District 2 Boys Game Recap (Lackawanna Trail vs. Mid Valley)

Written by: Jon K on January 21, 2020

January 21, 2020

Spartans Defense Stymies Lions

Mid Valley Spartans 51, Lackawanna Trail Lions 19

FACTORYVILLE – It’s been a while since the Neast Beat landed in Tunnel Hill to take in a Lackawanna Trail hoops game.  The Lions currently lead Division 4 of the Lackawanna League with a 5-0 mark and they host Elk Lake in a key home game Friday night.  On Tuesday, they entertained Mid Valley in a challenging Division 3 crossover game (which only counts for district seeding).  Lackawanna Trail is also a special place this time of year as it’s where the incredibly successful district-wide Coaches vs. Cancer fundraising campaign first began.  Now entering its 12th edition of Suits and Sneakers Week, the initiative started when Andrew Kettel helped organize a one game $1,200 fundraiser for the Cathrall family.  Casey, a senior, was the point guard on Kettel’s LT team that year and his dad was fighting pancreatic cancer.  Those small, but critically important beginnings, have grown into a $2 million dollar total.       

The Lions got off to a strong start as senior forward Richard Helbing netted all 7 of his game points during the first half of the opening stanza as Trail had a 7-6 lead.  The Spartans, however, would quickly clamp down defensively to force multiple turnovers and outscore the Lions 15-1 over the next eight minutes.  LT would regroup to cut the deficit to eleven points, 25-14 at the break.  The second half brought more of the same as Mid Valley was led by the turnaround inside scoring of 6-6 senior Mike Miller and perimeter shooting of talented freshman guard Danny Nemitz.  The Spartans pulled their starters early in this one as the rolled to a 51-19 victory.

Mid Valley was led by Miller, Nemitz, and Tyler O’Connor who each netted 12 points each.  Helbing led Lackawanna Trail with 7 points.                             

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