The boys' basketball team will be playing for their first ever Lancaster-Lebanon League Title after topping Cedar Crest 49-46 in their L-L semifinal clash that took place February 15th at Conestoga Valley. The two sides played nearly even-up through three quarters with the Falcons holding a slim 33-31 lead. Central turned it on down the stretch, posting an 18-13 edge in the final frame to collect the 49-46 victory.

Trey Grube posted a team high 16 with Aaron Enterline adding 13 points.

Central earned their semifinal slot with a 59-56 thriller over Octorara on the 13th. The Barons opened hot, jumping out to a 21-13 lead after the first. Octorara began their slow climb back in the second with a 14-13 edge and took a few big steps in the third with a 15-12 advantage. The Braves posted another 14-13 edge in the fourth, leaving Central holding a three-point win.

Manheim's final regular season game took place February 9th with the Barons topping Warwick 65-56. Central used Grube's 27-point game to take control early, their 31-22 halftime cushion able to withstand Warwick's 14-8 run through the third frame. Manheim Central regrouped heading into the final quarter leading to a 26-20 edge and the 65-56 final. Zach Benner netted 13 points as the only other Baron in double digits.

GIRLS' BASKETBALL

Twenty wins in a high school basketball season is quite a feat with only a handful of programs reaching the marker each season. The Lady Barons are one of those squads this season, using a 56-22 thrashing of Lampeter-Strasburg in the Lancaster-Lebanon League quarterfinals to improve to 20-3 on the year. The victory was not only Central's 20th of the season, it was also their 14th in a row, quite a feat in its own right.

Manheim took control of the game over the middle two frames, outscoring L-S 32-10, turning a 9-6 game into a 41-16 romp. The Lady Barons did not let up, posting a 15-6 run through the fourth to set the 56-22 final.

Maddie Knier collected a game high 28, including a staggering 13 of Manheim's 17 second quarter points. Kaylie Kroll just made the double-digit club with 10 points.

What took Manheim Central nearly seven weeks to build, came to an end on February 14th when the Lady Barons dropped their L-L semifinal game with Columbia by a 51-29 final. Columbia controlled from the opening whistle putting Manheim in a 15-3 hole after the first. The deficit grew to 33-10 at the break and 47-19 heading into the final quarter. Manheim was able to post a 10-4 edge in the final frame to trim the deficit a bit to 51-59.

Knier netted a team high 16, putting her at 1933 points for her career leaving her just shy of Hilary Waltman's program record 1937 points.

Manheim Central closed out the regular season back on February 9th, topping Warwick by a 59-38 final. The Lady Barons were fueled by Knier's 32 points which split nicely by halves, 18 and 13. Central opened an eight-point lead in the first but really got going with a 17-5 second quarter run, sparked by Knier's 14 point frame. A nearly even second half put the final at 59-38.

BOWLING

The bowling team had their L-L title dreams dashed in the quarterfinals where they dropped their match opposite Ephrata by a 2-1 final.

RIFLE

After finishing the regular season in a three-way tie for first place with Ephrata and Manheim Township the rifle team headed to Conestoga Valley on February 11th for the Lancaster-Lebanon League Individual Tournament. The Barons managed to place two shooters in the top 25, led by Nate Sauder and his 8th place tally of 199 and one center. Genna Eberly ended up 21st after shooting a 197 with three centers. The L-L also handed out All-Star nods, awarding the 10 highest averages over the course of the regular season. Sauder was one of those All-Stars, finishing with a 99.1 average.

SWIMMING

The Manheim Central swimmers, along with the rest of the Lancaster-Lebanon League descended on Wilson High School February 10th and 11th for the 2022-2023 edition of the League Championship Meet.

Just one Lady Baron participated but Ashley Mellinger came home with a gold and a silver medals for her work.

"She swam well, improving her times," said head coach Heather Fittery. "We are looking forward to seeing what she can do at the District meet."

Mellinger's gold came in the 100 butterfly where the freshman clocked a 57.94, nipping Garden Spot's Kayla Parry by 0.29 seconds. Mellinger's silver came in the 200 IM where her 2:09.04 was just over a second off Mia Perry of Garden Spot.

The boy's team made their lone podium trip during Friday's festivities, with Anderson Pilsner, Chase Kirchner, Bryce Steach and Bryce Garber combining for a 1:50.20 in the 200 medley relay, the seventh fastest time of the day. That same quartet accounted for seven of the Baron's 10 individual events.

Pilsner finished 14th in the 200IM (2:15.22) and 12th in the 100 backstroke with a time of 59.25. Garber was just off Pilsner's pace in the 100 backstroke, finishing in 13th with a 59.26. Garber's other solo race was the 50 freestyle where his 23.50 slotted him 11th.

Chase Kirchner also took part in two solo events, finishing 18th in the 100 butterfly (1:03.47) and 25th in the 100 breaststroke with a time of 1:11.91. Steach turned in a 1:00.42 in the 100 butterfly, good enough for 15th place.

Avery Kirchner ended up 16th in the 500 freestyle with a 5:30.07, and Ryan Moreno took part in Manheim's final solo event, placing 24th in the 100 freestyle.

The Baron's 400 freestyle relay team posted a 3:56.14, leaving Avery Kirchner, Moreno, Caleb Bower, and Chase Kirchner in the 10th position. Pilsner, Avery Kirchner, Steach and Garber finished 11th in the 200 freestyle relay, posting a 1:40.70

"We had a great weekend of swims," added Fittery.