SOUTH LEBANON - Teams that earn second-season berths sometimes come up with certain, special types of results.

 On Tuesday night, the Cedar Crest boys' basketball team snatched victory form the jaws of defeat. A switch to a 1-3-1 trap helped the Falcons erase a 15-point, third-quarter deficit and propelled them to a 48-44 home victory over Elizabethtown.

 Down 33-18, the Falcons hit the Bears with a 14-0 bomb, as CC turned E-town turnovers into driving moves to the basket by Lucardy Jean-Francois. Gary Gristick's three-pointer and lay-up gave Cedar Crest a 37-35 edge 1:22 into the final stanza.

 But the Falcons won it with a late 8-2 burst - two lay-ins from defensive stalwart Juan Palmores, a Jean-Francois jam and a couple of charity tosses by Kyle Redinger.

 "Last year, this would've never happened," said Cedar Crest head coach Darrin Bossert. "Our kids have grown up. We're a resilient team. They (his players) impressed me tonight. They found a way and fought through adversity."

 "We mixed it (the 1-3-1 halfcourt trap) in in the first half," Bossert continued. "But midway through the third quarter we went to it. We went athletic. We went high-paced. We tried to get something working."

 The win was Cedar Crest's third in its last four outings and moved it to 9-7 overall and 5-3 in Section One of the Lancaster-Lebanon League. The Falcons, who are currently seeded 16th in the District Three Class AAAA power rankings, need two more wins to assure themselves a playoff spot.

 E-town is now 7-9 on the year.

 "Since the Ephrata game, we've come on," said Bossert. "We're on a roll now. This is the time to get hot. Our goal is to get to 11 (wins). That hasn't happened a lot around here. Our ultimate goal is districts. That was our goal at the beginning of the year.

 "Without a doubt, the trap was the difference," Bossert added. "We got offense off our defense. We struggled in a halfcourt set. We can't get in a rhythm. If we can't get a game in a frantic pace, we struggle."

 Jean-Francois tallied 12 points during the Falcons' crucial run and finished with 15. Gristick drained a trio of three-point bombs on his way to collecting 11 points, and Palmores counted ten.

 "They called a timeout and I told our guys, 'You've got to work hard'," said Bossert of crunch time. "'If you think you've worked hard to make a run, you've got to work harder.' With this team's depth, we can maintain runs. And we don't have a selfish team.

 "They're (the Bears) a very patient team and a well-coached team," continued Bossert. "They're also young. I thought we allowed them to be patient. We allowed them to get into their sets."

 Elizabethtown scored the last seven points of the first quarter and the first three points of the second to assume an 18-9 lead. That advantage bulged to 15 points early in the third.

 "Everybody has stepped up for us," said Bossert. "Tonight it was Lucardy. I thought he was stale early, rusty from a lay off.

 "Without a doubt, this year has been a success," Bossert concluded. "Wins and losses? Yes! But the way we've grown up. I think it's obvious we're a better team than last year."

ELIZABETHTOWN (44)

 Ricky Reichart 0 0-0 0, Lucas Jewell 1 1-2 3, Kasey Koser 2 2-2 6, Kirby Turner 4 3-5 11, Cameron Hoover 1 0-0 2, Alessandro Mataro 0 0-0 0, Evan Klag 1 1-1 3, Bradley Garber 7 5-7 19. Totals: 16 12-16 44

CEDAR CREST (48)

 Dillon Raker 0 0-0 0, Juan Palmores 5 0-0 10, Joe Groff 2 0-0 4, Gary Gristick 4 0-1 11, Nick Smith 0 0-0 0, Kyle Redinger 3 2-5 8, Tyler Reed 0 0-0 0, Charles Kyeremeh 0 0-2 0, Lucardy Jean-Francois 6 3-5 15. Totals: 20 5-13 48

Elizabethtown 15 9 9 11 - 44

Cedar Crest 9 5 12 22 - 48

 Three-point field goals: CC - Gristick 3.

 Fouled out: CC - Palmores

 JV score: Cedar Crest 57, Elizabethtown 50