The Emmaus High School boys basketball team bounced back from a disappointing defeat in the District 11 Class 6A semifinal round to and answered the call with the season on the line in the next game, taking down Freedom in the third-place game to advance to the PIAA state Tournament.

But in their next game, the Green Hornets’ season did come to an end, falling to District 3’s third-place team in Hempfield, 62-59 last Saturday afternoon at Hempfield High School. Emmaus finishes the season with a 20-7 overall record.

“With a very talented starting five, our goal was to get to their bench,” said head coach Steve Yoder. “However, they got some unexpected production that helped them pull out the victory.”

Emmaus went ahead 13-8 after one quarter and held a 25-24 advantage at halftime, but the third quarter was a rough one for the Hornets, who were outscored 16-9 in that eight-minute frame. The Hornets came back in the fourth quarter before Hempfield sealed the win in the game’s final seconds.

Juniors Jametric Harris and Will Barber led Emmaus with 23 and 17 points, respectively, and Dylan Darville added 10. Hempfield made six 3-pointers, including three by Miguel Pena, who finished with 18 points.

The loss may have ended their season, but the Hornets and Yoder and his staff enjoyed the ride.

“What gets lost too often is that this is high school basketball, and it is supposed to be fun,” Yoder said. “This group enjoyed the journey as much as any I have ever coached. They made everything fun. From practice, to film, to games, they taught everyone to stay in the moment and enjoy them. We did that and made lots of great memories.”

Emmaus will graduate four seniors, including Darville, Jake Fotta, Chase Muckey and Dominic Nunez. They all will be missed by their program.

“This senior group took what last year’s senior group did to the next level,” said Yoder. “It was not very long ago that we won only 4-5 games in an entire season. This group went 14-2 in EPC’s, won their division, earned an EPC and District 11 berth, and returned to state playoffs. This group has meant everything to this program, and we are hopeful that next year’s group will continue that consistency and success for years to come.”

The Black Knights advanced to the second round where they will take on the District 1 two seed in Spring-Ford on Wednesday.