SUSQUEHANNA — Refocused and energized, Elk Lake seized back control of the Lackawanna Division III championship race.

After a pregame meeting with coach John Warnero, when he emphasized playing with a purpose, the Warriors took the court at Susquehanna High School and dominated.

Chase Pond scored 28 points, John Heitsman scored 17 points and Kendel Jones scored 13 points and collected 10 rebounds as the No. 10 Warriors posted a 69-52 win over No. 8 Susquehanna on Monday in boys basketball.

Elk Lake (19-2 overall, 12-1 in division) reclaimed first place by itself and clinched a tie for the league title. The Warriors, who have nine Lackawanna division titles, finish the season at home against Montrose (9-12, 7-6) on Wednesday.

Susquehanna (16-5, 11-2) is in second place. The Sabers play at Blue Ridge on Wednesday in the final regular-season date. They would need a win and an Elk Lake loss to force a playoff for the division title.

“We just knew that we had to play with a lot more energy,” Pond, a guard, said. “We wanted to show that we belong here, and we have worked hard to be the best team in the division.”

 

Several players pointed to the disappointing loss to Lackawanna Trail last week, which snapped a 15-game winning streak, as the motivation for the second meeting with Susquehanna.

Elk Lake used a tenacious defensive effort and a relentless attack of the boards on missed shots to stymie the Sabers. Jones had six of his 10 rebounds on the offensive glass. Heitsman had five of his eight boards at the defensive end.

Unlike the Lackawanna Trail defeat, where a slow start resulted in a 23-6 deficit after the first quarter and a 41-14 halftime margin, Elk Lake wasted no time taking over control of the game against Susquehanna.

Early in the first quarter, Pond charged the offense with a converted three-point play, and the Warriors set a fast pace. Elk Lake built a 15-8 lead in the first quarter with Heitsman scoring eight points.

“This was an important game for us,” Heitsman said. “We played defense, and that was what we needed. The shots were falling.”

After Susquehanna’s Griffin Fisk swished two 3-pointers, Pond and Heitsman went back to work. They were aggressive, and Pond connected on two of his five 3-pointers in the game during a 10-0 run that gave the Warriors a commanding 27-14 lead with 1:37 remaining in the half.

Elk Lake didn’t let up.

Brayden Miller scored four of his nine points during a 7-3 run to start the third quarter that pushed the Warriors’ lead to 36-22. Miller also had a strong day rebounding, contributing six in the game.

“We had a really good practice (Sunday) with a lot of energy,” Miller said. “Everybody brought that same energy into the game. We really worked well together as a team.”

Elk Lake finished the third quarter on a 12-4 surge. Pond and Heitsman had back-to-back 3-pointers, and Jones hit two short-range shots after battling for rebounds to highlight the run.

“Coming into this game, we knew that Susquehanna was going to be a tough team and this was going to be a battle,” Jones said. “Our defense came through for us, and that led to offense for us. Our effort was a big part of this.

“I just tried to crash the boards the best that I could.”

Susquehanna tried to build some momentum. Fisk got red-hot shooting. In the fourth, he made all seven field goals and connected on six straight free throws for 20 of his 34 points.

However, the Sabers didn’t have another player contribute double-digit points. Hudson Stengel had six points.

But it just wouldn’t be enough to shake Elk Lake’s resolve. Pond scored 12 points in the fourth, and Jones added five as the Warriors kept answering Fisk’s effort to secure the win.

“I just wanted to make sure there were no doubts,” Pond said. “I wanted to put a stamp on this win.”