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DUNMORE — They came this close to playing for a district title and that close to playing in the state tournament.

So it’s hard for the Dallas Mountaineers to accept they won’t be playing again this season.

But Scranton Prep used a hot second half Tuesday to rally past Dallas, 42-36 in a District 2 Class 4A play-in game at Marywood University. The Classics secured the district’s No. 3 seed in next week’s PIAA bracket.

“Very difficult,” Dallas coach Kelly Johnson said. “I think this last week, we played some of the best basketball we’ve played all season.”

It wasn’t quite enough to get the Mountaineers another day.

Julia Sirotnak and Calista Kline made sure of it, combining for 19 of Prep’s 32 points in the second half that rallied the 15-10 Classics into a state playoff game against District 11 No. 1 seed Bethlehem Catholic next Friday.

The heartbroken Mountaineers finished 12-13, but not before scaring the dickens out of a trio of higher-seeded teams in the District 2 tournament.

No. 5 Dallas upended fourth-seeded Wyoming Area in a district opener, then held a 10-point lead with just six minutes to play before top-seeded Nanticoke fought desperately for a 55-54 victory that wasn’t secured until the final seconds.

And against No. 3 Scranton Prep, the Mountaineers held a nine-point lead midway through the third quarter and took a two-point lead with 4:15 to go in the game. But the unlikely state berth they were shooting for finally slipped from their grasp.

“(Beating) Wyoming Area was a great win for us,” said Johnson, who took a team that was barely above .500 entering districts to the brink of the PIAA field. “We had a lot of fire for Nanticoke, the kids wanted it bad. Two (lackluster) minutes in the fourth quarter and we opened the wound with them. We couldn’t stop the bleeding. (If not for those) two minutes, we’d be on our way to Mohegan Sun (Arena, for Thursday’s District 2 title game).

“Tonight, our shooting from the (foul) line, I’m sure, was substandard.”

It was, as the Mountaineers missed seven of their 13 free throws — all in the second half — while Prep clawed back into the game and Dallas missed a chance to extend its lead to double figures.

“I’m disappointed that would be a reason that contributed to us not winning,” Johnson said.

The shooting from everywhere else was gritty for most of the game.

Mountaineers senior Sara Lojewski, playing her final high school game, scored all seven Dallas points in the first quarter and finished with a team-high 12 for the game.

She popped her second 3-point field goal of the night with 4:37 to play in the third quarter to give the Mountaineers their largest lead at 24-15. And with the game in the balance, Lojewski burst inside for a layup that gave Dallas its last lead, 34-32, with 4:15 remaining in the final quarter.

But Dallas gained most of its momentum in the second quarter, when Olivia Johnson came off the bench and drilled three 3-point field goals as the Mountaineers easily made up a one-point deficit after a quarter to roll into halftime with an 18-10 lead.

“She’s been our most consistent outside shooter all season,” Kelly Johnson said of her daughter. “Once she made the three 3s, they marked her up. We were trying to get her the ball toward the end. They just had somebody glued to her.”

Meanwhile, Prep stuck together.

Held to just two points in the second quarter — which came 95 seconds from halftime on a Sirotnak layup — the Classics began chipping away in the third quarter.

Sirotnak, who finished with a game-high 15 points, served notice by coming out of halftime and hitting a trey and finished with nine points in the third quarter to get Prep within a pair of points of the lead.

Then Kline cleaned up, burying a 3-point shot two-tenths of a second before the third quarter buzzer to send the Classics into the final quarter with a 29-28 lead.

Then, with the game tied at 34-34, Kline drained another trey for a three-point lead with 3:11 remaining.

“The shot of the year for us,” Scranton Prep coach Bob Beviglia said.

Later, Kline — who wound up with 14 points — sealed Prep’s victory with a pair of foul shots that made it a five-point game with 30 seconds on the clock.

“Calista Kline,” Beviglia said, “was the difference.”

Scranton Prep 42, Dallas 36

DALLAS (36) — Lauren Charlton 0 2-2 2, Kendra Saba 0 0-0 0, Hanna Johnson 1 1-2 4, Sara Lojewski 5 0-0 12, Maddie Kelley 3 1-7 7, Olivia Johnson 3 0-0 9, Maria Bednar 0 2-2 2. Totals 12 6-13 36.

SCRANTON PREP (42) — Katherine Dzwonczyk 1 1-3 3, Holly Daveski 2 0-0 4, Alaina Weston 0 0-0 0, Julia Sirotnak 6 2-2 15, Calista Kline 5 2-2 14, Kathleen Rose 0 3-4 3, Devin Merritt 0 0-0 0, Claire Szymanski 1 0-0 3. Totals 15 8-11 42.

Dallas`7`11`10`8 — 36

Scranton Prep`8`2`19`13 — 42

Three-point goals — DAL 6 (O. Johnson 3, Lojewski 2, H. Johnson); SP 4 (Kline 2, Sirotnak, Szymanski).

For other sports stories, click here.

Dallas senior Sarah Lojewski scores two of her seven first-quarter points against Scranton Prep during Tuesday’s state qualifier game.
https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/web1_dallas-prep2.jpg.optimal.jpgDallas senior Sarah Lojewski scores two of her seven first-quarter points against Scranton Prep during Tuesday’s state qualifier game. Tony Callaio | For Times Leader

Dallas’ Hanna Johnson stays focused on the defensive end for the Mountaineers on Tuesday night against Scranton Prep.
https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/web1_dallas-prep3.jpg.optimal.jpgDallas’ Hanna Johnson stays focused on the defensive end for the Mountaineers on Tuesday night against Scranton Prep. Tony Callaio | For Times Leader

Dallas’ Lauren Charlton posts up during Tuesday’s District 2 Class 4A third-place game against Scranton Prep at Marywood University.
https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/web1_dallas-prep1.jpg.optimal.jpgDallas’ Lauren Charlton posts up during Tuesday’s District 2 Class 4A third-place game against Scranton Prep at Marywood University. Tony Callaio | For Times Leader

By Paul Sokoloski

[email protected]

To see video of Dallas taking its final lead of the season, please visit timesleader.com.

Reach Paul Sokoloski at 570-991-6392 or on Twitter @TLPaulSokoloski

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Video Caption: Lojewski for a final lead
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