2013 in review

By Pat Huggins and John Buffone

The 2013 L-L football season had plenty of twists and turns but in the end, the perennial powers prevailed.

After losing a large amount of their roster to graduation, Wilson faced the task of following a state semifinals run while maintaining its vice grip on Section One. Despite the doubt, the Bulldogs ran the table in the regular season; extending their section win streak to 43 games and winning their sixth straight Section One title. Wilson made it all the way to the District 3 Class AAAA semifinals before bowing out to Lower Dauphin. Along the way to that game, the Bulldogs knocked off Section One rivals Manheim Township (5-6) and Penn Manor (9-3). Two of Penn Manor’s losses in 2013 came from Penn Manor.

While the top of Section One remained the status quo, Hempfield had a redemption year by tying for second place in the section with a 5-2 record (8-4 overall) and qualifying for the AAAA playoffs. Once in, the Knights upset Central Dauphin, 17-7 in the first round before falling, 17-10 to Cumberland Valley in overtime in the quarterfinals.

Lancaster Catholic (6-6) benefitted from its strength of schedule in Section One and qualified for the AAA district playoffs. The Crusaders knocked off fellow L-L team Lampeter-Strasburg, 49-21 in the first round before suffering a 35-21 to Cocalico.

As for Section Two, the October showdown between Manheim Central and Cocalico was promoted all season as the heavyweight fight that would decide the section title. That notion ended up being spot-on. The Barons (13-1) outlasted the Eagles (11-2), 24-12 and went on to claim the Section Two crown with a perfect 7-0 record. Fans of the rivalry were sent into overdrive when the two teams met again in the District 3 semifinals, but the Barons ran away with a 42-20 decision. Central didn’t come out of the game unscathed, however, suffering injuries to key players that hindered its performance against Bishop McDevitt in the district finals. The Barons ultimately fell, 48-7.

Section Three ended in an oddball fashion in 2013 with Donegal winning the section outright with a 5-1 record (6-4 overall). However, the Indians missed the district playoffs while Garden Spot (4-2 in section and 8-3 overall), who lost to Donegal earlier in the season, did qualify. The Spartans bowed out in the first round to Manheim Central, 34-17.

In total, eight Lancaster teams made the district playoffs were a combined 10-9 (including Wilson but excluding Lebanon County teams) in the postseason.

In Lebanon County, the 2013 season was memorable for reasons both good and bad, thrilling and unsettling.

It was, among others things, the season of the Lebanon Cedars and their startling, feel-good resurgence spearheaded by the prolific performances of senior quarterback Mark Pyles, culminating in an unexpected trip to the District 3 Class AAAA playoffs.

It was also the season of the swinging helmet of Hamburg’s Joey Cominsky, who ignited both a wild brawl and a firestorm of controversy when he ripped the helmet off of the head of Annville-Cleona’s Josh Hartman and then bashed him with it during a scuffle in a Week 2 matchup with the Little Dutchmen.

That led to simple assault and disorderly conduct charges being filed against Cominsky before the case was eventually closed.

The story of the season of Pyles and the overachieving Cedars was certainly a more pleasant one, with Lebanon riding its star QB’s 48 total touchdowns — passing and rushing — and over 3,900 yards of total offense to a 7-3 regular-season record and just the second district playoff berth in program history. Lebanon also gave Dallastown a battle in the first round of districts before absorbing a season-ending 37-20 defeat.

Lebanon was the only one of the six Lebanon County teams to surpass the .500 mark in 2013. But despite a 4-6 regular-season record, Annville-Cleona also earned a district playoff spot, in Class AA where it bowed out to Littlestown, 27-10, in the first round.

Also in 2013: Cedar Crest went 3-7 after a promising Cedar Bowl win over Lebanon. Tom Waranavage stepped down after five seasons as head coach. Rob Wildasin takes the reigns at Crest for 2014.

Elco, led by the county’s leading rusher, Cameron Strause (1,107 yards), went 4-6 and was a part of the season’s wildest game, a 55-54 Week 1 loss to Hamburg.

Northern Lebanon (3-7) was also part of a memorably wild game, a 40-39 overtime loss to Lebanon in Week 2 in which Pyles threw a fourth-down TD pass to Nicholas Negron, then hit Negron with a two-point conversion pass to pull off the dramatic win.

Palmyra tasted victory just once in a 1-9 win campaign, but it was a thriller courtesy of a 31-30 triumph over Donegal in Week 3.

The Cougars’ struggles were attributable to a murderous Mid-Penn Keystone Division schedule, which they will escape in 2014 by returning to their former home in the less loaded Capital Division.

That was 2013 in a nutshell. Time to get ready for the 2014 season. It’ll be here before you know it.