Following two close losses, the Spartans fell to 4-9 on the year and 2-4 in league play.

Coming off their 65-46 loss at Lancaster Catholic on Friday, February 12, the Spartans came up short by an aggregate total of six points in their next two contests.

At Lancaster Catholic, the Crusaders carried the momentum into and out of the locker room at halftime. Garden Spot's two-point lead faded in the second half as the Crusaders worked a 33-26 lead at the midway point. They outscored the Spartans 21-8 in the third stanza.

The biggest contributor to the Garden Spot offense was Brendan Weaver, who put up 16 points. He hit a pair of treys and was 2-for-2 at the charity stripe.

The Saturday loss at Solanco was a back-and-forth flow of momentum. Solanco took charge in the second quarter and gained a 31-24 halftime edge before the Spartans went on a third-quarter 17-9 run to make it 41-40 in their favor.

The home team managed to eke out a 51-49 victory as the Mules earned their first win of the year.

Joseph Sharp led the Spartans with 11 points while Weaver and Dylan Nolt each scored eight.

In a non-league game at Octorara on Tuesday, the basketball was finding the net at a rapid pace, particularly from three-point range. The Spartans swooshed in 12 treys while the Braves connected three times.

Both teams finished with over 20 points in the second and third periods. In the end, the four-point edge Octorara held after one period was the winning margin in the Braves' 75-71 triumph.

Jesse Martin, with six triples, scored 20 points for the Spartans. Nolt scorched three more treys and finished with 11 while Steiner's 10-point game included a pair of treys.

GIRLS' BASKETBALL

The Garden Spot girls' basketball team posted back-to-back wins as the Spartans improved to 2-10 on the year. On a Saturday afternoon game in New Holland, the Spartans topped Solanco 49-42. It was the team's first Section Three win of the year. Hosting Pequea Valley on Tuesday, February 16, they came away with a 44-40 non-league victory.

Garden Spot rebounded nicely after a 70-47 defeat on Friday, February 12. They came out the very next afternoon and improved their league record to 1-6 by beating Solanco.

Solanco held a slim two-point lead heading into the fourth quarter of the game but the Spartans outscored Solanco 22-13 down the stretch.

Morgan Pavelik led all scorers. The Spartan freshman poured in 18 points, including a pair of three-pointers. Taylor Soehner contributed 14 points, including a perfect 8-for-8 at the free throw line. Caroline Martin's 11-point game also gave the offense a huge lift.

Against Pequea, the Spartans dominated the first half, taking a 26-10 lead at halftime. The Braves trimmed only one point off that deficit heading into the final period where they outscored the Spartans 18-7. Garden Spot hung on to win by four.

Sohner and the Braves' Sarah Arment shared game-high honors with 18 points each. Pavelick tallied nine points while Erin Gonzalez added eight.

Gonzalez had a team-high 18 points, including three treys, in the loss to Columbia the previous Friday. Soehner scored 16.

Garden Spot's league record fell to 1-7 after a low-scoring 35-23 loss at Cocalico on Wednesday, February 17. Gonzalez led Spot with nine points, including a pair of treys. Soehner scored six points while Pavelik and Nicole Zeiset each scored four.

WRESTLING

The Spartan wrestling team finished in a three-way tie for fourth place at the Lancaster-Lebanon League Championships, which were held at Manheim Township on Saturday, February 13.

Garden Spot, Lampeter-Strasburg and Lancaster Catholic all finished with 48 team points. Township took the top spot with 125 points.

Spartans coach Adam Bunting explained the difference between this year's format and previous years for the league tournament.

"It was limited to the top eight wrestlers for each weight class," Bunting said. "So, right out of the gate you were in the quarterfinals in each weight class."

The team's strong showing was highlighted by remarkable individual performances, including a top finish by Garrett Gehr at 132.

In addition, Dustin Swanson (285) took second while senior Mason Casey was fourth at 126.

"Garrett Gehr has not lost this year," Bunting noted. "He worked his way back from an injury last year and is in one of the toughest weight classes. In leagues, there were five or six place winners from last year."

Undaunted, Gehr posted a 9-1 major decision to start the day, defeating Hempfield's Clay Gainer. He came through with a 13-4 defeat of Solanco's Jackson Houghton in the semis before claiming a tough 5-3 decision in the championship bout - defeating Braedan Amole of Octorara.

"It was probably the closest match of the year," Bunting said of the title bout. "His closest until then was a 14-9 win early in the year."

Casey's day included a milestone victory. He opened with a pin but had to battle back through the consolation brackets following a 7-3 loss to Solanco's Jared Fulton.

"It was 5-3 with about a minute left," Bunting noted. "Mason was pushing for a takedown to tie it, but the kid rode him out."

Casey outlasted Hempfield's Braeden Edwards in a 7-4 decision in the consolations, notching his 100th career victory.

In the third-place match, he fell short, 5-3, to Pequea Valley's Jace Beegle.

"Beegle is a very tough wrestler," Bunting remarked. "He was a state qualifier the year before last."

Swanson also opened with a pin. In fact, he had two first-period pins, victimizing Nick Brotzman of Donegal 1:15 into the bout and Hempfield's Caleb Mussmon 1:40 into the semi-finals.

In the title bout, Swanson fell to Zac Shelley of L-S in a tough 3-1 decision and was denied a third straight league title.

"Dustin had beaten Shelley earlier in the year for his 100th career win," Bunting noted. "He's a big physical guy. It was a flurry at the end and Dustin lost 3-1.

"Dustin was wrestling with a fracture in his right hand," Bunting added. "He had to wrestle with his wrist heavily wrapped, which was affecting how he was using his hand. He showed a lot of toughness."

At 138, Jeremy Schilling squared off against Keaton Fischer of Conestoga Valley in a first-round match that saw Fischer win 10-8.

"Schilling wrestled a really tough match," Bunting remarked. "He was down by a point with a minute left. Went for a takedown but couldn't get one more point to go his way. He has had a few close losses this year."

The Spartan junior had a formidable opponent in the first match of the consolations. Winning on a second-period pin, Hempfield's Kamron Fickes moved to the next round.

Both Adam Hahn and Aaron Martin underwent the same loss-win-loss pattern at their respective weight classes. At 106, Hahn was unable to solve eventual champ Kaedyn Williams of Manheim Township. He did post an 11-5 victory over Pequea's Liam McGinley only to lose on a fall to Owen Lehman of Northern Lebanon in the second round of the consolations.

Martin (145) lost on a fall to Octorara's Michael Trainor, but bounced back with a decisive 8-1 win against Andrew McClune of Warwick. In the next consis match, Martin dropped a 9-0 major to N. Lebanon's Kayden Clark.