MINERAL RIDGE — The gymnasium at Mineral Ridge High School was completely filled, Saturday night, when Maplewood and Springfield squared off for a Division IV district championship.

The Springfield faithful celebrated their first district title in 30 years with a hard fought 36-31 victory.

“The first since 1992,” said first-year Springfield coach John Matisi. “We’ve asked a lot of them. For them to get to the playoff, and to watch them get to cut down the net, it just means everything.”

It was a close battle from the opening tip to the final buzzer. The Tigers led 10-9 at the end of the first quarter, but Maplewood went up by four points with two minutes left in the first half.

Then, Madison Lesnak went to work inside for Springfield. Lesnak had a steal, and she dished it to Jacey Mullen (team-high 11 points) underneath.

“It was a team effort,” Lesnak said. “We worked together. We fought through the ups and downs. This was our main goal.”

Hannah Gaylog scored for the Rockets just before halftime to put Maplewood back on top 16-15 at the break.

Kaila Lamorticella banked one in from downtown and Mullen had a finger-roll as the third quarter got underway.

“It was a hectic game,” Mullen said. “In the end, we did our job. I’m very thankful we got it done tonight. This was a goal we set at the beginning of the year.”

Gaylog, and Baylie Starcher (team-high 11 points), did a great job of keeping Maplewood in the ballgame. Starcher was strong going to the hoop but a lay-up from freshman Jameka Brungard put Springfield ahead 30-24 heading to the fourth.

Brungard dove to the floor for a loose ball as she kept hustling, which brought the Tiger fans to their feet.

“This feels good,” Brungard said. “It’s been a goal all season. We weren’t able to win the league, but this is a great accomplishment for us.”

Starcher finished on a reverse. Senior standout Marissa Ventura had a floater in the lane, and a 3-pointer from the corner with three minutes left. Unfortunately, for Maplewood, the Rockets couldn’t get another shot to fall, as their season came to an end.

“We played tough,” Maplewood coach Stephanie Pykare said. “Unfortunately, it wasn’t our best basketball. We lost to a very good team. We knew their size would be a challenge. However, it wasn’t the reason we lost.

“We don’t have anyone taller than 5-foot-8. We executed what we wanted on defense, but we couldn’t get it done offensively. We had too many turnovers.

“For them to make it this far, with only 6 active players, has truly been amazing. You can’t say enough about their heart. It’s been a privilege to coach them. I’m so proud of them.”