Todd Ruth

Ephrata Review

Sports Editor I’ve had several people ask me about the school record of 204-6 recently set by Cocalico thrower Jhett Janis in the javelin. That throw snapped the previous record of 203-0 set at the State Meet a year ago by Kyle Felpel, who is now competing at the University of Alabama.

Many people said they remembered Troy Burkholder throw in the 240s back in the mid-90s. Actually, that is also correct.

However, Burkholder’s throw of 242-10 at the Penn Relays in 1995 was with the older-model javelin, which was retired after the 2001 season.

The new international javelin, which weighs the same as the previous model but is more top heavy and thus doesn’t travel as far, was put into competition in the 2002. All current records in that event go back to that season.

District Rankings: The first track of District Three power ratings were released this past week, and a couple local teams have garnered top 10 rankings in their respective sports.

By: TODD RUTH Review Sports Editor truth.eph@lnpnews.com, Staff Writer

Ephrata's Kelly Liebl (left) crosses the finish line to capture the 100 Monday, one of three wins on the day by the sophomore in the meet vs. Cocalico. Her teammate Moriah Pfautz (second from right) finished second in the event while Cocalico's Emily Johnson (center) was third. (Photo by Preston Whitcraft)

Ephrata Track Coach John Keller has a luxury few have in the L-L League.

While most teams have at least one athlete who can get them points in key places, Keller has two such stars in senior Mary Witmer and sophomore Kelly Liebl, in addition to a stable full of other solid point producers throughout the lineup.

That formula was the key to Ephrata winning its first-ever Section Two title a year ago. And it’s the same one that now has the Lady Mounts on the doorstep of their second-straight outright championship.

Monday afternoon in Denver, Witmer captured four event wins while Liebl added three victories to lead the Lady Mounts to a 94-56 victory over host Cocalico.

By: JOHN CRAWFORD Review Correspondent, Staff Writer

Cocalico High School student-athlete Zach Rissler was recognized for his scholastic and athletic achievements by the Lancaster/Lebanon Basketball Officials at their annual banquet on April 15.

Rissler and three other Lancaster basketball players were presented with $1,000 checks using the funds raised by the Tim Bartholomew Memorial Basketball Tournament held each year in Ephrata.

"This is the fourth year and including tonight, it will be 14 award winners for $14,000," said Scholarship committeeman Gary Morinchin.

Morinchin explained the nominating process.

"The coaches are allowed to nominate one senior from their team and based on the coach’s nomination, we pick five boys and five girls finalists," he said. "From those finalists, we have them write an essay on how athletics has influenced them as a student and an athlete. Based on the essay, we pick two girls’ and two boys’ winners."

Coach Travis Wealand nominated Rissler based on the perseverance he displayed overcoming a back injury that kept him from competing his junior year and his willingness to help the team.

By: TODD RUTH Review Sports Editor truth.eph@lnpnews.com, Staff Writer

That 200-pound gorilla the Ephrata girls lacrosse team was lugging around for nearly two full seasons is finally gone.

Monday night, on Senior Night, the Lady Mounts tasted victory for the first time this year when they knocked off visiting Garden Spot, 11-10 at Mountaineer Field.

With the game knotted at 10-10, Ephrata scored the go-ahead goal with just 1:30 left on the clock and then held off the Spartans for the monumental victory.

The win, which ended a losing streak of more than 30 games dating back to the 2011 season, was just what the Dr. ordered according to first-year Coach Kirstin Schneider.

"The hard work the girls put in finally paid off…" Schneider said Tuesday. "When watching the games you can see that their skills have drastically improved. I have coached many different levels prior to moving to Ephrata. There is nothing more gratifying as a coach than seeing your athletes work though their hardships and come out strong. They were extremely excited to achieve their first win in a few years and I hope they don’t lose the feeling. They now know what a real win feels like. I think that their excitement and faces after the game, spoke drastically to how they felt about finally achieving what they have set out to do. I can honestly say that I am proud to lead this group of mentally strong athletes."

By: TODD RUTH Review Sports Editor truth.eph@lnpnews.com, Staff Writer

The Cocalico boys volleyball team poses with the championship trophy at the 27th annual Eagle Challenge. Cocalico went a perfect 16-0 on the day to win the title. The members of the team include (front row, left to right): Jeremy Eshleman, Alex Genova, Justis Lorah, Johnny Pha and Garrett Strunk. (Back, l-r): Coach Dave Weaver, Dylan Sattazahn, Wes Rathman, Matt Lawver, Mike Carty, Mitch Stauffer, John Waskowicz and Coach Jon Weaver.

Cocalico did not get off to the kind of start Coach Dave Weaver envisioned for his team this season.

The Eagles closed out the first half of the Section Two season last Thursday with a 3-1 loss to Garden Spot which put them at just 2-5 in league play and left them searching for answers.

However, just when it appeared all hopes were beginning to fade, Cocalico put it all together Saturday in the 27th annual Eagle Challenge Tournament. And now, after going a perfect 16-0 en route to the tourney championship, there’s a new-found hope heading into the second-half of the year.

Cocalico's Zach Weinhold hits a back-hand return during Monday's match vs. Manheim Central. (Photo by Stan Hall)

Cocalico earned a clean sweep in singles play last Friday afternoon in Ephrata to key an eventual 5-2 non-league victory over the host Mounts in boys tennis action.

The Eagles earned straight-set wins at one and four as Zach Weinhold and Austin Noll each were impressive in their victories. The key to the Eagles’ team win came at two and three where Conner Martin and Solomon Thorpe earned a pair of tight victories.

Martin edged Ephrata’s Ryan Fritz 7-6 (7-4), 6-0, while Thorpe outlasted Ephrata’s Lukas Olson, 0-6, 7-6 (7-3), 10-6.

All three doubles matches were tight. At number one, Ephrata’s Gabo Murcia and Fritz avenged their singles losses with an 8-7 (7-2) win over Weinhold and Martin. Thorpe and Noll posted an 8-7 (8-6) Cocalico win at two over Olson and Christian Miles, while Ephrata’s Peter Wise and Mario Murcia captured an 8-6 victory at three over the Eagles’ Lucas DiCiano and Kijana Hoover.

Both Cocalico and Ephrata returned to section play Monday afternoon. In Denver, visiting Manheim Central clinched the Section Two title with a 7-0 victory over the host Eagles.

By: TODD RUTH Review Sports Editor truth.eph@lnpnews.com, Staff Writer

After falling to Hempfield last Wednesday in an early season battle of unbeatens, Warwick Coach Don Miller wanted to see a more intense and consistent approach from his team Monday afternoon in a Section One-Two crossover game at Ephrata.

Mission accomplished.

Offensively, the Lady Warriors pounded out 12 hits and took advantage of eight Ephrata errors as they scored in every frame but one. Pitching-wise, junior Tessa Eckman did the job as well, scattering five hits with eight strikeouts as it all added up to a lopsided 15-2 , six-inning Warwick victory.

"To win the section we are going to have to continue to ratchet up the intensity in how we approach game day," Miller said following the win. "This game was a good start but we need to continue to improve our preparation for the game and our execution of fundamentals. I have no doubt we have the ability to win our section, but we need to match our effort with our ability to get the job done."

They certainly did that on this day, despite a bit of a slow start.

By: BRUCE MORGAN Review Staff, Staff Writer

Ephrata earned its second big win over a Section One team in consecutive days Tuesday night at War Memorial as the Mounts rallied for a 4-1 victory over Manheim Township.

With the score tied 1-1 in the bottom of the sixth, the Mounts plated three runs in the fram to earn the victory.

Nate Cummings delivered a clutch RBI to single in the go-ahead run. Trevor Seibel and Andre Good also knocked in runs in the inning before starter pitcher Brandon Miller closed out his complete-game effort by setting the Streaks down in the seventh.

Miller allowed no earned runs, four hits and two walks over seven innings to help extend the Mounts’ winning streak to seven.

Matt Herbener and Seibel each collected two hits to pace the seven-hit Ephrata attack.

With the victory, Ephrata now stands alone atop the Section Two standings with a 6-2 league mark (9-1 overall).

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Ephrata right-hander Seth Griffith is someone you would describe as a pitcher who throws to contact.

Facing a Warwick team on Monday that was averaging 10 runs per game during a six-game winning streak, that could have been a cause for concern.

By: TODD RUTH Review Sports Editor truth.eph@lnpnews.com, Staff Writer

Some famous person once said, "tradition never graduates."

Well, eventhough Ephrata is just in its second decade of boys lacrosse, that quote could certainly apply to the Mounts. After winning the L-L League and District Three championships for the first time a year ago, most felt Ephrata would come back to the pack in 2013 with the graduation of 13 seniors.

However, that just hasn’t been the case. It’s been business as usual this year, after Ephrata opened the season with a pair of hiccups against non-league opponents Seneca Valley and Exeter.

Since the Mounts earned their first win of the season March 26 at Hempfield, they’ve reeled off an additional seven-straight victories and find themselves among the top contenders once again in the L-L League.

"One of our goals was to establish a program that was around for the long haul and year in and year out was always in for the fight," Ephrata Coach Kevin Pletz said Tuesday. "And we are proud of what we’ve accomplished."

Turns out, the Ephrata girls’ road to a possible second-straight Section Two title will run through Denver.

The Lady Mounts improved to a perfect 5-0 in section play (6-0 overall) Monday afternoon at home with a 93-57 victory over visiting Elizabethtown. Cocalico, which is tied with Garden Spot, kept pace in second place with a big 122-28 win over Lebanon to improve to 4-1.

What it all means is Ephrata can all but sew up the title with a win over the Lady Eagles when the two meet next Monday in Denver. A Cocalico win could force a three-way tie in the standings with one meet remaining.

Ephrata finishes the season April 29 at winless Lebanon, Cocalico host E-town that day while Garden Spot (4-1) has to face Manheim Central (April 22) and Solanco (April 29).

Monday, it was business as usual for the Ephrata girls, who got three wins each by Mary Witmer and Kelly Liebl to lead the way.

Witmer claimed the high hurdles (15.5), 400 (1:01.2) and 300 hurdles (48.1), while Liebl was a winner in the 100 (12.9), 200 (27.1) and long jump (15-1 1/4) events.