Antietam – Berks Sports Report

Bulldogs and Mustangs Advance in State’s

Paul Roberts — Sun, 09 Mar 2025 18:20:45 +0000

Wilson and Gov. Mifflin are moving on in the PIAA-6A boys basketball playoffs. The (24-6) Bulldogs outlasted Plymouth Whitemarsh 56-51 in overtime on Saturday. The (20-9) Colonials were the District 1 runner-up. Wilson finished fifth in the District 3 tournament. The Bulldogs led 31-27 at halftime, but were outscored 12-to-5 in the third quarter. Luke Levan tied it at 49-49 with two seconds left in regulation. Plymouth Whitemarsh anticipated a skip pass to All-County guard Madyx Gruber. Two defenders went to Gruber on the wing, while Levan slipped the screen and got a layup. The 6’6 senior provided a dozen points and eight rebounds. Levan scored four points in overtime. Wilson allowed just two points in the extra session. Gruber had a team-high 16 points and seven boards. The 5’11 senior made all four of his 3-pointers in the first half. Correll Akings added 13 points including seven in the fourth quarter. The Bulldogs connected eight times from beyond the arc. The Colonials only hit three triples. Mani Sajid jammed ten of his 19 points into the fourth period. The highly-touted 6’5 junior guard averaged nearly 23 points this season. Michael Pereira, a 6’9 junior, chipped in with twelve points. Both teams were 8-for-12 from the free throw line. Wilson will face District 10 champion McDowell in the second round on Wednesday. That’s a 5:30pm tip at Pitt-Johnstown University. McDowell blew out Pittsburgh Central Catholic 72-40 on Saturday.

Gov. Mifflin qualified for the PIAA playoffs for the first time in program history. The Mustangs made the most of the opportunity on Saturday. They knocked off Mt. Lebanon 66-54 in Shillington. The Blue Devils were the #4 seed from District 7. Gov. Mifflin finished third in the District 3 tournament. The (20-9) Mustangs, who were (8-14) last season, held a 31-27 advantage at halftime. They outscored Mt. Lebanon 21-to-11 in a decisive third quarter. Gov. Mifflin spent a lot of time at the foul line. The Mustangs ended up 28-for-35 from the stripe, while the Blue Devils were 6-of-11. Andrew Galantuomo poured in a game-high 22 points. The 5’7 senior point guard made nine of his ten free throws. Jahmair Johnson, a 6’3 senior forward, scored 15 of his 17 points in the second half. Matt Koehler added 15 points. He was a perfect 6-for-6 from the foul line. Mt. Lebanon did most of its work from long range. The (17-10) Blue Devils splashed a dozen 3-pointers. Liam Sheely hit four treys and provided 17 points. Carter Gould (14) and Jacob Zuber (13) combined for 27 points. Gov. Mifflin will meet District 7 champ Upper St. Clair in the second round on Wednesday. They’ll get underway at 6:30pm at Altoona. Upper St. Clair hammered York High 67-30 in the opening round.

Antietam’s season came to a close on Saturday evening in Philadelphia. The Mounts fell at West Catholic 79-35 in the first round of the PIAA-3A playoffs. Antietam finished with a record of (15-11). The Mounts took third place in the District 3 tournament.

BCIAA Boys Basketball Quarterfinals

Paul Roberts — Tue, 11 Feb 2025 15:37:56 +0000

The Berks County boys basketball playoffs kicked off Monday night. The four teams from Division 1 dominated in the quarterfinal round. They won by an average of 20.5 points. You can read the full story on Gov. Mifflin’s 68-52 victory over Exeter on my website, including an interview with junior guard Ian Fleming. The BCIAA boys and girls basketball semifinals will be held on Wednesday at Santander Arena.

#8 Antietam at #1 Berks Catholic

The Mounts and Saints were tied 14-14 after eight minutes at Lloyd Wolf Gymnasium. Berks Catholic pulled away in the middle quarters for a 68-47 victory. The Saints outscored Antietam 21-to-9 in the second period and 25-to-11 in the third. Kingston McKoy poured in a game-high 28 points. The 6’2 junior guard was a third team All-State selection a season ago, but he missed the BCIAA playoffs due to a fractured tibia. Zach Suski added 15 points, including 13 in the first half. Gavin Welker chipped in with nine points for the (18-4) Saints. A.J. Scheifley led the (13-9) Mounts with 17 points. Jonas Coste and Julious Williams scored ten points apiece. Antietam will be in the District 3-3A tournament which begins on Monday, February 17.

#5 Wyomissing at #4 Reading

The Red Knights remained hot with a 77-56 win over the Spartans at the Geigle Complex. Reading has won eight of its last nine contests. Jeremiah Camara sank four of their seven 3-pointers in the first quarter. The Red Knights were on top 28-11 after eight minutes. Camara ended up with a game-high 22 points. The 5’9 sophomore hit five triples. Weshly Rosario connected three times from long range and finished with 17 points. Xavier Beatty provided twelve points. The 6’3 senior forward committed to Lock Haven for football on Monday. Danny Fleischood, a 6’1 junior, led Wyomissing with 19 points. Dom Arguelles (14) and Dylan Latourelle (11) combined for 25 points. The (15-8) Spartans have qualified for the District 3-4A playoffs which start on Thursday, February 20. The (12-11) Red Knights battle top-seeded Berks Catholic on Wednesday at 8:30pm at Santander Arena.

#7 Schuylkill Valley at #2 Wilson

The Bulldogs rolled to a 72-48 win over the Panthers. The defending Berks County champions allowed just 17 points in the second half. Wilson improved to (18-5). Madyx Gruber piled up 23 points. The All-County guard knocked down five 3-pointers. Correll Akings contributed 14 points and 6’6 senior Luke Levan had nine. Cooper Hohenadel, one of several outstanding football players in this matchup, led Schuylkill Valley with a dozen points. The (15-8) Panthers now await the District 3-4A tournament on Thursday, February 20. Meanwhile, the Bulldogs square off with rival Gov. Mifflin on Wednesday at 5:30pm at Santander Arena. That will follow the Wilson versus Gov. Mifflin girls semifinal which begins at 4pm.

Brady McKee-Conrad Weiser

Paul Roberts — Fri, 02 Dec 2022 23:59:00 +0000

Conrad Weiser head coach Rich Miller knows the importance of winning your home games. The former PSAC East Coach of the Year at Mansfield instructed his players to write their initials in the circle at midcourt before the season opener against Antietam. “To establish that this is our home court and we don’t lose [here],” explained Brady McKee. The 5’10 sophomore guard had a game-high 17 points in the Scouts’ 54-51 victory over the Mounts in Robesonia. McKee hit three triples and sank two clutch free throws with 32 seconds remaining for a 52-46 advantage. Antietam took its first lead at 44-42 on Noah Archambault’s layup midway through the fourth quarter. The Mounts went scoreless for the next three and a-half minutes. Archambault’s jumper got Antietam within 50-46 with 33 seconds to go. A deep 3-pointer by sophomore Jowen Reyes-Rodriguez cut the deficit to 53-51 with six seconds on the clock. The Mounts were out of timeouts and some precious seconds ticked away until Conrad Weiser inbounded the ball to Evan Miller. The coach’s son went 1-for-2 from the stripe with only two seconds to play for the final margin. I asked McKee what was the difference down the stretch. He replied, “Just staying composed out there. We have no rush. There’s really nothing to be worried about. I have faith in my team.” The Scouts went 14-of-19 from the foul line in the last period. Miller had their only bucket over the final eight minutes. The 6’1, 200-pound sophomore contributed six points off the bench, all in the fourth quarter. He’s a TE/DE on Conrad Weiser’s football team. Donovan Gingrich, the quarterback on that squad, is also a key figure for the Scouts when hoops season arrives. He averaged 8 points and made 43 treys last year as a freshman. Gingrich got off to a hot start versus Antietam. The 6’ guard knocked down a pair of 3-pointers and scored nine points in the opening quarter. He finished with 15 points. Gavin Rapp, a 6’3 sophomore starter, provided eight points. Conrad Weiser raced out to an 18-11 lead after eight minutes. The Scouts held a 27-23 edge at halftime. They were on top 38-33 after the third period. The Mounts started the fourth quarter with a 5-0 run. They used balanced scoring to keep it tight. Archambault, a 6’3 senior, had a team-high 14 points. Jovan Hollis, who just wrapped up his football season at Exeter last Friday, chipped in with 11 points. Eight of the ten points for Reyes-Rodriguez came in the second half. 6’4 sophomore center Julious Williams picked up his third foul with two minutes left in the second quarter. He ended up with nine points. Antietam only connected twice from beyond the arc while Conrad Weiser drilled five 3-pointers. “That’s kind of our thing, live and die by the 3-pointers,” admitted McKee. The Scouts were 17-of-25 from the free throw line. The Mounts went 6-of-9. Antietam won 20 games last season and reached the District 3-2A championship game. Conrad Weiser had an (8-14, 3-8) mark in Miller’s first year at the helm. He was the head coach at Mansfield from 2006-16 before moving on to run the Penn State Berks men’s basketball program in 2018. “Coach [Miller] runs us a lot in the offseason. We’ve put in a lot of hard work. I think we’ve shown a lot of improvement,” said McKee. We also discussed his favorite NBA and NFL teams, as well as his favorite teachers.

Antietam Takes Home Silver

Paul Roberts — Sat, 05 Mar 2022 17:25:00 +0000

The Mounts were trying to make history at the Giant Center in Hershey. Mt. Penn won the school’s last District 3 title in 1972. Antietam had been close to claiming gold before. The Mounts were the District 3 runner-up in 1994, 2019, and last year when they fell to Lancaster Mennonite 80-67. They got another shot at the Blazers on Saturday afternoon and this was a much closer contest. Jovan Hollis finished a fastbreak with six minutes remaining to give Antietam a 46-43 advantage. The (20-5) Mounts wouldn’t score again. Third-seeded Mennonite scored the final nine points for a 52-46 victory. It’s the Blazers’ third District 3 championship. David Weaver’s layup put them on top 47-46 with three and a-half minutes to go. The 6’7 junior was a factor on both ends of the floor with twelve points and six blocks. Camden Hurst’s nifty assist to Jaedon Mast made it 49-46 with 1:45 left. Hurst poured in a game-high 19 points. The 6’2 junior is up to 1,083 career points. He dropped 32 on the Mounts in last year’s District 3 Final. Antietam junior guard Carson Lubas missed an open 3-pointer from the right wing with just over one minute to play. Mast and Hurst went 3-4 from the free throw line to seal it. The (16-9) Blazers were 11-16 from the charity stripe, while the top-seeded Mounts went 8-11. Antietam connected on just two of its thirteen attempts from beyond the arc. Hector Tiburcio had a team-high twelve points, but was plagued by foul trouble. The all-county selection picked up his third foul with 3:21 left in the opening period. The 6’2 senior got his fourth two minutes into the second quarter. Tiburcio stayed on the floor. He had six points at the break. Hollis was also whistled for four fouls in the first half. A total of 19 fouls were called in the first 16 minutes. The Mounts raced out to a 6-0 lead. Hurst’s layup in transition gave Mennonite its first edge at 19-18 three minutes into the second period. Sophomore Jadyn Taylor (8 points) knotted the score at 25 with a layup in the closing seconds of the first half. Antietam moved in front 41-39 after the third quarter. The Mounts, who average 58 points, were outscored 13-5 in the last period including the six minute drought. 6’2 sophomore guard Josh McKoy provided eleven points. Hollis chipped in with ten and Lubas had seven. Tiburcio will enter the state playoffs with 1,409 career points. He erupted for 29 in last year’s District 3 championship game. Tiburcio had 23 in Antietam’s 74-65 loss to the Blazers on December 18th. Mennonite was the runner-up this season in Section 5 of the Lancaster-Lebanon League. The Mounts won the Division 4 title in the Berks Conference. Both teams will begin the Class 2A state tournament on Wednesday.

Kyle Lash-Exeter

Paul Roberts — Wed, 01 Dec 2021 21:10:00 +0000

A cooperative agreement allows Antietam students to play football at Exeter. Kyle Lash has been welcomed with open arms in Reiffton. Lash is one of four Exeter players who attend Antietam. The 6’3, 210-pound junior starts at guard and defensive tackle. Lash told me that he prefers defense because “hitting people just makes me so happy.” He described a big sack that he had in the District 3-5A championship at Gov. Mifflin. Lash is third on the team in sacks (3.5) and TFL (10). He has made 44 tackles for the (10-3) Eagles. They beat the Mustangs 31-28 for their first District 3 title. Lash talked about what it has been like in school this week after that historic victory. He gave a lot of credit to seniors Colin Payne and Eric Nangle. Payne now owns the single-season school record for passing yards with 2,184. He ranks second in Berks County this year with 22TD passes. Nangle ran 40 times for 225 yards and a touchdown against Gov. Mifflin. He’s up to 1,769 rushing yards and 21TD this season. Lash and the offensive line have helped Exeter average 227 rushing yards per game and nearly seven yards per carry. The Eagles take on (11-2) Penn-Trafford in the Class 5A state semifinals on Friday night at Bald Eagle High School. The Warriors have won nine in a row including their first WPIAL championship. Finally, Lash and I discussed his favorite sports movies and rappers.