PENNINGTON — The Hun School varsity girls’ basketball team picked the right time to play its most complete game of the season Saturday when it took on Mercersburg Academy in a Mid-Atlantic Prep League Tournament semifinal at Sparks Memorial Gymnasium. The Raiders had struggled miserably in their regular-season contest, losing by 33 points Jan. 31 when the Blue Storm visited. This time around, third-seeded Hun did what it had to do to upset second-seeded Mercersburg, 65-57, and reach Sunday’s 1 p.m. MAPL Tournament championship game against top-seeded Blair Academy, which defeated fourth-seeded Hill, 79-43, yesterday.. “There was a lot more attention to detail today,” Raiders’ fourth-year head coach Sean Costello said, clearly proud of his young squad, which is predominantly made up of sophomores and freshmen. “Our defense was significantly better, and our shot selection improved as the game went on.”. After one quarter, Hun (15-12) trailed by a basket before rallying to tie the game at 26 for halftime when sophomore guards Ava “A.J.” Carpenter and Meso Nwobu hit consecutive 3-point field goals late in the second quarter to erase a six-point deficit. The Raiders opened the second half with a 9-0 run, which grew to 20-9, as they built a 46-35 advantage heading into the fourth quarter. They were getting layup after layup the first time we played them, so we wanted to hold them to one shot this time,” 5-foot-11 sophomore forward/guard Jayla Williams said. “We boxed out, rebounded better and stopped their bigs. Today we had to focus on smaller details, playing together and sharing the ball.” Williams, a Burlington Township resident who was making an impact at Hun as a freshman before an injury shortened her season, was at the heart of what the Raiders were trying to do the second time around against the Blue Storm (17-6) this year. Her 17 points, 15 rebounds and five steals kept the pressure on the opposition, while showing her teammates what they also needed to do. Message received as three other Hun players joined Williams in double figures, led by Carpenter’s 22 points. Mary Tresler, another 5-11 sophomore forward, added 12 points and 14 rebounds. Nwobu was right behind with 11 points as the Raiders connected on 10 3-pointers, important considering that Mercersburg Academy hit nine. “Jayla’s a rock for us,” Costello said. “She’s a steady, calming presence. She rebounds well, and she can really shoot the ball now from anywhere inside or out. She makes us well balanced.” “No, I don’t worry about points,” Williams said. “I do like the challenge of going against bigger girls (the Storm’s sophomore Amelia Orungbeja was 6-1 and senior Alli Caretti was 6-4). That helps me to focus on making myself a better player.” With Williams playing to her full potential to help her team, Hun was able to hold off Mercersburg after it drew as close as six points (49-43) with seven minutes left behind 19 points with six 3-pointers from senior swing Nicole Leung, 11 points from sophomore guard Madison Greenaway, plus 10 points and 10 rebounds from Orungbeja. HUN (65) McNally 0-0-0, JWilliams 6-2-17, Nwobu 2-5-11, Carpenter 8-3-22, Tresler 4-3-12, McAlister 1-0-3. Totals — 21-13-65. MERCERSBURG ACADEMY (57) Orungbeja 4-1-10, Ayeni 1-0-2, AMohr 3-1-9, Greenaway 4-3-11, Leung 6-1-19, Caretti 2-2-6, Dang 0-0-0. Totals — 20-8-57. Hun (15-12)                              12    14    20    19    —    65 Mercersburg(17-6)                   14    12      9    22    —    57 3-point goals — JWilliams 3, Nwobu 2, Carpenter 3, Tresler, McAlister (H), Orungbeja, AMohr 2, Leung 6 (MA). ...read more read less