The Hempfield wrestling team hosted Conestoga Valley in a Section One match on Monday, January 10. Winning three of the first four weight classes on major decisions helped the Black Knights (4-0) charge ahead to a 12-3 lead on their way to topping the Buckskins 42-18.

"It's huge," head coach Shane Mack said, referring to the great start. "It's always great to get bonus points in any match, particularly in one that you believe will be closely contested."

Clay Gainer blanked Payton Peace 13-0 for a major at the 138-pound class. Braden Edwards came up with an 18-6 win at 152 and Grant Hoover majored Abdoul Akala 14-3 160.

Sandwiched in between was a tough 5-3 decision that went in favor of Reagan LeFevre's opponent Keaton Fischer at 145.

Dylan Bard kept the momentum going for Hempfield, posting a 7-3 decision at 172.

"Dylan has been a consistent performer this year," Mack said. "He is tied for the team lead in pins with nine. He is one of the leaders on the team."

There were forfeits at 215 and 106, the former a forfeit by the Knights and the latter of which gave Jorden Williams six uncontested points for the Knights.

In the heavyweight battle, Caleb Mussmon earned a tough 3-0 decision over Mukhammed Karayev.

"Caleb has been making huge leaps from last year," Mack said. "The kid he wrestled was heavier. Caleb stayed with his game plan. He was patient and picked his spots."

The Knights got a pin from Michael Karpathios at 113 and another by Seamus Mack, coming 1:02 into the 126-pound bout.

"Seamus got his ninth pin," the coach added. "He's doing well and working hard as a sophomore."

Ben Henderson wrapped things up at 132 with a third-period pin, giving the Knights their 42-18 margin of victory.

The margin was nearly identical in Wednesday victory at home over Warwick. Trailing 9-0 early on, the Knights charged back and won 45-19 thanks to pins by Mack, Gainer, Hoover, Mussmon and A.J. McAlpine.

Zymir McCain-Murray's win put the Knights on the board. The freshman worked a 13-7 decision over Mario Hummel (120). Mack's pin and Gainer's pin were sandwiched around a tough 5-3 loss by Ben Henderson (132).

Reagan LeFevre taking a forfeit gave the Knights a 21-12 lead. From there on, the Warriors managed only six points on two decisions. The pins by McAlpine (215) and Mussmon (285) both came in under 1:30.

BOYS' BASKETBALL

Hempfield hosted McCaskey in a Section One Saturday matinee. The leading actors on this feature were McCaskey's Jonathan Byrd, who scored a game-high 18 points, and Hempfield's Michel Rieker, who led his team with 15, including three baskets from three-point range.

As for the story of the matinee itself, there were plot twists which carried a few changes in momentum, including a surge by the visiting Red Tornado prior to intermission. When the closing credits rolled, the Tornado had topped the Knights 51-49 in a nail-biter of an ending.

The loss dropped Hempfield to 8-2 on the year (3-2 league) while McCaskey improved to 3-5 and 2-2.

Carrying a four-point lead into the second quarter, the Hempfield offense sputtered in the second quarter as McCaskey inched ahead to a 26-25 lead. Hempfield erased the deficit by the end of the third quarter but fell two points shy at the end.

Also leading the Knights were Ben Troyer, who scored 12, as well as Cole Overbaugh and Miguel Pena, each of whom put up eight points.

Hempfield rebounded with a victory at home over Ephrata on Tuesday night. The Knights outscored the Mountaineers 19-10 in the second stanza of the game, overcoming an early three-point deficit, en route to a 54-45 win.

Overbaugh put up 21 points to lead all scorers. Rieker nailed three long-range jump shots on an 11-point night.

The Mounts, who fell to 4-5 (0-3 league) were led by Mason Hagen (17 points).

GIRLS' BASKETBALL

The Hempfield girls' team outscored McCaskey 21-9 in the opening period of Monday's Section One road game. The Knights went on to top the Red Tornado 67-41, improving to 5-0 in league play (8-0 overall).

Hempfield did not take the foot off the accelerator, outscoring McCaskey by nine points in the second stanza, earning a 41-20 halftime edge.

Contributing to the tremendous offensive production were Lauren Moffatt, Sophia Ott, and Kira Mattes, each of whom scored in double figures. Moffatt netted 18 points, 12 of which came on her four treys. Ott finished with 14 and Mattes poured in 13. Ava Baer chipped in with nine while Autumn Cook scored eight on the night.

The next night, Ephrata hosted Hempfield in a league game. The Knights improved to 6-0 in league play (9-0 overall) with a 42-37 comeback win.

The halftime adjustments helped Hempfield overcome a 25-18 deficit. The Knights outscored the Mountaineers 13-3 in the third quarter and held off the home team 11-9 in the final period.

Moffatt hit a pair of three-pointers and finished with 14 points to lead Hempfield. Cook added nine points while Baer chipped in with another seven.

SWIMMING

The Hempfield squads came up short against their archrival Manheim Township in Tuesday's meet in Neffsville.

In the girls' meet, the Hempfield side had first-place finishes in four individual events. Those weren't enough as the Streaks eked out a 105-80 victory.

Taking first for the Knights were Cassandra Christoffel, Carol Fabian, Lillian Farmer, and Anna Koger.

In the freestyle events, Fabian outlasted the competition in the 500 with a time of 5:29.05. Christoffel finished first in the 200 at 2:06.37 and Koger sprinted to victory in the 50 in 26.38 seconds.

Farmer claimed the 100 backstroke in 1:02.53.

The girls and boys, who lost 115-62, both fell to 3-1 on the year.

BOWLING

The top of the Section One standings in L-L League bowling is a tight battle between the Knights and the Penn Manor Comets. Hempfield did edge Manor 4-3 in a December meeting and as of Hempfield's 5-2 victory over Ephrata on January 10, Penn Manor was at 32-10 and the Knights at 30-12 on the year.

Priest McKenzie rolled a phenomenal third game for Hempfield, recording a score of 278 as he finished with a total of 687 on the day. Derick Keller peaked in his second game with a score of 264 as he compiled 659 points.

Xander Green knocked 'em down at a count of 638 and Mitchell Barnes finished with 630 on the day.