Quarantines and weather cancellations have not been kind to winter athletic schedules, but one event that was able to take place was CV's hosting of the Elizabethtown Bears on January 29th resulting in a 72-45 victory for the Buckskins.

Adding another element to the celebration, the evening marked the club's Senior Night ceremony which took place before the contest honoring eight Buckskin athletes: Zachary Fisher, Spencer Gehman, Gabriel Matos Morales, Cooper McCloud, Brayden Meyer, Luke Rumbaugh, Kyle Thrush, and Adam Yoder.

"I love coaching this group of seniors and watching them compete," reflected head coach Jim Shipper.

After tip-off, the Bucks saw success on both ends of the floor. The CV offense accrued 72 points, just four points shy of their season high, led by Rumbaugh's 22-point effort.

Their methodical attack was characterized by ball movement that yielded point contributions from 11 different CV athletes, and McCloud produced the second highest point total, netting 11.

On the defensive end of the floor things looked equally impressive as the Bucks held the Bears to single digits in the opening quarter (15-8).

"Our team defense was stellar," Shipper said, emphasizing how the team has grown over the past few contests. "Each player contributes mightily within his role, whether or not that contribution ends up in a statistical column isn't important to our team component."

One of those team stats that was hard to ignore was the Bucks' collective effort at the line, topping 70% in a 12-of-17 free throw shooting performance.

"We are focused on playing together as a team and pursuing wins as a team effort," summarized the coach.

On February third, the club faced an undefeated Warwick squad and fell behind in the first quarter. The Warriors went on to add their eighth victory to their win streak, 87-52.

Austin Wertz stepped up for the Bucks, knocking in 14 points, McCloud once again had 11, and Titus York chipped in seven.

BOWLING

On January 29th, Haley Jack achieved a personal milestone as she led her team to a 5-2 victory over Warwick, posting a series total of 702, a season and career best for the sophomore, breaking the 700 pin threshold for the first time.

With Jack scoring above 200 in all three games (268-212-222), the Bucks collectively managed to edge ahead of the Warriors in two-of-three to gain the overall win.

"It was great support getting Haley back in the lineup with her competitive spirit versus Warwick," celebrated her coach Doug Davison.

A team bursting with young talent, the Buck's next two high rolls were both supplied by freshmen athletes. Jocelyn Ross strung together a 625 series, followed closely by a 622 from Ryan Muckle.

The momentum continued to build leading to a 7-0 sweep over the Lebanon Cedars last Wednesday at Dutch Lanes.

This time, it was Muckle setting the bar with a 245-210-203 series total of 658.

"The League season is rapidly coming to an end," noted Davidson. "Hoping the bowlers show this week with a little swagger in their step and compete in our League matches."

The Bucks sport a 26-16 record after the Lebanon win, and on tap next includes head-to-head showdowns against Ephrata, and Elizabethtown.

WRESTLING

After a week's hiatus, the CV grapplers got back on the mat to host Reading last Wednesday and pulled away for a 78-0 nonleague victory.

Forfeits have been unfortunately frequent during 2021 competition, as was the case in this matchup, with Reading forced to concede 10 of 13 bouts.

Seizing the few opportunities to compete, Trent Ruble (113), Keaton Fischer (138), and Luke Needham (145) each pinned their opponents to capture the remaining points up for grabs for the Bucks.

CV seniors Conrad Dillman, Jared Ulmer and Dylan Rider were celebrated during the evening. Each have needed to step up for the team during an already tumultuous year, with the addition of season-altering injuries thrown in the mix.

"Each one has brought something positive to the program throughout their careers, and their presence in the program will be missed upon graduation," summarized coach Trent Turner.

SWIMMING

With the L-L League meet slated for February 5-6, the CV swim club has had to scramble and make adjustments in their final dual meets of the season, doing their best to fill the lineup.

On January 28th, Micah Leaman produced a CV highlight during a loss to Manheim Township (131-38), claiming the 500 free victory with a time of 5:08.62.

While their final head-to-head meets have been characterized by missing athletes, the goal is for all players to return healthy and ready to compete in the league meet.