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 My Site News: Claar caps stellar career; Moschella back on top |
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Monday, April 2
Claar caps stellar career; Moschella back on top
By Philip Cmor, pcmor@altoonamirror.com
Lacey Claar still vividly recalls her 13-game winning streak against her dad, Rocky, when she was just starting to develop an interest in basketball back when she was in second grade.
More importantly, she never forgot the loss that ended it. Never mind that her father had been letting her win all along.
“I wouldn’t talk to him for a week,’’ Claar said.
Claar hasn’t lost many since then, and she didn’t need anyone to be throwing the games. This year, she averaged 19.4 points and became Blair County’s all-time scoring leader — girl or boy — in leading Claysburg-Kimmel to the PIAA Class A semifinals.
Claar has been selected the Altoona Mirror 2006-07 girls’ high school basketball player of the year in a vote of area coaches, the Mirror staff and its correspondents. In one of the closer finishes in the 24-year history of the Mirror all-star team, Claar edged Altoona’s Katy Oblinger, Bishop Guilfoyle’s Mary Forr and Cambria Heights’ Amber Dubyak for the award.
Hollidaysburg’s Amanda Ottaway rounds out the first team. Mark Moschella, who guided Bishop Guilfoyle to the PIAA Class A championship, is the coach of the year.
“Probably her desire to win was the biggest thing that got her where she is,’’ C-K coach Tom Ritchey said of Claar, who joins Williamsburg’s Abby Hoy as the only girls to make the Mirror’s first team three times. “She worked hard all the time to get better.’’
A 5-foot-7 guard who signed with IUP in the fall, Claar also averaged 9.3 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 3.7 steals in helping propel the Lady Bulldogs to a 25-6 season and a second straight appearance in the PIAA elite eight. She was second-team all-state last season and the outstanding player in the Juniata Valley League three times.
Claar’s career numbers are staggering. She finished with 2,187 points, 917 rebounds, 618 assists and 434 steals. As a senior, she broke Jill Brumbaugh’s Lady Bulldog scoring record, then Hoy’s Blair County girls’ point mark, then became the first Blair County girl to reach 2,000 points before finally catching Central’s Ben Bithell for the all-time county point record by scoring 35 in a PIAA opening-round win over Vincentian.
None of those, though, meant as much to Claar as 92-22, the Lady Bulldogs’ record in her four years.
“Basically, just being able to lead the team and get so far is what I am proudest of,’’ Claar said. “In all honesty, (the scoring record) doesn’t occur to me. People think that’s a big deal, but it didn’t do anything for my team.’’
This is Moschella’s fourth time to win coach of the year. Jeff Batzel, who led Northern Bedford for the District 5 Class A title, was second.
Going 31-1, the Lady Marauders established a new team mark for victories in a season and, by virtue of the win over North Catholic at the Bryce Jordan Center, tied the Altoona girls with the most state championships in the Mirror coverage area with four.
Ironically, Moschella’s second state crown came one year after the Lady Marauders had a 27-year interdistrict playoff streak broken. Moschella was able to marry his usual stingy defense with a stronger post offense than he’s been able to enjoy through the years.
“This team’s coachability was outstanding. They just wanted to learn, not only from losses but from wins in which we didn’t play particularly well,’’ Moschella said. “I began thinking at the District 6 championship game how all of us as coaches had been [in the state finals] before, but we wanted these players to experience it.’’
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