Lampeter-Strasburg’s Valiant Late Rally Runs Out Of Steam, Vaults York High Into Red Tornado Tournament Championship Game Against McCaskey
Written by: Andy Herr on December 29, 2022
To most certified hoop heads and to be honest, frankly degenerates, who fit the bill such as yours truly, McCaskey’s holiday tourney which they are hosting this year duties this year for is simply too good to pass up. After all, to say that local high school basketball royalty would be in attendance may not even be doing it the least bit of justice.
Simply put, if you can get the likes of York High, Harrisburg High and McCaskey all in one centralized location short of hoping the stars would align in the District 3 postseason Final Four setting, a tournament such as that with that much firepower albeit in late December is arguably the top holiday tourney found all across the local scene. But who would round out such a field? Would it be another superpower? Say, Reading High or Central York for example? Well, yes and no depending on who would answer your unscientific survey.
As hard as it may be to believe, but chances are that many of those same aforementioned high school hoops junkies who loved the premise of seeing three name brand entities such as the ones already listed battle it out for any kind of title may have also looked at Lampeter-Strasburg on said tourney brochure and simply tossed them aside without much a second thought. Okay, good ahead and do that if you want, but to put it kindly and very, very mildly, that would be an extremely dumb decision for anyone that felt the burning desire to do so.
Granted, while the Lampeter-Strasburg program candidly does not possess anywhere near the sheer historical prowess that the other 75% of the entrants found playing at McCaskey in this four-team bracket may be able to list on their overall resumes by comparison sake, you could easily, easily make the argument that L-S has been without question the most successful of that bunch if we are just taking the last half decade within a vacuum without getting much in the way of any real backlash. Case in point, after winning the program’s first-ever Lancaster-Lebanon League title back in 2018, the 2021-22 Pioneers of just a year were somehow yet another team for the ages.
To be sure, it was a memorable talent-rich cast and crew from just a season ago that went entirely unscathed throughout both the regular season and postseason –including winning yet another L-L League title and first-ever District 3-5A championship along the way – before they unfortunately met an untimely fate at the hands of a drastically under seeded Penn Hills team by way of the WPIAL in the first round of the state tournament last winter on the Pios’ home floor no less for their first and only loss from the months of December thru March en route in what would amount to a remarkable 28-1 campaign once the dust had finally settled.
This year though, at least through the first quarter pole of the regular season that is, not even graduation losses and other departures to the L-S basketball roster have done much of anything in terms of slowing this otherworldly program whatsoever. Sure enough, while local legend Ty Burton may have opted to take his talents back down to Florida this year by way of the prestigious IMG Academy, why not simply insert a key cog from last year’s rotation, Ben Wert, and watch him ascend to incredible heights? Heights that would include the mesmerizing feat of posting 30-point performances in 43% of the Pioneers’ contests so far this season if you were wondering.
In fact, the 2022-23 Pioneers were able to levy a firm and decisive first statement in their home opener this year in taking down Hempfield yet again in what was billed as the much-anticipated conference championship rematch from last season as L-S went on to vanquish their quasi-new rivals to the tune of a 45-38 victory that came complete with a decisive fourth quarter romp over the Section One opposition. Since then, it has been basically nothing but sailing on pristine glass and calm waters with business being conducted as usual for the Pioneers before entering the McCaskey tournament given that the Pios proceeded to win their next four in succession en route to a 6-1 overall record. Their lone loss you ask? In the championship game of the Northeastern Tip-Off Tournament back on the first weekend of the season, 54-40, at the hands of what has been described in most circles as an uber-talented Eastern York squad. And wouldn’t you know it, but their first opponent at McCaskey in a dinner-hour game held Wednesday night to help raise the curtain for this prestigious field? Yep, another stellar York County club, York High, yet again in a tournament setting to try and perhaps right some of those earlier wrongs.
But the fact of the matter was this—No matter who L-S wound up drawing in the opening round, or even in the final round either for that matter, this is a collection of teams that the Pioneers not only deserve, but also quite frankly need to play against moving forward. Simply put, the bar of success at L-S has rightly been raised so high of late that the aspirations of simply dominating and owning your own backyard of the surrounding nearby schools does not nor should it be the barometer of success for the Pioneers any longer. Rest assured, if you want to hang with the upper echelon, you must also compete head-to-head with the best and this tournament ticket most certainly figured to award the Pioneers of that very opportunity. And to their credit, L-S would not be found ducking the best possible competition during this dead week between Christmas and New Year’s.
Yet while they would fit tooth and nail throughout, an early fourth quarter Bearcats’ flurry would prove to be the eventual difference that came out in the wash.
Ironically though, for a pair of clubs that routinely make their weight by virtue of highly potent explosive offenses in their own unique ways, the first quarter on Wednesday night seemed to be played in a bit of a malaise.
Case in point, while L-S junior guard Dean Herr would be able to splash in a trifecta to get the scoring started on the Pioneers’ initial possession of the contest, much of the opening stanza from there on out was a bit of a slugfest to say the least. Sure enough, while York junior guard Juelz Tucker would come away with a steal and finish which gave the Bearcats their first lead of the game at that point, 6-5, with 2:40 left in the opening frame, a pair of Luke Hines free throws at the charity stripe inside the final 35 seconds allowed L-S to head into the second period with ownership of the extremely slim 9-8 advantage.
Once the second quarter got underway though, it seemed as if L-S had finally found their rhythm and mojo.
Specifically speaking, the Pios’ cushion would grow upward to half a dozen courtesy of a Chase Smucker trifecta before a Ben Wert spin move inside on the next trip down the floor for L-S made it a 16-10 margin of separation as the game clock dove towards the six-minute mark.
But just when Lampeter-Strasburg may have believed that they were the ones in firm control, York would rip the steering wheel away from them within the blink of an eye.
For that, the Bearcats found their spark in turning up the defensive dial of pressure and intensity.
In fact, seemingly no sooner than had York High 6’3 sophomore guard Daveyon Lydner come away with a timely theft and layup to cut the Pioneers’ lead down to a pair at 16-14, that a pair of back-to-back takes to the cup by way of Juelz Tucker not long afterwards would follow suit, a second quarter rally that would pull the Bearcats even at 18-18 once the first half buzzer finally blared out at the end of the opening 16 minutes.
Yet even in the second half, the ebbs and flows of the game’s momentum took their turns sitting on the two respective benches.
First and foremost, the tide turned in York’s favor coming out of the locker room seeing as how the Bearcats began the third frame on a 6-0 jaunt, an early haymaker thrown that came courtesy of stellar sharp shooting from beyond the arc in the form Jacere Vega, last year’s MVP of the very same tournament, and Daveyon Lydner respectively, as the duo’s pair of treys propelled the ‘Cats out to the 24-18 lead nearly three minutes into the third quarter of play.
But that would be just about the final instance of York being able to enjoy the nectar of momentum the rest of the way as far as the third quarter was most concerned.
Needing to answer back with time of the essence, the Pios turned to their 5’11 sophomore guard, Chase Smucker. For Smucker, a key freshman who saw time at significant junctures while playing at the varsity level just one year ago, it appears that this will be yet another household name to keep tabs on over the next few years inside the L-S rotation considering that the 10th grade sniper proceeded to bury a pair of much-needed triples in the face of the ongoing third quarter York High onslaught, the last of which put L-S back in front, 29-26, before Smucker would go on to tally eight of the Pioneers’ final 11 points to close the period. And with the offense clearly spurring on the defense, L-S’ stellar finish to end the third stanza’s festivities was best punctuated by a fearless and selfless charge taken on the defensive end by 6’3 senior big man, Tim Holmes, a fitting end to things which saw the Pioneers retain control of a slim lead at 32-30 with the final eight minutes getting set to commence.
At the onset of the fourth however, it seemed as if L-S may have finally been able to run away and hide.
Easy to think that I suppose considering that Smucker kept his white-hot shooting touch alive and well in the early going as yet another trifecta on his night –en route to his five overall hit from bonus distance on the evening – upped the Pios’ lead to 38-33 just two minutes into the quarter.
But then came Daveyon Lydner onto the scene for the York troops. And boy oh boy, would he arrive with bad intentions for the opposition.
Suffice to say, the eventual outcome of the game had reached critical mass if York High any desires or aspirations whatsoever in terms of perhaps steering the ship in their direction. Here, as if to be right on cue, the Bearcats’ crafty sophomore proceeded to answer the dinner bell without hesitation or trepidation as Lydner proceeded to rattle off the orange and blue’s next eight points in quick succession, an essential salvo that allowed York to claw all the way back in front, 41-38, somehow within the span of just one minute of game time. Speaking of Lydner, he was a star amongst stars in this one as his 26-point performance helped not only steal the show, but it also led to his seizure of game-high scoring honors once the final horn sounded as well.
From there, even though L-S would knot things back up following a pair of triples hit by their own scoring machine, Ben Wert, at 44-44 with 3:45 left to be played, York High would finally author that precious bit of separation that each team had certainly been clamoring for up until that point. In terms of Wert, he was his usual sensational self when it came to leading the charge for L-S considering it was another 20-point night at the office, 24 to be precise, as the senior wing would yet again pilot his squadron in posting team-high scoring honors in this one too.
But speaking of that critical York High push, the Bearcats’ cushion would swell to a ten-point margin following a pair of 3-balls sunk back-to-back by way of Juelz Tucker which made it a 54-44 York High lead with two minutes and change left to go.
Coast is clear, right? Well, not exactly.
Sure, while a bucket scored by L-S senior forward Luke Hines may have seemed rather innocuous given that it made it a 57-49 contest with 41.3 seconds to go, his pair of freebies nailed at the charity stripe 20 seconds later would certainly cause the Bearcats to sweat somewhat as the Hines-engineered rally quickly cut it to 57-52 with 21.6 left. And the Bearcats certainly weren’t able to saunter out of the woods within the next ten seconds either considering that a herculean triple sunk by Chase Smucker on the heels of a pair of Lydner free throws nailed moments earlier suddenly down on the other end made it a 59-55 affair with 10.5 seconds to go. From there, a jump ball on the subsequent inbounds play gave the ball right back to the Pioneers in front of their bench with the once impossible somehow feeling more and more likely.
But while L-S would be able to get a good shot off on said possession, the orange pill careened off the corner of rim which finally allowed York High and their dedicated patrons who had made the trip across the Susquehanna to collectively exhale with relief as their beloved Bearcats found themselves inside Thursday night’s championship round opposite of an old friend in McCaskey come 8 o’clock Thursday night.
NEXT UP: Geez, talk about making yourself better here this week if you’re L-S. After dropping that opening round game against York on Wednesday, it’s right back to McCaskey to match up with the mighty Harrisburg Cougars 24 hours later, the victim of an 82-66 McCaskey triumph in the other opening round matchup held on Wednesday. But again, this is not something that L-S need be intimated by. As mentioned, this is a Pios’ program that has rightly earned the privilege to sit and rub elbows alongside some of the giants found here residing in the mid-state. Now sure, while this edition of L-S obviously has some things to fix and brush up on as this season continues to take shape, this again is arguably the team to beat inside the division they call home. In short, while perhaps the greater region of District 3 as a whole is only starting to familiarize itself with Lampeter-Strasburg, those of us around these parts know full well of capabilities as we have seen this same movie play itself out over and over. And no, this doesn’t appear to be a feature film that will be running out of screen time anytime soon.
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