Persistence throughout the losers' bracket at the Stellar Basketball Tournament last week at Cedar Beach Park led Whitehall High School to the tourney final against Parkland, only to be defeated 33-14, but with good reason.

It was the Zephyrs' fifth game of the day having knocked off Parkland JV, Allen, Pocono Mountain East, and Dieruff, all on Sunday.

The Zephyrs won their first game of the tournament against Northwestern 41-34 last Thursday. A 28-21 loss to Dieruff on Friday, however, sent Whitehall to the losers' bracket.

"We let everything happen around us," said Whitehall coach Dwight Repsher after the game against Dieruff. "We were a step late on everything, and when we came back, we moved the ball and hit the open man."

The Zephyrs were down by as many as nine points in the second half, but pulled to within one on a three pointer by Taylor George. Kylee Cunningham also hit a three pointer earlier in the half.

The Huskies widened the gap once again, but a basket by Jill Rex sparked a second comeback attempt for the Zephyrs, and even with foul shots by George, it still was not enough.

What Repsher wanted to see was the kind of play he saw in Whitehall's game against Northwestern the day before.

"We guarded people, we reacted to things. We shared the ball, and we hit the open man," Repsher said. "We did what we were supposed to do."

The Zephyrs continued to do what they knew best, starting with their first game on Sunday that resulted in a 30 point victory over Parkland JV, before eventually falling to the varsity Trojans in the final.