With a later start date than most of the L-L League, the Lady Indians were eager to get their season underway, and though they opened with a pair of losses, they anticipate growth and improvement as the season progresses.

Opening night featured a home contest against ELCO on Friday the 15th, and ending in a 55-33, ELCO victory.

ELCO jumped ahead early, posting an 11-4 first quarter, and managed to hold the edge for the duration of the contest, despite Donegal regrouping for a strong offensive effort midway through the contest.

"Big things will come as we continue to grow into new roles," encouraged head coach Matthew Warner.

Sophomore Sophia Floyd is one of those athletes embracing her role, currently as lead scorer for the Tribe with 10 points in the ELCO game. She continued her efforts the following day in a 51-13 loss to York Suburban where she once again led the offense, this time with eight.

Madison Kaley netted six points against the Raiders, Catie Weber added five and Rylee Smith went two-for-two at the line.

The team hit another obstacle in the form of Eastern York and fell to a 68-17 loss on the 20th. Five different Lady Donegal's chipped in to score, led by six points from Madeline Gohn.

"We have a long way to go," acknowledged Warner anticipating hard work to pay off in the coming weeks. "I am pleased with the progress we have made so far. This is a great group of young ladies we have here at Donegal."

WRESTLING

The Indians hosted the Elizabethtown Bears on Wednesday the 20th in a highly anticipated Section Two clash.

Both clubs entered the contest with a pair of wins under their belt, and in a heartbreaking turn for the Indians, the contest went 33-27 to the Bears.

Early bouts were full of Donegal success including decision points garnered by Mason Ober (160), Joel Grillo (172), and Ethan Halbleib (189).

Garrett Blake cranked it up a notch with a Donegal fall in the 215-pound bout with 31 seconds remaining on the clock, mirrored by a fall from Nicoli Brotzman at 285, putting Donegal up 21-3.

The Bears turned things around in the subsequent bouts, chipping away at the Indians lead until the contest was leveled at 27-27 heading into the final bout.

In an unfortunate turn of events, an injury resulted in exceeding the recovery time allotted for Donegal, giving the final bout to Elizabethtown by default, and determining the outcome.

Rather than dwell on the loss, head coach Nick Evans turned the attention of his grapplers to their next challenge. "We look to overcome the adversity," Evans simply stated.

Prior to the showdown with the Bears, the Indians earned a 43-18 non-league victory over Ephrata the previous weekend.

Pins supplied by Donegal seniors Ober (160), Grillo (172), and Blake (285), propelled Indian momentum, and a sequence of three Ephrata forfeits further separated the teams' final totals.

Ephrata kept pace with the Indians in the early bouts, coming up with two falls of their own and the contest reflected an even 15-15 score before Blake's bout at 285 gave Donegal the lead (21-15) that they would hold on to for the remainder of the match.

Donegal freshman Noah Hinkle came up big with a major decision victory, earning four points at 113 to further the Indian cause.

BOYS' BASKETBALL

Junior Khalil Masden continues to have a major impact on the Indian's games, averaging over 20 points per game, to lead the scoring in a stretch of three tough losses for Donegal.

The Indians briefly held the lead in Tuesday's 59-46 loss to Octorara, posting a 10-9 first quarter. Donegal's offense was led by Masden's game-high 18 points and was complemented by 15 from Jaden Fabian.

Octorara gathered their momentum in the second quarter and finished the half with a 22-18 advantage and would go on to finish the contest with four athletes netting double digit figures.

In a 55-38 loss at ELCO on Friday the 15th, Masden netted 20 including a four-for-four showing at the line.

Though the Indians kept pace with the Raiders in a close 13-10 opening quarter, the Raiders went on a 17-6 surge in the second, and after opening the lead never looked back.

Adding to the Donegal attack was Luke Yunginger, Joseph Turbedsky, and Dutch Good who each supplied a three-pointer, extending the ELCO defense on the perimeter. Despite their efforts and a 13-point fourth period, the Indians were not able to overcome the deficit.

The night before contained a 57-46 homecourt loss to Big Springs, this time with 19 points from Masden, and Fabian tallying nine, all from beyond the arc.

Big Springs' hot perimeter shooting garnered them 21 points from three-point range which they paired with 20 made free throws, proving themselves to be a formidable opponent.

Seven athletes were honored in the senior night celebration held by Donegal just before the start of the Big Springs contest, highlighting Gavin Hawk, Connor Wilken, Luke Yunginger, Brandon Hauck, Ethan Seidel, Levi Sites, and Xavier Cannon for their contributions to Donegal basketball.

In this unconventional year, the senior send off was held in the first home contest of the season and was also livestreamed for those that could not be in attendance.