Hardy – Berks Sports Report

Justice Hardy-Wyomissing

Paul Roberts — Sat, 12 Oct 2024 11:48:13 +0000

Twin Valley allowed just 40 points in its first seven games. The Raiders climbed to #1 in PennLive’s Class 4A state rankings. They had no answer, however, for Justice Hardy and Wyomissing’s Wing-T attack on Friday night in Elverson. Hardy finished with 200 yards and two touchdowns on 17 carries in a 34-24 victory. The electric sophomore also caught a pair of passes from Teddy White for 85 yards. Hardy gave credit to the big guys up front. “They’re my brothers. I love them all. They’re the reason I have every touchdown,” he said. The Spartans’ offensive line consists of five seniors. On 4th-and-9 late in the opening quarter, longtime head coach Bob Wolfrum opted not to attempt a field goal. Hardy took a handoff 18 yards down to the 3-yard line. His 2-yard score made it 7-0 with 12 seconds left in the first period. After Nate Shaffer made a 25-yard field goal for Twin Valley, Chase Eisenhower capped an 80-yard drive with a 33-yard run up the middle. The 215-pound junior fullback put Wyomissing in front 14-3 with 3:44 remaining in the second quarter. “He’s huge, he doesn’t go down. He has wheels, no one really realizes it. He can move,” noted Hardy. The (7-1) Raiders responded with a 78-yard drive. On 3rd-and-12, senior quarterback Evan Myers scrambled for 55 yards. His younger brother, Lucas, plunged into the end zone from two yards out to get Twin Valley within 14-9 with one minute to go in the half. The extra point was no good. The (7-1) Spartans got a 34-yard field goal from Keegan Maher to begin the second half. Maher had hit the crossbar on a 48-yard attempt on Wyomissing’s opening possession. Hardy reeled in a beautiful 45-yard pass from White down the right sideline late in the third quarter. That completion set up a 1-yard touchdown run by junior fullback Tyler Niedrowski and gave the Spartans a 24-9 advantage. “We’re known as a run team, but we can pass the ball too. Coach Wolfrum dialed it up perfectly,” said Hardy. Wolfrum earned his 369th win over 38 years at the helm. Twin Valley didn’t go away. Myers found Ben Grundy open over the middle for an 18-yard TD. He then tossed a shovel pass to Lucas Myers for the 2-point conversion and the Raiders trailed 24-17 with 11:43 to play. Hardy replied quickly with a 56-yard touchdown on a jet sweep down the right sideline. Twin Valley came right back with a haymaker of its own. On 4th-and-15, Matt Knight got behind the secondary for an easy 22-yard touchdown catch. That score pulled the Raiders within 31-24 with 6:54 left. Myers went 12-of-19 for 133 yards. The four-year starter also ran a dozen times for 120 yards. Grundy had four receptions for 68 yards. Twin Valley’s defense, however, couldn’t get a stop in the second half. Maher’s 31-yard field goal gave Wyomissing a 34-24 cushion with 3:17 on the clock. A long touchdown pass by Myers was negated due to a holding penalty. He then got hit from behind by junior linebacker Andrew Bresnahan and fumbled with 2:23 to go. The Spartans recovered at the Raiders’ 29-yard line. Wyomissing extended its winning streak versus Twin Valley to eight. The Spartans held Evan Johnson to 52 yards on 21 carries. Johnson has more than 3,000 rushing yards. He also holds the school record for career touchdowns. Wyomissing has won six in a row since a Week 2 loss at the Haverford School by 17 points. “We never want to feel that feeling again,” emphasized Hardy.

Justice Hardy-Wyomissing

Paul Roberts — Sat, 24 Aug 2024 22:56:27 +0000

Justice Hardy burst onto the scene at Wyomissing with twelve combined touchdowns and four interceptions as a freshman. The highlights kept coming in his first game as a sophomore. Hardy reached the end zone four times in a 35-21 victory over Southern Columbia at Bob Wolfrum Field. The Tigers went (15-1) a season ago and claimed their seventh straight PIAA championship. Head coach Jim Roth entered Saturday with 499 career wins. He’ll have to wait for #500 after some very uncharacteristic sloppy play in the opening half. Junior quarterback Anthony Martino fumbled the snap on the first play from scrimmage. Hardy raced eleven yards around the right edge for a quick 7-0 advantage. On the ensuing drive, Southern Columbia punter Preston Shadle dropped the snap and was buried at the 38-yard line. Hardy took a sweep to the right for another 11-yard score with 4:22 remaining in the period. Early in the second quarter, a snap went over Shadle’s head and he recovered all the way back at the 1-yard line. Tyler Niedrowski rumbled in for a touchdown with 9:23 to go before halftime. The Spartans added another score late in the second quarter. Danny Fleischood’s 45-yard run set up a 3-yard TD for Hardy. It was 28-0 with 27 seconds left in the half. The lead grew to 35-7 when Hardy broke off an electrifying 46-yard touchdown run down the right sideline with 3:26 to play in the third quarter. He gave credit to the offensive line. The front five includes 285-pound senior guard Max Tipton and 250-pound senior tackles Keaton Piacine and Caleb Beane. “They do not disappoint. A high bar has been set and they are right there. They’re huge, they move quick, they’re great. I love running behind all of them,” said Hardy. Francisco Fabian, Darion Quintana, and Ayden Jimenez (6’2, 255) round out the offensive line. A 14-yard TD run by Brayden Andrews pulled the Tigers within 35-14 with 2:13 left in the third period. Sophomore quarterback Ayden Hockenbroch found Travis Wegrzynowicz down the left sideline for a 34-yard score with 2:38 remaining. Wyomissing lost a fumble on the next play from scrimmage and Southern Columbia took over at the 25-yard line. A sack on fourth down by 215-pound linebacker Chase Eisenhower ended the Tigers’ hopes. Hardy finished with 121 yards on twelve carries. He’s joined in the backfield by Eisenhower, Fleischood, Niedrowski, and Marcus Armistead. They’re all juniors. “We’re super young, but when we reach our full potential it’s gonna be great,” stated Hardy. Halfback Derek Macrina is the only skill position player who’s a senior. Sophomore quarterback Teddy White was 2-of-3 for just twelve yards. Southern Columbia lost its entire offensive backfield and eight starters on defense from last year’s state championship squad. The Tigers outscored the Spartans 21-7 in the second half. Hockenbroch tossed a pair of TD passes. The early miscues and Hardy’s performance were too much to overcome. “My coaches all help me stay very humble. I always have something to improve,” noted Hardy.

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.”