Unbeaten Wyomissing plans to lean on size, experience to make it back to title game
2024 Berks basketball coverage presented by
Utilities Employees Credit Union
By Sean McBryan — MikeDragoSports.com correspondent
Twenty-six games into their season the Wyomissing Spartans are peaking says their coach, Aaron Anders.
“We’re playing our best basketball at the exact right time,” Anders said as the second-seeded Spartans continue defense of their District 3 Class 4A crown Monday with a semifinal against No. 3 Northern Lebanon at Wyomissing at 7.
The Spartans (26-0) won their first district championship last season and returned four of their five starters.
Big things were expected this season and the Spartans have come through. They have won more games than any girls basketball team in the state, according to stats on maxpreps.com, and are one of just two remaining unbeaten teams in the state.
The other is Oakland Catholic (24-0), the No. 1 seed in the District 7 Class 5A Tournament.
If Wyomissing wins Tuesday it will face either No. 1 Delone Catholic or No. 4 Bishop McDevitt in the championship Thursday at Giant Center at 4:30.
Junior forward Amaya Stewart (25 points, 12 rebounds) and senior forward Annie McCaffrey (15 points, 11 rebounds) led the way in the Spartans’ 61-39 quarterfinal victory over No. 7 Middletown.
The Spartans plan to again use their size advantage over the Vikings, whose tallest player is 5-8.
“We’re going to establish our presence inside and try to wear them down,” Anders said.
Junior guard Olivia Shutter dropped 18 points and sophomore guard Hayley Sheroky had 10 as the Vikings (19-5) topped No. 6 Trinity 38-35 in the quarterfinals.
The Spartans won Division III of the Berks Girls League and wrapped up back-to-back league titles with a 45-36 victory over Wilson Feb. 16. The Vikings finished second in Section 3 of the Lancaster-Lebanon League behind Lancaster Catholic and lost to Lebanon 57-29 in the league quarterfinals.
Wyomissing and Northern Lebanon haven’t matched up since 2010 but have played six common opponents this season: Kutztown, Schuylkill Valley, Elco, Fleetwood, Brandywine Heights, and Hamburg.
The Spartans defeated all six: Kutztown 40-22, Schuylkill Valley twice 53-29 and 55-15, Elco 43-27, Fleetwood 52-14 and 56-14, Brandywine Heights 43-26, Hamburg 45-12 and 52-17.
The Vikings also beat all six: Kutztown 54-15, Schuylkill Valley 43-35, Elco 38-33 and 38-31, Fleetwood 56-15, Brandywine Heights 35-26, and Hamburg 56-22.
Wyomissing’s offense runs through the 6-1 Stewart, a two-time Berks Player of the Year and likely repeat All-State selection. She averages 19.1 points per game and has scored 1,213 career points.
McCaffrey (7.7 points per game), junior guard Alexis Hardy (6.8), junior forward Audrey Hurleman (4.5), and sophomore guard Kacey Maggs (4.0) join Stewart in the starting lineup and form an elite zone defense that allows 27.3 points per game.
Freshman guard Karly Hyde (3.8) is the first off the bench.
Northern Lebanon’s offense runs through Shutter, who scores at a 13.1 clip. The junior slasher has hit 38 3’s and has 901 career points.
Ken Battistelli, in his 17th season as Vikings coach, starts four sophomores with Shutter: Kasey Weimer (9.5), Sheroky (8.2), Saorise Phillips (3.9), Mackenzie Miller (2.8).
The Vikings also have a stellar defense, allowing only 33.5 points per game.
“They’re a young team,” Anders said. “They’ve got a good culture up there. They love playing defense, they get after it. So it should be a good challenge for us.”
Wyomissing has a 50-50 overall record in the district tournament and is 1-2 in championship games, winning its first title last season and finishing as runner-up in 2004 and 1979.
Northern Lebanon is 14-16 overall and won the title in 2017, the Vikings’ only championship appearance.