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By DAVE KONOPKI davek@leader.net
Thursday, March 06, 2003 Page: 1B
Game after game, week after week, basketball coaches in the Wyoming Valley
Conference Division III talked about the high level of competition in the
division. They knew what they were talking about.
Five WVC Division III teams – including three district champions – will
take the court this weekend as the PIAA state playoffs begin. GAR, Northwest,
Meyers, Bishop O’Reilly and Bishop Hoban will join Division II’s Nanticoke
Area in the playoffs.
Tomorrow, District 2 champion Nanticoke faces District 3 sixth seed
Northeastern in a Class 3A game at 7:30 p.m. at King’s College. In another 3A
game, District 2 third seed Meyers plays District 4 champion Milton at 7 p.m.
at Shikellamy High School. And in a Class A game at Pittston Area High School,
District 2 champion Bishop O’Reilly takes on District 2 fourth seed Lebanon
Catholic at 7 p.m.
On Saturday, District 2 champion GAR plays District 3 fifth seed York
Catholic in a Class 2A game at 2:30 p.m. at Wilkes University. Also at 2:30
p.m., District 2 runner-up Northwest faces District 11 runner-up Pine Grove in
a 2A game at Hazleton Area High School. And in a 3A game at Montoursville High
School, District 2 fourth seed Bishop Hoban takes on District 4 champion
Loyalsock at 2 p.m.
“There’s no doubt that the competition we faced during the regular season
prepared us for the district playoffs,” said GAR coach Paul Brown. “To get
five teams from one division into the state playoffs is a heck of an
accomplishment.”
Here’s a look at this weekend’s games involving WVC teams:
GAR (23-6) vs. York Catholic (17-10)
The Grenadiers and the Fighting Irish are mirror images, each led by a
dominant scorer who’s surrounded by a solid supporting cast.
While GAR has junior guard Chris Shovlin and his 30-plus points per game
average, York Catholic is led by senior Jon Iati. The 5-foot-11 guard has more
than 2,000 career points and is averaging 23.7 points a game this season. Iati
is 33 points shy of breaking Brian Pearl’s school record for career points.
Surrounding Iati is senior guard Andrew Hack (12 ppg), 6-3 junior center
Alex Becket, 6-3 senior center/forward Mike Pier, freshman guard/forward Chris
Johnson, junior guard Matt Sentz and junior guard Nate McCreary.
The Irish will be making their first state playoff appearance since 1999
and will try to keep head coach Mike Keesey on the bench a little while
longer. York County’s winningest high school coach – with 463 victories – is
retiring after this season. The 21-year coach led York Catholic to state
championships in 1987 and 1990.
Although they’ve been practicing with the team this week, the status of two
GAR starters for Saturday’s game is unclear. Seniors Howard Mapp and Nick
Sharpe were involved in a one-car crash Saturday night. Charges of underage
drinking for both players are pending, according to Forty Fort police Officer
Brian Eovitch. Mapp will also be charged with driving under the influence,
said Eovtich.
When asked Wednesday night if the status of either player had been changed,
Brown responded, “I guess we’ll see Saturday afternoon.”
The winner plays Wednesday against either District 4 No. 2 seed Wyalusing
Valley (17-10) or District 11 third seed Salisbury (14-13).
Bishop O’Reilly (18-9) vs. Lebanon Catholic (7-20)
The District 2 champion Queensmen will face one of the Lancaster-Lebanon
League’s premier players in Lebanon Catholic’s Billy Orr. Despite playing on a
team that opened the season with four consecutive losses and dropped 11 of 12
games from Dec. 20 through Jan. 31, the 6-6 center has been outstanding during
his senior season.
Orr, the only senior on the team, averages more than 24 points a game for
the Beavers. He is also the team’s leading rebounder. Last season, Orr helped
lead his team to the PIAA Class A eastern finals.
Other key members for Lebanon Catholic are 5-8 senior guard Doug Weaver,
the leading three-point shooter on the team, and 6-2 junior forward Kevin
Ruiz.
The winner plays Tuesday against either District 11 No. 2 seed Pottsville
Nativity (20-6) or District 1 runner-up Village Charter School (17-8).
Nanticoke Area (21-7) vs. Northeastern (24-6)
While it might be hard to name the top scoring threat on the balanced
Nanticoke Area team, the same can’t be said about the Bobcats.
High-scoring Levi Winters and Nate Fry lead the Northeastern attack. The
junior forwards account for the majority of the team’s scoring. The 6-5
Winters was the second-leading scorer in the York Area Interscholastic
Athletic Association, averaging 23 points per game.
Winters scored a career-high 33 points against York Catholic earlier this
year. Both players ran into foul trouble in a 61-53 loss against Conrad Weiser
in the District 3 fifth-place game and sat out for nearly a quarter.
Other key players for the Bobcats are senior guard Mike Burnside, junior
forward John Inch and senior guard Zack Bock. The winner plays Tuesday against
either District 1 runner-up Holy Ghost Prep (24-3) or District 3 third seed
Lebanon (20-8).
Meyers (19-8) vs. Milton (23-4)
If this game comes down to a final shot in the closing seconds, the Mohawks
better make sure Milton’s Drew Dutrow doesn’t have the ball in his hands.
The junior guard has hit back-to-back game-winning shots in his last two
contests – a 53-51 double-overtime win against Danville in the district
championship game and a 46-44 triple-overtime win against Mifflinburg in the
semifinal.
The Black Panthers, coached by former Dallas standout Tony Fannick, have
won 12 of their last 13 games. The offense is led by senior forward Dan
Morgan. The Central Susquehanna Conference Division I Player of the Year is
averaging 15.3 points per game. Other starters are senior forward Justen Lenig
(13 ppg), Dutrow (9.8), senior guard Nate Butler (8.7) and sophomore forward
Justin Jarrett.
Sophomores Jeff Garcia and Jelami Thomas have playing time for the Black
Panthers, but Fannick relies heavily on his starting five. In the
double-overtime game against Danville, the five starters played all but one
second.
The winner plays Tuesday against either District 1 champion Harriton (23-4)
or District 3 fourth seed Daniel Boone (23-6).
Northwest (22-6) vs. Pine Grove (20-9)
The Rangers face a tall task against the Cardinals – literally. Led by 6-4
senior guard Frank D’Agostino, five of the top six Pine Grove players are at
least 6-3.
D’Agostino, who has more than 1,500 career points, helped his team advance
to the District 11 championship game before losing against Notre Dame. Other
key players are senior guard Kalvin Riegal, junior forward Bob Lehman, junior
forward Phil Traube, senior forward Dan Rhen and junior guard David Horst.
The defending district champion Cardinals played well despite losing
against undefeated Blue Mountain for the Schuylkill League regular season
championship. Riegal, who is 5-10, had 18 points and made four three-pointers
in the 72-61 loss.
The Cardinals are playing without starting forward Jared Lehman, who
suffered a cracked kneecap earlier this season. The winner plays Wednesday
against either District 2 third seed Bishop Hoban (18-9) or District 4
champion Loyalsock (22-4).
Bishop Hoban (18-9) vs. Loyalsock (22-4)
Loyalsock won its third consecutive District 4 Class 2A championship with a
47-43 victory over Wyalusing. Jeremy Dincher led the way with 12 points while
Hakeem Rainer added eight. Rainer had 15 and Dincher added 11 in a 64-47
semifinal victory over South Williamsport.
The Lancers are a senior-dominated team.
The winner plays Wednesday against either District 2 runner-up Northwest
(22-6) or District 11 No. 2 seed Pine Grove (20-9).