Lewisburg boys up for repeating later at states
When you win a state championship the expectation from many is to get back and do it again. But that’s often easier said than done, and Lewisburg coach Skip Kratzer knows that.
But don’t take that to mean the Green Dragons aren’t going to try to make it two straight.
“Judging from the number of teams that have repeated I would say yes (it puts added pressure on team),” Kratzer said. “Winning a state championship is hard. Everything has to fall your way. Doing that two years in a row is a daunting task. We’re up for the challenge, though.”
Lewisburg enters the Class AA field as the No. 1 seed, having just one loss on their record. The Green Dragons have a lot of players able to score, such as Joey Bhangdia, Adam Cole or Wil Brock, to name a handful. And defensively, Wilson Fisher helps anchor a defense that has posted 11 shutouts.
“I think the realignment has made things a little more interesting. We’ve only seen Midd-West and Danville once, have no idea how good Central (Columbia) will be,” Kratzer said. “It at least makes it more interesting.”
Lewisburg opens the playoffs against Hughesville. Warrior Run plays Danville, Central Columbia plays Williamson and Midd-West plays Montoursville.
Warrior Run has somewhat of a three-headed monster offensively in the trio of Cody Rogers, Hunter Confair and Jordan Morrison that may cause problems throughout districts.
“As a coach, you try to figure out what your identity is early on in the season. With the injuries we had on defense, we knew we had to be able to put some goals in the back of the net. It took us awhile to start to be able to figure out how to do it, but once we got working those three working together, it became a lot of fun for them to play,” Warrior Run coach Andy Bieber said. “The speed of Hunter up top opened up our offense. That allowed Jordan to be able to distritube the ball. Watching those two work with Cody help to get others on the team involved as well. And if things broke down, Cody, Jordan and Hunter all could create on their own.”
The Defenders also have a tough goalie in Tucker Hays.
Montoursville has played well this year and is looking to win a first-round playoff game for the first time since 2011. Danville is making its sixth consecutive district appearance. The Ironmen lost in the quarterfinals the past two seasons.
Midd-West is looking to claim its first district title since 2009 and Warrior Run is looking to win its first district banner since 2004.
CLASS AAA
Before the pairings were set in stone, Jersey Shore coach Cole Black had a feeling the Bulldogs would play Mifflinburg in the first round of the Class AAA playoffs. But that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. It meant if the Bulldogs won that game, and Athens won its first-round game, the two will meet up for the district title.
And for Black, that would mean a rematch of last year’s playoffs where Athens knocked out Jersey Shore.
“Little bit of pressure there because one game and we’re in the finals, you know what I mean? If we beat Mifflinburg, we’re going to be against Athens in final probably. And that’s a little bit of revenge for us because that’s who kicked us out last year,” Black said. “So we’re really excited, but at same time, little pressure to perform well. We have the opportunity to obtain something that no Jersey Shore team has done before (in a district title).”
Athens is the No. 1 seed in the District 4 Class AAA playoffs with a 16-1-1 record. The Wildcats’ loss and tie both came against New York’s Notre Dame, which didn’t lose a game this season.
CLASS A
Falling to eventual PIAA Class A finalist East Juniata in the District 4 semifinals last year definitely stung for the Wellsboro Green Hornets. Wellsboro wanted to win the district title, but fell shy in that quest, but that loss fueled the team to keep working this offseason and try to get back and possibly even get to the final.
But the Green Hornets aren’t out necessarily looking for revenge over the Tigers.
“I think the EJ loss made the boys realize how good the competition is in the district and it fueled the boys to put the work in over the summer,” Wellsboro coach John Shafer said.“There isn’t a revenge factor, but there is a hope to get back to see EJ and Millville and test ourselves.”
The Green Hornets have not only a solid defense that struggled early — Wellsboro started the year 0-3 – before going on a 14-1 run to end the year, but also a tough offense led by Josiah Hill, Jake Singer, Tanner Runyan and Gabe Leach, among others.
“We are lucky to have really dynamic playmakers up top. The hope is that they have good days in the playoffs,” Shafer said. “Josiah is a special player and thankfully we have the squad around him to respond if a team focuses only on him, we should be able to get the result.”
And the Green Hornets aren’t the only team with multiple players up top that can make a difference. South Williamsport has players such as Donovan Killian, Michael Gonzalez, Hunter Crawley and Jared Jacobs who can step up.
“All of our seniors have been huge for us all year. Killian, Gonzalez and Crawley have given us the offensive punch we’ve needed at times, but it’s also about Aaron Orgitano and Sean Kurtz on the back line and Tyler Askey in the goal keeping us sound defensively,” South Williamsport coach Mike Rodgers said. “We’ll be looking for all our seniors to step up. This is their time of the year and we’ll go as far as they can carry us.”
Wellsboro faces Northern Tier rival Galeton in the first round while South Williamsport faces a solid Millville team. East Juniata plays Muncy and Bloomsburg faces Benton.
“There are some loaded teams in our field, to be sure, and some perennial powerhouses that will need to be contended with,” Rodgers said. “Our team has battled all year. They’ve worked hard. They’ve seen some good competition along the way too that we fill will prepare us for those teams. When we’re at our best, we feel we can make battle with the best.”
COMMENTS