CLARION — Brookville could see the lead. The Raiders just couldn't get it.

Karns City led from start to finish in their District 9 Class AA girls basketball game at Clarion University, but it needed three critical free throws from sophomore Allyson Kepple in the waning seconds to secure a 47-42 victory.

The triumph sends the Gremlins (15-11) to the District 9 title game Friday night against rival Moniteau, a 55-32 winner over Cranberry earlier Tuesday.

"I know what I want in a point guard because I was a point guard when I played," Karns City coach Dave Kerschbaumer said. "Allyson may only be a sophomore, but the ball is in her hands 75 percent of the time in this offense."

Kepple stepped to the line with 22.5 seconds left and her team clinging to a 44-42 lead. She sank one of two free throws to hike the advantage to three points.

Brookville (15-11) took possession and Paige Elkin, the Raiders' leading scorer all season, got off two 3-point attempts. Neither connected and Brookville had to foul Kepple again with 4.3 seconds to go.

"She was the girl we didn't want at the line," Brookville coach Mark Powell said. "But time was running out and we couldn't be choosy."

Kepple sank both free throws this time and Karns City punched its ticket to the district title game.

"Allyson is shooting 83 percent from the line in the fourth quarter this year," Kerschbaumer said. "It's a no-brainer to give her the ball."

Karns City led by as many as 12 points, 31-19, with 4:30 left in the third quarter. Brookville went on a 13-3 run at that point to cut the gap to 34-32 by quarter's end.

Three straight backcourt turnovers by the Gremlins ignited the charge. Brookville's Sarah Pierson connected for two points, Carlie Cook sank a trey off one turnover, and Elkin made a layup off another.

Kepple sank a 3-pointer to begin the fourth quarter for the Gremlins and Haley Callihan's layup increased the KC lead to 39-32.

But Cook and Elkin drained 3-pointers on consecutive possessions to cut the gap to 39-38, only to see KC's Tausha Bowser answer with a trey of her own.

"It just wasn't meant to be for us tonight," Powell said.

With Brookville trailing 44-40 and with possession, Powell called a timeout — a split second before Cook nailed a would-be trey that would have pulled the Raiders within one again.

Brookville played Tuesday's game without starting players Mary Beth Brown and Myranda Reinard. Both missed the game with concussions.

"That hurt us depth-wise, but I thought Karns City won this game in the first half," Powell said. "They came out more fired up than we did and hit some big shots early."

Kepple had 17 points and six rebounds for the Gremlins. Bowser added 10 points and six boards, and Callihan had nine points and seven rebounds.

Karns City is the No. 1 seed in the district's Class AA field, but Kerschbaumer doesn't put much stock in it."

"The top four teams in this tournament are right around the same won-loss record," he said. "We knew we'd have to make plays in the fourth quarter to win this game and that's what we did."

Cook paced Brookville with 13 points, but fouled out with 22 seconds left. Elkin had 11 points and seven rebounds.

Both teams had 29 rebounds and 15 turnovers overall.

BROOKVILLE 42

Jessica Byerly 1-2 0-0 3, Tia Hetrick 2-4 1-3 6, Paige Elkin 3-17 3-3 11, Carlie Cook 4-10 2-2 13, Sarah Pierson 2-7 0-0 4, Morgan Castle 0-1 0-0 0, Jolayne Cline 2-4 1-1 5. Totals: 14-45 7-9 42

KARNS CITY 47

Tausha Bowser 4-10 0-1 10, Allyson Kepple 5-10 5-6 17, Melissa Collier 2-3 0-0 5, Haley Callihan 2-7 4-4 9, Kailyn Weibel 1-1 0-0 2, Ashley Fuhrer 2-3 0-0 4, Brianna Markle 0-2 0-0 0. Totals: 16-36 9-11 47

3-point goals:

Byerly, Hetrick, Elkin 2, Cook 3; Bowser 2, Kepple 2, Collier, Callihan

Friday:

District 9 Class AA Championship: Moniteau vs. Karns City @ Clarion University, 6 p.m.