Blue Devils Drop Road Conaest to Polar Bears 

By Ed Gotwals on 12/12/25

Northern York 49, Greencastle-Antrim 37: The Polar Bears held the Blue Devils to just 23% shooting from the field Friday night in a non-league game in Dillsburg.

Northern (5-0, 2-0 MPC) led by 1 point at halftime, but outscored G-A 15-9 in the third quarter and pulled away.

“Our shooting troubles finally caught up with us late in the third quarter,” Greencastle coach Scott McKeever said, “and we saw a nip-and-tuck road game slowly slip away. We weren’t able to close the gap in the fourth quarter.”

The Blue Devils (3-3, 0-2 MPC) hit only 1 of 8 attempts from 3-point range.

Kiersten Swain scored 13 points for Greencastle. Ellie Bigler had 8 points, 5 rebounds and 4 steals and Callie Izer had 7 points, 5 boards and 4 assists. Sophie Fries had 6 rebounds and 3 steals.

Mid-Penn Colonial Division girls basketball: Predicted order of finish, key players, preseason MVP

By Eric Epler on 12/10/25

The 2025-26 girls basketball season is already a week old, so there’s just enough time to highlight the teams competing in the always tough Mid-Penn Colonial. We polled division coaches for their predicted order of finish and preseason MVP. Check it out. Teams are listed in descending order.

8. EAST PENNSBORO

Head coach: Paula Shermeyer

Last year: 3-17 (2-12 division, T-7^th)

Key players: Riley Uhrich, sr. G; Sophie Livingston, so. G; Amina Alami, fr. F/C; Alyssa Briner, sr. F; Chelsea Hoover, sr. G/F; Mykelle China, fr. G.

Buzz: It’s certain a healthy climb back to “challenger” status in the division, although Shermeyer has a solid group to work with. Seniors Uhrich, Hoover and Briner have persevered through the tough battles, and the addition of forward Alami and Livingston should provide a needed boost offensively. That’s really the issue at hand, putting some more points on the board to have a chance deep in the second half.

7. WEST PERRY

Head coach: Shannon Dyer

Last year: 6-16 (4-10 division, 6^th)

Key players: Mariah Blumenschein, so. G; Austynn Wolf, sr. F; Campbell Kolak, so. G; Haley Prowell, sr. F; Audrey Gardner, jr. G; Brooklyn Wolf, sr. G/F; Lilly Daneker, so. F.

Buzz: While it might be difficult to duplicate last year’s win total – Dyer could mix in nearly a dozen freshman to help the cause – a few seniors remain to bring the rookies up to speed. Wolf and Prowell represent the size, with both standing 5-9, and Wolf leading a deep list of guards. Dyer said the goal is merely to get one step better every time out.

6. GETTYSBURG

Head coach: Rick Keller

Last year: 6-16 (2-12 division, T-7^th)

Key players: Izzy Sites, jr. G; Emma Rohrbach, jr. G; Alice Harnish, jr. G/F; Bailey Irvin, fr. G/F.

Buzz: Can the Warriors challenge day-to-day in one should be another brutish division schedule? Sites, averaging 8 ppg. as a sophomore, does represent the only returning full-time starter for coach Keller. However, Rohrbach is a splendid leader and defender while Keller is banking on getting the versatile Irvin back from injury at some point.

5. SHIPPENSBURG

Head coach: Clayton Stine

Last year: 10-12 (6-8 division, 5^th)

Key players: Lilly Weller, sr. G; Cora Chamberlin, sr. G; Peyton Coy, jr. G; Azula Navarro, jr. C; Tressa Triplett, jr. G/F; Bryndley Henderson, so. G.

Buzz: Stine has been with the program for three seasons but this represents his first as head coach. The Greyhounds are in pretty good shape, too, but finding a bit more consistency in the early weeks is the goal. Shipp returns its entire starting 5 from last year’s up and down season. Navarro paced the MPC last year with a whopping 350 reobunds.

4. GREENCASTLE-ANTRIM

Head coach: Scott McKeever

Last year: 11-11 (8-6 division, T-3^rd)

Key players: Sophie Fries, jr. F; Ellie Bigler, jr. G; Kiersten Swain, jr. G; Callie Izer, sr. G; Olivia Carey, sr. F; Braelyn Cordell, so. G.

Buzz: It might be wise to tighten up the game plan vs. the Blue Devils. For starters, Swain pitched in 9.5 points and three boards a game last year. Fries (6.4 ppg.) and Bigler (6.0 ppg., 5.2 rpg.) took turns playing leading roles. Izer and Carey provided a steady stream of rebounds, steals and whatever else G-A needed on a particular night. This group will apply pressure.

3. WAYNESBORO

Head coach: Tyler Stoner

Last year: 13-9 (8-6 division, T-3^rd)

Key players: Braelynn Pearson-Moore, jr. F; Breanna McIlquham, sr. G; Madeline Nystrom, so. PG; Aly Shockey, sr. G; Kyla Hedin, jr. F; Haley Reynolds, sr. G/F.

Buzz: It was an abrupt finish for the Indians a season ago after shuffling into the division’s top 4 only to miss the postseason. The good news for Stoner is a couple of versatile talents are back to make another run. Between Pearson-Moore, averaging 12 points in the first week of the season, McIlquham, Nystrom and more, Waynesboro can be dangerous with a few more points on the board.

2. NORTHERN YORK

Head coach: Paula Clendaniel

Last year: 23-4 (13-1 division, T-1^st)

Key players: Tae Townsend, sr. G; Liz Montgomery sr. F; Anika Mladdenoff, jr G; Kate Jayman, jr. G; MacKenna Bonner, so. F; Ava Ondecko, so. F.

Buzz: The Polar Bears, already running hot at 3-0, will attempt to capitalize on a pretty sound ’24-25 campaign. Northern earned a piece of the division title and then clawed its way into a fifth-place finish in districts. Returning starters Townsend (6.5 ppg.) and the 5-11 Montgomery (5.0 ppg.) were a big part of that surge.

1. MIDDLETOWN

Head coach: LaSonda Dixon

Last year: 23-4 (13-1 division, T-1st)

Key players: Jayla Koser, sr. G; Emma Cleland, sr. PG; Destiney Gassert, sr. F; Journee Stover, sr. G; Jaliyah Stover, sr. G; Riley Cavrich, jr. PG; Aja Rossum, jr. G.

Buzz: Yep, the Blue Raiders own the bullseye after sharing the Colonial crown with Northern a year ago, racing to a runner-up finish in D3, and making the PIAA second round. 1,000-point scorer Koser and Cleland, also a terrific defender, are among the best 1-2 combos in the conference. Those other gamers all played pivotal roles in those 23 victories in ’24-25

Colonial Division preseason MVP

Jayla Koser, G, Middletown

Koser is PennLive’s reigning player of the year and easy choice by division coaches. The versatile 5-11 guard and Mount St. Mary’s recruit surpassed the 1,000-point mark in January and capped the season averaging 18.4 points with 11 double-doubles during a 23-4 season.

Blue Devils fall in Conference Opener to Middletown

By Ed Gotwals on 12/10/25

Middletown 59, Greencastle-Antrim 40: The Blue Devils trailed by only 3 points early in the third period, but the Blue Raiders pulled away for a Mid Penn Colonial win at Greencastle on Wednesday night.

Jayla Koser was tough for G-A to handle on defense, scoring 23 points, including five 3-pointers. she scored at last 4 points in each quarter for Middletown (3-0, 1-0 MPC).

The Blue Devils (3-2, 0-1 MPC) had a 7-0 run early in the game, but then went about 4 minutes without scoring. They trailed by 10 at halftime and used a quick start in the third to get within 3 points before the Blue Raiders pulled away.

For Greencastle, Kiersten Swain kept her team in the game with 18 points and 5 rebounds. Sophie Fries added 8 point and 6 boards. Ellie Bigler had 6 rebounds and Liv Carey had 5.

Blue Devils defeat rival Rockets

By Ed Gotwals on 12/8/25

Greencastle-Antrim 48, James Buchanan 42: The Blue Devils outscored the Rockets 18-9 at the free throw line Monday night in Mercersburg to earn a close non-league victory.

Callie Izer

After taking an 8-4 lead after one quarter,  G-A (3-1) ran out to an 18-4 advantage. But JB kept chipping away at that lead and eventually tied the game in the fourth period. Greencastle held on behind some late free throws by Kiersten Swain and Ellie Bigler.

“JB is always a tough place to play and it took everything we had to come away with a victory,” Blue Devil coach Scott McKeever said. “We had an advantage inside tonight and we did a good job of getting the ball in to Callie (Izer) and Sophie (Fries). The fact that our guards are learning how to play 32 minutes against a press was a key, too.”

Izer led the Blue Devils with 12 points, while Fries contributed 11 (plus 11 rebounds and 4 blocked shots), and Liv Carey and Kiersten Swain each tallied 8. Bigler added 13 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 steals.

For the Rockets (1-1), Kendyl Stoner had the hot hand with 22 points. After a scoreless first quarter, she dropped in 8 in the second and 9 in the third periods. Ainsley Green added 10 for JB.

The teams combined to commit 27 fouls and shoot 49 free throws. G-A was held without a 3-pointer (0-for-6), after making 12 in its last game.

Blue Devil girls take down Carlisle in hoops

By Ed Gotwals on 12/6/25

Greencastle-Antrim 69, Carlisle 57: The Blue Devils were deadly from 3-point range (hitting 12 of 22 shots from behind the arc), to defeat Carlisle in the third-place game at the South Western Tip Off Tournament on Saturday afternoon.

Sophie Fries

Liv Carey and Kiersten Swain each banged in four 3-pointers, Morgan Baer had 3 and Ellie Bigler added one.

Greencastle (2-1) put on a late run to go ahead by 7 points at halftime, and expanded it to as many as 17 points in the third quarter. The Thundering Herd rallied behind a press to get it to within 10, but G-A sealed the win by making 4 of 6 free throws down the stretch.

“The girls really bounced back (from a loss last night) and played a complete game at both ends,” Greencastle coach Scott McKeever said. “Our ball movement was crisp and it led to a lot of good looks inside and out. I could not be more pleased with their response, because we were short-handed, we had a long bus ride and we had a quick turnaround.”

Swain came up with 21 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists, while Carey and Sophie Fries each had a double-double —  Carey had 17 points and 12 boards, and Fries had 12 points and 11 rebounds. Also, Bigler tossed in 13 points and added 8 boards and 8 assists, and Baer had 9 points.

Balanced Mustangs top G-A girls

By Ed Gotwals on 12/5/25

South Western 56, Greencastle-Antrim 25: The Mustangs put 9 players in the scoring column and handled the Blue Devils in a first-round game of the South Western Tip-Off Tournament on Friday night in Hanover.

Liv Carey

South Western will play York Catholic in the final Saturday at 4 p.m., while G-A will play Carlisle at 2:30. The Herd fell 45-40 to York Catholic.

Carly Louey paced the Mustangs with 22 points, scoring 6 in the first period and 8 each in the second and third.

Greencastle (1-1) had no players in double figures. Liv Carey led in scoring with 8 points.