Reading falls to Central York

The defending state champions in Class 6A paid a visit to the Geigle Complex on Wednesday night. Central York returned four starters from a (29-3) squad that captured the school’s first PIAA title in boys basketball. Reading had three sophomores in its starting lineup and just one senior. The Panthers jumped out to a 7-0 lead. They were on top 25-12 after the opening quarter. “Reading’s always a scrappy team. We know that we can’t play lackadaisical at all, especially with this environment,” said Ben Natal. The 6’3 senior guard scored ten of his twenty points in the first eight minutes. Natal has more than 1,400 points in his career. The Red Knights had to go to their bench early after Jostin DeCastro and Kahlil Samuel each picked up two fouls in the first period. DeCastro, who was averaging 12 ppg., finished with just six points. Reading outscored Central York 17-to-13 in the second quarter and trailed by nine points at halftime. The Red Knights were mistakenly awarded two extra points in the third quarter. They were within 50-42 entering the final period. Reading got the first bucket of the fourth quarter. However, the (8-1) Panthers erupted for 23 points and pulled away from the (3-9) Red Knights. Ben Rill, a 6’8 senior, provided 20 points. Albright commit Byron Pinkney added 19 points. The 6’4 senior hit two of Central York’s four 3-pointers. There were 48 combined turnovers including 25 by the Panthers. Both teams did a better job of taking care of the ball in the second half. Jeremiah Camara had a team-high 15 points. The 5’9 sophomore scored nine points in the fourth quarter. Samuel chipped in with nine points. Weshly Rosario, “Coco” Malave, and Xavier Beatty provided eight points apiece. Malave, a 5’10 sophomore, got the start as Beatty came off the bench. Reading went 7-of-10 from the free throw line, while the Panthers were 9-of-14. These schools squared off in the state semifinals a season ago. Central York took that matchup 79-65. The Red Knights are back in action tonight at Twin Valley.