Whitehall forward Keona Spooner’s game-winning free throws clinched a 46-44 victory over Bangor in a District XI Class 5A girls basketball semifinal on Feb. 28 at Easton Area Middle School, guaranteeing a state playoff berth for the Zephyrs.

“I felt like I let my team down, having four fouls being the defender on the team, so I felt like I had to make these two foul shots to make up for it,” Spooner said. “I wasn’t nervous at all. I was like, I got this in the bag, I’m here for my team, and we’re a family, so I’ve gotta get these two in and get this done.”

Teammate Charlotte Bynoe’s two made free throws, seconds before Spooner’s, set up the perfect ending for the Zephyrs to the game that almost got away.

“I told the girls we were gonna win the game,” said Whitehall coach James Middleton, regarding the Zephyrs’ last timeout. “They had to believe. We had to execute down the stretch, and as long as we stayed physical with them and ball pressure, we knew we could get turnovers, and that’s what we did at the end.”

Whitehall took a 29-15 lead into halftime, but as the third quarter progressed, Bangor put the Zephyrs on their heels.

Fourteen straight Slater points cut into Whitehall’s lead as the Zephyrs committed 12 fouls in the third quarter.

“You know, we got excited. We kind of took our foot off the gas. They started to win the loose balls, we stopped boxing out, and we stopped doing the little things,” Coach Middleton said. “That’s a good team over there and very well-coached. They’ve been here before, so they know how to climb back into these games, but we did a hell of a job of bringing it back, and closing it out, and getting the win.”

Jaylene Wilson’s triple with 20 seconds remaining in the frame eased some of the Zephyrs’ tension on the floor, but Avery Nelson’s 3-pointer for Bangor to start the fourth quarter put Whitehall back on guard.

“At that point, I was a little nervous, but when I hit it I knew we were in this,” said Wilson, who came up with a steal after Nelson’s 3. “[Our defense] was all planned out. We did this at practice multiple times, maybe over 100 times. I’m so glad we won this because we worked really hard.”

A Bangor pass downcourt landed at the feet of Nya Brown, and MJ Dunbar took the ball in for a layup.

Nelson’s 3-pointer with 2:39 remaining in the game put Bangor ahead, 39-38, and Dunbar fouled out 30 seconds later.

“Fouling out as a senior was not my plan, but my team really came through for me and got us that win. Honestly, I trusted my teammates. We were gonna press from the start, we did do a box and 1 on number 25 (Nelson), and our shots were falling today. I think the main thing was to pick each other up. Even I was getting in my head at points.” said Dunbar, who had tears in her eyes watching the final minute of the game. “One of the greatest games I’ve ever played. One of the biggest games I’ve ever played.”

Llyneida Otanez’s steal and bucket on Bangor’s inbound kept Whitehall within one point, but Deleah Klingle put Bangor’s lead back to three. Then, Whitehall forward Jade Alvarez sank two free throws after Bangor’s Aubrie LaBar missed both of hers.

“You never know when you’re getting that call for a foul,” Alvarez said. “We just go in there with that nasty mentality to be strong with the ball because if you’re not, you’re gonna lose it, so it doesn’t matter when it comes to size. When we’d go up, sometimes it’d be one of us and three of them. We just had to stay strong with it.”

In the final 15 seconds, Nelson sank one foul shot, but Bynoe tied the game, 44-44, and Spooner won it with 3 seconds on the clock.

“Relief. Relief,” said Alvarez of hearing the final buzzer. “When there was one second left and they had that inbound play, I was like, of course with our luck. But I’m just happy it came down to things we stressed all year: layups, foul shots, and effort. It came down to foul shots and we made them, and when that buzzer went off, it was a relief that all this work pays off and sticking together pays off. I was happy for my team that we were able to push through.”

The Zephyrs faced Bethlehem Catholic in the district final and lost to the Golden Hawks, 53-24.

Whitehall will take on West Chester Rustin in the first round of the PIAA Class 5A state tournament at 3 p.m. on March 9 at Whitehall.

“I feel really good,” Coach Middleton said. “I feel like we deserved to be here, we earned the right, and we were the better team tonight.”