MID-PENN PREVIEW 4/1

CUMBERLAND VALLEY (3-0) AT CARLISLE (2-0)

*RESCHEDULED FROM 3/31

The Eagles have been on an absolute tear to start the season out scoring their opponents 36-10. They travel to Carlisle to face the defending Commonwealth Champion Thundering Herd Wednesday night. Carlisle has had two one goal games already and looks more vulnerable than in seasons past. This will be a critical game for both team's Mid-Penn Championship hopes. For the Herd, Drew Amsley and George Faller will need to keep pace with CV's high powered offense. John Miller, Rod Jamieson, Steve Peters, and CJ Sherlock are all capable scorers. We expect to see Carlisle look to control possessions and the clock in an effort to slow CV down and take them out of rhythm.

TRINITY (3-0) AT LOWER DAUPHIN (1-3)

Both the Shamrocks and the Falcons are playing back to back but under very different circumstances. For the Rocks it is after a 17-0 victory with East, for the Falcons after a 7-8 road loss to State College. LD has been in tight games with four very good teams to start the season and we expect that trend to continue at home Wednesday night. Garrett Schug will aim to lead the Falcons offensive attack. Trinity has played very well to open the season out scoring their opponents 39-9 in the first three games. A well balanced offense has a number of weapons who can hurt you. 

CENTRAL DAUPHIN (2-1) AT BISHOP MCDEVITT (0-3)

McDevitt comes off their second one goal loss of the season to Mechanicsburg and has a big Keystone Division matchup with the Rams. CD has won two straight including an OT victory over Chambersburg. Damien Koussis and Chris Martin will be heavily featured for CD as the Crusaders will look to answer with Cole Bevan, Nick Lokitis and Griffin Hanes.

* McDevitt is hosting an ORANGE FOR OWEN NIGHT to help raise funds and awareness for prevention of distracted drivers. Attendees are asked to wear orange. More information on the cause here: http://orange4owen.org/

MID-PENN PREVIEW 3/31

CUMBERLAND VALLEY (3-0) AT CARLISLE (2-0)

POSTPONED TO 4/1

LOWER DAUPHIN (1-2) AT STATE COLLEGE (1-2)

LD has been in three close games already to start the season having lost to Carlisle and Governor Mifflin by one goal each. A tough road trip means they could be in for number four Tuesday night. State College and Brady Franks grabbed their first win over CD East and will work to keep that momentum moving forward. Garrett Schugg and Brennen Foster will lead the Falcon offense. Nick Mattis will look to slow down Franks and company on defense.

PALMYRA (0-3) AT NORTHERN YORK (1-2)

POSTPONED

CHAMBERSBURG (1-1) AT HERSHEY (2-0)

Hershey is off to another great start and seems set on winning their 5th straight Keystone Division Title. They have outscored their first two opponents 30-11 led by Jake Wilson's amazing 15 goals in those games. For Chambersburg to have a chance they must find a way to slow Wilson down and get Jake Pierson and Grant Swisher in a position where they can match goals. It should be a great game at the face-off X between Collin Bricker and Matt Stewart.

MORE AFTER THE BREAK

MID-PENN REPORT 3/28

Trinity 13 Elizabethtown 4

Shamrocks move to 2-0 on the road in convincing fashion. The score was close at the endof the first quarter as the Shamrocks led 3-2 bu they opened thing sup in the second half taking a 8-3 lead and never looked back. Jesse Altmeyer led the way with 3 goals and 3 assists, followed by another impressive day from the Hergenroeder brothers Mark (3 goals, 2 assists) and Steve (4 goals).

Cumberland Valley 15 Exeter Twp 5

Eagles continue to dominate now 3-0 with 36 goals in 3 games. CV got out early to a 4-1 lead in the first quarter that they extended to 10-3 at the half. After that it was cruise control as they went up 15-3 headed into the 4th quarter. John Miller (4 goals, 2 assists) and Rod Jamieson (3,2) continue to have big days on offense. Stevie Peters (3,1) and CJ Sherlock (3) were also major factors.

Governor Mifflin 8 Lower Dauphin 7

Falcons fall to 1-2 with their second 1 goal loss of the season. LD found themselves in an earl 3-0 whole but clawed back to make it 5-2 at the half and then 8-4 headed into the fourth, The would out score the Mutangs 3-0 in the 4th but could not find the equalizer before the clock hit 0:00. Garret Schugg (3 goals, 1 assist) and Michael Yarrish (2 goals, 2 assists) led the falcons in scoring.

MID-PENN PREVIEW 3/28

A lot of action Saturday with 8 games, all of them out of conference.

Exeter Township (0-1) at Cumberland Valley (2-0) 11:00am

The Eagles look to continue their hot start outscoring both their opening opponents by a combined 26-5. Look for a continued balanced attack with John Miller, CJ Sherlock, and Stevie Peters. Rod Jamieson will again work to score and control things from the face-off. Exeter hails from the Berks League an suffered a 11-9 loss in their opener to Unionville. 

Trinity (1-0) at Elizabethtown (2-0) 10:00am

Like Hershey the Shamrocks are coming off a few extra days rest/preparation and look to take on another quality opponent in Elizabethtown. Having defeated Garden Spot (15-6) and Lancaster Country Day (13-3) first year head coach Allen Shissler has the Bears rolling early. Tom Poulos, Derek Swift, and Gage Bootay should factor in heavily for Etown. For Trinity keep an eye on Juniors Jesse Altmeyer and Mark Mandack.

Lower Dauphin (1-1) at Governor Mifflin (2-0) 11:00am

The Falcons are coming off a big win against Northern and came with in one goal of beating Carlisle. Governor Mifflin will be another challenge as they are off to an excellent start beating Cedar Crest (15-5) and Ephrata (18-5). Players to watch for the Mustangs will be Eric Dupell, Darren Schlegel, and Aaron Grill. For the Falcons Brennan Foster and Garret Schug should factor in to the offensive plan heavily with Nick Mattis anchoring the defense.

UPCOMING SCHEDULE, STANDINGS, & STATS 3/27

SATURDAY MARCH 28TH
Central York (0-1) at Hershey (1-0) 10:00am
Trinity (1-0) at Elizabethtown (2-0) 10:00am
Chambersburg (1-1) at Red Lion (1-1) 10:00am
Mechanicsburg (0-1) at Spring Grove (1-1) 10:00am
Lancaster Country Day (1-1) at Central Dauphin (1-1) 10:00am
Lower Dauphin (1-1) at Governor Mifflin (2-0) 11:00am
Exeter Township (0-1) at Cumberland Valley (2-0) 11:00am
Northern York (1-2) at Dallastown (1-0) 2:00pm

STANDINGS & STAT LEADERS AFTER THE BREAK

MID-PENN REPORT 3/26

CARLISLE 7 PALMYRA 6 (OT)

The Herd moves to 2-0 after another 1 goal thriller. This one would need extra frames to complete. Carlisle got the early 2-0 lead when Palmyra was able to come back and knot things up at 3-3 at the half. It would remain close through regulation with Justin Moore scoring the deciding goal in OT for the Herd. Sophomore George Faller led all scorers with 4 goals for Carlisle.  Ethan Gain busted onto the scene for the Cougars has he put up 3 goals and assist on the afternoon. This marks two straight tightly contested bouts for the Herd and seems to indicate the Commonwealth will be a season long race. Excellent bounce back game for Palmyra following  difficult loss to CV.

CENTRAL DAUPHIN 9 CHAMBERSBURG 8 (OT)
Rams move to 1-1 in this over time thriller on the road over Chambersburg. Trojans fall to 1-1 with back to back one goal games. Chambersburg led 7-5 headed into the 4th quarter when CD went on a 3-1 run to tie and send the game into OT. After a couple of great CD saves Damien Koussis hit the game winner with 54 seconds left in OT. Ian Harper led CD with 3 goals and Grant Swisher had another excellent night for the Trojans with 3 goals and 3 assists.

LOWER DAUPHIN 11 NORTHERN YORK 8
A tight one through out saw a 2-2 score at the end of the first quarter and a 5-4 Northern lead at the end of the half. LD got back in control during the 3rd quarter to lead 9-7 and then pulled away in the 4th for their first victory of the season (1-1). The Polar Bears will fall to 1-2. Garrett Schug led the Falcons with 3 goals and 1 assist. Derek Myers and Josh Petery did the heavy lifting for the Polar Bears as each had 4 goals on the night. Jared Hayes had an excellent night in the net for Northern with 25 saves.

MORE AFTER THE BREAK

MID-PENN PREVIEW 3/26

Another jammed pack day in the Mid-Penn as 12 of the leagues 13 teams play in conference games. 

HERSHEY (1-0) AT TRINITY (1-0) 

 Trinity faces another tough opponent after Tuesdays come from behind victory over CD. The Shamrocks will look to avoid the first half slow start as they face one of their more difficult match-ups of the season. Offensively look for Jesse Altmeyer to continue to distribute while Mark Mandack and the Hergenroder brothers (Mark and Steve) look to score. Hershey's Jake Wilson had a monster day with 7 goals on 1 assist as the Trojans opened strong against State College at home. This will be an early test on the road for Hershey.

CENTRAL DAUPHIN (0-1) AT CHAMBERSBURG (1-0)

Chambersburg looks to get to 2-0 after a fantastic come from behind victory against McDevitt on Tuesday. Look for Jake Pierson and Grant Swisher to be heavily involved in the offensive game plan. For CD this is a prime opportunity to erase memories of their loss to Trinity. Damien Koussis and Chris Martin will be a big part of their attack.

MORE AFTER THE BREAK

MID-PENN REPORT 3/24

Carlisle 8 Lower Dauphin 7
LD jumped out to a 3-0 lead at the end of the first quarter. Carlisle answered with a 4 goal run to make it 4-3 Herd at the half. Carlisle would continue scoring to move it 8-5 at the end of the third and hold on for the 8-7 victory. LD Junior Brennan Foster bursts onto the MP lacrosse scene with 4 goals on the night. Drew Amsley led Carlisle with three scores of his own.

Trinity 9 CD 5
 CD lead 5-1 in the second quarter as Trinity would go on to out score the Rams 8-0 in the rest of the way for the come from behind victory. Mark Hergenroder returns after missing last season to lead the rocks with 3 goals and 3 assists. Damien Koussis led the Rams scoring effort with 3 goals and 2 assists.

Cumberland Valley 9 Palmyra 3
 CV got going early and never looked back. Leading 5-1 at the end of the first the Eagles seemed to have the Cougars under control all afternoon. Seniors Rod Jamieson and John Miller lead all scorers with 3 goals each.

MORE AFTER THE BREAK

MID-PENN PREVIEW - 3/24

A whole lot of action on Tuesday as every Mid-Penn team will play, most of them openers for both squads. Typically teams prefer to open out of conference but due to weather related issues on Friday and Saturday all teams had to post pone their opening games and will need to hit the ground running today.

Trinity at Central Dauphin 4:15pm

The Rams just missed the district post season but did manage to defeat the Shamrocks in their final game of the 2014 season. CD has defeated Trinity's in four of their last five meetings including the district playoffs.  Both teams lost a lot to graduation but certainly have pieces capable of stepping in and producing right away.

For CD look for Chris Martin and Derek Quaid to be involved in the offense right away. For the Rocks we expect Junior Jesse Altemeyer to continue to produce goals and assists along side his fellow classmates Vinny Oliverio, Mark Mandack, and Bryce Amos. Senior Mark Hergenroder returns to play after missing last season with a leg injury and should be a major factor all game.

MORE GAMES AFTER THE JUMP

PENN LIVE MID-PENN PREVIEWS

COMMONWEALTH DIVISION PREVIEW

KEYSTONE DIVISION PREVIEW

THE SENTINEL - LACROSSE PREVIEW

FROM CUMBERLINK.COM

CARLISLE THUNDERING HERD

Coach: Steve Kidder

Division: Commonwealth

Last year: 18-4, 14-1

Key losses: Max Breschi, Sid Ewell, Mark Bowser, Hunter Scott, Colin Wallace, John Mundell

Key returnees: Drew Amlsey, sr.; George Faller, so.; Tim Roesler, sr.; Derrick Coleman, jr.; Bryce Stevenson, jr.; Nate Barnes, so.; Dean Zagorica, sr.; Trevor Weis, so.; Justin Moore, jr.; Matt Fuller, sr.; Levi Negley, sr.; Conor Bremer, sr.

Key newcomers: Dom Gaito, so.; Ethan Blum, so.; Ryan Godfrey, so.; Connor Amsley, so.; Phil Weis, so.

Next Match: Friday at Penn Manor, 4

Breakdown: Carlisle’s offense was gutted by graduation, but the returning players will aim for another run to the district championships if they can help the new players grow.

MORE AFTER THE BREAK

BRINE ALL-AMERICAN NATIONAL LACROSSE CLASSIC

                      

Congratulations to Cumberland Valley Senior Thomas Arentz, CV sophomore Steven Peters, and Trinity sophomore Payden Masaracchia on being selected to participate in the Brine All-American Lacrosse Classic.

From NationalLacrosseClassic.com:

The 1,900 participants for the 2014 Brine National Lacrosse Classic have been selected from a pool of candidates from across the nation. The selected individuals will play July 1-3 in a three-day event at the Maryland Soccerplex in Boyds, Maryland. 

The players earned their positions on the roster by attending Brine regional tryouts that were conducted throughout the nation.  Highly regarded lacrosse coaches tested the players’ skills and selected the top-ranked high school and middle school lacrosse players to participate in the 2014 Brine National Lacrosse Classic and Brine National Lacrosse Academy.

(MORE AFTER THE JUMP)

DISTRICT PLAYOFF REPORT - ROUND 1

WEST YORK 11 TRINITY 9
-   Trinity's third straight trip to districts will end with their third straight loss in round one. Coach Heisey's team has seen more than it's fair share of injuries and a depleted midfield which put the Shamrocks in a tough spot from the word go. This one will sting as Trinity had bested West York less than two weeks ago 15-6.
     West York got out to an early 2-0 lead and the Shamrocks would be fighting back from their all evening. Senior midfielder Connor Bailey (2 goals) would answer early in  the second to bring the score to 2-1 but the Bull Dogs would quickly regain their two goal lead. Trinity would work the ball to sophomore midfielder Mark Mandack (3 goals) for a score to bring it to 3-2 as he started a break out evening. Again West York would score their own goal to get the separation back to two goals and then score shortly after that to take a 5-2 lead to the half.

(More after the jump)

DISTRICT PLAYOFF PREVIEW

We will be doing LIVE tweets from both the Hershey/Susquehannock and Trinity/West York games. Follow us on twitter HERE.

All three games will be played tomorrow, Tuesday (5/13), at 7:00pm.

Previews after the jump.

DISTRICT PLAYOFF INTERVIEW WITH COACH DAVID HEISEY

David "Heiso" Heisey is entering his fourth season as Trinity's head coach and his sixth overall since he took over the program at the Harrisburg Academy in 2009. With an overall record of 62-38 over the past six years he has consistently improved the program to the point where the Shamrocks are now serious contenders for the Mid Penn and going into their third straight district appearance. He has produced several D1 college players as well as an All American selection in Jack Miller '12.

Heisey's coaching career started in the early 90's when he was an assistant with George Gonzales (now an assistant at Trinity) and saw him become the head coach of CD East and then become involved with the Central Dauphin youth program before returning to the Academy which would later transfer to Trinity. Heisey also currently serves on the executive board of the MCLA. Heisey was formerly a head Coach for Central PA Dawgs club team and was also one of the founders of the Keystone State Lacrosse Games Tournament.

Coach Heisey was kind enough to answer some questions with us about his team, coaching philosophies, and their upcoming game with West York in the first round of the district playoffs on Tuesday.

(READ MORE)

Band Of Brothers

CBS 21 did a report on Trinity Boy's Lacrosse and their 9 sets of brothers.

Link to the video:
http://www.local21news.com/sports/features/local-sports/stories/brotherly-love-times-9-powers-trinity-lacrosse-1070.shtml

PIAA DISTRICT 3 PLAYOFF SEEDING

     The field is set!

     Saturday is the Mid Penn Championship and then for several Mid Penn teams it will be off to the district playoffs.
     Carlisle (2), Hershey (5), and Trinity (8) have had their sites set on the post season all spring and have had little to worry about as top ten finishes were hardly in doubt the past few weeks. For the Trojans and Herd it will be their fourth straight trips to districts and this will be the Shamrock's third straight.
     CV (17) and CD (18) rankings did not move from yesterday and they were squarely on the bubble but will miss out this year. Northern's (20) late season 8 game winning streak gave them hope but would ultimately would not be enough to get them in as their 2-7 start left to much ground to make up. Palmyra (25), Chambersburg (26), and Lower Dauphin (27) all managed top 30 finishes.

We will be doing live twitter scoring updates from as many district games as possible (Follow Here) and we will update you on which ones we will be covering shortly.

(More after the break)

MID PENN REPORT - 5/8/14

(UPDATE)
District III playoff brackets are set and can be found here: PIAA DISTRICT 3 PLAYOFFS

CENTRAL DAUPHIN 6 TRINITY 5

- This was a must win for the Rams to keep hope alive for a district playoff birth. Currently ranked 18th (behind #17 CV and #16 York Suburban) the Rams must now wait until the committee releases the final seedings later today. A quality win over #7 Trinity gives Coach Driscoll's teams a serious shot at getting in. The Rams have now won eight of their final ten games and placed second in the Keystone Division for the second straight season. A remarkable season and turn around for CD.
     For Trinity this loss ends a six game win streak where they were on an absolute tear. Historically the Shamrocks have had difficulties with Rams going 1-4 over the past four seasons. Coach Heisey's squad will still have decent district seeding but a win last night would have bumped them up into a less difficult opening match-up.
     The defensive tone in this one was started early. Austin Bailey and Scott Kelly led both their respective defenses to first quarter shut outs. Rarely would a scoreless first be of benefit to one team verses the other but given the fact that Rams had concerns keeping up with Trinity's high powered offense the 0-0 tie was good news for CD. Mitch Kleist would open the scoring for Trinity off a feed from Jesse Altmeyer (2 goals, 1 assist) early in the second and the goal for goal battle had begun. We would end the half 3-3 as CJ Sherlock (1 goal)  hit a shot with time about to expire. CD was able to get separation in the third quarter off  Carson Wolford (2 goals) and Nate Beard (3 goals) scores.
    Entering the final frame Beard was again able to score giving the Rams a 6-4 lead and letting their defense carry them the rest of the way. Connor Bailey (1 goal, 1 assist) was able to score off a Kyle Scott feed with under two minutes remaining and the excitement had reached a peak. Trinity was able to gain possession of the ball with under 10 seconds and called a timeout to set up their play. A last second shot sailed wide and the Rams were able to celebrate and keep hope alive for one more day (at least).
     Both these teams have had excellent regular seasons and are good enough to make runs in districts. Coaches Heisey and Driscoll are two of the best in the Mid Penn and both deserve serious recognition for coach of the year honors.

NORTHERN YORK 8 BISHOP MCDEVITT 5

- The Polar Bears were able to make it eight straight wins to finish the season at 10-7. McDevitt did not make it easy for them to keep the streak alive but this talented senior group at Northern wanted to make a statement win in their last game. Currently ranked 20th we do not see enough movement in front of the Polar Bears for them to get into districts but that should not take away from a very good season.
     The Crusaders were able to get out to an early 1-0 lead at the end of the first quarter and showed they would not back down to the winning streak. Northern was able to regroup and shake off some of the rust a jam packed end of season schedule had put on them and out score McDevitt 6-1 through the end of the third. McDevitt and their tightly bonded senior class continued to fight but came up a bit short. A competitive game and a sign that the Crusaders were on the way up as the season concluded.
      Northern was led by Zach Martich (2 goals, 3 assists) who again showed how unselfish he is with the ball. Derek Myers (2 goals) and Luke Lyons (2 goals) were also leading scorers. It is great to see Lyons back on the field and producing as a knee injury cost him much of his senior season. The Crusaders again saw senior Jackson Hanes at the top of their scorers sheet with 2 goals. Jackson will now pass the torch to his younger brother Griffin and the rest of the Crusaders under class man.
      

HERSHEY 14 STATE COLLEGE 2

- Hershey has now won five straight to end the regular season and is poised for a great post season run. Their last district ranking had them at 5th and in good position to get the two wins needed for a state playoff birth. The Trojans are in an advantageous spot as they have played two quality opponents in Chambersburg (5/6) and State College (5/7) and looked very sharp. Carlisle on the other hand played Mechanicsburg (5/5) and will have had a lot of time to wait for Saturdays game. Momentum is a funny thing and with both teams being led by excellent coaches we are sure they will make the most of their situations leading into the game.
     Jake Wilson was dominant all day for the Trojans as he led all scorers with 6 goals and 3 assists. Wilson will end the season as the leading goal scorer for the Mid Penn at 48. Logan Calhoun continued his strong play with 3 goals and 1 assist and senior LSM Dave Sickler was able to find the net with 2 goals of his own. Calhoun caps a great senior year with 46 goals and 26 assists for 72 points (3rd in Mid Penn total points). Dave Sickler's all around game is remarkable at LSM and a lot of times stats don't show the full picture. Even still Sickler was continually a threat to score in transition and managed 8 goals on the season. A talented senior class looks to recapture the Mid Penn title for Hershey and make a solid run in districts and beyond.
    For State College it was a difficult end to the regular season. Brady Franks and PJ Bachman were each able to score but they were over matched all afternoon. Franks will finish as the Little Lions leading scorer with 29 goals on the season. State College was in an excellent position a few weeks ago to contend for the Commonwealth Division but dropping five of their last six cost them a shot at a lot including a winning record.

STANDINGS
Commonwealth Division

TEAM	LEAGUE	OVERALL
*Carlisle	12-0	14-2
Trinity	9-3	14-3
Northern York	8-4	10-7
Cumberland Valley	7-5	10-8
State College	7-5	8-9
Chambersburg	5-7	8-8
Mechanicsburg	1-11	2-15

Keystone Division

TEAM	LEAGUE	OVERALL
*Hershey	11-1	16-2
Central Dauphin	7-5	10-6
Lower Dauphin	5-7	7-9
Palmyra	4-8	9-9
Bishop McDevitt	2-10	3-14
CD East	0-12	0-16

MID PENN PREVIEW - 5/7/14

Final night of regular season play in the Mid Penn!
*Games played through tonight qualify for District III Playoff Rankings

TRINITY (14-2) at CENTRAL DAUPHIN (9-6) 7:00PM
- As the years move on rivalries start to develop in unexpected places. CD verse Trinity is definitely becoming one of those. The Rams bested the Shamrocks twice in 2013 including knocking them out in a great first round game of last years district playoffs 8-6. Trinity will look to return the favor as CD is currently ranked 18th in district seeding and most likely needs a win in their final game at home tonight to get in.
     Trinity has been on an absolute tear as of late aiming to close the season out with seven straight wins and put themselves in an excellent spot to make some serious noise in districts and possibly beyond. They have a number of players who can score and we are going to simply list them by name Bailey(25 goals), Sherlock(27), Altmeyer (22), Kleist (22), and Scott (34). That kind of production from five players is unmatched in the Mid Penn. Senior poles Hickey, Behnke, and Whiteman have led a very underrated defense that will make it difficult for CD to keep pace.
    The Rams had won seven of eight games until a one goal lose (7-6) at Northern York on Friday. A tremendous mid season turn around hangs on the brink as they could miss out on the post season if they suffer a loss tonight. Coach Driscoll must find a way for his offense to produce enough scoring to give his defense and goal keeper Scott Kelly a chance to win. Look for Colton Nye, Eli Hudson, and Nate Beard to continue to be the focal point of their offensive game plan.

STATE COLLEGE (8-8) at HERSHEY (15-2) 4:00PM
- Hershey is in an advantageous situation for Saturdays game in that they will have played two quality opponents in Chambersburg (last night) and State College tonight to stay sharp for the MPC. Carlisle on the other hand played Mechancisburg on Monday and will not have had a game in 4 days in the lead up for the title game. Most teams would rather stay active and in rhythm and that is just what Hershey aims to do in their final regular season game.
    Hershey will look to senior attackman Logan Calhoun and Joe Olives to lead the scoring from the attack with Karl VanBlargen on the midfield. Finishing the season with five straight wins will give them a lot of momentum headed into the post season.
     For State College a 7-4 season with a shot at the Commonwealth title has fallen apart as they have lost four of their last five games. Brady Franks (29 goals) and Luc Michaels (26 goals) have been their 1-2 combo all year. Hershey's defense is to complete for a 2 man game to work so they will need to get more players involved if they hope to finish the season with a win.

BISHOP MCDEVITT (3-13) at NORTHERN YORK (9-7) 7:00PM
- Eight straight wins is a remarkable feet for any squad and Northern head coach Jeff Miller should be getting serious consideration for MP coach of the year after turning his squad around from a 2-7 start. The Polar Bears have played extremely well and have quality wins over CD and CV in their last two games. We expect Zach Martich to be heavily involved with the offense as a feeder while several scoring options in Haak, Myers, and Rutter look to find the back of the net.
    For the Crusaders they will need senior Nick Suknaic and Griffin and Jackson Hanes to to take over the scoring to have a shot at slowing down a good team at home.

MID PENN PREVIEW - 5/6/14

CHAMBERSBURG (8-7) at HERSHEY (13-2) 4:15PM
- After last nights loss to Trinity, Chambersburg's district playoffs hope are all but gone. They will fall from their 20th ranking and have a very difficult match-up with a Hershey team looking to stay sharp for Saturday's MPC as well as improve there own seeding for districts (currently 6th).
  The Trojans had a suffered a couple tough defeats to Wilson and Carlisle but seemed to have regrouped nicely last week. With Chambersburg today and State College tomorrow they will be looking to keep all their parts finely tuned while Carlisle has four days off before the big game. In order for Hershey to win the MPC and have a good post season run Jake Wilson, Logan Calhoun, and George Briggs will need to be on point at attack. This is the most talented attack unit in the Mid Penn and when they are in rhythm they seem to be unstoppable. When teams get them out of rhythm, as we saw against Carlisle and Trinity, they can get sloppy and that is something we are sure Coach Schein is working to fix.
    Chambersburg has three main threats in Hopple, Pierson, and Lombardozi. They will all need big nights here if they hope to pull off the upset and keep their district playoff chances alive. This will be the Trojans final regular season game of the year and even if they fall to 8-8 it is still a very impressive season after what many thought would be a down year losing 2013 graduate Taylor Tolbert.

CD EAST (0-15) at PALMYRA (8-9) 4:15PM
- This is the Panthers last shot at avoiding an 0-12 Mid Penn season and unfortunately we don't expect them to get the win on the road at Palmyra. The Cougars have been through a difficult season of their own losing a lot of close games but should be able to put together back to back wins to finish at .500.
    Joey Hess is making a serious play for league MVP and we suspect today will be another chance for him to push his stats upward. Hess has shown a tremendous ability to score and feed and is a critical component to his offense. Nick Mazzocca is a capable scorer of his own and clearly benefits from playing with Hess. Look for both of them to be involved early and often in the scoring. Sam Wasson is one of the better keepers in the MP and should finish the year with the most saves in the league.
     CD East will continue to rely on Chrystian Hess and Will Gingrich. We've been saying all season that this program's goals are different than that of most other Mid Penn clubs and we truly hope they can start the rebuilding process this off season.

BISHOP MCDEVITT (3-12) at LOWER DAUPHIN (6-9) 4:30PM
- The Falcons were in the midst of a mid season turn around with four straight wins and were eyeing their first winning season since 2009. A three game skid will prevent that from happening but it is still a spring that has seen this club make some major strides into the middle of the Mid Penn pack. A season ending win against Keystone opponent McDevitt would be a nice cap on year everyone in Hummelstown can be proud of. Mike Mattis will again be the Falcons main player to keep an eye on scoring wise and Justin Guevarez is an underrated goalie with the ability to change games.
     For the Crusaders it has not been an ideal follow up to a 2013 season that saw them go 7-10 after going 1-14 in 2012. For a younger program just starting to come up regression is expected and Coach Walter lost a lot of fire power in the off season. Senior Nick Sukniac and the Hanes brothers have put forth great efforts and despite the poor W-L record they have been a better team then they were earlier in the program's history. Despite losing five of their last six games their offense seems to have a found a sync against quality opponents. Their final game of the spring will be Wednesday night at Northern York.

NORTHERN YORK (8-7) at CUMBERLAND VALLEY (10-7) 7:00PM
- The Polar Bears may be on the outside (currently ranked 21st) looking in on districts but that does not mean they can't crush some dreams on the way. After beating the Rams at home on Friday to jeopardize their district chances they will head to Cumberland Valley and look to do the same to a 15th ranked Eagles squad. Cumberland Valley needs to win this game to control their destiny as it is their final match of the regular season.
     Northern has an excellent shot at finishing .500 or better with CV tonight and McDevitt at home tomorrow night. Although the playoffs are becoming a long shot we expect Coach Miller to have his team giving 100%. Northern has won 6 straight games and is aiming to finish the year on an 8 game winning streak. Zach Martick is leading the Polar Bears with 51 points courtesy of his 35 assists on the year. He can score but is one of the better assist men in the league. Derek Myers, Grant Rutter, and Sam Haak are all 20+ goal scorers and it is apparent they can hurt you from a number of different spots.
     The Eagles have won three out of their last four and have had a nice turn around after a disappointing 2013. Coach Bogazyck team is one that has improved a lot since the start of the season and a very difficult opening schedule. They have won seven of their last nine games and a win here would allow them to advance to post season play. Tommy Lehman (41 goals) and Nick Zumbrum (29) have been an absolute force as of late and if their defense and Nic Brown are on their game who knows how far they could go. A possible first round game with West York would be an excellent setup if the chips fall that way.

MECHANICSBURG (2-14) at CEDAR CREST (5-12) 7:00PM
- The Wildcats venture out of conference tonight with a shot at a winnable game against Lancaster-Lebanon opponent Cedar Crest. The Falcons have a 76.2 laxpower.com ranking (Mechanicsburg is 71.4) and have lost six of their last seven games only scoring 43 points in that span.
    Offensive and defensive woes have plagued the Cats all season. Coach Brisbane will be doing everything in his power to get his seniors a win in their final game and bookend the season with victories. Having lost 12 straight and only scored 30 goals in that period this is a team that is looking to put the building blocks in place to develop a program structure and change the culture on Broad Street. Senior Aaron Heisey is an underrated player with an excellent outside shot. He has led the Cats all year (17 goals) in scoring and we have little doubt his numbers are not a true reflection of his abilities.