Bears get back on track against Mifflin

The EAHS boys basketball team hasn't had to bounce back from a loss very often this year. And doing that in the regular season is always tough. Doing it in a must-win situation after losing the league title game in overtime is even tougher. But that's exactly what the Bears did last night, beating Governor Mifflin 67-57 in the first round of the District Three Quad-A playoffs.

In the first quarter, it looked as if last Friday's loss was a distant memory for the Bears. They came out blazing from 3-point range and playing fantastic defense. With 5:09 left in the first quarter, E-town held a 5-4 lead, and then went on a 14-0 run over the next four minutes to lead 19-4. During that run, 12 of E-town's points came on 3-pointers (one each by Chad Styer and Quinn Cozzens and two by Andrew Placeres). And Jeremi Jones capped the quarter with the Bears' sixth trey of the period with six seconds left to put E-town up 22-6 after one.

In the second quarter, though, Mifflin began to close the gap, behind super quick guard Justin Rodriguez. Rodriguez scored his teams final 10 points of the half and the last eight points overall, as the Mustangs trimmed the E-town lead to five (32-27) at halftime.

But E-town just kept coming, and began to pull away in the third. The Bears again picked up the defensive pressure and forced seven Mifflin turnovers in the third en route to outscoring the Mustangs 20-7 in the quarter.

Credit to Mifflin, they never gave up and continued to battle in the fourth, but E-town was just too much. As they have been all season, E-town was led by Cozzens, Styer, Placeres, Jones, Kyle McNeil and Bradley Garber. E-town's top six shared the ball well, and are just so comfortable together that they almost make it look easy at times.

And for the second straight year, they will be playing at the Giant Center with a chance to clinch a state playoff berth. They will take on No. 6 CD East on Saturday morning at 10 a.m. East beat E-town earlier this season. We'll have a full preview of the game in the morning, once I finish digging up some more information on them.

Here are the Bears' stat lines from Wednesday night. Fantastic game by Cozzens, by the way.

Quinn Cozzens – 16 points, 8 assists, 6 rebounds, 2 steals.
Chad Styer – 16 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists.
Kyle McNeil – 10 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal.
Andrew Placeres – 8 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal.
Bradley Garber – 6 points, 1 rebound, 1 block, 2 steals.
Jordan Hoover – 6 points, 1 rebound, 1 steal.
Jeremi Jones – 5 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist.

District Three Triple A Wrestling Brackets

Here's a look at the District Three Class AAA brackets for the tournament, which begins tomorrow at Hersheypark Arena. For the full brackets, please click here.

Before we get started, here is a schedule for the weekend. I'll give you the Double A and Triple A schedules. Remember though, E-town is Triple A, so don't show up during the Double A times and expect to see an E-town wrestler.

Friday, Feb. 20:
Class AA
Championship I: 10 to 11:30 a.m.
Championship II: 11:30 a.m. to 12:45 p.m.
Consolation I: 12:15 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Class AAA
Championship I: 4 to 6:30 p.m.
Consolation I: 6:30 to 9:15 p.m.
Championship II: 6:30 to 9:15 p.m.
Consolation II: 9:15 to 10:30 p.m.

Saturday, Feb. 21
Class AA
Championship III: 9 to 11 a.m.
Consolation II: 9 to 11 a.m.
Consolation III/5th place: 11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.

Class AAA
Championship III: 1 to 3 p.m.
Consolation III: 1 to 3 p.m.
Consolation IV: 3 to 3:45 p.m.

Class AA and AAA
Consolation Finals: 5 to 6:15 p.m.
Parade of Champions: 6:15 to 6:30 p.m.
Championship Finals: 6:30 to 9:15 p.m.

OK, now let's look at the brackets for each of E-town's six district qualifiers.

103 – Matt Hoover (32-4)

First round bout: vs. Nate Williams, freshman, Dover (23-5). Williams is the second seed from Section 5.
From there: If Hoover beats Williams, he'll likely get Section Two top seed Shyheim Brown (37-5), of Central Dauphin.

112 – Calvin Anderton (25-6)

First Round bout: Kevin Gooding, sophomore, Central Daupin (30-8). Gooding is the top seed from Section Two.
From there: Anderton faces a tall order against Gooding in the first round, but should he pull an upset, he'll get the winner between Ephrata's Austin Wealand (14-16) and Central York's Andrew Wesner (18-10).

125 – Jeremy Rivera (32-6)

First Round Bout: vs. Jonathan Childress, senior, Dallastown (26-3). Childress is the top seed from Section 5.
From There: First things first, Rivera needs to get by Childress, a section champ. But if he's able to do that, he'll get the winner of Bobby Manning, West Perry (28-8) and Taylor Stuart, Lower Dauphin (25-9).

160 – Adam Zellman (34-7)

First Round bout: vs. Luke Etter, senior, Big Spring (27-10). Etter is the second seed from Section 1.
From there: Should Zellman get past Etter, he'll likely get Section 2 top seed Kenny Courts (36-3), of Central Dauphin.

189 – Shane Rosenberry (33-5)

First Round bout: Matt Zdradzinski, junior, CD East (8-6). Zdradzinski is the fourth seed from Section Two. Rosenberry is the No. 2 overall seed in the bracket.
From there: With a first round win, Rosenberry would get the winner of South Western's Drew Sneeringer (26-9) and Wilson's Chris Spayd (6-3). Rosenberry is looking to return to the state tournament for the second straight year.

285 – Alex Kirchner (28-8)

First Round bout: Right off the bat, Kircher will have to deal with Section 5 top seed Keith Dahlheimer, a senior from Red Lion with a 31-4 record.
From there: Should Kirchner upset Dahlheimer, he'll get the winner between Elco's Nate Bicher (33-7) and Cedar Cliff's Ryan Collins (26-8).

Advanced tickets for district basketball playoffs

Elizabethtown Area High School will be selling tickets in the school office today and tomorrow for Saturday's E-town/CD East District Three Quad-A semifinal matchup. The game is at 10 a.m. Saturday at the Giant Center in Hershey.

Tickets are for sale in the main office of the high school during school hours (about 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.).

Of course, you can get tickets at the Giant Center if you wish, but if you don't want to wait in line at the ticket booth, head over to the high school and pick some up.

Back later with a preview of the game, a recap of E-town's win over Governor Mifflin last night, and also a look at the District Three wrestling tournament.

LIVE BLOG: District Three Section Three sectional wrestling

E-town falls to CV in league finals•

Wow...what a basketball game. Tonight's atmosphere was nothing short of electric and the L-L League championship game sure didn't disappoint. Unfortunately for the Bears, they finished with silver medals around their necks instead of golds.

CV became perhaps the most unlikely L-L League champion (although I'm sure they don't think so) in history as they beat the Bears by two in overtime.

I'll have much more on this game, later, but wanted to check in now with a few thoughts.

• E-town didn't play particularly well in the second and third quarters, and some of that may be because of CV's stellar defense, but you have to give the Bears credit. They were down by 11 points in the fourth quarter and fought back to force overtime.

• Jeremi Jones sank a three pointer with 1 second left in regulation to force OT. Jones' shot was absolutely fantastic, but Quinn Cozzens' pure hustle on that play made it happen. There's a reason No. 1 is the captain of this team, and he showed his moxie down the stretch tonight.

• I still don't know how Cozzens' put back at the end of OT didn't drop. Fantastic effort by him, just a little bit of bad luck.

• CV definitely earned this league title, going through Hempfield and E-town to get it. That said, and I know it doesn't feel good for the E-town players and coaches right now, but the Bears have no reason to hang their heads. It takes a lot to come back from an 11-point fourth quarter deficit to force OT. But the key is that the Bears must remember that they have a lot of basketball to play. Sure, they missed out on one of their goals, but there is still a state playoff berth out there for them to get.

• By the way, Governor Mifflin beat Cocalico in the play-in round, so E-town will play Mifflin in the first round of districts on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. at Steel High. A preview of that game will be up early next week.

• Once again, GREAT atmosphere tonight. Both teams made huge plays down the stretch and both student sections were creative and great. Very cool game to see in person.

OK, that's all for tonight, but check back later this weekend for more on this game, and don't forget to check in tomorrow for a live blog from the wrestling sectional tournament.

And then there were two: L-L Final preview

(E-town fans were giving it to CV star Jeremy Skoloda in the last meeting, and he took it with a smile.)

Tonight's the night. E-town. CV. Lancaster-Lebanon League finals. Tip off is set for 7 p.m. at Manheim Township tonight, and it should be a great game. Story lines are plentiful for this game, so let's take a look at them.

THE GAME: Elizabethtown Bears (22-2 overall, Section Two champions) vs. Conestoga Valley Buckskins (16-7 overall, Section Two runner-up). 7 p.m., Manheim Township.

Playoff Journeys:
E-town: The Bears started the league playoffs with a 63-51 win over L-S. In the semifinals, they won their 10th straight game by beating Lancaster Catholic 76-61 behind a 17-for-21 shooting performance in the second half.
CV: The Bucks took it to Cocalico in the first round, winning 63-42. In the semis, they upset Hempfield, which hadn't lost a league game all year, 51-45.

Quotable:
"They know us and we know them. An all Section Two final is kind of nice, but I'm sure it's going to be a dog fight. They're a great team, well coached, and I'm sure it's going to be a fun night." – E-town head coach Kevin Dolan.

"We've got to keep doing what we've done all year. We've got to shut down the players we need to shut down, play team defense, box out and sprint in transition and that will create our offense for itself." – E-town senior forward Chad Styer.

Top Scorers:
E-town:
Kyle McNeil, 13.3 points per game; 18 ppg in playoffs; 9 ppg against CV this year.
Chad Styer, 12.1 ppg; 15.5 ppg in playoffs; 10 ppg against CV this year.
Quinn Cozzens, 11.7 ppg; 8.5 ppg in playoffs; 8.5 ppg against CV this year.
Jeremi Jones, 11.7 ppg; 11.5 ppg in playoffs; 9.5 ppg against CV this year.
Andrew Placeres, 8.9 ppg; 8.5 ppg in playoffs; 7.5 ppg against CV this year.
Bradley Garber, 5.8 ppg; 6.5 ppg in playoffs; 4.5 ppg against CV this year.

CV:
Jeremy Skoloda: 18.9 ppg; 16 ppg in playoffs; 15.5 ppg against E-town this year.
Jae Pugh: 9.7 ppg; 14 ppg in playoffs; 0 ppg against E-town this year.
Joel Lapp: 7.6 ppg; 5 ppg in playoffs; 7 ppg aginst E-town this year.
Josh Cody: 6.4 ppg; 8 ppg in playoffs; 1 ppg against E-town this year.
Leonard Williams: 5.2 ppg; 4.5 ppg in playoffs; 7.5 ppg against E-town this year.

Team Stats:
E-town:
Points per game: 70.3 (69.5 in playoffs, 51 vs. CV).
Points allowed per game: 55.4 (56 in playoffs, 44 vs. CV).

CV:
Points per game: 55.7 (57 in playoffs, 44 vs. E-town).
Points allowed per game: 48.2 (43.5 in playoffs, 51 vs. E-town).

Prior meetings this year:
E-town 45 - CV 44
In their first meeting this season, E-town escaped CV with a one-point win on Dec. 23. With the score tied at 44-44, Placeres was fouled with no time remaining. He sank his first free throw attempt to give the Bears the win. CV played this game without Pugh and were led by 17 points from Skoloda. McNeil led E-town with 12 points.

E-town 57 - CV 44
One month later, on Jan. 23, E-town and CV met again, this time in E-town. The Bears got 14 points from Jones and 13 each from Styer and Cozzens as they cruised past the Bucks, clinching at least a tie of the Section Two title. Skoloda was held scoreless for the first three quarters of this game, but finished with 14 points, all coming in the fourth quarter. Pugh played this time around, but was held scoreless by McNeil.

Matchups to watch:
(Kyle McNeil, left, and Jae Pugh, right, will be battling in the paint tonight.)

Jeremy Skoloda vs. Bradley Garber
Skoloda is arguably the best player in the league. He was fourth in the league in scoring and has hit 61 3-pointers this year. The last time these two teams met, Garber was put on Skoloda, and hounded him all night, holding him scoreless for three quarters. That matchup will likely be the same tonight, but it will be interesting to see what CV learned from the film of that game. E-town likely won't be able to hold Skoloda scoreless for three quarters again, but where ever he goes, Garber will be there with a hand in his face. This is probably the most important defensive matchup for the Bears. They can't let Skoloda get hot and start hitting from the outside. To stop him, Garber (and Jeremi Jones) will have to fight through a ton of screens.

Jae Pugh vs. Kyle McNeil
Pugh, CV's 6-6 x-factor, has been marvelous in the playoffs, scoring 13 in the first round against Cocalico and following that up with a 15 point, 11 rebound night against Hempfield on Wednesday. But he has yet to score a point against E-town this season. As I said earlier, he missed the first matchup, but was a non-factor offensively in the second with McNeil locking him down. Pugh does have a few inches on McNeil, and he'll score more tonight, but if McNeil can take away CV's best inside threat, they'll have to rely much more on the outside game. On the other end of the court, E-town will need McNeil to establish himself against the bigger Pugh, but if he can't get it going offensively, the Bears have more players capable of picking up any slack.

Game thoughts:
This one should be a dandy. CV is riding very high right now after upending Hempfield on Wednesday, but the Bears will be ready. E-town has the confidence of beating CV twice this year already. But it wasn't easy either time. CV plays outstanding defense, and held E-town to nearly 20 points below its season average. And CV held the Bears to their lowest scoring output of the season (45) in their first meeting. That said, CV has only managed 44 points both times out against the Bears this year.

E-town is coming off of, arguably, its most efficient shooting night of the season. Everyone knows E-town's offensive game is to get out and run, and when the Bears do that, they're tough to stop.

What makes E-town so good is the fact that it has so many players with scoring ability. Six of E-town's guys can go for double digits on any night, and five of them got there on Wednesday night. They have so many weapons that it's almost impossible to focus on shutting down one player. If CV focuses its energy on stopping Jones or Cozzens or Styer or Placeres or McNeil or Garber, one (or four) of the others will kill them. Conversely, E-town knows it needs to stop Skoloda first and foremost, and dare the rest of the Buckskins to beat them.

Both teams are playing at an extremely high level right now, and we'll see tonight who comes out and doesn't let the nerves of playing in the league championship game get to them.

They say it's tough to beat a team three times in one season, but I just think E-town has too many weapons for the Bucks to keep up with.

PREDICTION: E-town by 8.

EAHS football coaching update

I grabbed a few minutes with EAHS Athletic Director Shane Piper prior to Wednesday's boys basketball game, and he gave me a quick update on the district's search for a new head football coach.

Piper said the district has gone through the first round of interviewing candidates and has narrowed it down to its finalists. No word on who those finalists are or how many of them there are.

In the next week or so, the next round of interviewing will be done with the finalists, and Piper hopes to have a new head coach recommended to the school board at its March meeting.

Looks like they are entering the home stretch of finding a candidate. Of course, when I hear anything else, I'll keep you all updated.

Wrestling Sectional Brackets (PART TWO)

Before we get into the rest of the brackets for Saturday's sectional tourney at Hempfield, I just wanted to thank you all again for checking out my little slice of the Internet. We're now over 15,000 hits and that is really cool.

Also, don't forget, I'm going to be doing a LIVE BLOG from Hempfield for tomorrow's sectional tournament. I spoke to a few people and I think I'll be able to get a wireless connection without much trouble (thanks, CB), so tell your friends. And join me tomorrow from Hempfield.

Here are the remaining seven weight brackets. For part one of this preview, click here.

145 pounds:
(E-town's Jared Danneker is the No. 7 seed at 152.)
First Round:
No. 8 Josh Forren, Sol, vs. No. 9 Jeremy Gall, Don.
No. 5 Kevin Kann, PM, vs. No. 12 Hans Nelson, JPM.
No. 4 Ross Stockdale, War, vs. No. 13 Tyler Reichenbach, L-S.
No. 6 Lucas Bragg, CV, vs. No. 11 Nate Enck, MC.
No. 7 Jared Danneker, E-town, vs. No. 10 Ziegler Holden, Leb.
Wrestlers with byes: No. 1 Dan Bennett, Hemp; No. 2 Luke Sims, MT; No. 3 Noah Gerdes, CC.
Quarterfinals:
Bennett vs. Gall/Forren winner.
Kann/Nelson winner vs. Stockdale/Reichenbach winner.
Gerdes vs. Enck/Bragg winner.
Sims vs. Danneker/Holden winner.
Analysis: This is one of the fullest brackets in the tournament. Bennett and Sims should meet in the finals of this one, but third place could get interesting. Danneker showed in leagues that he can get hot and make a run, but Gerdes and Stockdale will make that awfully tough on him.

152 pounds:
(E-town's Zach Myers is the No. 10 seed at 152.)
First Round:
No. 8 Dillian Enck, MC, vs. No. 9 Brad Cwienk, Sol.
No. 6 Justin Bollman, JPM, vs. No. 11 Sam Zegley, PM.
No. 7 Kirby Kinderwater, MT, vs. No. 10 Zach Myers, E-town.
Wrestlers with byes: No. 1 Brent Balmer, CC; No. 2 Jordan Miller, Hemp; No. 3 Nate Fowler, L-S; No. 4 Jamie Mellinger; No. 5 Pavlik Teleguz.
Quarterfinals:
Balmer vs. Enck/Cwienk winner.
Mellinger vs. Teleguz.
Fowler vs. Bollman/Zegley winner.
Miller vs. Kinderwater/Myers winner.
Analysis: Miller wrestled at 160 in leagues and did very well. I think he is going to win this bracket. He should be Balmer in the finals. The third spot will likely be either Fowler or Mellinger.

160 pounds:
(E-town's Adam Zellman is the No. 2 seed at 160.)
First Round:
No. 8 Ronnie Gant, JPM, vs. No. 9 Arias Pappas, Don.
No. 5 Kyle Kinderwater, MT, vs. No. 12 Josiah Borden, CV.
No. 4 Ben Kramer, Hemp, vs. No. 13 Antonio Molica, Leb.
No. 6 David Fair, MC, vs. No. 11 Russell Deaven, CC.
No. 7 Tyler Geiniec, PM, vs. No. 10 Josiah Deibler, Sol.
Wrestlers with byes: No. 1 Eric Resch, War; No. 2 Adam Zellman, E-town; No. 3 Zach Kinert, L-S.
Quarterfinals:
Resch vs. Gant/Pappas winner.
Kinderwater/Borden winner vs. Kramer/Molica winner.
Kinert vs. Fair/Deaven winner.
Zellman vs. Geinec/Deibler winner.
Analysis: This is Resch's bracket to lose. He was impressive at leagues and is the favorite to win this one as well. With Miller down at 152, Zellman should have a good path to the finals, where Resch should be waiting. Kinert, Kramer and Kinderwater will likely battle for that third spot.

171 pounds:
(E-town's David Kennedy is the No. 6 seed at 171.)
First Round:
No. 8 Seth Schmalholfer, PM, vs. No. 9 Cameron Burke, Leb.
No. 5 Tyler Arkatin, Sol, vs. No. 12 Scott Landis, War.
No. 6 David Kennedy, E-town, vs. No. 11 Alex Cintron, L-S.
No. 7 Ben Enck, MT, vs. No. 10 Troy Sauger, MC.
Wrestlers with byes: No. 1 Mike Dodds, CV; No. 2 Neal Sweigart, Don; No. 3 Will Morant, JPM; No. 4 Andrew Kulp, Hemp.
Quarterfinals:
Dodds vs. Schmalhofer/Burke winner.
Kulp vs. Arkatin/Landis winner.
Morant vs. Kennedy/Cintron winner.
Sweigart vs. Enck/Sauger winner.
Analysis: This is another tough one to predict. Dodds is the top seed and should get to the finals, unless Kulp can upend him in the semis, which is possible. The bottom half of the bracket should come down to Sweigart, Morant or Kennedy. I think anything could happen here. Don't be surprised if one of the lower seeds (5 or below) are one of the three to advance.

189 pounds:
(E-town's Shane Rosenberry is the No. 1 seed at 189.)
First Round:
No. 8 Chris Ahnert, Leb., vs. No. 9 Delis Kruup, CV.
No. 6 Jordan Elvey, Sol, vs. No. 11 Alex Egner, L-S.
No. 7 Nate Nelson, JPM, vs. No. 10 Brandon Harvey, PM.
Wrestlers with byes: No. 1 Shane Rosenberry, E-town; No. 2 Austin Schultz, MT; No. 3 Evan Marin, Hemp; No. 4 Sterling Goshea, Don; No. 5 Bryan McCall, War.
Quarterfinals:
Rosenberry vs. Ahnert/Kruup winner.
Goshea vs. McCall.
Marin vs. Elvey/Egner winner.
Shultz vs. Nelson/Harvey winner.
Analysis: Rosenberry was dominant in leagues, pinning his way to a gold medal. He should repeat that performance and take this bracket by storm once again. Schultz, Marin, Goshea and McCall could all compete for the other two spots.

215 pounds:
(E-town's Sean Heming is the No. 6 seed at 215.)
First Round:
No. 8 Tim Latham, Sol, vs. No. 9 Dan Tyson, MT.
No. 7 Peter Schooling, PM, vs. No. 10 Greg Halter, L-S.
Wrestlers with byes: No. 1 Antonio Giorgio, War; No. 2 John Fair, MC; No. 3 Nate Kulp, Hemp; No. 4 Jay Morant, JPM; No. 5 Dan Tonzola, CV; No. 6 Sean Heming, E-town.
Quarterfinals:
Giorgio vs. Latham/Tyson winner.
Morant vs. Tonzola.
Kulp vs. Heming.
Fair vs. Schooling/Halter winner.
Analysis: OK, we all know that Giorgio is going to win this bracket, barring injury or huge upset. Kulp could meet Giorgio in the finals, but the final two spots will likely come down to Kulp, Fair and Morant.

285 pounds:
(E-town's Alex Kirchner is the No. 1 seed at 285.)
First Round:
No. 8 John Martin, Sol, vs. No. 9 Evan Singleton, PM.
No. 5 Matt Ruhl, Hemp, vs. No. 12 Jordan Ashby, MC.
No. 6 Teddy Force, L-S, vs. No. 11 Nick Gerdes, CC.
No. 7 Dominique Smith, JPM, vs. No. 10 John Devenney, War.
Wrestlers with byes: No. 1 Alex Kirchner, E-town; No. 2 Cole Dillman, CV; No. 3 Cutter Recher, MT; No. 4 Charles Lee, Leb.
Quarterfinals:
Kirchner vs. Martin/Singleton winner.
Lee vs. Ruhl/Ashby winner.
Recher vs. Gerdes/Force winner.
Dillman vs. Smith/Devenney winner.
Analysis: After a great overtime match in the L-L finals, Kirchner and Dillman are the top two seeds. Kirchner has earned the title of wrestler to beat in this bracket and he should be moving on to districts. Dillman could meet him again in the finals, but don't count out Township's Recher. I think he could make some noise here.

OK, there you have it. Enjoy the tournament tomorrow (start time of 8:30 a.m.) and, don't forget, if you can't make it, check here for a live blog (as long as I can get wireless access).

E-town rolls past Catholic and into league finals

Last night in Hempfield, E-town showed its wide arsenal of skills as the Bears combined stellar 3-point shooting in the first half with deadly accuracy in the second half in a 76-61 win over Lancaster Catholic in the Lancaster-Lebanon League semifinals. The win puts E-town (22-2) in the league finals for the first time since 1977 where the Bears will face section rival Conestoga Valley, which upset Hempfield 51-45 in the other semifinal last night.

"It feels awful good. These guys have worked so hard since seventh and eighth grade to get to this point," said E-town head coach Kevin Dolan.

"I can't even put this into words right now," said senior Chad Styer, who had 15 points, including four 3-pointers. "We've been working so hard in practice every day and preparing and it's definitely paying off. Our first goal was a section title this year, but to be able to come out and compete for a league championship is just that much better."

In the quarterfinals against Lampeter-Strasburg, the Pioneers did a good job of slowing E-town's offense down and, as a result, hung around for most of the game. Catholic, on the other hand, decided to try and run with the Bears and dictate the pace of the game. And that strategy may have worked if the Bears decided to miss shots. They didn't. E-town hit five 3-pointers in the first quarter and seven of their first nine treys in the first half, but Catholic hung around and trailed by only five at halftime.

Despite his team's success from behind the arc in the first half, Dolan decided to change strategy in the second half and start running more and working the ball inside. The Bears, as they have all season, responded to their coach's strategy by playing a near flawless second half offensively. E-town used fantastic ball movement and decision making and show 17-for-21 from the field in the second half and just outgunning Catholic.

"We hit seven threes in the first half and we just didn't think we could continue to shoot at that pace," Dolan said. "In the second half, we had a lot better shot selections and we worked the ball a lot better."

E-town leading scorer Kyle McNeil was held scoreless in the first half as the Bears put on their shooting display, but E-town's big man was a force in the second half, scoring all 14 of his points. For the first four minutes of the third quarter, Catholic kept the deficit at five or six for the most part, but eventually E-town's transition game took over. The Bears ended the quarter on an 8-2 run and led 55-44 heading into the fourth quarter.

It was more of the same in the fourth, as E-town scored 21 in the quarter, mixed in an 8-0 run and pulled away. Six E-town players had at least two assists, highlighted by point guard Andrew Placeres' 10 dimes (just two turnovers). When E-town was out on transition, Placeres and company always found the open man in the second half, and it resulted in another double digit win.

"That's us. We share the basketball and we're very unselfish," Dolan said. "Toward the end, we had people cutting to the basket and everyone was throwing the ball to everyone. And that's our hallmark. We get running like that and when we're efficient like that, we're tough to stop."

"Being able to get out in transition, we create a lot of shots for ourselves," said Styer.

Catholic had a tough time stopping everyone in blue and white last night. E-town had five players in double figures and one more with eight points. Jeremi Jones led the way with 16 points, Styer added 15, McNeil 14, Bradley Garber 11, Placeres 10 and Quinn Cozzens 8. E-town attacked the Catholic defense from all angles, and the Crusaders simply couldn't keep up.

Dolan said he felt like his team did a better job on rebounding last night than they did against L-S on Monday, but added that there is still some work to do.

"I'm still not totally happy with our defensive performance, but we did a nice job for the most part," he said. "I think we crashed the boards better than we were before, but we're not boxing out well."

The loss snapped Catholic's 13-game winning streak and marked the second time this season E-town has beaten the Crusaders handily. E-town won by 20 earlier in the year, but weren't looking past Catholic because of that.

"Last game, we had the matchups and everything, but this game was more about us," Styer said. "We knew what we had to do in leagues. We knew we had to come out and play defense and run transition and I thought we did that well."

The Bears weren't fazed by Catholic's recent winning streak, especially since they have a pretty good one going themselves.

"Everyone talks about how hot they are, and they are, and they're a great team, and that they've won 13 in a row, but we've won nine in a row and 13 of 14," he said.

For much of the regular season, the prevailing thought around the league was the Hempfield, Penn Manor and E-town were the best three teams in the league and that two of them would meet in the league finals. But Penn Manor lost in the quarterfinals and Hempfield was beaten last night, leaving E-town as the last of the big three standing. Styer said that the Bears haven't burdened themselves with the expectations of being one of the best team. Instead, they've focused on what they need to do each game, and it's resulted in a trip to the league finals.

"We knew what we had to do," he said. "We felt all year that we weren't getting respect and coming into leagues we knew that we had to play every team to the best of our ability to be able to show people who we are and that we deserve respect."

The final roadblock standing in E-town's way of a league title is a familiar one – Conestoga Valley. The Section Two runner-up Buckskins earned their spot in the title game by handing Hempfield its first league loss of the season. The Bucks and Bears will tip off at 7 p.m. in Manheim Township tomorrow night.

Check back tomorrow morning for a preview of that matchup.

Wrestling Sectional Brackets (PART ONE)

On Saturday, the EAHS wrestling team will travel to Hempfield for its sectional tournament to determine who will be advancing to Hersheypark Arena next weekend for the District Three tournament.

Let's take a look at the brackets by weight. Today we'll do 103-140 pounds and we'll finish tomorrow with 145-285 pounds.

103 pounds:
(Matt Hoover is the No. 2 seed at 103.)
First Round:
No. 9 Nathan Noyes, CV, vs. No. 8 Andres Gutierrez, JPM
No. 7 Hans Herr, Sol, vs. No. 10 Corey Swartzentruyer, PM
Wrestlers with byes: No. 1 Austin Miller, Hemp; No. 2. Matt Hoover, E-town; No. 3. Dylan Pallas, MC; No. 4 Corey Aspril, L-S; No. 5 Caleb Osisek, Don; No. 6 Sean Hughes, CC.
Quarterfinals:
Miller, Hemp, vs. Noyes/Gutierrez winner.
Osisek, Don, vs. Aspril, L-S.
Pallas, MC, vs. Hughes, CC.
Hoover, E-town vs. Herr/Swartzentruyer winner.
Analysis: This bracket could shape up to be a rematch of the L-L Tournament finals of Miller and Hoover, where Miller won 7-2.

112 pounds:
(E-town's Calvin Anderton is the No. 5 seed at 112).
Quarterfinals:
No. 1 Lexis Ortiz, JPM, vs. No. 8 Mike Good, L-S
No. 5 Calvin Anderton, E-town, vs. No. 4 Brooks Kenderdine, MT
No. 3 Wink Charles, Sol, vs. No. 6 Brett Pallas, CC
No. 7 Terry Tirko, Don, vs. No. 2 Dakota Minnich, Hemp
Analysis: This is Ortiz' bracket to lose. I don't think anyone will be able to beat him on Saturday. That said, Anderton stands a very good chance at making districts. If he wins in the quarterfinals, he'll get Ortiz in the semis.

119 pounds:

(E-town's Owen Bradley is the No. 5 seed at 119.)
First Round:
No. 9 Will Farr, Don, vs. No. 8 Tyler Martin, CV.
No. 5 Owen Bradley, E-town, vs. No. 12 Spencer Haldeman, L-S.
No. 6 Jose Castro, MT, vs. No. 11 Chevy Houser, CC.
No. 7 Joe Buckwalter, MC, vs. No. 10 Ian Houck, Leb.
Wrestlers with byes: No. 1 Bobby Rehm, PM; No. 2 Alex Fisher, Sol; No. 3 Josh Rosario, JPM; No. 4 Cody Shoenberger, War.
Quarterfinals:
No. 1 Rehm, PM, vs. Farr/Martin winner.
No. 4 Shoenberger, War, vs. Bradley/Haldeman winner.
No. 3 Rosario, JPM, vs. Castro/Houser winner.
No. 2 Fisher, Sol, vs. Houck/Buckwalter winner.
Analysis: Rehm earned OW at the L-L Tournament last month, but I think Fisher will win this bracket. Bradley wrestled at 112 at leagues, but has bumped up to 119. He's got a pretty good bracket through the semis, and stands an excellent chance at advancing. He seems more comfortable and natural wrestling at 119, so watch for him to do well.

125 pounds:

(E-town's Jeremy Rivera is the No. 2 seed at 125.)
First round:
No. 8 Justin Emrich, CC, vs. No. 9 Gary Pabon, Hemp.
No. 5 Tyler Funk, PM, vs. No. 12 Eajal Alvarez, L-S.
No. 6 Bryan Knouse, Don, vs. No. 11 Erik Banh, CV.
No. 7 Ian Stoeckl, War, vs. No. 10 Evan Thomas, MT.
Wrestlers with byes: No. 1 Dan Neff, Sol; No. 2 Jeremy Rivera, E-town; No. 3 Devin Anderson, JPM; No. 4 Tyler Griffith, MC.
Quarterfinals:
No. 1 Neff, Sol vs. Pabon/Emrich winner.
No. 4 Griffith, MC, vs. Funk/Alvarez winner.
No. 3 Anderson, JPM, vs. Knouse/Banh winner.
No. 2 Rivera, E-town, vs. Stoeckl/Thomas winner.
Analysis:
Rivera and Neff met in the finals of the L-L tournament, and could be primed for a rematch. Neff gets the nod in this bracket, but Rivera should get through to Hersheypark.

130 pounds:
First Round:
No. 8 Austin Theis, Don, vs. No. 8 Travis Quinn, War.
No. 7 Cody Lloyd, CC, vs. No. 10 Donovan McDonald, MT.
Wrestlers with byes: No. 1 Jordan Stephanchick, Hemp; No. 2 Ian Rineer, PM; No. 3 Joe Welk, Sol; No. 4 Austin Ballantine, JPM; No. 5 Antonio Rodriguez, E-town; No. 6 Adam Mummau, MC.
Quarterfinals:
No. 1 Stephanchick, Hemp. vs. Quinn/Theis winner.
No. 4 Austin Ballantine, JPM, vs. No. 5 Antonio Rodriguez, E-town.
No. 3 Joe Welk, Sol, vs. No. 6 Adam Mummau, MC.
No. 2 Ian Rineer, PM, vs. Lloyd/McDonald winner.
Analysis: I would say the champ of this bracket will be Stephanchick, Rineer or Welk. Don't be surprised if those are the three to advance to districts as well.

135 pounds

(E-town's Troy Ernest is the No. 4 seed at 135.)
First Round:
No. 8 Jared Manley, Hemp, vs. No. 9 Richard Sonnon, CC.
No. 5 Bobby Haldeman, L-S, vs. No. 12 Tai Nguyen, Leb.
No. 6 Brock Snider, Sol, vs. No. 11 Matthew Morgante, MT.
No. 7 Matt Martin, MC, vs. No. 10 Benjy McQuate, CV.
Wrestlers with byes: No. 1 Matt Myers, War; No. 2 Sean Kincade, PM; No. 3 Vince Grove, Don; No. 4 Troy Ernest, E-town.
Quarterfinals:
No. 1 Myers, War, vs. Sonnon/Manley winner.
No. 4 Ernest, E-town, vs. Haldeman/Nguyen winner.
No. 3 Grove, Don, vs. Snider/Morgante winner.
No. 2 Kincade, PM, vs. Martin/McQuate winner.
Analysis: Myers won this weight in leagues and will be the favorite to repeat. Kincade should meet him in the finals, but keep an eye on Solanco's Brock Snider, who could be a dark horse. Should Ernest advance to the semis, he'll likely get Myers.

140 pounds:

(E-town's Justin Lewis is the No. 6 seed at 140.)
First Round:
Just one match, No. 8 Brandon Johnson, Don, vs. No. 9 Hunter Busansky, L-S.
Quarterfinals:
No. 1 Andy Eshleman, PM, vs. Johnson/Busansky winner.
No. 4 Adam Chapis, War, vs. No. 5 Connor Moran, Sol.
No. 3 Shane Wagner, MT, vs. No. 6 Justin Lewis, E-town.
No. 2 Woodie Hermann, Hemp, vs. No. 7 Evan Eshleman, MC.
Analysis: This is a tricky one to predict. If Lewis gets his cradle locked in, he can beat just about anyone, but he'll have a tough go against Wagner in the first round. I like Hermann to win this bracket, but it could realistically be Hermann, Wagner or Eshleman and maybe even Adam Chapis.

Don't forget to check back tomorrow for a look at the remaining seven weights.

LIVE BLOG ALERT: I will be attempting to do a live blog of the sectional tournament on Saturday. You'll be able to follow the live blog right here on this site, so if you can't make the tournament, check it out. Disclaimer: this is all hinging on getting wireless Internet access at Hempfield. I was able to get it at CV for the league tourney, but I'm not 100 percent sure yet if I can get it at Hempfield. But if I can, I will have a live blog.

E-town/Catholic preview

(Chad Styer scored a team-high 24 points in E-town's last meeting with Lancaster Catholic).

Tomorrow night, E-town will take on Section Four champion Lancaster Catholic in the Lancaster Lebanon League semifinals. Tip off is slated for 7 p.m. at Hempfield, so don't be late. Let's take a look at tomorrow's matchup, shall we?

We'll start with the Crusaders.

Record: 16-7 overall, 14-2 league.

Points per game average: 56.6.

Points allowed per game: 51.8.

3-Pointers per game: 2.78.

Free Throws: 73 percent.

Top Five scorers:

1. Tyler Purvis, 12.6 ppg, 20 3-Pointers.

2. Chris Markel, 11.1 ppg, 17 3-Pointers.

3. Ross Hall, 9.8 ppg.

4. Paul Senkowski, 8.1 ppg, 29 3-Pointers.

5. Phil Wenger, 6.2 ppg.

Regular Season at a glance:

Catholic started the season 3-7 but then caught absolute fire. The Crusaders have won 13 straight games now including wins over Lancaster Mennonite and Penn Manor in Monday's semifinals. During this winning streak, Catholic hasn't scored a ton more points (they're averaging 56.9, just .3 above their season average), but they are defending very well. LC is allowed four fewer points per game during this streak. Explaining why they started 3-7 is tough. They didn't have any major injuries, but just went through a rough patch, which was five straight losses. 

But Catholic regrouped and stormed back to take yet another Section Four title. They then upset Penn Manor on Monday behind a career high 25 points from Purvis. Penn Manor has three starters who are 6-5 and, while Catholic lacks that kind of size, they showed on Monday that they can make up for it. 

We all know what E-town did in the regular season and on Monday. If you don't, kindly scroll down to my last two posts please.

And now, let's look at tonight's game, with help from quotes from Will Ferrell movies, because they're hilarious.

"We've been coming to the same party for 15 years and in no way is that pathetic." Ron Burgundy.

To Lancaster Catholic, who is 15-7 all-time in the league playoffs. The Crusaders know how to win in the postseason and have made the finals five times, winning in 2003.

On the other side of the coin is E-town, who was 0-6 in leagues all-time until Monday's win.

"Panda Watch: the mood here is tense. I have been on some serious, serious reports but nothing quite like this. I tried to get an interview with him, but they said no, you can't do that he's a live bear and he will literally rip your face off." Brian Fantana

To the E-town Bears, who are out for blood. E-town is on a mission to make program history and they've done so by going 21-2 overall and have won nine straight. 

"We meet again Monsieur Bobby." Jean Girard

E-town and Catholic met earlier this season, with E-town beating Catholic by 20. But that was during the Crusaders' 5 game skid. Since then, they are 13-2. E-town head coach Kevin Dolan has been steadily preaching to his players that this isn't the same Catholic team E-town blew out of the gym early in the season. It will be interesting to see how focused both teams are and who gets out to a quick start tonight. Chad Styer led E-town with 24 points in their last meeting.

"Well let me just quote the late, great Colonel Sanders who said, 'I'm too drunk to taste this chicken." Ricky Bobby

This quote really doesn't have anything to do with the preview, I just think it's funny. Anyway, Catholic doesn't have a ton of size, so look for the Bears to go to Kyle McNeil, who has at least 22 points in three straight games, early and often. Also, E-town must tighten up its 3-point defense. L-S was able to get a lot of good looks from outside on Monday night. With Purvis as hot as he is, E-town doesn't want to leave him open too much outside. 

"If you're not first, you're last." Ricky Bobby

Prediction time: E-town knows this isn't the same Catholic team they beat earlier, and Catholic is as hot and confident as any of the teams left. That said, E-town didn't play its best offensive game on Monday, and Catholic did. Both teams won, but I think there's a better chance of E-town bouncing back offensively than Catholic continuing the torrid shooting it had against Penn Manor. It's the law of averages.

Bears by 11. 

And I think they'll face Hempfield on Friday night at Township in the final. Enjoy the game everyone. 

Bears beat L-S

I just got back from Conestoga Valley, where E-town beat Lampeter-Strasburg 63-51 in the quarterfinals of the L-L League playoffs.

This game was much closer than the final score indicates. E-town led by one after the first quarter and by three at the half. They then led by two after three quarters before pulling away in the final 4 minutes of the game. E-town led 47-45 with 4:25 to play, but then ended the game on a 16-6 run. I'll have much more on this game tomorrow and in this week's print edition of the Chronicle.

Here are the other scores from the boys games tonight. Yes, there was an upset.
Hempfield 59 - Lancaster Mennonite 39
Conestoga Valley 63 - Cocalico 42
Lancaster Catholic 58 - Penn Manor 52.

So, on Wednesday, Hempfield will play CV and E-town will take on Catholic at 7 p.m. at Hempfield. The Catholic win over PM could be considered an upset, but remember that LC has now won 13 straight games.

Kyle McNeil led E-town tonight with 22 points. Chad Styer added 16, Quinn Cozzens had eight, Jeremi Jones had 7 and Andrew Placeres had 7.

On either Tuesday or Wednesday (depending on when I have time to write it), we'll preview the E-town/Catholic semifinal matchup. That's all for tonight. Until tomorrow, cheers.

E-town vs. L-S preview

Tonight, the Lancaster-Lebanon League boys basketball playoffs begin, and E-town will be facing Section Three runner-up Lampeter-Strasburg at 7 p.m. at Conestoga Valley High School.

There is a lot to talk about with this game, so let's get right into it. We'll start with a look at each team's record, team statistics and leading scorers for both.

Lampeter-Strasburg (11-11 overall, 9-7 league, Section Three runner-up).
Average Points Per Game: 51.2.
Average Points Allowed Per Game: 47.5.
3-Pointers per game: 3.3.
Free throws: 194-310, 62 percent.
Top Scorers:
Andrew Snyder, sr., G/F, 11.2 ppg.
Tyrone McFadden, soph., 10.5 ppg.
Taylor Groff, jr., F, 10.4 ppg.
Nate Shank, fr., G, 9 ppg.
Taylor Rutt, jr., G, 7.5 ppg (includes team-high 32 3-pointers).
Dan Weigel, jr., C, 5.1 ppg.
Season at a glance: The Pioneers are the Cinderella team of these league playoffs. They began their season 0-7, but hung tough and rebounded to finish 11-11 overall. They have won their last six straight games and edged Donegal and Elco for the final playoff spots from Section Three. L-S has three players (Snyder, McFadden and Groff) all averaging more than 10 points per game. Rutt is the team's best outside threat, and Weigel could be a factor, since he is 6-6.

The Pioneers aren't a lethal offensive team, but they do play solid defense, allowing an average of less than 48 ppg. They may have started 0-7, but they did play both Penn Manor and Lancaster Catholic close and beat Cocalico handily down the stretch. In fact, L-S faced four playoff teams this season: Lancaster Mennonite, Penn Manor, Cocalico (twice), and Lancaster Catholic. They lost to Mennonite by 2, PM by 7 and LC by 4. They also lost to Cocalico by 10 before beating them by 23.

In other words, don't be fooled by L-S' record. These Pioneers can play. A few bounces here and there, and they could have won 3 or 4 more games.

Elizabethtown (20-2 overall, 15-1 league, Section Two champions).
Average Points Per Game: 67.2.
Average Points Allowed per game: 52.8.
3-Pointers per game: 3.9.
Free throws: 267-374, 71 percent.
Top Scorers:
Kyle McNeil, sr., F, 12.3
Chad Styer, sr., G/F, 11.8
Quinn Cozzens, sr., G/F, 11.5
Jeremi Jones, sr., G, 11.2
Andrew Placeres, sr., G, 8.5
Bradley Garber, jr., F, 5.4.
Season at a glance: It's been a season to remember for the Bears. Coming off of a year in which they made the district semifinals and the state tournament, E-town had arguably the best regular season in school history.

The Bears won their first seven games before dropping one to CD East (ranked No. 6 in the district). They then reeled off five more wins before falling to Hempfield (ranked No. 2 in the district) on Jan. 13. But E-town hasn't lost since then, ending the regular season with eight straight wins to reach 20 regular season wins for (I believe) the first time ever. They went a perfect 10-0 against Section Two opponents, and are, arguably, the most potent offensive team in the league.

E-town's offense is driven by its balanced scoring, athleticism and guard play. Jones, Styer and Cozzens are all good scorers who can shoot from the perimeter and take the ball to the basket. Placeres handles point guard duties and is a gifted passer, but he can also hit the 3-ball. And all four are excellent rebounders for their size, which helps E-town get a lot of second chance points.

One of the knocks on the Bears is their lack of an inside presence, but I think Kyle McNeil has been outstanding in the paint so far. He could very well be the team MVP. Now, he's going to have trouble against someone 6-7 or so, but at 6-4, he's very strong and rebounds well. Garber's only listed at 6-2, but I'm guessing he's a good inch taller than that. I feel like I've written this a gazillion times, but Garber doesn't fill up conventional stat sheets, but he does the little things that helps the team win. Trust me, he's a very valuable commodity to these Bears. If E-town has a weakness, it's fair to say it is their lack of size inside, but if it is a weakness, I don't think it is a glaring one.

Defensively, E-town is underrated I think. They've really turned up the defensive tenacity during their eight game winning streak, allowing only 46 points per game during that stretch. Garber and McNeil are both outstanding defenders who will limit opposing teams' big men, and Jones, McNeil, Cozzens and Placeres are very good defenders as well.

We're going streaking, through the quad and down to the gymnasium:
Both of these teams are playing their best basketball of the season right now. L-S has won six games in a row, averageing 56.2 ppg and allowing just 39 during that stretch. E-town's win streak is at 8, and the Bears are scoring 67 ppg and allowing just 46.3 in that span. Something's got to give tonight.

On the road again:
Of their 22 games, E-town has only played 9 road games. And they've won them all. They've been tested twice on the road, squeaking by Penn Manor in overtime and beating CV by 1, but a win is a win. They also beat Wilson by 17 and Warwick by 10 in road games.

Conversely, L-S has played 11 road games and went 6-5 in those. The Pioneers started 0-3 in away games, but ended 6-2 and have won their last 3 road contests. Quality away wins include a 23-point dismantling of Cocalico and a two-point win over Kennard-Dale.

Ready to run:
If there's one thing you can expect tonight, it will be for both teams to be running the court a lot, especially E-town. The Bears love to run whenever they get the chance and they'll do it often. If they get a rebound or a turnover, look for the Bears to turn it up court very quickly. That's a luxury you have when four of your players (Styer, Cozzens, Jones and Placeres) can all run the transition effectively.

Mirror, mirror on the wall...:
E-town knows all about what a team can do in the postseason when it gets hot at the end of the year. That's what they did last season during their run to states, and that's what the Pioneers are doing right now. Because of that, don't be surprised if the Bears see a lot of themselves in the Pioneers. Both are athletic up and down, both like to run and shoot the three. E-town knows how dangerous hot teams with nothing to lose can be, because that was them a year ago, so don't expect the Bears to be looking past L-S to a possible rematch with Penn Manor.

Sheesh, get to the point:
OK, the Bears are the favorite in this game, and deservedly so. They've passed just about every test they have faced this year, and, let's not forget, they are 20-2. When it comes down to it, I just think E-town is too focused and too talented for L-S to handle. The Bears are out to prove a point. They feel like they don't get enough respect, and they know the best way to do that is to win in the postseason.

L-S won't lay down easily, so E-town's going to have to work for this one. Anything can happen in the playoffs, but I predict the Bears win tonight.

Other predictions bound to make me look like a homer or an idiot. Or both.:
First Round:
Hempfield over Mennonite
CV over Cocalico
Penn Manor over Catholic

Semifinals:
Hempfield over CV
E-town over Penn Manor

Finals:
E-town over Hempfield.

We'll see how right or wrong I am starting tonight. Enjoy the games everyone and, until next time, cheers.

District Three Class AAAA boys basketball brackets

District Three has released the brackets for playoffs this year. You can find them in .pdf format by clicking here.

Here are the dates for the playoffs:

Friday, Feb. 13: play in round (games at higher seed).

Wednesday, Feb. 18: first round games (@ neutral sites).

Saturday, Feb. 21: quarterfinals (@ Giant Center and Milton Hershey).

Tuesday, Feb. 24, semifinals (@ Giant Center).

Thursday, Feb. 26, consolations.

Saturday, Feb. 28: District Finals @ Giant Center, 1 p.m.

OK, E-town earned the No. 3 seed in the district, and won't play in the play-in round. But here are the matchups for the pigtail round.

(17) Dallastown at (16) Central York

(25) L-S at (8) Reading

(24) Twin Valley at (9) CV

(20) Chambersburg at (13) McCaskey

(21) Carlisle at (12) Gettysburg

(18) Red Land at (15) Solanco

(23) Waynesboro at (10) Cedar Cliff

(19) Cocalico at (14) Gov. Mifflin (Game is Feb. 12).

(22) Mechanicsburg at (11) Daniel Boone.

And here are your first round matchups, times and locations, all coming on Feb. 18. 

(1) William Penn vs. Central York/Dallastown winner, at Dallastown, 7:30 p.m.

Reading/L-S winner vs. CV/Twin Valley winner, @ Gov. Mifflin, 6 p.m.

(4) Penn Manor vs. McCaskey/Chambersburg winner, @ Hempfield, 7:30 p.m.

(5) Harrisburg vs. Gettysburg/Carlisle winner, @ Cumberland Valley, 6 p.m.

(2) Hempfield vs. Solanco/Red Land winner, @ Manheim Township, 7:30 p.m.

(7) Wilson vs Cedar Cliff/Waynesboro winner, @ Gov. Mifflin, 7:30 p.m.

(3) Elizabethtown vs. Gov. Mifflin/Cocalico winner, @ Steel High, 7:30 p.m.

(6) CD East vs. Daniel Boone/Mechanicsburg winner, @ Carlisle, 7:30 p.m.

OK, there you have it. I'll of course give you the score of the Gov. Mifflin/Cocalico game so that you know who the Bears are playing, and  a preview  of that game as well. And we'll take a peek at the E-town/L-S league playoff game tomorrow morning. 

Until then, cheers.

More stats than you can shake a stick at

Not that you'd ever want to shake a stick at stats. Well, you could if you really wanted to I suppose. Let's just move on.

Here are the final points per game average for the E-town boys and girls basketball teams and the current records of the E-town wrestlers as they head into sectionals next Saturday. Note, doing the boys and girls points per game was tough because there was no way for me to tell how many games some of the reserve players appeared in. So, in the interest of accuracy, I'm just going to give you the players I know played every game. Forgive me, please.

Boys Basketball:
Kyle McNeil, 12.3 ppg.
Chad Styer, 11.8.
Quinn Cozzens, 11.5.
Jeremi Jones, 11.2.
Andrew Placeres, 8.5.
Bradley Garber, 5.4.

Girls Basketball:
Sarah Fairbanks, 13.5 ppg.
Becca Bigler, 9.5.
Brianna Kuhn, 7.9.
Jamie Ahern, 4.2.
Emily Carter, 1.6.
Jenna Rosenberry, 1.5.

Wrestling:
Adam Zellman, 31-6, 16 pins.
Matt Hoover, 30-3, 19 pins.
Shane Rosenberry, 29-5, 22 pins.
Jeremy Rivera, 28-5, 10 pins.
Alex Kirchner, 24-7, 11 pins.
Owen Bradley, 22-13, 3 pins.
Calvin Anderton, 21-10, 5 pins.
Jared Danneker, 21-14, 4 pins.
Justin Lewis, 17-12, 14 pins.
Antonio Rodriguez, 14-17, 3 pins.
David Kennedy, 13-13, 6 pins.
Troy Ernest, 11-5, 2 pins.
Tyler Lakota, 10-12, 5 pins.
Sean Heming, 6-20, 3 pins.
Zach Myers, 4-9, 2 pins.
Tyler Geyer, 2-0, 1 pin.
Andrew Smith, 1-0.
Kyle Morrow, 1-11.
Joey Alleman, 0-4.
James Sliker, 0-1.
Zach Brandt, 0-1.

Updated District Three Power Rankings

Here are the most current District Three Class AAAA power rankings for boys basketball, courtesy of the Patriot-News. E-town is still in third and that won't change before the brackets are released. The district is releasing its brackets on Sunday at 2 p.m., and you can find them right here as soon as I have them.

1. York, 22-0 overall, 8.64 power points.
2. Hempfield, 20-1, 8.57.
3. Elizabethtown, 20-2, 8.36.
4. Penn Manor, 18-3, 8.29.
5. Harrisburg, 17-3, 8.11.
6. CD East, 18-3, 8.10.
7. Wilson, 17-4, 7.86.
8. Reading, 17-4, 7.81.
9. Conestoga Valley, 14-7, 7.14.
10. Cedar Cliff, 14-7, 6.95.
11. Daniel Boone, 14-7, 6.62.
12. McCaskey, 12-10, 6.62.
13. Governor Mifflin, 13-9, 6.59.
14. Gettysburg, 14-7, 6.57.
15. Red Land, 12-9, 6.50.
16. Solanco, 11-11, 6.45.
17. Central York 12-10 12-10 6.45
18. Chambersburg, 11-9, 6.35.
19. Dallastown, 12-10, 6.32.
20. Cocalico, 14-8, 6.27.
21. Mechanicsburg, 11-10, 5.86.
22. Waynesboro, 11-11, 5.73.
23. Twin Valley, 11-11, 5.68.
24. Lampeter-Strasburg, 11-11, 5.41.

Back later with a preview of Monday's E-town vs. L-S league quarterfinal game. (UPDATE: actually, it may be Monday morning until I can get the preview done. But it will be posted here by Monday afternoon, guaranteed).

Lady Bears come up just short

What a late season run it was for the EAHS girls basketball team. After a loss to Cedar Crest back on Jan. 20, the Bears found themselves sitting at 6-11 overall and 3-8 in league play, needing to win out to have a shot at a postseason berth.

And they darn near made it.

E-town reeled off four straight wins after the Cedar Crest loss, beating Conestoga Valley, Garden Spot and Section Two front runners Ephrata and Solanco, setting up a one-game, win or go home scenario last night against Lebanon. Had the Bears won, they would have made the District Three playoffs. Unfortunately, E-town came up a little short, falling to the Cedars 49-40 to end their season.

But in terms of growth for the future, E-town shot up 7 inches this year. The Bears were 2-22 overall last year and 0-16 in league play. This year, with virtually the same team (minus senior Jen Dunkelberger and plus outstanding freshman Sara Fairbanks), E-town went 10-12 overall and 7-9 in league play and were right in the Section Two race in the last week of the season. What a great job by this young team. I know head coach Mike Pericci and his staff are extremely proud of them, and they should be proud of themselves.

Next year, E-town will return nearly its entire team again. They will lose Becca Bigler, though, who has been the leader of this group all year. Fifteen players saw varsity time this year for E-town, one was a senior (Bigler), 3 were juniors, 3 were freshmen and 8 were sophomores. These Bears will be tough next year, write it down.

Also, if anyone is interested in checking out any of the L-L League girls playoffs, Jeff Reinhart has the skinny on those brackets. You can read all about that by clicking here.

L-L League Boys Playoff Brackets

Here are the Lancaster-Lebanon League playoff brackets for boys basketball:

Quarterfinals:
All games are Monday, Feb. 9 at 7 p.m.

Hempfield (20-1) vs. Lancaster Mennonite (16-6), @ Penn Manor.

Cocalico (14-8) vs. Conestoga Valley (14-7), @ Warwick.

E-town (20-2) vs. Lampeter-Strasburg (11-11), @ Conestoga Valley.

Lancaster Catholic (15-7) vs. Penn Manor (17-4), @ Lampeter-Strasburg.

Semifinals:
All games will be Wednesday, Feb. 11 at 7 p.m.

Hempfield/Mennonite winner vs. Cocalico/CV winner.

E-town/L-S winner vs. Catholic/Penn Manor winner.

Finals:
Friday, Feb. 13, @ Manheim Township, 7 p.m.

Check back here later today or tomorrow for a preview of the E-town/L-S quarterfinal matchup.

Girls basketball playoff scenarios (UPDATED)

Hey gang, it looks as if the Lady Bears likely don't have a shot at league playoffs after all. Something I didn't know that the second tiebreaker for leagues is record against section opponents (my mistake). If E-town wins tonight and Solanco loses, both teams will be 8-8 in league play and tied for second place in Section Two. Now, the first tiebreaker is head-to-head, and the Bears and Mules split their season series this year 1-1.

The second tiebreaker is record vs. section opponents, and even if Solanco loses tonight, they would only have two section losses, which is one more than the Bears have right now. But that doesn't mean E-town's game tonight against Lebanon doesn't mean anything. After all, the Lady Bears are still playing for a district playoff spot, which they will earn with a win tonight.

Big win for Lady Bears

Huge, huge win at home tonight for the E-town girls basketball team. E-town got 25 points from Sarah Fairbanks, 11 from Brianna Kuhn and 10 from senior Becca Bigler (likely playing in her final game in Daubert Gymnasium) and beat Solanco 58-53, their fourth straight win this year.

Before we get into the game a little, here's what the win means:
• E-town is still mathematically alive for the league playoffs. Solanco had been a perfect 8-0 against Section Two teams this season entering play tonight. But now, they find themselves at 8-7, one game behind 9-6 Ephrata for first place. E-town is now 7-8 in league play and one game behind Solanco for second place in Section Two with one game left. For E-town to make the league playoffs, it needs to win at Lebanon on Wednesday and for Solanco to lost at home to Garden Spot, who is just 3-12 in league play so far. The Spartans lost to Solanco by 30 the last time they played. So the Bears need to win and get an upset in order to get into leagues. But if Solanco loses and E-town wins, the Bears would get into the league playoffs based on tiebreakers.

• With a win on Wednesday night, the Bears will qualify for the District Three playoffs. They need no other help to make districts. They just need to win at Lebanon Wednesday. E-town beat Lebanon 39-37 in their only other meeting back on Jan. 9. Should be a great game.

Now, onto the game:
E-town got off to a quick start, scoring 14 points in the first and second quarters and led by 7 at the half. Solanco fought back in the third quarter, using a nice full court press to force some turnovers and sneak back into the game. Solanco went on a 10-0 run midway through the quarter to get within one, but E-town led 40-38 after three.

In the fourth, Solanco took its first lead of the night with 6:32 to play, but the Bears refused to go away, making plays when they needed to and going 12-17 from the free throw line in the fourth quarter. E-town trailed 50-49 with 2:00 to play, but ended the game on a 9-3 run to get the win.

I haven't transcribed interviews yet (I talked to head coach Mike Pericci and Fairbanks, Bigler and Kuhn after the game), but I can tell you that the Bears are a confident bunch and they're having an absolute blast right now. You can't say enough about this bunch. I mean, this is a team that won only 2 games last year and went 0-16 in league play. And now they are one win away from going to districts just one year later. What a fantastic turnaround. They're such a resilient bunch that it's insane. Pericci and his coaching staff have done a phenomenal job with this group, and the players have responded.

The atmosphere tonight was great too, with a loud, boisterous crowd. Now excuse me while I step up on my soapbox. There are times when adult fans go too far. I won't say who those fans were tonight, but if you were there, I'm sure you saw/heard this group (hint, they were sitting right behind me at the scorer's table.) I understand rooting for your team and maybe giving the refs a hard time every now and then (the officiating was questionable on BOTH sides tonight), but screaming at them repeatedly even when the call was correct is awful. If I had a dollar for every time I heard someone yell "WALK" when there clearly was no traveling violation, let's just say, I'd have a condo in the Bahamas. And, one more thing, it is absolutely REPREHENSIBLE for an adult to heckle high school players. Opposing student sections? Sure, as long as it doesn't go too far. But grown men and women have absolutely no business trying to get in the head of a 15, 16 or 17 year old kid. Wanting your kid's team to win is one thing, crossing a line and embarrassing players from your own team is another. OK, rant over.

But the actions of a few shouldn't take away from a fantastic game between two section rivals and from an overall fantastic crowd. Great job by the Lady Bears coming away with a win tonight.

Much more on this game in the print edition of this week's Chronicle, and also I'll check in for a preview of the Lebanon game and a recap of that one on Wednesday night as well.

District Three Power Rankings

Here are the latest District Three power rankings for both girls and boys basketball.

The E-town boys have already locked up a spot in districts, and are playing now for seeding.

The girls are still alive. The Lady Bears have reeled off three straight wins and need to win their final two games to clinch a district spot. That starts tonight with a tough, tough game against Solanco at home. I'll be over at Daubert Gym tonight to cover that one. Fantastic late season run by the Bears. We'll see if they can continue it tonight.

All rankings are courtesy of The Patriot-News

Class AAAA District Three rankings – boys
(E-town's two losses this year are to No. 2 Hempfield and No. 5 CD East)
1. York, 21-0 overall, 8.62.
2. Hempfield, 18-1, 8.53.
3. Elizabethtown, 18-2, 8.30.
4. Harrisburg, 16-2, 8.11.
5. CD East, 17-3, 8.05.
6. Reading, 17-3, 8.00.
7. Penn Manor, 15-4, 7.95.
8. Wilson, 16-4, 7.80.
9. Red Lion, 17-4, 7.71.
10. Conestoga Valley, 12-7, 6.95.
11. Cedar Cliff, 13-7, 6.90.
12. Daniel Boone, 14-6, 6.80.
13. Governor Mifflin, 13-8, 6.71.
14. Solanco, 11-9, 6.70.
15. Red Land, 12-7, 6.68.
16. Gettysburg, 13-6, 6.68.
17. J.P. McCaskey, 10-9, 6.63.
18. Cocalico, 14-6, 6.55.
19. Manheim Township, 10-9, 6.47.
20. Chambersburg, 10-8, 6.33.
21. Central York, 11-10, 6.33.
22. Waynesboro, 11-9, 5.95.
23. Mechanicsburg, 11-10, 5.86.
24. Dallastown, 10-11, 5.95.
25. Warwick, 8-12, 5.90.

Class AAAA District Three power rankings – Girls
1. Central Dauphin, 18-1, 8.83.
2. Lower Dauphin, 19-1, 8.45.
3. Manheim Township, 15-2, 8.35.
4. Reading, 17-1, 8.33.
5. Cedar Crest, 15-5, 7.70.
6. Red Lion, 15-4, 7.68.
7. Wilson, 15-4, 7.68.
8. Mechanicsburg, 17-4, 7.52.
9. Cumberland Valley, 15-5, 7.50.
10. CD East, 14-6, 7.21.
11. Hershey, 14-6, 7.05.
12. Spring Grove, 15-6, 7.00.
13. Hempfield, 12-8, 6.74.
14. New Oxford, 13-7, 6.70.
15. Carlisle, 12-8, 6.68.
16. Harrisburg, 10-9, 6.61.
17. Ephrata, 11-9, 6.50.
18. Solanco, 11-9, 6.45.
19. Penn Manor, 10-10, 6.20.
20. Waynesboro, 10-10, 5.75.
21. Dallastown, 10-11, 6.00.
22. Warwick, 9-11, 5.95.
23. Governor Mifflin, 9-11, 5.90.
24. Elizabethtown, 9-11, 5.85.
25. Central York, 8-12, 5.70.