Summer League Observations: July 1, 2024

Written by: TJ Eck on July 1, 2024

Seven Lancaster-Lebanon League teams took part in summer league basketball action Monday night (July 1) at Lancaster Country Day School.

Here are some observations from the action:

Penn Manor vs. Solanco – Solanco wins, 74-65

-I only saw the first half of this game but the clear star was Solanco’s Noah Bailey. He scored at all three levels and proved to be a matchup nightmare for the Comets. He’s going to be one of the best players in Section 2 this coming season

-Solanco shot the ball well and put together a strong offensive performance by scoring 74 points

-It’s only summer league action but a win over a Section 1 team is something for Solanco to build off after posting just two victories this past winter

-It was good to see Solanco have great participation with 13 players in attendance for a summer league game

-Penn Manor is coming off a historic season but the Comets will have a new-look roster this coming season with a number of fresh faces ready to make an impact

-Michael Lower, who was the No. 2 option alongside superstar and program great Ethan Benne last season, is now the undisputed top dog for the Comets. Penn Manor’s offense will go as he goes in 2024-2025

-Penn Manor doesn’t appear to have a lot of size but the Comets are athletic and should be able to play some up-tempo, pressure defense

Lancaster Country Day vs. Manheim Township – Manheim Township wins, 51-45

-Manheim Township wins a back-and-forth game that was as entertaining as it gets for a summer league contest

-The Blue Streaks shot the ball extremely well in the second half and buried multiple big three-pointers in the final minutes to come away with a hard-fought win

-Despite losing, LCDS was extremely impressive as a 1A school battling a 6A opponent

-LCDS guards Jordan Ashby and Chris Dukes were electric. They form one of the best backcourts in the entire L-L League

-The Cougars are going to be right in the mix for a league playoff berth in Section 4 and should again make noise in the district and state tournaments in Class 1A

Octorara vs. Pequea Valley

-I had a chance to watch the first half of this game and it was all Octorara. The Braves jumped out to a 15-4 lead and held a 20-point advantage at halftime

-Speaking of strong backcourts, Octorara has one with rising juniors Lazo Christou and Chase Fetrow. The duo complimented each other extremely well Monday night. Christou was able to get to the rim and finish while Fetrow knocked down multiple jumpers.

-Octorara only had six players in attendance but it didn’t seem to slow the Braves. They played well as a team and shared the ball, something we’ve come to expect from a Gene Lambert-coached team

-Pequea Valley’s Tyler Lapp is a newcomer for the Braves as a rising senior and he was impressive Monday night. In the first half alone, Lapp registered an old-fashioned three-point play, drilled a three-pointer, and then knocked down another triple just before the halftime buzzer

Lancaster Catholic vs. Linville Hill – Linville Hill wins, 73-52

-This game was all about Linville Hill’s athleticism and discipline on both ends of the floor

-Lancaster Catholic struggled against Linville Hill’s length but the Crusaders had a pretty solid night shooting the ball, especially in the second half

-LCHS lost eight seniors off of last season’s team but two starters are back with Colton Hegener and Brian Sowers still in the fold. Both players performed well Monday night, leading the offensive effort for the Crusaders

-Hegener had a stretch in the second half when he recorded an old-fashioned three-point play and drained a three-pointer in back-to-back possessions. He was clearly LCHS’s best player on both ends of the floor Monday night

-The best part of this game? Seeing LCHS head coach Joe Klazas back on the sideline after he sat out last season due to a medical leave of absence

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