No. 2 Pine Valley pulled within seven points of No. 3 Panama with just over a minute remaining in the first half of their Section VI Class D semifinal at the Physical Education Complex.

Panama missed a 3-point attempt and a defensive rebound would’ve given Pine Valley an opportunity to pull even closer in the final minute of the second quarter.

But Panama grabbed the offensive rebound.

Then, another Panama 3-point attempt missed.

Photo courtesy of Steve Garvey Pine Valley’s Paige Hohl sets her sights on the basket while being guarded by Panama’s Kaitlyn Horton (21) and McKenna Kolstee.

But Panama senior Kaitlyn Horton came down with another offensive rebound and scored while getting fouled to make it 27-18 with 1:07 remaining.

Horton missed the free throw, but Panama came down with two more offensive rebounds during the possession before sophomore Jessica Lyon made a 3-pointer and was fouled. Lyon’s free throw made it 31-18 with 47 seconds left in the half.

The six-point possession gave Panama a 31-18 halftime lead and Pine Valley never got closer than that 13-point deficit the entire second half as Panama won 60-42.

“Basketball is not a flat game, it’s a roller-coaster. We’re going to have our ups, we’re going to have our downs, that’s just the way the game goes,” Panama head coach Nicole Peterson said. “The girls have really learned to adapt to that and understand that.”

“The keys to the game were rebounding and defense,” Pine Valley head coach Cody Troutman said. ” … In that little stretch, we didn’t do either one, and that’s why they built on their lead.”

Photo courtesy of Steve Garvey Pine Valley’s Danielle West reels in a rebound during Thursday’s Section VI Class D semifinal against Panama at the Physical Education Complex at JCC.

Horton led Panama with 21 points, eight rebounds and four assists, while junior Kiera Loberg added 19 points, six rebounds and four assists.

“Kaitlyn Horton can play in the post, she can come out and hit the 3, we can put her on a guard defensively,” Peterson said. “Her versatility is key.”

Panama led 15-4 following the first quarter after eighth-grader McKenna Kolstee’s 3-pointer at the buzzer. Pine Valley turned the ball over seven times in the period.

“If we weren’t going to be strong with the ball, we were going to be in trouble. They were so aggressive,” Troutman said. ” … They put it on us. It wasn’t just one player of ours, we all struggled.”

Pine Valley cut its deficit to nine midway through the second quarter and then, after a Panama turnover, a bucket from Pine Valley senior Paige Hohl pulled her team within seven.

After a pair of Lyon free throws, Pine Valley sophomore Sandy Ivett scored to make it a seven-point game again before Panama’s six-point possession.

“Having Jess Lyon step up and play the role that we all know she is capable of playing,” Peterson said of Lyon, “it really changes the game.”

Pine Valley turned the ball over 12 times, leading to 11 Panama points during the first half.

“Brooke Warner is a huge, huge part of this team. She doesn’t score the most points on the team, but you don’t win a game just by putting the ball in the hoop,” Peterson said of her top defensive guard. ” … Brooke Warner plays fantastic defense; having her on our side is just tremendous.”

Loberg scored 11 points during the third quarter as Panama’s lead grew to 18 heading into the final eight minutes.

Senior Danielle West led Pine Valley with 19 points and 10 rebounds.

“Danielle West is what Pine Valley used to be. She will go down as one of the greats. … She needs to hold her head high,” Troutman said. “People might not know, she was playing on a really injured foot. She fought through all year long and for her to do what she did at the end proves how hard that girl works.”

Now Panama — the New York State Sportswriters Association’s 19th-ranked Class D team — will have to deal with No. 1 Sherman for the third time this season Saturday at noon in the Class D final. The Wildcats are the NYSSWA’s fourth-ranked Class D team. They beat Panama 74-34 on Dec. 17 and 58-52 on Jan. 27.

“Sherman’s always a threat. They have a fantastic coach and a great program,” Peterson said. ” … We respect them and we are anticipating a really good game.”

NOTES: Lyon had 11 points and eight rebounds for Panama, which shot 23 of 62 from the field, including 2 of 18 from 3-point range, and turned the ball over 11 times. … Hohl scored 9 points and senior Danica Farnham had seven rebounds for Pine Valley, which shot 17 of 51 from the field, including 4 of 18 from 3-point range, and turned the ball over 20 times.

PANAMA (60)

Warner 2 0 4, CLyon 1 0 2, Loberg 8 3 19, JLyon 3 4 11, Hummel 0 0 0, Kolstee 1 0 3, Burnick 0 0 0, Horton 8 5 21, Straight 0 0 0, Olson 0 0 0, Raynor 0 0 0. Totals 23 12 60.

PINE VALLEY (42)

Ivett 3 0 7, Kruszka 1 0 2, Farnham 1 1 3, Smith 0 0 0, PHohl 4 0 9, Yasurek 0 0 0, DWest 7 3 19, AWest 0 0 0, LHohl 1 0 2. Totals 17 4 42.

3-point goals–JLyon, Kolstee, Ivett, PHohl, DWest 2.

Panama 15 16 20 9 — 60

Pine Valley 4 14 15 9 — 42