The Donegal boys' soccer club made program history fighting their way to the semifinal round of the District III playoff tournament before bowing out 3-0 to Palmyra on November 1st.

The tenacious club was seeded sixth in the tournament and earned the program's first ever District playoff win in the quarterfinal round when they upset the number three seed Susquehannock 3-2 to earn their appearance in the semis. The momentous victory also secured them a never-before-earned berth into the State tournament.

Tye White scored a pair of goals in the win over the Warriors on October 28th.

White, assisted by LD Hanes, netted his first goal just four minutes into the contest. The early lead affirmed the Indians' intention to upset the Warriors, but it was Susquehannock who held the 2-1 advantage at the half.

"Susquehannock is known for upping the pressure and they were true to form," acknowledged head coach Andrew Wagner. "They broke through and we caved and let them have their way," Wagner noted of the end of the first half.

After the break, Donegal regained both their composure and possession of the ball, relying on their stamina to outlast the Warriors in a grueling latter half.

White scored a second time 16 minutes into the second half, again off a dish from Hanes, and knotted the game at two apiece.

From there, it was a race against the clock, as the teams vied for the go-ahead goal to clinch the W. This time the ball was delivered into the net by Donegal senior Joseph Turbedsky, assisted by Brody Bonham.

"Susquehannock started to tire, and we took advantage of this," noted Wagner. "We changed our formation the last 15 minutes and clogging things up pretty well and were able to ice the game from there."

While their journey through the District bracket might have reached its conclusion after the 3-0 loss to Palmyra on November 1st, the team isn't quite finished as they anticipate embarking on their PIAA adventure in the coming weeks.

"We are a very diverse team that can handle many situations. We have proven this, and it should serve us well going forward," summarized Wagner.

FOOTBALL

Donegal football also had plenty to celebrate, outplaying their final regular season competitor Lancaster Catholic 27-0. The team's strong finish served to earn a first round bye in the playoffs due to their sixth-place post-season ranking which was well-earned by a 3-1 league and 7-2 overall regular season.

In the midst of a chilly rain on October 29th, the Indians hosted the Crusaders and once again literally ran away with the contest, out-rushing Lancaster Catholic 383 to 76.

"The weather was a factor in the game, so we had to keep the ball on the ground," pointed out head coach Chad Risberg.

Jon Holmes sprinted in a pair of TDs, one in the first quarter and then again in the third, while racking up 175 yards. Noah Rohrer also covered a lot of ground (135 yards) and delivered the ball to the endzone in the fourth.

"Jon and Noah had a great game running the ball," praised Risberg. "The offensive line paved the way for them. Shout out to those guys."

Connor Hyle added to the Tribe's success running in the fourth and final touchdown, and Rohrer punctuated three of the evenings TDs by sending the ball through the uprights for the extra point.

Rohrer and Holmes also got the job done defensively with 11 and nine tackles, respectively.

Due to their first-round bye, the Tribe will see a brief hiatus before playoff competition, slated to face off with Kennard Dale on November 12th.

CROSS COUNTRY

On Saturday, October 30th Donegal's cross country teams joined the pack of athletes racing in the District III Championships at Big Spring High School where the girls' top finisher, Kathryn Fernald, set the pace for the Lady Indians and secured a trip to the State championship race.

Fernald, a freshman, clocked a 20:16.9 to earn 27th out of the pool of 215 harriers despite less-than-ideal conditions supplied by rain and muddy course.

"The course was extremely slick, and the kids were slipping everywhere," acknowledged coach Philip Koser pointing out Fernald's steady performance that punched her ticket to the state meet on November 6. "She ran a conservative race."

Hadley Shoaf was the next Donegal jersey to finish, completing the course in 21:01.8 for 57th. Addison Houck came in 107th (21:52) and Marleigh Ballard was 125th (22:08.5).

While Fernald will compete at States as an individual runner, the team portion of the season ends with the collective 16th place finish in District 3A, following a 9-1 mark for the regular season as the runners up in Section Two, and a fifth-place team showing in the L-L Championships.

The young squad will say farewell to just one graduating senior, Shoaf, who captured an 18th place medal in the L-L Championships in October, earned first team all star status in Section Two, and also received recognition as a Scholar Athlete.

"Hadley is our lone senior girl. Her experience and positive attitude will be missed," Koser described.

Fernald, Ballard, and Houck were each named to the second team all-star list.

For the boys' team, the dismal conditions and injury factored into the District Championship outcome, but the crew persisted to a 10th place finish in the 2A race led by frontrunner Sam Rothstein's 34th place finish in 17:59.9.

Dylan Lenhart crossed next for Donegal clocking an 18:36 for 62nd, John Spackman crossed in 74th (18:55.6), and Braden Bistline was 90th (19:16.9).

Hunter Gehman was plagued by a hamstring injury for the latter half of the race but pushed himself to finish in 99th.

Seniors Rothstein and Gehman both earned first team all-star honors for their season-long efforts and are joined by fellow senior Kyle Huncher in receiving Scholar Athlete recognition. Donegal's fourth graduating senior is Henry Warburton, and together the foursome has left a lasting impact on the younger athletes.

"They had great overall seasons and their leadership will be greatly missed," summarized Koser.

The boys close out their season sporting an 8-3 record and featured an eighth place showing at the L-L Championships, ranking in the top three of 2A teams that participated.