Manheim Central Bounces Back From Kennard-Dale Setback With Commanding Road Win At Solanco As Barons Now Set Their Sights On Warwick For Section Two Title Fight
Written by: Andy Herr on February 4, 2023
If you’ve operated in this line of work for any great length of time, chances are that you already know how wild and tumultuous the journey of a high school basketball season can be. And while they surely wouldn’t like to be the experts on such a phenomenon, rest assured that the Manheim Central Barons can attest to the life that comes with riding the roller coaster of a year. In fact, one only needs to really look at the Barons’ most recent setbacks if doing a case study on the matter.
Entering the night of January 20th, it was fair to say that the Barons were sailing right along in their quest of not only trying to pin down a possible Section Two title, but perhaps the #1 seed in the District 3-5A field at large come that tournament as well. Well, that was until the E-Town Bears had anything to say about it that is.
Granted, while one can certainly not suggest in the slightest that Elizabethtown has been totally devoid of success over the last few seasons, seeing the Bears roll into town and take down Manheim Central on the Barons’ makeshift home court at Doe Run Elementary, a defeat which also stunted a seven-game win streak for Manheim Central, was probably not on anyone’s bingo card entering save for E-Town head coach Lee Eckert and the troops found in his locker room perhaps. Even still though, the key for Central coming out of that particular matchup was not to let E-Town beat them twice. In short, they wouldn’t seeing as how the Barons proceeded to rattle off four-straight victories yet again in the aftermath of the E-Town affair, including a tough-as-nails road victory down at Conestoga Valley which all but assured Manheim Central of owning a seat at the league tourney dance.
However, that was all until Kennard-Dale rolled into town on Wednesday night this week.
In that game, much in the same vein as the aforementioned E-Town contest seen just a few days prior, a Manheim Central home loss at the hands of the Rams, a game in which signified one of the top seeds in 5A coming up short against a squad currently fighting for every bit of power points they can conjure up down in the 4A ranks purely based on the facts of it all, could’ve rightly caused some to do a double-take over the final 68-66 result that was posted.
So, here again, the task for Manheim Central entering Friday night’s trip down to Quarryville was nothing if not simple. Either have a hangover following the loss to K-D which could perhaps jeopardize even more significant things should they drop a divisional matchup at the hands of the Golden Mules or respond to the task at hand with a workmanlike approach to end any possible lingering consternation. And truth be told, while it may have been easy to just glance over Solanco’s 6-14 overall record and toss them aside without much a thought, consider this. This was the very same Solanco crew who had Central’s chief adversary this season, the Warwick Warriors, firmly on the ropes and then some heading into the final minutes of the Warriors’ trip to The Black Hole. And oh yeah, if that wasn’t already enough, how about the fact that one of Solanco’s triumphs this season came against, you guessed it, Kennard-Dale, back in late December of this season.
However, as would become readily apparent almost right from the initial tip on a bitterly cold and windy Friday evening found just outside the gym doors, Manheim Central had indeed arrived to the southern end of the county to take care of business and then head right back home.
To say that the Barons began Friday night’s divisional tussle anything but emphatic would be nothing if not a gross understatement quite honestly.
For it was there inside the initial few minutes of the ballgame where the visitors would race out to a commanding 10-0 advantage over the course of the first two minutes and change, an opening flurry which was capped off by a pair of buckets thanks to Zach Benner and Aaron Enterline respectively, prompting Solanco to burn a timeout while already staring up at a sizable hole to begin the evening.
However, and certainly not a moment too soon as far the sizable contingent of Mules’ patrons were most concerned, the hosts were finally able to crack that pesky goose egg up on the scoreboard with a smooth pullup jumper knocked down by way of 6’4 sophomore wing Noah Bailey, making it a 12-2 Barons’ buffer with 3:40 still left to play in the opening stanza.
But as would be the case all night long, Manheim Central would have the antidote to any possible bout of Mules’ momentum.
In fact, on the very next MC trip down the floor offensively, senior guard Trey Grube would counter the earlier Bailey deuce with one of his own before an emphatic one-handed flush in transition courtesy of Manheim Central’s 6’3 junior pogo stick, Aaron Enterline, would force Solanco into burning yet another early timeout to try and stem the tide. A tide which saw the score read out 14-5 in the guests’ favor with 1:55 still yet to tick off the first quarter clock.
From there, even with just a minute and change left to play with as far as the opening quarter was still concerned, Manheim Central only continued to trudge forward when it came to creating even more separation between themselves and the opposition.
Case in point, following a bucket splashed in via 5’9 junior guard Jackson Tracy shortly afterwards, the Barons had created a 20-5 gap for themselves before the first quarter buzzer later rang out with Manheim Central clearly holding serve by virtue of their 24-7 lead at the end of one.
Yet even in the second quarter, the same familiar theme of the night at large continued to remain at play. That of course being Manheim Central continuing the dictate terms of engagement in this one.
Yes, even despite Solanco’s best efforts –something best seen tangibly in the form of a corner trifecta sunk by Manny Hines on this here his senior night which made it a 28-10 Manheim Central lead – Manheim Central not only kept the Mules at bay, but they also only pushed them away even further as the game progressed onward. For that, ironically on the ensuing Barons’ offensive trip following the Hines’ trey no less, would a Sam Witmer triple rebuke the brief spell of Solanco momentum, putting the guests up by a 31-10 count with much of the second quarter still left to go. And from there, Central only continued to exacerbate the difference as a take to the tin by way of freshman guard Chase Book made it a 35-10 affair with 3:05 left before the halftime respite with the Mules having to take another timeout.
By the end of it all, as far as the opening 16 minutes were most concerned, it was evident that Manheim Central was well on their way to rebounding from a bitter defeat quite nicely given the 37-10 lead they enjoyed on Friday night heading into the dressing room.
That said, even despite the commanding lead which the Barons so clearly possessed, it was not as if Solanco was entirely left out in the cold when it came to having nice moments of their own.
Chief among them would have to be play of freshman guard Isiah Wright who found himself drawing the unenviable assignment of guarding one of the best pure scorers that the Lancaster-Lebanon League has ever seen, Trey Grube, as the game rounded into form. Even still, Solanco may have found themselves a defensive stalwart for years to come if his peskiness on the most important end of the floor is to serve as any indication given the way he refused to let the multiple-time All-State guard even breathe comfortably. So, fittingly, with his work on the defensive end helping to serve as the blueprint, Wright was then rewarded offensively inside the third quarter of play with a sweet Euro-step move en route to the hoop which made it a 39-14 Barons’ lead with four minutes and change still to go in the third.
But as he has done to the opposition countless times over the course of his stellar four-year career, Trey Grube only continued to remain a 5’11 thorn in the other team’s side.
This time, while it wouldn’t be a bucket which turned momentum in the Barons’ favor or anything really of the sort, Grube’s latest bucket here would be nonetheless important seeing as how it triggered the “Mercy Rule” into effect the rest of the way home with Manheim Central now possessing the 45-14 advantage which tipped the scales in the running clock’s favor.
That said, even with the Barons clearly rolling by that point, Solanco competed quite admirably down the final stretch of the third frame.
As far as the specifics of it all, a strong take to the cup by another of Mules’ underclassmen, junior guard Trey Riley, cut the Barons’ lead down to 45-17 with two minutes left before a 3-ball dialed up on the ensuing Solanco possession courtesy of senior guard Noah Baber helped to make it a 45-20 Manheim Central lead with the final quarter getting set to commence.
In the fourth, even with the sand inside the dial seeming to pour out en masse thanks to said running clock, there were good plays still to be seen on both sides.
For the Golden Mules’ perspective, it was most certainly rewarding to have seen Trey Riley pour in a triple to add to his night’s worth of work that came coupled with his bucket inside the waning stages of the third quarter mere moments earlier for a possible glimpse of the future in terms of Solanco’s prospects out on the hardwood.
Then, on the Barons’ perspective, it would only be fitting if a football connection had something to do with it, yes?
In that regard, an Aaron Enterline put-back which added two more to his eventual baker’s dozen 13-point outing made it a 52-23 Barons’ lead with 5:46 left which would precede a sweet Collin Neiles dish to Zac Hahn inside as Hahn’s easy bunny inside made it a 54-25 Manheim Central lead as the star wideout and quarterback just so happened to tally the final points of the evening once the dust had finally settled respectively which would help put a bow on an extremely solid Manheim Central 29-point victory.
NEXT UP: So, with their win over Solanco finally etched into stone, the Barons know exactly what is directly in front of them. With a Warwick Warriors team staring right down the barrel at them, it sets up the much-anticipated Section Two title game on Thursday night at Doe Run Elementary, a game which oh by the way has already been sold out here more than a week in advance. Even still, no matter if the Barons can make it a clean sweep over their neighbors with whom they share a border with, or if Warwick is able to return the favor on Central’s home floor, this is a Barons’ club that is most certainly capable of winning an L-L League crown regardless of their seed line out of Section Two. And from there, it’s hard not to like their prospects entering the 5A tournament considering that Central currently possesses the #1 seed in that loaded crop as well, right?
On the other side, while there will be no postseason in Anthony Hall’s first season in charge of the Golden Mules’ bench, it was clear even during the most adverse moments on Friday night that he is the correct man to steer this Solanco ship. Sure, while this is a world and an environment where you must play the hand you’re dealt and you can’t simply dip into the free agency market to pick players up on a whim as needed, effort and enthusiasm can and should be non-negotiable. In that respect, it was a sight for sore eyes to see Hall try and rally his troops, even amidst the undeniable Barons’ onslaught where he challenged his club to dig deep and quite honestly honor and represent the name of the school inscribed across their chest plate. In short, while no one has a crystal ball when it comes to exactly how the L-L League will look like even a year from now, it’s evident that one is all but assured moving forward. That being that the opposition will most certainly encounter a challenge from the Solanco Golden Mules on every single possession if their head man has anything to say about it.
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