Prep Basketball: South Western could be a sleeper

Based off what South Western head coach Nathan Brodbeck optimistically projects in his season review and what I’ve heard from a few players over the fall, the Mustangs could be a team to watch out for in the first section of Division I.

It’s a wild theory, one that can’t be justified until the Mustangs prove it on the court. And yet, there are the principle factors that could contribute to an early success.

South Western has experience. They have good height. They’re relatively athletic.

In their philosophy, they have a very defensive-minded coach in Brodbeck, who expects the Mustangs to create opportunities by forcing things on the defensive side of the ball. And that could be the biggest X factor for a team that doesn’t really have a proven score on its roster.

But that’s where we must talk about the downside of this projection. Brodbeck has athletes and players with experience from last season. But he doesn’t have a proven scorer. And you must have a proficient scorer if you want to consistently want to win games.

Senior guard/forward Matt Hockenberry has the ability, though he needs to be a little more aggressive in his approach. His deference last year possibly was out of respect to Steve Yelton, Jimmy Colburn, Greg Hess and Charles Thayer.

However, all four of those players are gone — Hess, Colburn and Thayer graduated.

Outside of Hockenberry, Brodbeck lists Charles Carbaugh and Kyle Conaboy as his players to watch this season. I’d like to add Hockenberry’s brother, Mark, who’s a good 6-foot-5, as another notable with some talent. Ben Zimmerman is another player to watch.

Video: Littlestown High Boys’ Basketball Preview

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Members of the Littlestown High boys’ basketball team discuss the transition from the football season, where the Bolts went 9-3 and reached the semifinals of districts, to the court, where they hope to make a run at the postseason for the first time in three years.

Zuber, who was the Bolts leading scorer last year with 8.8 points per game, will look to tandem with Matt Koontz (6.4), who could be ready for a breakout role this season.

The big question mark with this team could lie with ball security and with ball distribution. With T.J. Baust graduated, the Bolts don’t really have a true point guard. Jason Zimmerman looks to be the heavy favorite to handle the duties, but it could come down to Zuber and Koontz taking some responsibilities as well.

Observation from seeing Koontz and Zuber goof around before practice: These two guys aren’t only good friends, but they seem to have a chemistry that syncs together in whatever they do athletically. In football, it produced massive results. Zuber threw for 1,900 yards and Koontz caught for over 1,000, a single-season school record.

On the basketball court, we don’t really know what will happen. Considering the strength of the Section, the reasonable conclusion is that Littlestown could have trouble keeping up with the offensive-minded York Suburban and Eastern York.

But the Bolts could be a sleeper, especially if these two hook up on the court. On any given night, these two players could be the most athletic players on the court. In basketball, that doesn’t count for everything. However, it will help you win games.

Video: Hanover High Boys’ BBall Preview

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It’s safe to say, Hanover High heads into the 2009-10 season with confidence. In this video, Hawks head coach Nathan Myers discusses his team’s outlook. Junior point guard Pete Yingst and senior guard Brandon Wentz add their thoughts.

* Funny story about this video: During my conversation with Yingst and Wentz, they gave a candid reply when I asked them about expectations this season. But with Myers lurking in the background — he the Chief Professor of “Modesty and Humility 101″ — they were quickly told to nullify their comments.

Myers: No….no, that’s not going in there.

Fifteen minutes later, me being a persistent and pesky journalist, I ask Ben Connor a similar question. He offered a similar response.

Myers, once again playing pressure in-your-face D, was quick to rebuttal.

Myers: No…that’s not what you want to say.

But Connor, being one of those senior leader types, spoke up.

Connor: But Coach, you need to put it in existence.

Myers: *Thinks for a second* No, it’s called modesty.

Prep Basketball: Hanover returns to the court

There is a certain confidence at Hanover High this year, an attitude that relates mostly to the boys’ basketball season as it nears its opening tip.

The Hawks, who won 15 games and their opening round game in the District 3 Class AA playoffs over Annville-Cleona — a game that will be remembered for Jordan Martz’s game-winning shot — last season, are back to the court, anticipating a return to success.

Hanover will open in its annual tip-off tournament next Friday, facing off against Fairfield in the late game. Delone Catholic will feature in the early game against Columbia.

As for the essentials, gone are three starters in forward Grant Mummert, guard Nate Trish and guard Jordan Martz. Those three players meant a lot to this team last year — Martz, who hit the game winner against AC, was the heart and soul of the team.

But experience isn’t completely removed.

Back are two starters in point guard Pete Yingst and forward Matt Bossalina. And returning are Brandon Wentz, Ben Connor and Shea Staub, three players who saw an abundance of minutes last year.

“We lost a lot of experience with our seniors,” Hanover coach Nathan Myers said. “All five of our seniors that we lost — Grant, Jordan, Nate, Jordan Smith and Jon Osladil — that’s tough to replace. We have some guys stepping up trying to do that.

“Hopefully we get better in that as the season goes forward. One fortunate thing is that we turn a lot of guys who’ve seen a lot of minutes. Hopefully that’s something that will help us.”

It will, but it will also come at a cost.

Guard play will be a main focus this year, really, because it’s all but mandated. The Hawks documented lack of interior height and experience in the post will be an issue early in the season. Hanover’s biggest player is no taller than 6-foot-3. The team has a few cast members who may see time on the court, but for the large part, minutes will come from players 6-foot-2 and below.

That will have its disadvantages at times. Rebounding and defensive length come to mind.

However, the Hawks could see a vast amount of growth in their running game. An up-and-down tempo is to be expected with this crew, as the assumed starting five can all handle the ball.

“A lot of our players put in a lot of work in open gym over the offseason,” Wentz said.

Boy’s Soccer All-Area Player of the Year

Tyler Shaffer had two objectives when he entered his senior year with the Biglerville High boys’ soccer team.

He wanted to be recognized as the YAIAA Player of the Year, and he wanted the Canners to win the District 3 Class A championship in Hershey.

He received both his wishes.

And a third — the All-Area Player of the Year — came, too.

“He certainly has the physical skills and sees the bigger picture on the field,” Biglerville head coach Rob Moore said of Shaffer, who was the YAIAA Division III Co-Player of the Year with Fairfield’s Sam Kern. “He has the IQ. He has a vision for why he’s going to do what he does.”

Shaffer, who at 6-foot-2 towered over most midfielders this season, was a smooth ball-handler with incredible vision. He was the Hanover-area leader in assists, recording 13, and provided the game-winning pass in the Canners’ 1-0 win over Camp Hill in the district championship game.

All-Area 1st Team:
* Giovanni Colin, Littlestown, sr. (16 goals, 2 assists)
* Jordan Davis, Bermudian Springs, jr. (184 saves)
* Theo Guillory, Gettysburg, sr. (5 goals, 8 assists)
* Sam Kern, Fairfield, sr. (19 goals)
* Alex Lua, Biglerville, sr. (28 goals)
* Jeremy Nease, Bermudian Springs, sr. (11 goals)
* Derrick Roy, Spring Grove, sr. (17 goals, 4 assists)
* Tyler Shaffer, Biglerville, sr. (18 goals, 13 assists)
* Zach Tarbox, Gettysburg, so. (19 goals)
* Blaine Warfield, Spring Grove, sr. (4 goals, 2 assists)
* Rodney Weigle, Biglerville, sr. (2 goals, 1 assist)

2nd Team
* Gerardo Arredondo, Bermudian Springs, sr.
* Moritz Bauer, New Oxford, jr.
* Ryan Blum, South Western, sr.
* Pat Herl, Fairfield, sr.
* Nate Long, Biglerville, so.
* Austin Nace, Littlestown, sr.
* Bryce Showers, Biglerville, sr.
* T. J. Stevenson, South Western, sr.
* John Thomas, Bermudian Springs, jr.
* Ben Zimmerman, South Western, jr.
* Gilberto Zuniga, Bermudian Springs, sr.

YAIAA Football Division I-II All-Stars: Hanover area

The list of YAIAA All-Stars from Division I and II were printed in today’s edition. You can find the selections below.

Division I
1st Team
* Player of the Year: Levi Sager, South Western
* Coach of the Year: Don Seidenstricker, South Western
* Quarterback: Ian Smith, South Western
* Running Back: Sager, South Western
* Wide Receiver: Jimmy Nicklas, South Western
* Guard: Dan Laird, South Western
* Placekicker: Ben Reigart, Spring Grove
* Defensive End: Kyle Mahorney, South Western
* Inside Linebacker: Jake Myers, South Western
* Outside Linebacker: Ryan Sexton, South Western
* Cornerback: Reigart, Spring Grove
* Punter: Keith Stambaugh, Spring Grove

2nd Team
* Running Back: J.R. Mummert, South Western; Bobby Bailey, Spring Grove
* Wide Receiver: Mike Felton, South Western
* Tight End: Mahorney, South Western
* Tackle: Colby Fuhrman, South Western
* Guard: Matt Shearer, Spring Grove; Ryan Young, New Oxford
* Defensive End: Max Ruby, Spring Grove
* Defensive Linemen: Fuhrman, South Western; Young, New Oxford; Drew Tiehel, Spring Grove
* Inside Linebacker: Cortlin Dell, Spring Grove

Division II
1st Team
* Coach of the Year: Mike Lippy, Littlestown
* Wide Receiver: Matt Koontz, Littlestown

2nd Team
* Quarterback: Matt Zuber, Littlestown
* Running Back: Sean Doherty, Littlestown
* Wide Receiver: Mitch Deaner, Littlestown
* Guard: Corbin Wood, Littlestown
* Placekicker: Adam Hunt, Littlestown
* Defensive End: Tyler Fodor, Littlestown
* Defensive Linemen: R.J. Carnero, Littlestown
* Cornerback: Koontz, Littlestown; Austin Reynolds, Littlestown
* Punter: Reynolds, Littlestown

The Mount faces Robert Morris on Thursday

Photo by James Robinson

Thursday marks the beginning of Northeast Conference play for the Mount St. Mary’s men’s basketball team, as the Mountaineers will travel to Moon Township to face Robert Morris in a rematch of last year’s conference title game.

As you might remember, the Colonials doused The Mount’s hopes of a second straight trip to the NCAA Tournament after Dallas Green grabbed an offensive board, went up and converted on a one-handed shot to win the game with less than 2 seconds left.

It would be understandable if there were some hard feelings left from March, especially considering the excruciating circumstances in which they were given to The Mount.

Here’s what Jean Cajou had to say about the impending game Thursday: “It’s a rivalry game. Everyone is going to give it their all to beat the other team. But we’re thinking about last year in the back of our minds.”

I wrote more about Thursday’s game in tomorrow’s edition, so if you’re interested, pick up a copy of that. As for this blog, I’ll get more into that matchup by tomorrow.

Right now I want to focus on the game last night in Washington, D.C., against No. 16 Georgetown.

From the start, a couple things were apparent.

* Georgetown was big.
* Georgetown was fast.
* Georgetown was athletic.
* Georgetown could hit shots.
* Georgetown could rebound.

Mount St. Mary’s head coach Milan Brown was quoted after the game as saying, not verbatim, “In games like this, sometimes you need everything to work for you. Tonight it didn’t.”

What I noticed, especially on offense, is that The Mount’s predominant dribble-drive offense didn’t work. Does that mean it won’t ever work against teams of Georgetown’s stature?

No.

But there are some offensive kinks the team needs to grasp as the season wears on — and that will only come with game experience.

Remember, this is the first year the Mount is using this base offense. They dabbled with it over the past two years. With the personnel they have this season — Jeremy Goode, Jean Cajou, Kelly Beidler, Lamar Trice, Pierre Brown — it makes sense to utilize their ball skills and speed.

Goode can wreak havoc in the NEC, and I anticipate he will do that if team’s don’t completely gameplan against him.

Georgetown did last night. And Goode was held in check.

Though as a result, Cajou went off. He scored 16 points on 4-for-6 shooting from three. Up until the final minutes, he was about the only consistent source of production coming out of the offense. Lamar Trice did some nice things at the end, but by that time the Hoyas had called off the five-alarm defense.

There were moments, mostly in the second half, when Goode broke into the Hoyas shell and was able to find crevices to distribute and shoot. That’s what this offense is about. You need to break down the intial line of defense.

Once that’s done, it’s about decision making. Goode is more than capable of making the right one. And so is Cajou and Kelly Beidler.

But the problem with Beidler, and to another extent Kristijan Krajina, is their woes shooting the basketball. They have to act as threats on the perimeter if this offense is to work. But combined these two are 10-for-39 from three. That just isn’t going to cut it.

Still, Beidler isn’t worried too much.

“We haven’t played to the best of our ability and we’re still sititing here at 3-3,” he said Tuesday.

* Let’s talk about Tayvon Jackson. The high-energy forward posted a career high in points against Georgetown with 11, shooting 5-for-5 from the field. He also grabbed four rebounds and blocked two shots.

Can’t ask for better production out of a reserve forward. If he continues to excel in that role, one might think head coach Milan Brown might have to think about expanding his minutes.

“He helps a lot, especially defensivley,” Cajou said. “He’s another force to guard. But offensively he’s helping us a lot.”

Video: Delone Catholic falls in District 3 title game

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Delone Catholic head coach Steve Wiles addresses his team after his team lost to Lancaster Catholic, 42-6, in the District 3 Class AA title game at Hersheypark Stadium. Afterward, he spoke to local reporters about the ability of Crusader quarterback Kyle Smith

Women’s Basketball: Live from Emmittsburg

EMMITTSBURG, MD. — Talk about a story of two halves.

Loyola came out with a fire in the second frame and The Mount didn’t. Unfortunately, that lack of focus voided whatever inspired play the Mountaineers showed in the first half. By game’s end, Loyola took a 48-45 win at Knott Arena on Saturday.

It was a rough 40 minutes for Mount St. Mary’s head coach Bryan Whitten. He said afterward that missed lay-ups and turnovers were the biggest game-deciding influence.

The Mount had 30 for the game. Missed lay-ups? Quite a few.

“We missed lay-ups all day long,” Whitten said. “If we make layups in the first half, we’re probably up 25-30. We had entirely too many turnovers.”

Sandra Andresson led the team with 14 points on 5-for-11 shooting and had 10 rebounds. Leah Westbrooks had 12 points and seven boards.

For Loyola, Miriam McKenzie had 16 points and five boards. She put in 14 in the second half.

Yet Kaitlin Grant had the best line. She had 17 points, 12 steals and six boards. 12 steals. …

* GAME ACTION *

3:45, Last media timeout before game’s end: It’s 45-42 in favor of the Mountaineers, yet the game seems to be teetering on the edge for the home team. At least the offense is moving well. Over the last seven minutes the Mount has found steady offense from Leah Westbrooks. She has 12 points and 6 rebounds.

11:48, Second media timeout of second half: Loyola’s Miriam McKenzie, as “NBA JAM” would describe it, is ON FIRE. The guard has two 3s and two pull-up jumpers to begin the second half. She’s almost single-handedly brought the Greyhounds back into contention against the Mountaineers. The lead is a slim one, with Mount leading, 35-31. McKenzie is operating under full control, able to get her shot off at any point. The Greyhounds are on a 16-2 run to start the half.

15:40, First media timeout of the second half: The Greyhounds have responded out of break, going on an 8-0 run through the first five minutes to pull within 10 points, 33-23. Miriam McKenzie finally hit a field goal, nailing a 3 with 17:15 on the clock. Another three pointer followed to cut the margin down.

Halftime: Over the last seven minutes of the first half the Mountaineers extended their lead to as high as 19 points, but at intermission we’re pegged at 33-15 in favor of The Mount. Loyola scored seven points in the last 10 minutes of the first half, a statistic that tells what kind of ruckus the Mountaineers are creating on the defensive side of the ball. If not for four foul shots with a little over a minute left, Loyola would be stuck at 11 at half. Nice job thus far for The Mount.

7:10, Third media timeout: The Mount have created separation, aided mostly by their frenetic defense, which has produced several turnovers over the last three minutes of play. The score is in favor of The Mount, 18-9. Sandra Andresson is having herself a decent game so far, but the stats haven’t been available. We’ll see her line at halftime.

11:31, Second media timeout: The pace of this game favors the Mountaineers, but the overall edge is even keel. Loyola hasn’t found a rhythm and has turned the ball over at a faster rate, yet The Mount haven’t capitalized. Shooting is lackluster through the opening first 10 minutes.

15:20, First media timeout: The shooting has been rough so far, as The Mount has formed a 4-2 lead in the early stages. Newly promoted starter Courtney Nyce has all four of the team’s points, hitting on a feed from point guard Hassanah Oliver and a jumper from the top of the key. As for the defensive side, the Mountaineers have contained Loyola leading scorer Miriam McKenzie to zero points so far.

15 minutes before tip: Inside homely Knott Arena, the Mount St. Mary’s women’s basketball team is set to face Loyola in their last game before a 10 game road stand. If anyone is interested, I’m going to do a little blogging through the game.

As it stands, The Mount is 2-2 after a recent trip to the Lehigh Valley region, where they were defeated by Patriot League foe Colgate (56-45) this past Tuesday.

We’re about 15 minutes from tip-off and some changes are set to take place against the Greyhounds. Freshman shooting guard Syd Henderson, who missed the first two games of the season to injury, will start in place of Lauren Howell, who’s hit a rough patching shooting. She went 1-for-14 against Colgate.

At power forward, Courtney Nyce will start in place of Leah Westbrooks, who will play but isn’t 100 percent.

Final Thoughts from Hersheypark Stadium

HERSHEY — Austin Brady sat on the turf of Hersheypark Stadium Friday night, his helmet still tightly wrapped around his head, the air still a biting cold, the 42-6 loss to Lancaster Catholic still fresh in his mind.

The Squires were quickly thrown against the ropes in their District 3 Class AA title game, their first appearance since their win in 2007.

Lancaster Catholic, furthering their claim as one of the better Class AA programs in the state, were a vision of excellence, executing to near perfection on a cold, windy night in Hershey.

Crusader quarterback Kyle Smith was 10-for-16 for 170 yards and four touchdowns. Not his best game, by all means. But hey, it did move him past Pat Devlin as the all-time leading passer in the state, giving him 8, 192 yards for his career, which spanned three years.

His four touchdowns did give him 114 for his run, also a state record.

And that was the kind of night the Crusaders had, a record breaking one.

Their second straight district championship was their first back-to-back win since 82-83.

Jordan Stewart was a bombshell on the ground, with 124 yards on 21 carries and two touchdowns. Wideout Tyler Purvis was very good in the air, catching six balls for 94 yards.

Delone Catholic simply couldn’t keep up, not with the kind of size and speed disadvantage they had.

Dustin Reed fought to the bitter end, his forearms torn from eating turf nearly all night, and finished with 11 carries for 67 yards and a touchdown. He scored the Squires only touchdown in the third quarter, weaving one of his staple runs of the season, 27 yards to the house.

It gave the Squires a nice end-off to the season, gave them reason to finish with their heads high, even if their hopes were shattered in the first half.

The Squires were in the district title game for the first time since 2007, and had a chance to claim their fourth title this decade.