Lancaster Mennonite Enjoys Championship Like ‘No Other’ As Blazers Summit The Mountain, Defeat Octorara To Claim Program’s First L-L League Title

Written by: Andy Herr on February 13, 2026

(Photos courtesy of Mark Palczewski)

Maybe it was some form of poetic justice. Maybe it was destiny. But whatever the underlying “it” was, this almost had to be the final game to conclude the Lancaster-Lebanon League boys’ basketball season in 2025-26 did it not?

In a year where up seemed to be down, left diverted into a right, grass was blue and the sky was some shade of green, it was admittedly a somewhat uncharacteristic season on the boys’ side of the L-L docket – for a variety of different reasons.

First and foremost, the big schools, those from the ranks of Section One and Section Two in particular, are still probably best labeled as “up and coming” as nearly each one of the programs residing in those divisions respectively have at least one and incredibly talented piece among their underclassmen ranks where there’s legitimate and ample reason to be extremely bullish on in the future. This year though, in perhaps the most accurate barometer of illustrating those two sections most of all, each of the half dozen district playoff-bound squads save for one will have to board a bus and play an opening round game on Monday or Tuesday night away from home to begin the District 3 tournament. And that’s not even including the outright Section One champ, Hempfield, being left out of the mix altogether amongst the 6A field.

So, simply put, if ever there was a year for the proverbial “little guys” to make a move at this thing and crack their own glass ceiling which has hung over all their collective heads while playing inside of a conference where the data suggests only the big brands can truly thrive, this was it.

And boy oh boy. When asked to jump at the chance, two programs in particular asked right back, “How high?”

No matter how you might’ve tried to lay the groundwork in setting the prelude to the 2026 Lancaster-Lebanon League Championship Game as sponsored by Orthopedic Associates of Lancaster, it was going to be a historic Thursday evening at Manheim Township High School for whomever would get the opportunity to rise up ladders and cut down the nets.

For Lancaster Mennonite, a school that does have a claustrophobic trophy case in terms of the Blazer’s litany of L-L section and District 3 titles, along with a PIAA state championship claimed just three years ago now as well, this has been one accomplishment that the tiny private school tucked away alongside the Rockvale Outlets on Route 30 upon leaving the Lancaster city limits had yet to check off their box. They’ve come close though. Well, sort of when you consider a championship appearance once before, albeit all the way back in 1991. In fact, that 2023 state championship bunch didn’t even make it out of the first round of the league tournament courtesy of a loss to Hempfield, a true testament that speaks to just how hard it has been historically for the small schools to make a legitimate dent in this leaguewide bracket.

This year, while it had been business as usual for Mennonite prior to heading into the league playoffs in terms of scheduling way up to round out their nonconference slate while also winning nearly every single one of those testing affairs, the Blazers yet again ran roughshod over their Section Four brethren in rattling off a 10-0 record –the second year in a row they’ve done as such – before vanquishing an old ghost known as the Warwick Warriors in the opening round of leagues this past Saturday with Mennonite not just defending their home floor, but successfully turning the tables on the very same Warwick program that ended their L-L title dreams each of the previous two seasons. Then, following a thrilling overtime victory against an even bigger school, Hempfield, in the semifinal round on Wednesday night, Lancaster Mennonite suddenly found themselves 32 minutes away from doing something that this now statewide-recognized franchise had never done before when talking about winning an L-L title.

And while this might’ve been a dream that those in Blazers’ camp had dreamed of ever since they could even dribble a basketball, the same may not be said for their counterparts awaiting Mennonite’s arrival on Thursday night at Township.

Not that it was necessarily their fault that came with a general lack of appreciation, however.

A decade ago now, the Lancaster-Lebanon League made a truly tectonic plate-shifting move when they accepted and admitted the Octorara School District’s application for membership into the conference. Since then, beginning with the Braves’ athletic teams christening their newest chapter as an L-L member school in the 2018-19 school year, it’s been a move that both parties would likely admit has been beneficial for either side thus far. In short, for this year’s Octorara seniors, that would put them back in 5^th grade as to when their home district made the change in altering course. So yeah, while this group might’ve grown up counting down “3, 2, 1” in their respective driveways before hitting a game-winning shot to win the league title, it would’ve been for the ChesMont crown as opposed to the L-L considering this seismic change which occurred during their formative years.

Even still, no matter what league they happen to call their home, this 2025-26 Braves’ squad would rightly be considered top of the line regardless.

Hard to dispute that accusation when you consider Octorara’s equally perfect run through their divisional gauntlet with a perfect 10-0 in Section Three play to match Mennonite’s, culminating with the Braves’ 20-1 record tallied at the end of the regular season.

From there, while having an eerily daunting challenge in the opening round on Saturday as Mennonite that tasked Octorara with having to defeat the team of the decade that came sauntering into Atglen while carrying the last two title belts slung over their shoulders, the Braves stared down Cedar Crest and knocked the Falcons off, a somewhat sweet redemption story when you consider the Braves’ 2024 appearance in the L-L tourney that was met an abrupt and immediate thud as the Falcons ran Octorara out of the gym to the tune of a 77-32 final verdict before the Cedar Crest went on to the win the first of those back-to-back league titles. Then, as if the road to ho wasn’t already daunting enough, how about having to defeat Section Two’s champion, on that team’s home floor no less, when Octorara drew Conestoga Valley in the finale of Tuesday’s semifinal night.

There, with ever the pension for excitement, the Braves were able to come back from their second straight seven-point halftime deficit in as many games as Octorara was able vanquish CV on the Buckskins’ home floor, prevailing in the second overtime game seen on the night, while walking away with a 62-60 win for their troubles.

Sure, maybe some of the marquee names and faces would be absent from this year’s league championship game. That’s fair. In fact, save for the 2018 championship game waged between Lampeter-Strasburg and Lancaster Catholic, this would be the first time in the 50+ year history of the league that any of the teams currently hailing from either Section One or Section Two had not made to the grand finale, and the first-ever if you remove the Crusaders from that equation — a Lancaster Catholic program that is now tied for second-most league tourney appearances all-time along with Lebanon as each have 26 showings sitting next to their name in the record books.

Yet credit was due to both of these two teams for breaking through when the opportunity was ripe and there for the taking this season. And truthfully, these were the two best, most consistent programs in all the league this season when you consider their shared 44-3 combined records coming into the title fight. No matter what league, no matter what sized schools are involved, those are heavyweight credentials no matter how you want to try and slice it.

Sure enough, this lived up to the billing and then some. Yes, classification and school sizes be damned.

And like any good boxing match, this one took a little bit of time for each team to work themselves into a lather and get situated while trying to work against the opposition.

In fact, after falling behind by a quick 5-0 count following the handiwork of Octorara’s Chase Fetrow who proceeded to tally the Braves’ – and game’s – first five points right out of the chute, Lancaster Mennonite’s first points conversely wouldn’t come until the 4:50 mark of the opening frame following an old-fashioned three-point put home by way of Daulton Nolt which then made it a 5-3 contest helping to break the scoring seal for the Blazers’ contingent.

Turns out, that Nolt bucket through harm with a free throw added on top would just serve as the precursor to Mennonite’s first quarter rally.

Later, the Blazers would find themselves with ownership of the lead for the first time at 7-5 courtesy of even more handiwork offered up by Nolt, the eventual game-high scorer on the evening by virtue of his 20-point bucketing, with 3:30 then left showing on the first quarter clock.

Then, after successfully doubling up their adversaries at 10-5 following a Chase Hurst trifecta which tickled the twine for Mennonite, the Blazers would put the final bow on an impromptu 12-0 flurry over the final four minutes and change to conclude the opening stanza, carrying the 12-5 lead with them into the game’s second act, all while holding Octorara scoreless for the better part of the last five minutes.

Suffice to say, Octorara, the league’s second most effective scoring outfit at 65 points-per-game on average, had suddenly and oddly grown parched thanks to Mennonite’s work against them defensively. The good news though for the Chester County contingent? The fact that they too would have a timely rebuttal in their tank.

At long last, Octorara would finally break themselves free from their existing offensive funk by way of a Vincent Thaler bunny at the cup as the newest member of the Braves’ 17-man 1,000-point club ended his team’s nearly quarter-long scoring drought in kind.

From there though, it was Octorara’s turn to launch a snowball that would roll downhill at an alarming rate of speed.

Suddenly, the Braves’ salvo would reach a fever pitch taking the form of a 9-0 rally that would coincide with the blue-clad Octorara squad reclaiming the lead at a 17-16 count in the immediate aftermath of a haymaker 3-ball landed courtesy of the team’s leading scorer on the season, Vito Vespe, with 2:25 left before the halftime intermission.

However, that Braves’ lead would prove to be relatively short-lived considering how one of the few Blazers who routinely make it up and off the bench on any given night, Isaac Huynh, tallied himself a put-back at the cup as the Mennonite junior guard made it an 18-17 LMH cushion after checking into this cauldron of an atmosphere.

Ironically, that too would prove to be a brief excursion with the larger number up on the scoreboard as fate would have it as another Vespe bucket to answer right back, two more en route to his eventual 15-point evening, propelled Octorara into the dressing room with the slim 19-18 advantage to conclude an initial 16 minutes that could only be articulated as being back-and-forth.

But not even the ten-minute stoppage in play for halftime break would be cause for a course correction here in terms of either one of these clubs being able to run away and hide from the other.

Granted, while Mennonite might’ve been able to consider themselves to be the benefactor of at least a marginal bit of separation following a Daulton Nolt bucket at the cup which then made it a 24-21 Blazers’ cushion a mere three minutes into the third frame, a five-point personal swing authored by the Braves’ leading scoring on the evening, Chase Fetrow, a 17-point flamethrower who routinely made big shot after big shot when called upon, promptly used this latest in his personal arsenal to then make it a 28-27 Braves’ lead as a Fetrow 3-ball put the finishing touches on this impromptu 7-2 Octorara salvo.

But as would be a theme throughout the evening at large, whatever Octorara could do, Mennonite could do just slightly better.

Case in point, Daulton Nolt yet again answering the dinner bell for the Blazers by tallying a personal 4-0 run of his own to then make it a 31-27 Mennonite buffer with roughly 60 seconds left in the penultimate frame before the curtain would then fall with the Blazers clinging to their lead by the slimmest of margins, 31-30, with either program now just eight minutes shy from writing a never-before-seen chapter in either of their school’s history books.

Fittingly, for a triumvirate of frames which helped set the stage for the game’s final act, the fourth quarter on Thursday night between these two evenly matched teams proved to be nothing more than a continued showing of punch, counterpunch.

To start things off, while Octorara would regain the upper hand following a successful take to the tin by Vincent Thaler which made it a 32-31 Braves’ lead, a jumper splashed home by the newest member of the Lancaster Mennonite 1,000-point club, Chase Hurst, held to all of three points throughout the first three periods, was able to shake off his recent cold snap and fire in a clutch bucket which then put the Blazers back in front on Mennonite’s ensuing trip down the floor offensively.

And for a core group of Lancaster Mennonite seniors that has quite literally done everything over the course of their careers save for this – winning the league crown – it seemed fitting that they be the ones to help carry the baton in crossing the finish line.

For that, the consistent, yet sometimes underappreciated big man operating down low, Bill Rothwein, came away with an easy deuce at the cup which then saw the Blazers’ lead extend out to a 39-36 count with 5:14 remaining before Hurst, now suddenly untethered from Octorara’s defensive clutches, mysteriously got lost behind the Braves’ defense and found himself with his easiest bucket of the night, a point-blank layup at the cup, which then made it a 42-36 Blazers’ advantage with all of 2:50 left to be played.

That said, for a team that had tasted defeat all of one time this entire season, especially one that had made it to this night by quite literally making a habit out of climbing free and out of holes, putting this Octorara team to bed didn’t figure to be an easy chore heading down the stretch. And as Mennonite soon discovered, that rang true in spades.

First up, a timely Karter Lambert trifecta that not only brought rain, but more importantly brought the Braves’ back within three, 42-39, with Octorara suddenly stealing the game’s momentum with time winding down.

Yet in terms of big minutes, while his somewhat unassuming stat line that included one field goal made, a 1-2 split at the foul line, and just three points scored overall, had it not been the efforts of one of the unsung Blazers, Isaac Huynh in this instance, the end result here could’ve been remarkably different. And with that in mind, there would be no bigger assist made all night long than with Huynh delivering a cooler than the other side of the pillow dime to Daulton Nolt as the pair of Mennonite juniors’ moment in the sun made it a 46-40 Mennonite lead with roughly one minute left to go.

Even still, Octorara wasn’t about to quietly get back on the bus quietly and head home.

Certainly not once Braves’ senior guard, Lazo Christou, calmly toed the charity stripe and proceeded to knock down both in the offering after drawing a block on his defender en route to the hoop, his first points of the entire game no less, as the Christou freebies clipped the Mennonite lead down to a 47-44 difference with just 29.4 ticks left outstanding.

And while a Bill Rothwein free throw might’ve given reason for Mennonite to exhale just a bit, any collective sigh quickly became a gasp once Vito Vespe knocked down a massive 3-ball on the ensuing Octorara trip, making it a 48-47 Mennonite lead with just 13.5 seconds now left to go.

However, any sign of this moment being too big for one Jackson Bare, the youngest of the Blazers found in the primary rotation, seemed all for nought as the Mennonite sophomore cooly and confidently knocked down his two freebies after getting fouled and the game hanging in the balance, making it a 50-47 lead for the Section Four champs over the Section Three champs with 11.6 remaining.

Now, it became decision time for Octorara. Do you take the quick two, or try and play on in overtime by canning a triple? As it turned out, the Braves would opt for the latter on what became their final offensive trip of the contest with the outcome still in question.

And after the Braves’ hoist from beyond the arc inside of the final five seconds cruelly bounced off the back rim from their perspective, the final order of business, two more Daulton Nolt free throws, cemented this game into history once and for all as Lancaster Mennonite, the Blazers’ senior class most of all, joined some truly rarified air in league history as they now became the first group since those found on the 2003 Lancaster Catholic state championship team to hit for the cycle in terms of winning at least one section championship, one district championship, one state championship, and after tonight, one league championship, as the Blazers successfully achieved that long-desired goal by virtue of this 52-47 triumph over Octorara on Thursday evening in front of a packed house that had assembled at Manheim Township.

Afterwards, following the customary awarding of medals, pictures with the hardware, and cutting off a piece of twine from the net which they shot at during the second half, it was obvious that this was a special moment for all those involved in the Mennonite traveling party.

“Honestly, I think that the league title matches no other,” Lancaster Mennonite’s Chase Hurst, one of those Blazers’ seniors who has more an ample supply of medals stored somewhere in his room that have been accrued over the course of his LMH career offered in the aftermath of this most recent triumph which now sees him add L-L gold to that same collection. “States was awesome because that was sort of an unheard thing around here, but really the league, the local bragging rights, especially with us being a small school, it’s just so awesome,” Hurst added with an ear-to-ear smile. “I mean, Lancaster Mennonite’s never done this before. That made this really special for us.”

And to his credit, while this might not go down as his best game he has played in a Blazers’ uniform, Hurst certainly couldn’t have cared any less. For him, one who primarily gets to revel in all the spoils of Mennonite’s successes, he couldn’t have been happier standing off stage for a second while seeing his fellow teammates soak in this moment with their assorted friends and family.

“Everybody showed up big for us,” Hurst said proudly. “One through five, Ike (Isaac Huynh) was huge off the bench for us. He played some really good minutes for us. Daulton (Nolt), he played a heckuva game tonight. Brady (Grau), he controlled the game. He was awesome. Bill (Rothwein), he battles in there like nobody else. (Rothwein) may not have the hype, but that guy’s got a lot of heart,” Hurst said listing all his fellow teammates’ involvement that helped to push them over the top.

Turns out, even though he might have been kept under wraps for nearly three quarters, with the game – and history – on the line, Hurst wasn’t about to continue sitting idly by. Something best evidenced by seven of his ten points coming exclusively inside the final quarter.

“I just think the game came to me,” Hurst remarked on what seemed to change for him late in the game. “My teammates found me in the right spots, and I was able to make some plays. The game really slowed down for me in the fourth quarter, and I was able to find my teammates…I just knew in the fourth quarter that my team needed me to come up big, whether it was offense or defense. I picked up four quick (fouls) which hurt me more than anything to not be there on the court at the end,” he added of having to sit out the final few minutes after picking up his fifth and final personal foul. “But even with that, I just tried to encourage everyone (while on the bench).”

One of those who Hurst found himself cheering on during his absence? Isaac Huynh. Arguably the most unsung of heroes without whom’s contributions Lancaster Mennonite would’ve sorely been lacking.

“My teammates, my coaches, they’ve always instilled confidence in me,” Mennonite’s junior guard said while sporting a blue ribbon adorned with a gold medal hanging around his neck. “During practice when I’m working out, Coach Hartenstine always tells me, ‘Be ready.’ He always tells me that you never know when it’s going to be your opportunity to go in,” Huynh continued. “For me, with me coming from CV (Conestoga Valley), I just came this year, that’s something that they instilled in me right when I first came here to Mennonite. ‘Be confident. Be you. You’ll get the job done.’”

Without question, that shared belief and confidence that the staff had exuded upon their junior transfer mostly certainly helped blossom into his performance seen on this night.

“I’m always in the gym. I love the gym. I’m a gym rat,” Huynh said of himself and his regimen. “Me, working out every day, every hour, this is something I prepare for. It’s really nothing new. I mean, I don’t want to say it’s nothing new because it really is,” he said while pausing to give reverence and appreciation for the moment he was currently basking in. “This was my first time playing in a game like this, an atmosphere like this. It was crazy, but it was just another game for me. Just another game.”

As for his head coach, one who might’ve had the unenviable task of being “the guy that replaces the guy” when describing Lancaster Mennonite head coach Jeff Hartenstine being handed the keys to what was one of six defending Pennsylvania state championship machines heading into the 2023-24 campaign while also having to follow in the immediate footsteps of 2A Coach of the Year, Seth Buckwalter, the Blazers’ now third-year head man has done something that neither his predecessor, nor the league’s fourth all-time winningest head coach, Geoff Groff, a 404-time winner in his time patrolling the Lancaster Mennonite sidelines, had ever done before- bringing a league championship back home to this institution.

“Credit to Octorara. Everything that we wanted to do was difficult,” Hartenstine said after wrapping up another postgame interview just prior. “What (Octorara) did just got us out of sync and it makes you play fast. I think Chase (Hurst) played a little bit fast early on because he wanted it so bad,” said Hartenstine. “I just kept telling him, ‘It’ll come. Just lean on our defense. Our defense is what has gotten us through this whole year.’ Luckily, guys made free throws down the stretch, some of the layups we were missing early started to go in and thank goodness we had some good defense with some long length down there late.”

“But yeah, Ike (Isaac Huynh) steps up and grabs a big rebound and a score. In the first half, he comes in and hits a big free throw for us…He’s just such an awesome kid who deserves all the credit,” Hartenstine said while being cognizant to illuminate Huynh’s contributions. “Every single practice he comes to, if you need a guy to bring the energy, holy cow. He’s always bouncing off the walls at 100mph and chomping at the bit. He’s the nicest kid in the world too. I’m just so happy that he was able to have a big impact for us in this one.”

But this “one” stands out for a host of different reasons. So, bear with the man in charge if this takes some time to settle and sink in.

“It’s almost too much and too overwhelming,” Hartenstine said of the moment taking place all around the Township gym postgame. “It’s a proud, proud, great night for Lancaster Mennonite. You’d be surprised at the some of the alumni that have come out of left field and send you text messages. Like, how did this guy get my number? But they’re sending those because they’re watching and just waiting for this to happen because this is fun team to get behind,” the Blazers’ boss continued. “I’m getting text messages from old guys, young guys, all the above, guys who graduated with me, it’s just such a great moment for this program to have…I got an awesome team. All I have to do is try and stay out of the way,” Hartenstine quipped.

Now, with this achievement tucked into their back pocket, Mennonite is once again to embark on the part of their season in which the Blazers are most often the very last L-L League team still standing as the days melt away on the March calendar and squads begin to get eliminated. And while that is still the goal, a little bit of leeway might be in order here.

“I’ve gotten some calls and some texts about scrimmaging to get ready for districts, but I didn’t even respond to any of them because even though I might’ve thought, ‘Yeah, I’d really like to do that, my mind is focused on something else,’” Hartenstine said of his inbox this week while trying to chase down this league title. “This week, I’ll give (his team) off tomorrow, I’ll give them off Saturday to just enjoy this while I’ll work behind the scenes to try and get a scrimmage set up for us,” he shared. “Then, we’ll be off to districts to try and ride this thing a little bit longer.”

But that’s something to worry about in the days ahead. For right now, and for all eternity, Mennonite successfully etched its name into history by becoming the 14^th program in league history to have one of these trophies sitting in the trophy case. And for a program that has become arguably the best flag-bearer for the league in terms of their recent, deep runs in the state tournament when coupled with multiple upon multiple District 3 banners that no other team can try and match, while the Blazers weren’t exactly looking for validation and respect that they “belong” inside their own county borders, this win against Octorara leaves no doubt. And for no matter how small their school may be, technically a 1A-sized school by the letter of the law, this program has now proven in every way, shape, and form that it has both the bark and the bite required. Yes, “little” Lancaster Mennonite may now be a thing of the past. Make room “big boy” programs. The Blazers now deserve the right to have a spot and sit at your table.