Alexis – Berks Sports Report

Alexis Hardy-Wyomissing

Paul Roberts — Mon, 09 Jan 2023 23:53:00 +0000

You couldn’t tell in the first quarter which team was (11-0) and which had lost three in a row. Fleetwood scored the first six points at Wyomissing. The Tigers led 9-2 when Kansas State commit Alexis Hess drained a deep 3-pointer from the left wing. Sophomore guard Alexis Hardy was the spark that the unbeaten Spartans needed after a sluggish start. Hardy provided nine of Wyomissing’s 18 points in the first half. Amaya Stewart, one of nine sophomores on the roster, took over after halftime. The 6’1 forward finished with a game-high 17 points in a 55-22 rout. “She played amazing. She was looking for her teammates. She had a lot of assists, and she also had a lot of nice takes to the basket,” said Hardy. After managing just four points in the first half, Stewart dominated on both ends of the floor. She blocked shots, dished out some sweet assists, crashed the glass, and even handled the ball. The (5-6, 1-3) Tigers were held to 13 points after the opening quarter. Hess, who came into the night averaging 21 points, was limited to six. The 6’1 guard has 1,251 points in her career. The Spartans used a trapping defense to force 21 turnovers. They went on an 18-2 run to begin the third period and take a 36-16 advantage. Eight of Annie McCaffrey’s eleven points came in the fourth quarter. The 5’9 junior is committed to UMass for soccer. She’s averaging nearly nine points off the bench this season. “Having Annie come in right away is really a boost to our defense. She’s very aggressive. She hustles for every ball, and I feel like she really pushes our team,” noted Hardy. The (12-0, 4-0) Spartans outscored Fleetwood 17-3 over the last eight minutes. Hardy was part of Wyomissing’s Berks County and District 3-2A championship soccer team in the fall. She and her teammates are well aware that girls basketball is one of the few sports that doesn’t have a championship banner in Wyomissing’s gym. “That is a topic that’s brought up very often. It’s a very big goal for us to be the first of something,” emphasized Hardy. She had a dozen points in Monday’s victory. Audrey Hurleman, yet another sophomore, chipped in with eight points. Sophomore guard Morgan Koehler had a team-high eight points for the Tigers. They were 6-of-15 from the free throw line, while the Spartans went 8-17. Wyomissing is allowing the fewest points in the league this year. They’re giving up just 27 ppg. Hardy mentioned that this is a tight-knit group. She replied, “We’re all very close. We like to hang out outside of basketball all the time so I feel like that really helps us.”

Alexis Hess-Fleetwood

Paul Roberts — Thu, 15 Dec 2022 11:37:00 +0000

It’s not often that you see a head basketball coach from a Power 5 Conference school in Berks County. That illustrates what Jeff Mittie thinks about two-time, all-state guard Alexis Hess. The Kansas State coach made the trip to Fleetwood on Wednesday to see Hess and the Tigers take on Daniel Boone. “It just shows how much effort he’s putting into me. It’s a really good feeling. He’s a great person,” said Hess. Mittie surpassed 600 career wins this year. He’s in his ninth season with the Wildcats. Hess finished with a game-high 22 points in a 51-22 victory over the Blazers. The Kansas State commit got off to a slow start. “I realized in the first quarter I wasn’t playing like myself,” admitted Hess. After hearing her mother provide encouragement from the stands, Hess took over in the middle quarters. Daniel Boone used a 6-0 run to open the second period and get within 19-10. Fleetwood responded with a 15-1 spurt to go up 34-11 at halftime. Hess crammed ten points into the second quarter. The 6’1 senior added a pair of 3-pointers early in the third period. The Blazers trailed 48-19 entering the final quarter. Hess noted that she likes to get her teammates involved early in the game. “I want to make sure that I’m building confidence for my teammates as well…to make sure that they stay in the game and have good energy,” she replied. Haley Wojciechowski provided a spark for the (3-1) Tigers. The 5’9 senior forward erupted for 12 points in the first eight minutes. Her previous career high was 11. “I love what she’s doing. Really good player and she’s improved a lot,” mentioned Hess. Wojciechowski ended up with 14 points. Sophomore guard Morgan Koehler chipped in with eight points. Fleetwood went 6-of-10 from the free throw line, while the Blazers were 8-15. Liv Welker, a 5’10 freshman, led Daniel Boone with 14 points. First-year head coach Matt Bowe has a very young team. The roster includes six freshmen and six sophomores. The Blazers have already shown improvement with two wins this year. They were (0-20) a season ago. Hess is hoping Fleetwood will improve as well. The Tigers had a mark of (11-10, 6-5) last season and didn’t qualify for the Berks County or District 3 playoffs. After Wednesday’s performance, Hess is up to 1,118 career points. She had about 25 Division I offers before picking Kansas State. Hess joked that Coach Mittie enjoyed seeing the cows and horses on his way to Fleetwood. We also talked about what she’s hoping to find under the Christmas tree this year.

Alexis Hess-Fleetwood

Paul Roberts — Thu, 15 Sep 2022 20:31:00 +0000

There aren’t a lot of freshmen getting scholarship offers from Ohio State. Alexis Hess, however, wasn’t your typical ninth-grader. She averaged 15 points per game for Fleetwood and connected on 43 three-pointers. After her sophomore season, Hess was selected to the all-state team. The 6’1 guard reached 1,000 points during her junior campaign. She received about 25 Division I offers before deciding to commit to Kansas State. The Wildcats improved from (9-18) in 2020-21 to (20-13) last season. Hess believes the future is bright in Manhattan, a city with a population of just 55,000. She prefers the small college town environment and thinks she can get playing time right away. “I feel like I could make an impact. They recruited me for my versatility to be at the 2, 3, or 4 [positions] which really shows that it could give you more options to play,” said Hess. She emphasized how much her family has supported her, including eight hour road trips to Ohio to practice with her AAU team. Hess added, “They’ve pushed me through my ups and downs with my knee surgery. They’ve always been there for me. They always had my best interests at heart.” Hess underwent left knee surgery in the summer of 2021. It didn’t slow her down last season when she was the second-leading scorer in Berks County. Hess averaged 19 points and sank 40 triples. She was named first-team all-state in Class 5A. Hess poured in a career-high 34 points against Hamburg in late January. She’s looking forward to her senior season with the Tigers. “I’m expecting big things. I’m really excited for the upcoming girls. I’m here to have fun, to better everyone else” said Hess. She mentioned that reaching 1,000 points last season will reduce her stress this year. Hess is focusing on her leadership and communication skills, as well as improving her quickness. Fleetwood finished (11-10) a season ago. The Tigers ended up third in Division 3 and missed the county playoffs. The semifinals and championship game are held at Santander Arena in Reading. Hess hasn’t had the opportunity to play there yet. She replied, “It’s been a dream since I was in 9th grade. That’s something I’ve always been shooting for because that’s a big stage. I’m really pushing to get there this year.” Hess will enter the upcoming season with 1,034 career points and 116 three-pointers. Her favorite professional players are Kevin Durant and Candace Parker. When she’s not playing basketball, Hess enjoys watching ‘MasterChef’ and ‘Stranger Things’. Her favorite subjects are math and science. We talked about her favorite teachers at Fleetwood. Hess also revealed her favorite foods. She joked that some of her choices aren’t exactly healthy, but she spends plenty of time burning calories on the court.

Tashiro Alexis-Muhlenberg

Paul Roberts — Fri, 14 Jan 2022 22:22:00 +0000

Muhls’ first-year head coach Matt Flowers says that he’s blessed to have great seniors. There are two in Muhlenberg’s starting lineup; Edwin Suarez and Tashiro Alexis. They combined for 36 points in a 55-47 victory at Gov. Mifflin. Alexis knocked down a 3-pointer to open the game. He made two more shots from beyond the arc in the third quarter to keep the Muhls within striking distance. They trailed 40-36 entering the final period. Suarez and Xzavion Robertson took over from there as Muhlenberg outscored the Mustangs 19-7 over the final eight minutes. Gov. Mifflin finished with 23 turnovers. Alexis, who ended up with 13 points, told me that Flowers is always emphasizing defense. Suarez had a game-high 23 points including seven in the fourth quarter. His steal and 3-point play broke a tie at 44 with three minutes remaining. The 6’6 senior threw down a fast break dunk with 45 seconds to go for a 52-46 advantage. He’s averaging 19 points and ten rebounds. Robertson scored the Muhls’ first eight points of the last quarter. The 5’10 lefty had ten off the bench. Alexis talked about playing with Suarez and Robertson. Muhlenberg improved to (10-2, 4-1). The Muhls have won four straight. They’re on top of Division 2. Alexis knows that chemistry is very important on and off the court. He believes the Muhls have a lot of heart. Alexis appreciates the support from the student section which was very vocal in Shillington. Muhlenberg won despite shooting 10-19 from the free throw line. Gov. Mifflin was 5-8. Matt Harley had a team-high 16 points. The 6’5 senior connected on four 3-pointers giving him 35 this season. Delsin McNeil chipped in with 12 points. The (5-8, 2-4) Mustangs have dropped four in a row.