TIONESTA, Pa. – Youngsville had a stiff test in its opener against Jamestown Bethel in the Forest Tip-Off Tournament on Friday.

They passed it.

Timber Bower scored 16 points and Gage Hendrickson had 15 points and pulled down 13 rebounds as the Eagles held off a late rally by Bethel, 49-47.

“It was good for the guys to get that experience,” said Youngsville coach Jesse DeLoof. “We need to learn how to play with a lead, and obviously the only way you do that is by having a lead. That’s a game that we don’t win last year.”

It’s a young Eagle team with a ton of talent, and they were able to withstand big efforts from Bethel’s Jericho Johnson and Jared Younger, who had 19 and 11 points respectively.

“They made some good plays,” DeLoof said.

The Eagles led by nine at the half, only to watch as Bethel went on a run to cut the lead to two in the fourth.

“Timber hit a huge 3 in the fourth after they had cut it to 2,” noted DeLoof.

Bethel again cut it to 2 and had a chance to tie or take the lead after getting a rebound with 45 seconds left. They held for the last shot, which was contested and missed, and Youngsville was able to grab the rebound as time ran out.

“Our kids fought like crazy,” said Bethel coach Rick Rohlin. “After getting down early we never quit and nearly pulled out the win. I could not be prouder of this team. This is going to be a great year.”

Joe Mack and Brady Olewine added six points each for the Eagles.

“It was like a heavyweight boxing match. They would punch and we counter-punched,” DeLoof said.

The Youngsville coach also noted the strong contributions he got from his bench players.

With the win, the Eagles advance to take on host Forest Area in the finals. The Fires were big winners over Christian Life Academy. The championship game is slated for 7 p.m.

“It’s going to be another good experience for us,” DeLoof said.

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YOUNGSVILLE (49)

Mack 2-2-5-6, Hendrickson 6-3-5-15, Bower 7-0-0-16, Peterson 0-1-2-1, Olewine 1-4-4-6, Mercado 0-5-6-5, Kesterholt 0-0-0-0, Totals 16-15-22-49

JAMESTOWN BETHEL (47)

Johnson 7-2-2-19, J. Younger 3-3-4-11, Brenner 1-0-1-3, Anderson 3-0-0-6, Stuckman 1-2-2-4, Rohlin 1-0-0-3, Smith 0-0-0-0, Totals 16-7-9-47

Youngsville 12 14 9 14 – 49

Bethel 5 12 11 19 – 47

Three-point FGs: Youngsville (2) – Bower 2; Bethel (7) – Johnson 3, Younger 2, Brenner, Rohlin