Harrisburg is going for its fourth straight District 3 title. The Cougars have captured six championships overall. They’re (30-16) all-time in the District 3 tournament. Harrisburg dropped its season opener 45-7 to La Salle College High School from Philadelphia. The Cougars got tripped up by Cumberland Valley 24-21 in Week 8.

Penn State commit Kevin Brown returned from a right foot injury last Friday. Brown (6’5, 270) is ranked #14 overall and #3 at offensive tackle in the Class of 2026 by Rivals. Trinity transfer Messiah Mickens has also committed to the Nittany Lions. He leads Harrisburg with 1,091 rushing yards and 17 touchdowns. The 200-pound junior is a force at defensive end as well with 27 tackles for loss and 13.5 sacks. Mickens was named the Mid-Penn Commonwealth Division Defensive Player of the Year. Jayion Lewis has thrown for 1,646 yards and 16 TD in his first year as the starting quarterback. The 5’11, 165-pound junior is completing 62% of his passes. His top target is one of the elite wide receivers in the state. Elias Coke has more than twenty Division I offers including Penn State, Pittsburgh, Michigan, Michigan State, Missouri, Kentucky, and Iowa State. The 6’3, 200-pound junior has 42 receptions for 723 yards and 8 TD. Coke also has a team-high five interceptions. State College transfer D’Antae Sheffey, a Syracuse commit, has chipped in with 28 carries for 231 yards, 12 catches, and one INT.

Wilson has brought District 3 gold back to West Lawn on seven occasions. The Bulldogs’ most recent title was in 2016. They’re (44-24) overall in the District 3 playoffs. Wilson holds the state record with 49 consecutive winning seasons. The Bulldogs haven’t had a losing campaign since 1963. They earned their 29th Section 1 championship in the Lancaster-Lebanon League this fall.

Madyx Gruber, an All-County basketball player, has made a remarkable transition from wide receiver to quarterback. The 5’11, 160-pound senior is completing 65% of his passes for 1,885 yards and 24 TD. Gruber is second on the squad with 715 rushing yards and eight scores. His teammate on the court, Correll Akings, is averaging 6.1 yards per carry. Akings has 1,060 yards and 13 touchdowns. The 5’10, 170-pound junior can catch the ball out of the backfield as well. He has 24 receptions, third-most for Wilson this year. The second-seeded Bulldogs feature a pair of standout sophomores. Mike Glover (6’3, 220) has a team-high 39 catches for 648 yards and 6 scores. The physical tight end reeled in five passes for 117 yards and 2 TD in the semifinals against Central York. Meanwhile, E.J. Brownback leads Wilson with 77 combined tackles. The 215-pound sophomore linebacker has racked up 16.5 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks. Gruber also contributes on defense with five of the Bulldogs’ 14 interceptions.

I’ll be in Reiffton with live updates and postgame reaction on Saturday afternoon.

The top-seeded Pioneers are putting up 41 points while allowing just 8.5 per contest. Caileb Howse has thrown for 1,360 yards and 14 touchdowns in his first season as the starting quarterback. The 6’, 200-pound senior is a serious threat to run as well. Howse has 1,245 yards on the ground and 19 TD. He’s averaging 10.4 yards per carry. Dominic Brown is a workhorse in the backfield. He carried the rock 28 times for 116 yards and a score in the Week 10 matchup with Wyomissing. The 5’11, 175-pound senior has 1,279 yards and 21 TD. Brown is also part of an outstanding corps of linebackers that includes Emory Fluhr. Lampeter-Strasburg has some big bodies up front. Collin Shelley (6’4, 290) and Thad Wolf (6’4, 315) are tough in the trenches on both sides of the ball. Wolf is only a sophomore. The Pioneers also feature a terrific kicker in junior Peter Fiorello.

The Spartans are averaging nearly 34 points and limiting their opponents to 11.5 per game. Sophomore RB/DB Justice Hardy is expected to return after missing both of the Spartans’ playoff games. Hardy was injured against the Pioneers. Despite missing time, he still leads Wyomissing with 728 rushing yards (9.6 ypc). Danny Fleischood and Derek Macrina have stepped up in Hardy’s absence. The two halfbacks have combined for 897 yards and 12 TD this year. Fleischood made three trips to the end zone last week in a 35-7 victory over West York. The 6’1, 185-pound junior ran for 132 yards in the semifinals. The Spartans have a pair of solid options at fullback in Chase Eisenhower and Tyler Niedrowski. They’re both juniors who play linebacker as well. The 215-pound Eisenhower has rumbled for 614 yards and ten touchdowns. Sophomore quarterback Teddy White has only attempted 47 passes all season. He’s completed 27 throws for 430 yards and five scores.

Wyomissing’s Wing-T attack was held to 146 total yards by Lampeter-Strasburg one month ago. The Pioneers ended the Spartans’ 36-game home winning streak. This one will probably be decided up front, especially considering the weather forecast for Friday. Coach Wolfrum was very candid after the Week 10 loss. “We gotta be more physical. They were just more physical than us,” he said.

Bauer didn’t agree with the ruling. “I think it was clear. He was in,” he said. The officials took their time before signaling that Zandier didn’t score. “The explanation to me was no one had it either way,” stated Bauer. That possession began at the 17-yard line with 1:23 left. Hafer, a 6’2 junior who joined the team in early September, hit Carter Redding on a completion near midfield. A targeting penalty moved the football to Conestoga Valley’s 38-yard line. Genuine Stutzman reeled in a 19-yard pass to get the (8-1, 4-1) Eagles in the red zone. Ware’s second touchdown grab of the night pulled Exeter within one point after trailing 14-0 and 21-7. “I couldn’t be prouder. We wanted to see how we’d respond to adversity. I think we faced basically a season’s worth tonight. We never lost faith,” emphasized Bauer. He’s in his 16th year at the helm in Reiffton with a record of (121-57).

The Buckskins started quickly with consecutive 52 and 66-yard touchdown drives. On fourth-and-12 from the 23-yard line, Sawyer Esbenshade connected with JoJo Garcia over the middle for a 7-0 lead. Following a 25-yard pass to Garcia, Esbenshade’s 2-yard run made it 14-0 with three minutes remaining in the first quarter. The 6’1, 175-pound junior finished 19-of-31 for 277 yards and 3 TD. Zandier scored from 1-yard out early in the second period to get the Eagles on the board. They entered the night averaging 45 points per game. Zandier broke free for a 51-yard sprint down the left sideline to set up his 6-yard TD run with 4:21 to go in the half. That came after Esbenshade found 6’2 junior Cordell Bair for a 28-yard touchdown. Ware’s 22-yard TD catch from Hafer tied it at 21-21 with 1:33 to play before halftime. Conestoga Valley went in front 28-21 on a 30-yard pass to speedster Jayden Johnson with just 34 seconds before the break. Johnson, who returned from an injury last week, has offers from Temple, Maine, and Monmouth.

The offensive fireworks came to a halt in the second half. Neither team scored until eight seconds remained on the clock. Seth Frankford came up with an interception of a pass by Zandier on fourth-and-7 with 5:28 to go. Exeter’s defense forced back-to-back punts after that turnover. Bauer noted that the Eagles played more man coverage in the second half. Navy commit Logan Wegman (6’5, 275) injured his shoulder in the third quarter and didn’t return. Exeter was already without junior quarterback Riley Martinez due to a leg injury that occurred earlier this month against Muhlenberg. Zandier and Hafer split time at quarterback on Friday. Zandier piled up 172 yards on 27 carries. “He has amazing body control and he’s so explosive with everything he does,” Bauer said of the 6’2, 180-pound senior.

The Eagles sit one game behind the Buckskins in the Section 2 standings. Exeter visits (2-7) Elizabethtown next week, while Conestoga Valley hosts (3-5) Muhlenberg. Bauer was proud of his team’s effort after an emotional and frustrating game. “They have nothing to be ashamed of. They did everything they needed to do. This is gonna galvanize us,” he said.

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.

The red team knocked off the blue squad 110-98 in the boys game. Alex Kelsey from Exeter led a balanced attack with 21 points. The St. Joseph’s baseball commit drained four 3-pointers. Reading’s Yadiel Cruz, the BCIAA Player of the Year, added 19 points. Josh McKoy (Berks Catholic), Kevin Twiford (Wilson), and Aiden Schippers (Wyomissing) scored 16 points apiece. McKoy is headed to Kutztown University after averaging 17 points for the Saints this season. Muhlenberg guard Alex Collado racked up 29 points for the blue team. He hit five triples. Kevin Saenz (Exeter) and Hunter Svoboda (Fleetwood) each provided 13 points. Francis Camara of Reading and Jeff VanGorder from Exeter served as the head coaches in the boys contest.

The girls in blue came out on top 56-48. Morgan Snyder finished with 25 points. The Oley Valley guard is going to Penn State for field hockey. Wyomissing’s Annie McCaffrey dropped 16 points. She will play soccer at UMass. The red squad was led by Exeter’s Grace Reedy with 15 points. She ended her career as the Eagles’ all-time leading scorer with 1,403 points. Reedy averaged 21 ppg. this year. Peyton Brill of Muhlenberg chipped in with 11 points on Sunday. Wilson’s Chris Gallo and Aaron Anders from Wyomissing were the head coaches in the girls all-star game. Anders guided the Spartans to Berks County and District 3 championships this season.

Thanks to Nelson Berrios, Salomon Caicedo, David McCoy, Glenn Hartman, Marc Konas, and Luis Valentin for donating their time and officiating the games.

The 2023-24 high school basketball season is in the books. It was another very exciting year. I was fortunate to cover 62 games this season. Thanks to all of the coaches and athletic directors for their help with my coverage.