Gov. Mifflin’s victory over Reading High girls is Taylor-made
By Sean McBryan — MikeDragoSports.com correspondent
The outlook for Gov. Mifflin’s girls basketball team was bleak after a December loss to Reading High left the Mustangs with a 1-5 record.
The Mustangs were a different breed Thursday night. They showed the capability to defend their county crown with a 69-57 victory over the Red Knights in a Berks Girls League Division I matchup in Shillington.
Anyah Ortiz scored 24 points, Taylor Koenig 22, and Shakyla Mayo 15 as the Mustangs (7-2, 9-9) moved into sole possession of second place in Berks I. The Red Knights (6-3, 11-6) fell into a tie for third place with Wilson.
“This was huge,” said Koenig, playing in her fifth game since returning from a knee injury. “There’s always this energy going into the Reading game because we played against all these girls growing up.
“Plus it was a big division game for second place. We went in up by one at halftime and knew we needed to go out there and get it done. We want a good seed in the playoffs.”
The Mustangs remain two games back of first-place Berks Catholic. They would need to win out and see the Saints drop their final three league games to win the division title. No matter: The victory strengthens the Mustangs’ District 3 power ranking and will help them earn a better seed for the county playoffs.
Koenig, who averaged a team-high 12.9 points and hit 48 3’s last season, was out for the first go-around between the two Berks I rivals, a 59-49 loss Dec. 19 at the Geigle.
She has hit 13 3’s in five games since returning.
The threat of her perimeter shooting stretches the defense, allowing skilled penetrators Ortiz and Mayo to prosper. That was on full display Thursday.
“She came back off the rip,” Ortiz said of Koenig’s return, a 26-point performance in a win over Cedar Crest Jan. 17. “It was like she never left.
“When we drive and don’t have the lane, we kick it out. We already know when she shoots it’s most likely going in.”
The same applies to the foul line. Ortiz and Koenig went a combined 19-of-22 Thursday; the Mustangs went 17-for-29 in the first matchup.
“I’m kind of known as the shooter in the county so on the court it’s always like: ‘Twenty-three! Watch 23!’ ” Koenig said. “That opens up the drive for (Ortiz and Mayo). They are so strong and so talented that when they have that little bit of extra space, they can get to the basket and finish.”
The Mustangs still weren’t at full strength; they were without big Payton Witman, who out due to a concussion. Reading High’s Heaven’Li Franklin took full advantage to the tune of 21 points and 11 rebounds to keep the Red Knights in it but the onslaught from Mifflin’s three-headed offensive monster was relentless.
Ortiz, Koenig, and Mayo combined for 14 points in the first quarter as the Mustangs took a 16-11 lead.
The second quarter saw eight lead changes. Laysha Pimental’s back-to-back 3’s gave Reading a 27-25 advantage 1:40 before halftime. Mayo scored five straight to give Mifflin a 30-29 lead going into the half.
Gov. Mifflin took control in the third quarter. After Reading took a 33-32 lead, the Mustangs went on a 20-7 finishing run. Koenig had nine points, with a 3-pointer and six foul shots (she was fouled twice on 3-point attempts). Ortiz had six points in the quarter on drives to the rim.
“We just had to keep the same energy we’d been bringing the whole game and even the games before that,” Ortiz said. “We continued playing together.”
The Red Knights closed within 61-54 on Franklin’s and-one with 2:36 left but got no closer.
Pimental hit four 3’s and scored 14 points to lead Reading. Ashanti Chapman had nine assists and six rebounds for the Red Knights.
Gov. Mifflin is currently No. 16 and Reading High No. 10 in the Class 6A power rankings; the top 12 qualify for districts.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final | |
| Gov. Mifflin | 16 | 14 | 22 | 17 | 69 |
| Reading High | 11 | 18 | 11 | 17 | 57 |
| Red Knights (11-6) | FG | FT | 3’s | A | R | Points |
| Rodriguez | 1-8 | 3-5 | 1-5 | 0 | 2 | 6 |
| Chapman | 0-6 | 1-4 | 0-2 | 9 | 6 | 1 |
| Collier | 2-3 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 0 | 2 | 5 |
| Hernandez-Albino | 0-2 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
| Seabury | 2-10 | 0-0 | 1-9 | 0 | 2 | 5 |
| Franklin | 8-16 | 5-7 | 0-0 | 0 | 11 | 21 |
| Pimental | 5-9 | 0-0 | 4-7 | 0 | 1 | 14 |
| Spring | 2-3 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 1 | 4 | 4 |
| Hopkins | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Matias | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Totals | 20-59 | 11-20 | 6-24 | 10 | 32-36 | 57 |
| Mustangs (9-9) | FG | FT | 3’s | A | R | Points |
| Mayo | 5-11 | 3-4 | 2-3 | 5 | 8 | 15 |
| Ortiz | 7-15 | 10-12 | 0-3 | 3 | 5 | 24 |
| Koenig | 5-10 | 9-10 | 3-5 | 3 | 7 | 22 |
| Estrada | 1-3 | 1-2 | 1-2 | 0 | 2 | 4 |
| Richardson | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Eustache | 2-5 | 0-0 | 0-2 | 0 | 4 | 4 |
| Miley | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Totals | 20-44 | 23-28 | 6-15 | 11 | 27-32 | 69 |
Turnovers: Gov. Mifflin 21, Reading High 23.