Barons stifle Fleetwood in Saturday afternoon matchup
Written by: TJ Eck on January 13, 2024
There’s an old saying in team sports: “Defense wins championships”. If that’s the case, Manheim Central may be adding to its trophy case this winter.
The Barons, who are allowing just 44.0 points per game this season, put together another strong defensive effort in a 56-41 win over Fleetwood Saturday afternoon in a matchup of teams that are expected to compete for the District 3 title in their respective classes.
“I thought we did a nice job,” said Manheim Central head coach Charlie Fisher. “We went into the game, we wanted to focus on our defense.”
Playing in front of a sleepy crowd at Doe Run Elementary School, the Barons brought their own energy and stifled the Fleetwood offense over the first two quarters. Manheim Central paired strong defense with efficient offensive execution to build a 31-16 lead at halftime.
“A good defense leads to good offense,” said Manheim Central senior guard/forward Sam Witmer. “We were able to hold them a lot.”
Manheim Central came out of the locker room strong in the second half. Senior forward Aaron Enterline woke the fans up after he grabbed a defensive rebound and went coast-to-coast for a dunk. Moments later Mason Rodgers knocked down one of his two three-pointers on the afternoon to put the Barons in front by 21, 45-24.
“We just had to, little by little, chip away,” said Witmer. “Kind of like a slow bleed. We figured it was going to be that way. (Fleetwood) is a really good team.”
After the Barons built a big lead, Fleetwood responded. The Tigers went on a 13-2 run over the final few minutes of the third quarter and into the first half of the fourth quarter.
When it seemed like momentum was shifting, Witmer came up big for the home team. His baseline drive and layup with about two minutes to play put Manheim Central up 49-37 and pretty much ended any hope of a Fleetwood comeback.
“The biggest thing with Sammy is he’s at his best when he is doing his thing,” said Fisher. “He’s playing hard, he’s not overly thinking.”
Witmer stuffed the stat sheet on Saturday. He finished with a team-high 15 points, grabbed nine rebounds (three offensive), and came away with three steals.
Three other Barons scored in double figures: Enterline finished 11 points while Rodgers and Chase Book registered 10 points apiece.
Fleetwood was led by Aidan Soumas , who scored a game-high 20 points while pulling in six boards.
Manheim Central improves to 12-1 overall and 6-0 at home. The Barons entered Saturday as the No. 1 team in the Class AAAAA District 3 power ratings while Fleetwood was No. 3 in the Class AAAA field.
“This was a big win,” said Witmer.
Next up for Manheim Central is a Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 2 showdown with Warwick next Wednesday (Jan. 17) in Manheim. The Barons will enter the matchup with a 4-1 league record while the Warriors are 5-0 in section play.
“Our next two days of practice, we just need to be engaged, focused, and make sure we are taking care of business,” said Fisher.
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