Exeter set for first District 3 game in 9 years
2024 Berks basketball coverage presented by
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Exeter senior Grace Reedy and the No. 9 Eagles head to Manheim Central Tuesday night to face the No. 8 Barons in a District 3 Class 5A first-round game. The winner will play at top-seeded York Suburban in the quarterfinals Friday.
The Eagles are in the District 3 field for the first time in nine years, last qualifying in the 4A bracket in 2015.
Reedy, Berks’ top scorer at 20.9 points per game and a two-time All-Berks selection, needs eight points to break Cortney Crockett’s career program scoring record of 1,389.
Exeter hopes to fare better than Berks Girls League counterparts Gov. Mifflin, Oley Valley, and Schuylkill Valley, each of which were eliminated in opening-round play Monday.
Berks Catholic, Wilson, and Wyomissing open play Thursday. The Bulldogs host William Penn in 6A, the Spartans host Middletown in 4A, and the Saints travel to Bishop McDevitt in 4A.
Senior guard Aaliyah Ware (6.1) and junior forward Meredith Fylypowycz (5.7) were all-division selections for the Berks II champs.
The Eagles (14-9) average 45.2 points per game and allow 44.9.
Freshman guards Maddie Gehman (9.2) and Gianna Walters (8.7) lead the scoring attack for the Barons (15-8), who finished in second in Section 2 of the Lancaster-Lebanon League behind Ephrata.
The Barons have put together a nice season after the graduation of 2,000-point scorer Maddie Knier and a senior class that qualified for states last year. Manheim Central allows only 30.3 points per game and scores 36.2.
Neither team has played since Feb. 10 after losses in their respective league quarterfinals. The Eagles fell to Berks Catholic 54-35; the Barons lost 62-32 to Columbia in the Lancaster-Lebanon League tournament.
Exeter has gone 16-15 in district playoff games with one championship, in 1977. Manheim Central has a 19-30 record in district play with no championships.
