Andy’s Take

The saying goes that the deeper the run through the state playoffs, the more arduous the journey grows. Well, aside from the fact that Lancaster Mennonite likely thought that they had needed to apply for passports as it related to their first three state tournament games-excursions that took them to the likes of Johnstown coupled […]

(Hempfield Head Coach Danny Walck Embraces Ryan Moffatt Following Moffatt’s 5th Foul Wednesday Night Against Lincoln)   Last season was without question a memorable one for the Hempfield Black Knights Boys’ Basketball squad. A trip to the league playoffs, a trip the District 3 finals, and yeah oh by the way, a trip to Elite […]

The old adage in the state playoffs is that the further along you advance, the more and more that the ensuing competition only continues to grow stronger and stronger with each passing round. Well, in the case of the Lampeter-Strasburg Pioneers, never was that more true than on Tuesday night at Governor Mifflin when the […]

Let’s be honest for a quick second, there are a lot of adjectives that could still be applied to describe Hempfield’s spectacular postseason run from just one short year ago. Not the least of which include the word “unforgettable.” No doubt about it, the Black Knights’ journey through the postseason last year was filled with […]

Just three weeks ago, it could have easily been argued that the Lampeter-Strasburg Pioneers were playing the best basketball out of anyone in the mid-state. And deservedly so. After all, the Pios were in the midst of one of their best seasons in school history. And on that Friday night just three short weeks ago, […]

If one were to hit the rewind button back to just a few weeks ago when talking about the Lancaster Catholic Crusaders, it would have certainly appeared that this year’s talented squad was on a bee-line to match the impressive achievements that were obtained by their brethren from a year ago that included an L-L […]

In sports, or really just in life in general, there truly is only one way to go about attacking a giant challenge set forth in front of you. Metaphorically speaking here of course, you can’t exactly tippy-toe into the lion’s den. Instead, you have to go in full-steam ahead, throwing caution to the wind, all […]

Ask any head coach if he or she has a favorite team that they’ve enjoyed coaching over the years more so than any other and chances are that you’re likely to get anything but a clear and concise answer for a response. For most, that’s certainly understandable considering the task would be akin to asking […]

The good thing about playoff basketball is that it can you give matchups like L-S and Hempfield as was the case last Wednesday when the Pioneers and Black Knights squared off in the most-anticipated game of the season for the right to advance to the L-L title game opposite of Lancaster Catholic. The bad thing […]

When talking about the top high school athletic programs in the midstate, it is downright impossible to have any such conversation without including the Saints of Berks Catholic. No doubt about it, any list that would be devoid of having Berks Catholic mentioned would simply be incomplete at best. If nothing else, it’d certainly be […]

The arrival of postseason basketball no matter what the level–high school, college or professional can mean only one thing. Brackets. And when District 3 released their brackets last week, there were plenty of intriguing matchups to go around. But perhaps no contest was as tasty as the opening round 5A matchup between #9 seed Ephrata […]

In sports, the general rule of thumb is that the defending champion earns the right to be considered king of the hill until knocked off their lofty perch and proven otherwise. Don’t bother trying to sell this year’s Lampeter-Strasburg basketball team on that notion however. They’re simply just not buying it. Rewind the clock all […]

For whatever the reason, the L-L League Boys’ Basketball tournament has always shown an uncanny knack for producing monumental semifinal games the last few years. In fact, it could very well be argued that some of these games featured head to head matchups that most would have considered to be the de-facto championship games as […]

Without question, the number one goal for each and every team LL team that reconvenes every fall for the start of preseason practices is to play beyond their regular season slate and make the playoffs whether it be leagues, districts, or for even more select few, having the opportunity to take part in both. On […]

In many ways, it’s fair to say that Saturday afternoon in the Lancaster Lebanon League basketball community was date that many had been anticipating for quite some time. And unless you’ve been living under a rock for the last few weeks, you know full-well by now that Saturday officially marked the beginning of postseason play […]