Hempfield goalie Matthew Roth punched away a penalty shot blasted toward the net by one of the Dallastown players on Saturday, October 29, in the penalty kick shootout of the District Three Class 4A quarterfinals game at Landisville. In doing so, the senior goalie punched Hempfield's ticket to the district semifinals plus an automatic qualification for the PIAA 4A state playoffs.

The Black Knights (13-4-2) and the Wildcats, whose season ended at 12-6-1, played through regulation as well as two overtime periods without scoring a goal.

"Both teams had a few chances, and I think we had the majority of them," said Knights' coach Mark Ashley. "Both goalies stepped up and kept clean sheets."

In fact, Dallastown starting goalie Tyler Phillips suffered an injury and was replaced by Avery Carpenter.

"Their reserve keeper also did a nice job," said Ashley.

When the shootout round came, Devin Schmitt, Ben Ammon, Jack Tankesley and Kena Bekere each converted on their shots.

Roth, who also goes by the name Tate Roth, allowed two goals despite reaching both of the first two Dallastown shots.

"He actually got a hand on all four penalty kicks, saving two," Ashley pointed out.

Roth's preparation can be credited to goalkeeper coach George Nimo.

"We're very fortunate to have George Nimo on our staff," said Ashley. "He played for the Ghana national team and had been rated number three goalie in the country when he played for Liberty University.

"Last year Tate was behind Noah Felty, but was able to play and gain some experience," Ashley added. "This year he has been phenomenal.

"We hope to stay out of penalty kicks situations going through the playoffs," Ashley laughed. "But if we get there again, we're confident in our shooters and in Tate."

Roth had himself a shutout victory in the Black Knights' next match. Hempfield foiled familiar foe Warwick's attempt to reach the district finals with a 1-0 overtime win. Schmitt provided the lone goal on a penalty kick.

"Devin Schmitt received a through-ball into the box, took a touch and then was taken down with a strong sliding tackle," Ashley explained. "It resulted in a penalty kick and Devin shot true again."

Warwick was an opponent the Knights had beaten twice during the regular season in Section One play.

"It's always very difficult to defeat the same team three times in a season," Ashley said. "This match, Warwick moved a defender to striker and made changes in their midfield."

FOOTBALL

Stephen Katch and Grant Hoover scored two touchdowns each as Hempfield rolled over Reading 40-16 on the road in Lancaster-Lebanon League football Friday night, October 28. The victory clinched the Section One trophy for the Black Knights, who wrapped up the regular season with a 6-0 league mark (8-2 overall).

"For the players in our program, their hard work paid off," head coach George Eager said. "They put so much time and effort into the program the last three years, committing to the weight room, summer workouts and now have something to show for it."

The Black Knights blanked the Red Knights in the first half, forging a 33-0 halftime lead.

"Defensively we were able to pressure and create some third-and-long situations," Eager explained. "We were aggressive all night.

"Offensively, our line was dominant," added the coach. "They paved the way for Hoover, Katch and [Jackson] Landis. It was a total team effort. The players played with purpose."

That offensive line provided openings for Hoover to gain 78 yards on 13 carries and for Katch to gain 42 on nine rushing attempts. Lanids, who ran for 41 yards, completed five of nine pass attempts for 75 yards, including a six-yard scoring toss to Micah Gates.

Gates had two receptions for 32 yards. Andy Garcia had a 30-yard catch.

Both Reading touchdowns came on long pass plays. Ruben Rodriguez, who had three receptions on the night, caught touchdown passes of 80 yards and 71 yards from Amier Burdine in the second half.

The Knights leap-frogged Central York to gain the top spot in the district rankings. They move on to the District Three Class 6A playoffs as the top seed. The Knights play host to eighth seed Carlisle in the first round of districts.

"It is a testament to the tough schedule we played this year that allowed us to leapfrog Central York," Eager said.

Joining the Knights among the eight teams making district playoffs are Section One rivals Wilson and Manheim Township.

"It is impressive that three L-L teams made the playoffs," Eager added. "Really anyone's game from this point on. It will come down to whoever makes the most plays."

CROSS COUNTRY

The Hempfield boys' and girls' cross country teams competed in the District Three Class AAA championship race at Big Spring High School on Saturday, October 29.

The Hempfield boys, led by Aidan Hodge and Joseph Fahrney, finished second in the team standings with 140 points - second only to Greencastle-Antrim's 139. Hodge took third among the field of runners with a time of 15:39.10. Fahrney was fourth at 15:47.70.

The girls' team, led by juniors Ella Wolfe and Molly Siebert, took 14th in the team standings with 373 points - three points ahead of Northeastern. Wolfe was 20th in the race (19:35.20) while Siebert ran a 19:52.30 pace to claim 33rd.

The Hempfield boys had five runners among the top 75 finishers. Along with Hodge and Fahrney, Sam Meyer was 26th at 16:19.00. Isaiah Hollinger (50th, 16:49) and Emerson Long (74th, 17:12.30) finished strong as did Sam Freedman, whose 17:20.70 was good for 86th place.

Senior Chris Titter posted a time of 17:35.80

Ashley Page ran the girls' race at 21:41.2 for 115th place and Norah Rynier (21:54.30) finished 128th. Roz Scott (22:11.80), Leah Forry (22:18.20) and Callie Herr (23:35.10) rounded out Hempfield.

VOLLEYBALL

The Black Knights rallied past Ephrata on Tuesday evening, November 2, at Hempfield in the District Three 4A girls' volleyball semifinals. After the Mountaineers took the opening set 25-18, the Knights charged back to defeat their L-L League opponent 25-20, 25-8 and 25-17.

Addison Leber racked up 17 kills along with four blocks and two aces to lead the Knights (16-1) while Sarah Hess registered 13 kills and three blocks.

Melody Butzer's 42 assists and three aces also contributed to the comeback win as did Reece Calabretta's nine kills on the night.

Taylor Haupt led the Mountaineers, who fell to 19-3 on the year.