1985 Beaver Falls HS Girls Basketball Team
A Dream Come True… A State Title for Lady Tigers of 1985
With eight returning letter winners as last year’s WPIAL runner-up, the Lady Tiger Hoopers were favored to win the WPIAL and PIAA titles. They started the season with a bang, winning the first seven games of the season. The only blemish on an otherwise perfect season was a disheartening loss against Shalor in the Christmas Tournament. The Lady Tigers started a twenty three game winning-streak by defeating Bishop Guilfoyle, 58-57. They went on to win their section for the fifth consecutive time. The Lady Hoopers closed out the regular season by defeating New Castle, 58-44.
The WPIAL Playoffs
The next stop on the way to the State was Thomas Jefferson on the first round of the WPIAL playoffs. The next two were Penn Hills and Shaler. The WPIAL final was a rematch of last year’s championship game with the Seton-LaSalle Rebels. The BF girls took control of the game early in the first quarter and maintained the lead throughout the entire game. The Lady BF Hoopers became the first Beaver County girls’ team to win a WPIAL Championship by defeating the Rebels, 72-50.
First Beaver County and Beaver Falls Girls BasketBall Team to Win a PIAA State Championship
They went on to defeat Erie McDowell, Shaler, and Peabody to advance to the PIAA semifinals against Altoona, Altoona made the game close, but the Lady Hoopers held on to win, 49-47. By beating Altoona, the girls earned the chance to play Plymouth-Whitemarsh in Hershey. The game was close in the first half and Plymouth-Whitemarsh went into the locker room with a two point advantage. The game remained tight throughout the third quarter and most of the fourth. With a one point lead and a little more than four minutes remaining, the Tigers froze the ball, wearing down the clock. The plan almost backfired, but the defense held out and forced crucial turnovers, leading to many points. The Lady Hoopers went on to win 56-45, becoming the first girls’ team in the history of Beaver Falls and Beaver County to win a State Championship. The Dream Finally came true!!!
The Team
Seniors, Joy Jeter and Charlene Taylor along with sophomore, Angie Kirkland were First Team All-Section selections. Sophomores Sonya and Tonya Walker were given honorable Mention. The Pittsburgh Press picked Joy Jeter for their Fabulous Five and Joy and Charlene were Quad A Most Valuable Players. Coach Butch Ryan was named Quad A Coach of the year. Charlene and Joy were also selected to participate in the Quigley Classic. Joy and Charlene received a full, four-year scholarship from New Haven in Connecticut.