championship – Berks Sports Report

PIAA-5A Championship Preview

Paul Roberts — Fri, 14 Jun 2024 04:19:32 +0000

History will be made on Friday afternoon at Penn State’s Medlar Field. Gov. Mifflin squares off with Hollidaysburg in the PIAA-5A championship at 4:30pm. The winner will claim its first state title. The Mustangs are making their fifth appearance in the PIAA tournament. They hadn’t won a game in the state playoffs prior to this season. The Golden Tigers reached the PIAA tournament for the first time since 2012. This is their third appearance overall.

The (23-5) Mustangs were the District 3 and BCIAA runner-up. Their bats have come alive after scoring just six total runs in the District 3 playoffs. Gov. Mifflin has piled up 24 runs in its three contests during the state tournament. UConn commit Bryce Detwiler leads the team with eight homers out of the leadoff spot. The 6’2, 215-pound junior was voted the Berks County Player of the Year.

Ethan Grim is in line to make the start against Hollidaysburg. That allows the Mustangs to put Detwiler at shortstop which is their best defensive lineup. Grim (7-3, 1.82) has 102 strikeouts in 65 innings. Several Division I programs have shown interest in the hard-throwing junior. Grim held Whitehall to two hits in a 10-0 rout in the PIAA quarterfinals. He’ll be throwing to Travis Jenkins. The junior catcher is a defensive wizard behind the plate who can also swing the bat. Jenkins and Grim were All-County selections this spring.

Hollidaysburg is the District 6 champion. The (17-6) Golden Tigers are led by senior Carson Kensinger. The southpaw tossed a complete game with nine strikeouts in the District 6 final. Kensinger (10-0, 1.05) lasted 6.2 innings in the state semifinals before reaching the pitch limit versus Monsignor Bonner. Hollidaysburg prevailed 3-1. The Mustangs are expecting to see Kensinger on three days rest. The Frostburg State commit has 119 strikeouts over 73 innings. He’s only allowed 46 hits. Junior Paul Wedel (5-1, 2.29) has thrown 33.2 innings.

Kensinger can certainly help himself at the plate. He’s batting .366 with a team-high 28 RBI and 7 HR. Senior outfielder Jake Hileman leads the Golden Tigers with 38 hits, 31 runs, ten doubles, and a .469 average. Ethan Karageanes is hitting .347 with eight doubles. Hollidaysburg has been in three tight games during the PIAA tournament. The Golden Tigers have outscored their opponents 10-5.

Chris Hole-Gov. Mifflin

Paul Roberts — Wed, 29 May 2024 10:47:00 +0000

Gov. Mifflin was searching for its first District 3 baseball championship, but Reese Young stood in the way. “He was as advertised,” said Mustangs’ head coach Chris Hole. Young fired a two-hitter in Mechanicsburg’s 6-1 victory in the District 3-5A final at FirstEnergy Stadium. “We knew his fastball-slider combo was gonna be really, really tough. It seemed like he got stronger as the game went on,” noted Hole. Young entered Tuesday’s game with a (10-0) record and a sparkling 0.67 ERA. The senior lefty is committed to North Alabama. He struck out ten and walked three. The second-seeded Wildcats got on the board in the second frame. After an error and two walks, leadoff hitter Grady Weaver ripped a two-run single to right field with two outs. Duke commit Jeff Lougee launched a curveball to right-center for a solo homer in the fifth inning. Ethan Grim allowed three runs, one earned, on three hits and three walks. The junior piled up ten strikeouts over five innings. “He definitely had a good fastball early. Overall, Ethan did a pretty good job. He kept us in the game,” stated Hole. Mechanicsburg added three runs on four hits off of Bryce Detwiler in the 6th. Designated hitter Jayden Matarrese, a freshman, hit a RBI single through the middle for a 4-1 edge. Dane Mark, the No. 9 batter, followed with a two-run double to left-center. Junior first baseman Nick Patrick provided two of the eight hits for the (19-3-1) Wildcats. They captured their second straight District 3 title and third in program history. Gov. Mifflin’s lone run came in the 3rd on a line drive RBI single to center by Detwiler. Sophomore Aden Reiter, who had walked, came around to score. The (20-5) Mustangs will begin the PIAA tournament on Monday. “There’s something else to play for…we’ll get the boys refocused,” said Hole.

Tim Mertz-Kutztown

Paul Roberts — Fri, 24 May 2024 12:35:00 +0000

Denver Ostrum’s pitching statistics didn’t jump off the page this season. The Delone Catholic senior had a 4.28 ERA entering the District 3-2A championship at Wenger Field in Fredericksburg. Kutztown wasn’t able to figure out the right-hander on Thursday night. Ostrum hurled a complete game four-hitter in a 7-1 victory over the fourth-seeded Cougars. “We were hitting a lot of fly balls. We didn’t hit line drives. We didn’t hit hard ground balls,” said longtime coach Tim Mertz. Ostrum struck out five and only walked one. The second-seeded Squires got a pair of runs in the 2nd on consecutive RBI doubles by Ethan Little and J.D. Sieg. Delone Catholic tacked on three more runs in the third frame. Chris Cole hit a bloop single to center to make it 3-1. Kole Schuler replaced Colten Mathias with bases loaded and two outs. Schuler walked Little and then threw a wild pitch to give the Squires a 5-1 edge. Nicolas Pierce provided a two-run single down the right field line for a 7-1 advantage in the 5th. Mathias suffered a lower back injury in early April. “He wasn’t as dominant as he had been prior to that,” noted Mertz. The junior righty was charged with five runs on five hits and two walks in 2.2 innings. Schuler allowed two runs on four hits over two frames. Ashton Dunn, a junior southpaw, tossed 1.1 hitless innings for Kutztown. The bottom of the order did a lot of damage for Delone Catholic. Little, Sieg, and Pierce combined for five hits and 5 RBI. “We did not expect that and my scouting report did not show that at all,” said Mertz. Little and Sieg each went 2-for-2. Aidan Wittmer contributed two hits and a walk. The senior shortstop began the day with a team-high .383 batting average. The (14-7) Squires claimed their third District 3 title and second in the past three years. The Cougars finished (12-11). Their only run came in the 3rd on an infield single by Chase Sleboda. Chase Schuler came around to score on the play due to a throwing error by Wittmer. Mertz, who wrapped up his 24th season as head coach with 362 career wins, is optimistic about the future. He only had two seniors in the starting lineup. Mathias, Dunn, and Chris Bergstrom will all return on the mound next year. Kutztown will compete in Class 3A in 2025. “We should be a really solid pitching staff and team next year,” stated Mertz. The Cougars will be hunting their seventh District 3 championship next spring.

Jack Gabel-Wilson

Paul Roberts — Tue, 14 May 2024 16:20:58 +0000

Ethan Grim entered the BCIAA Championship with a (5-1) record and a 1.50 ERA. The hard-throwing junior has interest from several DI schools. Jack Gabel said that Wilson’s approach was to attack the fastball. When Gabel got a high heater in the third inning, the sophomore didn’t miss it. His three-run homer off the left field pole propelled the third-seeded Bulldogs to a 10-3 victory over Gov. Mifflin. “I know he’s got good ‘velo’. I looked up and it just kept going. It was a crazy feeling,” explained Gabel. The top-seeded Mustangs had won two of the previous three Berks County titles. They beat Wilson 6-3 in the final at FirstEnergy Stadium a season ago. Grim got the win in that matchup, allowing just three hits and one unearned run over five frames. Monday night was a different story. The righty gave up eight runs, seven earned, on seven hits in 5.1 innings. Gov. Mifflin struck first with two runs on three hits in the opening frame. Travis Jenkins hit a sacrifice fly and Dylan Barrett ripped a RBI single to left field that was nearly caught by freshman Ryan Marmolejos. Matt VanOstenbridge had only allowed 13 hits all season. The Penn State commit settled down after the first inning. VanOstenbridge was charged with three runs, two earned, in 5.1 innings. The southpaw gave up eight hits and three walks while striking out four. He improved to (4-1) with a stellar 1.03 ERA. The (16-6) Bulldogs exploded for five runs on four hits in the 3rd. Tommy Hunsicker laced a RBI single to the opposite field before Gabel’s blast made it 4-2. The promising shortstop didn’t think the ball was going to stay fair. “It just had so much backspin, it stayed straight,” he noted. Gabel finished 2-for-3 with a walk and 5 RBI. Cooper Kennedy knocked in a run with a double to right-center for a 5-2 edge. Wilson added two runs in the 5th on RBI singles to center by Christo Hunsicker and Nick Fiorini. Gabel drove in two more runs with a two-out, two-run single to right field in the top of the sixth. As if that weren’t enough, he threw 1.2 hitless innings with three strikeouts. “I just stayed calm and tried to not be too cocky,” mentioned Gabel. John Bodnar came off the bench and provided a RBI double to left in the 7th for the final margin. Sophomore relief pitchers R.J. Weaver and Evan Glucksnis each allowed one run. Mustangs’ head coach Chris Hole said before the game that the key was being able to command off-speed pitches. However, Gov. Mifflin’s first pitch strike percentage was just 30% which got Wilson’s batters into fastball counts. The Bulldogs piled up ten hits. Fiorini and Tommy Hunsicker had two singles apiece. Fiorini has a team-high .444 batting average with 28 RBI. Hunsicker leads the club with 29 runs. The Millersville football commit scored three times on Monday. Wilson defeated the (17-4) Mustangs for the third time this season. “Even though we were down, we battled back and our energy stayed up. It was a great team win,” stated Gabel. His average increased to .389 as the Bulldogs claimed their 13th Berks League crown.

Matt Coldren-Wilson

Paul Roberts — Sat, 17 Feb 2024 09:03:00 +0000

Wilson head coach Matt Coldren and his team will remember the past five days for a long time. The Bulldogs beat fifth-seeded Exeter, top-seeded Berks Catholic, and second-seeded Reading to win the Berks Conference championship. They held off the Red Knights 54-53 on Friday night in front of 3,443 fans at Santander Arena. “I haven’t coached a team that’s won a championship that had to beat three great teams like we had to this week,” said Coldren. It’s the third county title in the last five years for Wilson and its 12th overall. This one was tight the whole way. Reading, which was attempting a three-peat, led 16-15 after eight minutes. The (17-8) Red Knights were up 32-31 at halftime. They won both regular season contests with the Bulldogs by six points apiece. Wilson gained momentum in the third quarter and built a 41-35 advantage. It was 44-41 entering the final period. A layup by junior guard Madyx Gruber put the (17-8) Bulldogs on top 52-51 with 2:25 remaining. Luke Levan sank a pair of free throws with 38 seconds left. The 6’5 junior made it 54-51. “I’m so proud of him. As far as he has come in a year is amazing. I can’t wait to see what he does in the offseason,” emphasized Coldren. Levan racked up 12 points and 10 rebounds. A layup by freshman guard Jeremiah Camara pulled Reading within 54-53 with 19 seconds to go. After Correll Akings missed two foul shots, the Red Knights had one final possession with two seconds on the clock. Nick Chapman inbounded the ball on the right sideline to Weshly Rosario. Chapman immediately cut to the basket, but Rosario’s return pass was deflected by a diving Gruber to end the thriller. Wilson forced 18 turnovers. Gruber and Tommy McFadden each provided twelve points. That’s a career-high for McFadden who missed the first five games of the season with an injury. “He’s a tough kid. He’s a great kid. He needs to believe in himself a little bit more. I gotta keep building him up,” replied Coldren. Yadiel Cruz poured in a game-high 21 points on 9-of-12 shooting from the field. Chapman added eleven points. Rosario had seven points and six assists. Reading went 7-for-12 from the free throw line, while the Bulldogs were 12-for-20. The Red Knights came in averaging 67 points. They were 2-of-7 from beyond the arc. Wilson snapped a 9-game losing streak to Reading. “I wish it could be Reading-Wilson every year [in the final]. There’s something special about that rivalry. It brings out the best in both teams,” stated Coldren.

Aaron Anders-Wyomissing

Paul Roberts — Sat, 17 Feb 2024 01:03:00 +0000

It was the matchup that many Berks County girls basketball fans had hoped to see and it came down to the wire. Top-seeded Wilson versus second-seeded Wyomissing for the Berks League crown. The Spartans used a big second half to capture their second straight county championship and remain undefeated. They knocked off the Bulldogs 45-36 at Santander Arena. Sophomore Laila Jones drilled a 3-pointer from the top of the key to give Wilson a 21-16 halftime edge. Annie McCaffrey scored eight consecutive points in the third quarter to tie it at 24. The 5’9 lefty finished with 16 points. “She rises to the occasion. It was just awesome. She played an amazing game and she did it when we needed it the most,” said head coach Aaron Anders. McCaffrey is an All-State soccer player who’s committed to UMass. Audrey Hurleman, another soccer standout, came up with a steal and layup in transition for a 31-27 advantage entering the fourth quarter. Wyomissing outscored the Bulldogs 15-to-6 in the third period. Wilson committed eight of its 18 turnovers in that quarter. Sophomore guard Kacey Maggs hit a triple to put the Spartans in front 34-29 with 4:15 remaining. Maggs converted a pair of free throws with 1:03 left for a 38-31 cushion. Amaya Stewart went 2-for-2 from the stripe with 56 seconds to go for a 40-34 lead. Stewart, an All-State selection last year, had a game-high 20 points. The 6’1 junior set the tone with seven points in the opening quarter. “They made her work for every basket. Coach Gallo had a great plan. She just works harder and wanted it more,” remarked Anders. The Spartans were 9-of-10 from the foul line in the fourth quarter and 13-of-16 overall. Jones led the (23-2) Bulldogs with eleven points. Freshman forward Kailani Hardy added eight points off the bench. Wilson’s 16-game winning streak came to an end. The Bulldogs were searching for their first BCIAA title since 2014. They were held 14 points below their season average. Wyomissing improved to (25-0). “I’m just so humbled to be their coach. It’s a reflection of what you want. It’s a reflection of our community, our school. I’m so proud of these kids,” emphasized Anders.

Evan Blickley-Wyomissing

Paul Roberts — Sun, 19 Nov 2023 11:43:00 +0000

Different year, same result. Wyomissing continued its dominance in the District 3-3A playoffs with a 42-14 victory over third-seeded West Perry on Saturday at Bob Wolfrum Field. The top-seeded Spartans earned their fifth consecutive District 3 title and 12th overall. As usual, the rushing attack was the key. Wyomissing piled up 314 yards on the ground and averaged 7.5 yards per carry. Tight end Evan Blickley takes a lot of pride in his blocking. “I just love doing it…put someone on their butt and help them up and say good try,” said the 6’3, 215-pound senior. Blickley only has three catches this season, but he understands that’s part of playing in a Wing-T offense. “I know I’m never gonna be an all-state receiving tight end. I’m okay with being a blocking tight end. It’s perfect for me,” he replied. Penn State commit Caleb Brewer (6’5, 290) moved from TE to OT this year. Blickley worked hard in the school’s first period strength program with assistant coach and athletic director Frank Ferrandino to add 30 pounds. He’s joined up front by Brewer and Max Tipton (6’2, 285) at offensive tackle. Thomas Weller and Francisco Fabian are the starting guards with Caleb Beane (6’3, 250) at center. After an interception by Ethan Brower, the (11-1) Spartans marched 72 yards on their opening possession. Princeton commit Ryker Jones capped the five minute and fourteen second drive with a 4-yard touchdown. Wyomissing went 80 yards on its next series. Collin Niedrowski dived into the end zone from a yard out. Marvin Armistead raced 26 yards down the left sideline for a 21-0 advantage with five minutes left in the second quarter. Logan Hyde then hit freshman Justice Hardy for a 16-yard TD pass with 26 seconds remaining before halftime. Hyde was 2-of-3 for 27 yards on the afternoon. The Spartans recovered an onside kick to begin the third quarter. Jones sprinted 48 yards down the right sideline for a 35-0 lead. Sophomore FB/LB Chase Eisenhower went 86 yards on a pick-six with 2:11 to go in the third quarter. Eisenhower, who added a team-high 76 rushing yards, gave Wyomissing a 42-7 edge. Niedrowski provided 59 yards on seven carries. Standout quarterback Marcus Quaker had touchdown runs of four and ten yards. The 170-pound senior was limited to 45 yards on 14 carries. Quaker was 8-of-15 for 104 yards and two interceptions. The (11-2) Mustangs committed nine penalties. Three of their players were ejected. They were searching for their first District 3 crown. West Perry fell to the Spartans 63-7 a season ago in the final. Wyomissing is (20-0) all-time in home playoff games. “Our coaching staff does a really great job of preparing us week by week…We watch a lot of film,” noted Blickley. His father, Chris, is the Spartans’ quarterback coach. They’re now preparing for District 4 champ Danville. That state quarterfinal will take place on Friday at 7pm at Albright.

Nick Hugo-Kutztown

Paul Roberts — Fri, 26 May 2023 10:17:00 +0000

Nick Hugo had the best seat at Wenger Field in Fredericksburg to see Bryce Schafer toss a complete game gem in the District 3-2A championship. Hugo is a two-time all-division catcher for the Cougars. Schafer is also his best friend. “He left it all out there. He’s been fighting through arm injuries all year. To see him go do that in the District championship was awesome, so proud of him,” said Hugo. Second-seeded Kutztown defeated top-seeded Halifax 5-1 for its sixth District 3 title. Only Chambersburg (11) and Oley Valley (9) have claimed more District 3 gold than the Cougars. Hugo is one of five seniors on this year’s club and all five are starters. “We’ve been best friends for 3-4 years. I don’t think we could have the success we’ve had if we weren’t this tight-knit. We’re gonna be brothers for life,” emphasized Hugo. Dom Pizzelanti got Kutztown on the board in the top of the 2nd on a double steal. The (17-6) Cougars got a pair of runs in the third frame. Kole Schuler had a RBI infield single and Schafer launched a solo homer that barely stayed fair down the right field line. The ball just got over the fence which is 320 feet away. The (20-3-1) Wildcats didn’t have a hit until Briar Campbell’s bloop single in the 4th inning. Kutztown made it 5-0 in the 6th on a RBI single by designated hitter Colin Hamm and a bases loaded walk to Matt Remick. Halifax finally got on the board in the 7th thanks to triples by Brandon Schell and Ben Kline. Schafer struck out Will Steinhauer to end the Wildcats’ 12-game winning streak. The Kutztown University commit threw 99 pitches and 70 were strikes. Schafer allowed five hits with five strikeouts and two walks. He contained a lineup that was hitting .341 as a team. Schell went 5+ innings. The sophomore gave up five runs, four earned, on seven hits. He hit two batters and walked one. Bloomsburg commit Judah Miller wasn’t available after pitching in a 1-0 semifinal victory over Delone Catholic on Monday. Miller was (9-1, 1.48) this season with 86 strikeouts and twelve walks in 66 innings. Schafer, Schuler, and Hamm each had two hits. The Cougars didn’t make an error while Halifax had two. “We pride ourselves on our defense…defense wins championships,” stated Hugo. He was 1-for-4 with a run. Remick, a two-time all-division selection, played a flawless game at shortstop. Hugo joked that he became a catcher when he was seven or eight years old because he was one of the only kids who wasn’t scared of the ball. He’s going to Saint Joseph’s University to study finance. But first, Hugo and the Cougars are headed to the state playoffs.

Chris Hole-Gov. Mifflin

Paul Roberts — Tue, 16 May 2023 00:26:00 +0000

Almost every sports fan has probably heard the phrase that it’s tough to beat a team three times. Wilson found that out in the BCIAA Championship at FirstEnergy Stadium. Top-seeded Gov. Mifflin defeated the second-seeded Bulldogs 6-3 for its 15th Berks County title. Wilson won both of their regular season meetings this year. “It feels good to win a championship no matter what. Doing it against our rival I think is always extra special. We have a ton of respect for that program,” said Mustangs’ head coach Chris Hole. Each team had five hits, but Gov. Mifflin made fewer mistakes and snapped the Bulldogs’ eight-game winning streak. A two-out RBI single to right field by sophomore Travis Jenkins got the (18-4) Mustangs on the board in the first frame. Jenkins was 2-for-3 out of the cleanup spot. Bryce Detwiler, another talented sophomore, scored after reaching on an error. The Mustangs tacked on two runs on an odd play with two outs in the 2nd inning. Xander Velez struck out, but the pitch got away from catcher Jordan Shutter and rolled towards the Gov. Mifflin dugout. UConn commit Tyler Minick scored all the way from second base to make it 3-0. “I’m literally out of words to describe him. He’s always going 110% no matter what he’s doing,” remarked Hole. The (15-7) Bulldogs loaded the bases with one out in the 3rd. Sophomore right-hander Ethan Grim limited the damage to one run on a sacrifice fly by Ryan Sekulski. Left fielder Jon Radwanski made a very nice sliding catch. A walk and an error by shortstop Trevor Bilodeau put runners on second and third for the Mustangs with one out in the 3rd inning. Grim knocked in a run with a ground ball to second base. Bryce Wunderlich drove in another run with a ground out to third. Gov. Mifflin moved ahead 5-1 after three frames. Grim helped himself with a RBI single to right in the 5th. Hole handed the ball to Minick after Grim hit two batters to begin the 6th. The 2022 Berks County Player of the Year recorded three straight outs to keep the Mustangs’ advantage at 6-1. Minick was 3-for-3 with two home runs in the semifinals against Fleetwood. Nick Fiorini ripped a 2-run triple to right in the 7th. Minick then struck out Rafael Fernandez to end it. Grim got the win by limiting Wilson to one unearned run on three hits over five innings. He struck out seven batters and hit four. Matt VanOstenbridge took the loss, however, five of the six runs that he gave up were unearned. The junior southpaw had seven strikeouts and three walks. VanOstenbridge entered Monday with a 2.18 ERA and 69 strikeouts in 47.2 innings. He was the starting pitcher for both of the Bulldogs’ victories against Gov. Mifflin this season. The Mustangs claimed their second BCIAA title in the last three years. Hole replied, “We’re still on top. This is our goal every year. We want to set the standard and I’m really proud of these boys to uphold that.”

Ruben Rodriguez-Reading

Paul Roberts — Sun, 26 Mar 2023 14:07:00 +0000

The winningest boys basketball program in Pennsylvania history met a perennial power from the Philadelphia Catholic League on Saturday night at the Giant Center. Reading and Roman Catholic have combined for seven PIAA championships. The Class 6A Final lived up to the hype. The 5,025 people in attendance saw an instant classic. The Red Knights prevailed 63-56 in overtime for their third state title in seven years. “It honestly feels like a dream. It doesn’t feel real, said Ruben Rodriguez. The Rider commit, who finished with 2,008 career points, got his second foul with 1:48 left in the first quarter. Nick Chapman’s layup at the buzzer gave Reading a 12-10 edge after eight minutes. Myles Grey, a starter on the 2021 state championship team alongside Rodriguez, provided seven points in the opening period. 6’6 senior Anthony Finkley picked up his third foul midway through the second quarter. Finkley and point guard Xzayvier Brown are staying close to home. They’re both headed to Saint Joseph’s. The (27-4) Cahillites trailed 23-19 at halftime. Roman Catholic committed 11 turnovers in the first 16 minutes and 17 overall. Aris Rodriguez kicked off the second half with a trey from the top of the key. The Red Knights’ largest lead of nine points came with six and a-half minutes remaining in the third quarter. Aris Rodriguez hit another triple to make it 36-28. The 6’5 senior ended up with a team-high 16 points on 5-13 shooting. A putback before the horn by 6’8 sophomore Shareef Jackson pulled the District 12 champs within 43-39 entering the final period. Jackson’s father, Marc, played at Roman Catholic, Temple, and then in the NBA for seven seasons. Shareef piled up 17 points and 11 boards. Brown heated up in the second half. 17 of his game-high 23 points came after the break. The 6’1 senior converted a three-point play with 5:41 to go, but the 47-46 advantage disappeared quickly. Chapman connected on a 3-pointer from the left corner on the following possession. The 5’10 junior had a career-high nine points including seven of Reading’s ten points in the fourth quarter. Chapman averaged 2 ppg. this year. His older brother, Joey, had a pivotal steal in the final seconds of the 2021 championship game versus Archbishop Wood. Nick stole the show this time in Hershey. He made a pair of free throws with 27 seconds to play to break a tie at 51. Robert Cottrell, who had 15 points in the semifinals, was fouled with twelve seconds on the clock. The 5’11 junior went 1-of-2. Aris Rodriguez then missed the front end of a 1-and-1. The score remained 53-52 with nine seconds left. Brown drew a foul with two seconds remaining. With the crowd roaring, he missed the first attempt and made the second to force overtime. Brown nailed two free throws early in OT for a 56-54 lead, but the Cahillites wouldn’t score again. Yadiel Cruz went 3-of-4 from the charity stripe. After Finkley missed a turnaround jumper in the lane, Aris Rodriguez splashed a couple of clutch foul shots with 24 seconds to go. The (32-1) Red Knights were on top 59-56 when Brown turned the ball over. Grey scooped it up and was fouled. The 5’11 senior calmly sank both free throws to seal the victory. The all-county selection had 14 points. Chapman picked Brown’s pocket in the closing seconds. He threw the ball ahead to Aris Rodriguez for a breakaway dunk that set off a wild celebration and capped a 9-0 run. The bench points were 19-0 in favor of Reading. Roman Catholic was without seniors Jermai Stewart-Herring and Erik Oliver-Bush due to the PIAA’s transfer rule. Stewart-Herring was their second-leading scorer at 13 ppg. The Cahillites were held ten points below their season average by the scrappy Red Knights. Ruben Rodriguez stuffed 8 points, 9 rebounds, 7 assists and 4 steals into 31 minutes. The 6’2 guard enjoys facing opponents from the PCL. “We love playing them. We love the smoke,” he replied. Reading was 7-16 from beyond the arc, while Roman Catholic went 3-12. There were 49 combined free throw attempts. The Red Knights converted 16-24. The Cahillites went 19-25. Rodriguez praised head coach Rick Perez. “He’s the heart and soul of our team and now he’s a three-time champion,” exclaimed Rodriguez. Perez is (281-74) over a dozen seasons. He has more wins than any coach in Reading history. Roman Catholic slipped to (32-9) all-time in the PIAA playoffs. Meanwhile, the Red Knights captured state gold for the second time in three years. “Pennsylvania, we run it,” stated Rodriguez.