Defensive effort leads L-S to crucial Section 3 victory over Donegal (TJ Eck Recap)
Written by: Andy Herr on December 18, 2023
Trailing by three points, Lampeter-Strasburg made a defensive adjustment at halftime of Monday night’s Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 3 showdown with Donegal.
“We went to more of what we call a matchup zone,” said L-S head coach Ed Berryman. “They have great shooters so it gave it like a 3-2 (zone) look but we were being aggressive, make sure we knew where the shooters were and then trying to keep them out of the paint.”
The zone defense flummoxed the Indians. L-S was able to force multiple turnovers, which led to easy transition buckets on the offensive end. The Pioneers rode the defensive effort to a come-from-behind 54-47 victory.
Leading the way for L-S was senior guard Dean Herr. The Pioneer football star showed he’s also a difference maker on the basketball court Monday night. Herr was a menace on defense by jumping into passing lanes and recording ten steals while scoring a team-high 15 points.
“(Herr’s) incredibly quick as you could see tonight,” said Berryman. “He’s got great anticipation and he made big plays.”
Herr’s biggest plays of the night came in the fourth quarter. He stole a Donegal pass and scored on a layup to push L-S’s lead to 45-36 with 4:48 remaining. After the Indians cut the deficit to six, Herr again came up with a crucial moment by converting an old-fashioned three-point play that essentially iced the game.
“He wasn’t even hitting his (three-pointers) tonight but that didn’t matter,” said Berryman. “He made it happen in other ways.”
Donegal started the night strong and built a 17-12 lead after the first quarter. The Indians held onto a five-point edge until the final moments of the first half when L-S senior guard Trent Wagner banked in a jumper at the buzzer to make it a 23-20 Donegal lead at the break.
A trip to the locker room proved to be the difference for the Pioneers.
With a new defensive scheme in place, L-S began the third quarter with back-to-back buckets to take the lead. The Pioneers outscored the Indians, 19-8, in the third frame to build an eight-point lead after three quarters of play.
“I’m extremely proud,” said Berryman. “We worked on things, they didn’t work at first in the first half so we changed it up and the guys responded.”
Four L-S players scored in double figures Monday night with Herr (15 points) leading the way. Chase Smucker dropped 11 points while Yasin Abdi and Justin Glick registered 10 points apiece.
Donegal was led by Jonzel Morant, who paced the Indians with 14 points. Evyan Patel and Joey Williams each added nine points in the loss.
The Indians drop to 5-2 overall (1-1 L-L League) and will look to bounce back Wednesday night when they host Ephrata in a non-league game.
Meanwhile, the Pioneers host Muhlenberg Wednesday evening. L-S has won four straight to improve to 5-1 overall (2-0 L-L League).
“We’ve done a nice job coming back in some of our wins,” said Berryman. “They don’t get flustered. From that standpoint, I love that because they’ve got some senior leadership that helps them along the way…so I really like the way they hang together.”
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