The Lady Comets have both size and shooting with Katie and Jackie Gallagher, Kendall Petrosky and Charlie Hiller. This group lost to Dallas in the state qualifier last year, so they should be motivated and out for revenge.
Dallas and Pittston met twice this season, with the Lady Mountaineers winning both matchups. There will likely be a third game in Pittston for the right to go to the championship game and the state tournament.
Abington Heights will attempt to continue its streak of arena appearances, which it has accomplished every year since the championships moved to Mohegan Sun Arena in 2016. They will have to beat a young North Pocono team on the road that bested them there earlier this season. It is the most intriguing quarterfinal matchup.
I trust Crestwood to win a potential battle of the Lady Comets or against the Lady Trojans. The Lady Mountaineers and Lady Patriots game is a toss up in every sense, but give me the home team.
Championship game prediction: Pittston vs Crestwood
6A: Hazleton, Scranton, Wyoming Valley West, Wilkes-Barre, Delaware Valley, West Scranton
Hazleton and Scranton are the only teams in the bracket over .500 and both already have spots in the semifinals. The Lady Cougars went 24-0 this season, winning both their division and conference titles convincingly. They have an elite team that certainly has the talent to make it to Hershey. Kaitlyn Bindas and 1,000 point scorer Sophia Shults are the two key pieces to the Lady Cougars and their success.
The Lady Knights lost Zya Small, who transferred to Friends’ Central during the offseason. However Chrissy Jacklinski, Maggie and Madelyn O’Shea and Jaelyn Alers have led the charge to a 15-7 record for a team that won the 5A Girls Championship last season. They have all the pieces to repeat as champions even with the jump to 6A.
Championship prediction: Scranton vs Hazleton
