Salisbury has been a defensive stalwart all season and Saturday the Falcons’ first-half effort was yet another example of their ability to shut down opponents.

They held a team that averages 53 points per game to just 18 in the first half of Saturday’s District 11 Class 3A quarterfinal. But the second half was a different story, as Palmerton turned a 23-18 halftime deficit into a 29-28 lead just over five minutes into the third quarter.

The Blue Bombers scored 41 points in the second half to win the game 62-51 and advance to Wednesday’s semifinal against top seed Executive Charter.

“We had a great first half,” said Salisbury head coach Jason Weaver. “We held them to 18 points and I think we gave up 40-something in the second half. That’s the issue. Our defense has been our calling card all year and we can’t give up 40 in a half. We over-rotated sometimes and ran out on guys we didn’t need to.”

Salisbury, the fifth seed in 2A, limited No. 4 seed Palmerton’s two all-league players in the first half. First-teamer Matt Michalik scored only three of his game-high 26 points in the first half, while all-league second-team selection Braydon Hosier went scoreless in the first half after picking up two fouls early in the first quarter.

Hosier got the Bombers’ second-half run started with his team’s first 11 points after halftime. That run put Palmerton up by one point with 3:06 left in the third quarter and they never relinquished their lead.

Michalik scored 23 points over the game’s final 11 minutes, including a buzzer-beating three-pointer to end the third quarter and give his team at 38-32 lead with eight minutes to play.

“We knew the shots weren’t falling in the beginning,” said Michalik. “It was a credit to their defense. They played really good defense against us. We just had to be confident in our shots and ourselves and that’s what we did in the second half and we finished it out.”

It was a drastic turnaround from the way the game began. The Falcons jumped out to a 7-0 lead on a three-pointer from Jackson Lopez and baskets by Kyle Artis and Tyson Utesch. They forced three Palmerton turnovers in the game’s first three and a half minutes.

The Bombers made a run in the second quarter and cut the lead to a point at 17-16, but a pair of Utesch baskets put the Falcons up by five at the break.

The loss ends the season for Salisbury, which posted a 12-12 overall record and qualified for both leagues and districts this season.

“We played hard all the time,” said Weaver. “I loved the effort that we had. Guys battled and competed every single minute. We lost four starters from last year. A lot of these guys played, but it’s a different level when you’re playing all the minutes that they needed to play. We weren’t a deep team.

“Guys improved. Guys got better. Guys got some more confidence. The last two weeks have been great for the sophomores to play and practice and it’s been good for us moving forward.”

Salisbury graduates five seniors in Artis, Lopez, Utesch, Hunter Bleam and Chase Fenstermaker. All have been with the program at least three years, while Bleam has been with the team for four years. The five seniors were all in the starting lineup Saturday and were all starters when healthy this season.

“It’s a great senior class of kids that have played together for a long time and gave everything they have to the program,” said Weaver. “They’re competitive guys and they give everything they have.”

SALISBURY

Artis 5-0-1-12, Lovelidge 2-0-0-4, Foley 0-0-0-0, Zellin 0-0-0-0, Lopez 3-0-0-8, Fenstermaker 3-1-2-7, Bleam 3-3-6-9, Utesch 4-3-6-11, Day 0-0-0-0. TOTALS: 20-7-15-51.

PALMERTON

Machalik 8-7-13-26, J. Sebelin 0-0-0-0, Robinson 1-0-0-2, Reph 2-1-3-5, Leister 0-0-0-0, K. Sebelin 2-2-4-6, Grammes 2-0-0-4, Hosier 6-2-2-17, Tworkowsky 0-0-0-0, Anthony 0-2-3-2. TOTALS: 21-14-25-62.

Salisbury 11 12 9 19 – 51

Palmerton 7 11 20 24 - 62

Three-pointers: S – Artis 2, Lopez 2; P - Machalik 3, Hosier 3.