Exeter pulls away from Mechanicsburg, heads to PIAA Elite Eight (updated)
(This story will be updated later tonight with additional details and postgame reaction.)
NEFFSVILLE — Exeter again dodged foul trouble and made some key defensive switches in the second half to pull away from Mechanicsburg and advance in the PIAA Class 5A tournment with a 66-49 victory Tuesday at Manheim Township.
The District 3 champion Eagles (25-6) saw All-Berks picks Anthony Caccese and Zyion Paschall each draw a pair of fouls in the first quarter and remain in foul trouble throughout. That was especially concerning since the Eagles were shorthanded, playing without Alex Kelsey, who was suspended one game after being ejected last week against Fox Chapel.
Eagles coach Matt Ashcroft, who has repeatedly gone against convention this season when it comes to protecting players from foul trouble, left both in the game throughout, and his team prospered. Exeter took command with a 9-2 run to end the third quarter and had a 13-point lead entering the fourth.
The Eagles meet Peters Township, a 58-56 winner over Lampeter-Strasburg, in the state quarterfinals Friday, site and time to be determined. The Eagles have reached the state quarterfinals just once before, in 1973-74 when they made it all the way to the PIAA title game.
Exeter has won six straight, 15 of its last 16, and 19 of its last 21.
Reece Garvin, who picked up his fourth foul with 4:15 remaining, hit five 3’s and led Exeter with a game-and career-high 21 points. Caccese, who played the final 10 minutes without picking up a his fourth foul, had 15 points and a game-high 12 rebounds.
Kevin Saenz scored 11 points and Paschall 10 for Exeter.
The 25 wins is tied for second-most in a season program history. The Eagles also won 25 games in 1971-72, and set the program record with a 30-3 mark in 1973-74, both under coach Rod Hand.
Exeter took charge in the final seconds of the third quarter, building a 13-point lead with a five-point possession. Teddy Snyder was fouled making a 3 and went to the line. Garvin grabbed his miss and put it back in for a 47-34 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
Exeter got off to a fast start and led by as many as eight points in the opening minutes as Garvin and Paschall opened the game with 3-pointers.
The Eagles were up 18-11 early in the second after Garvin hit a 3 from well above the top of the key, but Mechanicsburg’s Josh Smith began to get in the groove after that. The sophomore guard scored seven second-quarter points, his three-point play with 27 seconds left giving Mechanicsburg its first lead at 28-27.
Smith finished with a team-high 19 points but just five in the second half after Exeter made adjustments in the way it defended the Wildcats’ ball screen.
The Eagles went back on top when Caccese put back a miss just before the buzzer for a 29-28 halftime lead. Caccese had seven points and seven rebounds in the first half.
Mechanicsburg finished in third place in the Mid-Penn Keystone Division, behind Milton Hershey and Hershey. Two of its losses came to Hershey, one to Milton Hershey; it also beat each team once. Exeter beat both Milton Hershey and Hershey on the way to the District 3 championship.
Mechanicsburg lost to top-seeded Manheim Central 70-52 in the semifinals; Exeter beat Manheim 67-53 in the championship game. It lost to Hershey 51-46 in the third-place game; Exeter beat Hershey 59-46 in the district semis.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final | |
| Mechanicsburg | 9 | 19 | 6 | 15 | 49 |
| Exeter | 12 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 66 |
| Wildcats (18-10) | FG | FT | 3’s | A | R | Points |
| Yanoski | 3-12 | 2-2 | 0-4 | 0 | 4 | 8 |
| Smith | 8-15 | 2-3 | 1-4 | 3 | 9 | 19 |
| Nolan | 0-3 | 0-0 | 0-2 | 2 | 5 | 0 |
| Bardo | 5-12 | 0-0 | 4-4 | 0 | 1 | 14 |
| Brubaker | 4-8 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 3 | 8 |
| Pinsker | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| McCorkel | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dollman | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Totals | 20-52 | 4-5 | 5-16 | 5 | 24-28 | 49 |
| Eagles (25-6) | FG | FT | 3’s | A | R | Points |
| Paschall | 4-8 | 0-0 | 2-3 | 5 | 1 | 10 |
| Saenz | 4-8 | 3-5 | 0-3 | 3 | 3 | 11 |
| Snyder | 3-7 | 0-1 | 1-4 | 2 | 2 | 7 |
| Garvin | 8-13 | 0-0 | 5-8 | 2 | 9 | 21 |
| Cacchese | 7-8 | 1-7 | 0-0 | 0 | 12 | 15 |
| Dauble | 0-0 | 2-2 | 0-0 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
| Sheerin | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Turman | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Ware | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bauer | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Totals | 26-45 | 6-15 | 8-18 | 13 | 31-31 | 66 |
Turnovers: Mechanicsburg 13, Exeter 12.
