The Manheim Central girls' volleyball team beat Conrad Weiser in three games Monday night on game scores of 25-12, 25-20 and 25-13.

The statistic leaders included Maddie Knier with 11 kills and a block. Natalie Siegrist also had a block. Emma Damon added seven digs and Grace Stoltzfus was busy on offense with 16 assists and six aces.

The outcome was not as good in their next match, a 3-0 loss to Ephrata, on Senior Night in Manheim. It was fight and the scores (25-23, 25-21 and 25-18) do not illustrate how close the match was. It was fast paced, with many rallies and plenty of digs and blocks to keep the points alive.

From a 2-1 Central lead, the first game featured 10 ties and the biggest lead was two points. The Barons led 22-20 and the teams were tied at 23 apiece.

The second game had 12 ties. No team pulled away because there were too many unforced errors. No one seized momentum until, tied at 16-16, the Mountaineers went on a 7-0 run for the biggest lead of the match. The Barons narrowed the advantage to 24-21, but that was as close as they could get.

Barons' coach Jason Moyer was pleased with the effort.

"In a really tight game there's an opportunity to have a letdown and they didn't do that," he said. "We've had that before where we we've won big and then there's a letdown or you lose and there's a letdown. This time I felt like we kept the energy. It is hard to do that with some teams, but we were able to do that this time."

Knier paced the Barons with five kills and three blocks. Emma Moyer chipped in three aces, Stoltzfus dished out 12 assists and Damon kept points alive with 22 digs. Manheim extended plays, but ultimately, the Mounts size wore down the Barons.

"You can dodge a bullet only so many times," Moyer said.

BOYS' SOCCER

The Barons battled McCaskey, the two-time defending Section One champion, and pulled out a 2-1 victory at Doe Run on Sept. 30.

The goals came early in this contest, as the Red Tornado scored at the five-minute mark of the opening half and Connor Caterbone evened the game at 1-1 just two minutes later. Bradyn Dombach earned the assist.

In the last minute of the game, Caterbone sent a pass to Dombach, who netted the game-winner. Central now has a 7-5 overall record.

FIELD HOCKEY

This week started off well for Manheim with a 2-0 win against Cocalico on Senior Night in Manheim. Kiley Hosler found the back of the cage and Monica Herman scored on a penalty stroke.

Central was not as fortunate in its next outing, losing 1-0 against Donegal.

"We put up a good fight, especially in the fourth quarter," Barons' coach Morgan Briggs said. "Turnovers plagued us."

On Oct. 1, the Barons beat Elizabethtown, 1-0. Libby Urban score off a feed from Kroesen on a corner. "They did a good job of scoring and executing early and then maintaining possession the rest of the game," Briggs said. "E-town has a superb goalie, so it's always a plus when you can score against her."

Manheim suffered a 3-2 loss to Ephrata on Oct. 4, in a game where the Mountaineers came out fast with two goals in the first four minutes of the game and the Barons were caught back on their heels.

It is an all-too-familiar pattern for the Barons: Start off slow and then get aggressive later in the game, often pulling out the win. It didn't happen this time.

"We feel like many games of late that we have been on our heels, coming from behind, and sometimes we've been fortunate to win those games," Briggs said. "But against probably the best passing team we've seen, you can't start on your heels and expect to win a game like that when they're that strong."

GIRLS' SOCCER

Manheim rolled past McCaskey 7-0 on Sept. 30 in Lancaster. Senior Hannah Adair added to her hot scoring streak (she had two goals earlier in the week against Garden Spot) registering four goals.

Abbie Reed had a big game with two goals and three assists. Kaylee Neff also scored. Summer Bates registered three assists. The Barons have a 6-3 record.

CROSS COUNTRY

Michael Greenwald (19:41) finished fifth overall, but his Barons lost to Columbia 15-50 and Northern Lebanon 18-37 on Oct. 5.

Greenwald wasn't the only one to deliver a strong performance. Cameron Evans (21:16) was seventh and Carter Bruckhart (21:32), Judah Bruckhart (22:15) and Joshua Noll (22:23) placed nine through 11, respectively.

Barons coach Ryan Kennedy said his squad continues to improve.

"Boys are in a bit of a rebuilding year," he said. "We are fortunate to have Michael Greenwald as a strong front runner. We also have some young guys with potential, so the future is bright."

The girls beat Columbia 15-50 and Northern Lebanon 20-43. Jenna Moffett was the top finisher for the Barons with a 23:12, good for second overall.

Her teammates were close behind, as the next three finishers were all Central runners and a seven of the top nine came from Manheim. Olivia Sunderland (22:18) was third overall, followed closely by Reagan Ibach (23:27) and Julie Lindberg (23:51).

Madelynn Hoffman (25:50) was seventh and Alaina Bruckhart (26:04) and Taylor Bruckhart (27:03) placed eighth and ninth, respectively. Paige Heslop (28:13) was 13th.

The pure dominance by these Lady Barons is something fans have come to expect. Their coach could see this excellence building.

"Over the past few years, we've had our eye on this season as our best chance to clinch the section title," Kennedy said. "We are in a good spot with one meet to go. I'm proud of the girls for sticking together over the years. They've been working hard since June and some of them have made huge improvements."

FOOTBALL

Fans sitting in the bleachers at Rettew Stadium wondered how Warwick lost its last two games. The Warriors came ready to play and racked up 522 yards of offense in a 35-28 win, handing the Barons (5-1) their first loss of season.

Central was in control early, scoring on its opening drive. Running back Justin Heffernan scored the first of four touchdowns, finishing with 145 yards. Judd Novak's tossed 14-yard TD pass to Logan Hostetter help put Manheim on top at halftime, 28-27.

Warwick won the battle at the line of scrimmage in the second half and pulled away for the win.