MIDDLETOWN, Pa. – It's not often that a school that enters a new conference can legitimately claim to have made a rival by the end of year number one participating in its new league. By the time the 2013-14 athletic season came to an end, however, Penn State Harrisburg was able to make such a claim. Another Capital Athletic Conference (CAC) program just 40 minutes south of Middletown pushed the Lions to some of their most exciting matchups of the season across multiple sports. It's the organic fruition of that new, young in-state rivalry with York (Pa.) that ranks number ten on our list of Penn State Harrisburg's 2013-14 top ten moments.
The first of the Blue & White's thrilling contests with the Spartans came in mid-fall when the Lions' men's soccer team hosted the nation's eighth-ranked squad in York (Pa.). Penn State Harrisburg played the visitors tough and got off seven shots, three of which were on target. Unfortunately for the Lions, a hybrid Spartan cross/shot attempt from the right sideline just barely lifted over the outstretched arms of Blue & White goalkeeper Brandon Hoover (Lancaster, Pa. / Pequea Valley) in the 57th minute; a lone score that proved to be the difference. Hoover was outstanding in net and made seven crucial saves that kept his team within striking distance. Senior Justin Henderson (Cherry Hill, N.J. / Cherry Hill East), junior Michael Jones (Harrisburg, Pa. / Central Dauphin) and freshman Malik Cameron (Bronx, N.Y. / Cardinal Spellman) all got off shots-on-goal in the team's hard-fought 1-0 defeat.
The next showdown between the two schools was an early December men's basketball matchup that went the Lions' way. Penn State Harrisburg's first trip to the Spartans' Charles Wolf Gymnasium was a memorable one as the Blue & White picked up their first-ever CAC victory; a 70-65 decision over the home team. The squads traded the lead seven times in the first half before the visitors took a 37-30 advantage into the break. The Lions led by as many as 12 in the second half before York (Pa.) made a late push to cut the lead to single digits in the game's waning moments. But Penn State Harrisburg converted its free throws down the stretch to put the game out reach. Senior captain William Doyle (Franklin, Va. / Tidewater Academy) led the way for the Blue & White with 15 points while junior Alberto De Los Santos (Enola, Pa. / East Pennsboro) and freshman Marquese Daniels (Philadelphia, Pa. / Philadelphia Electric & Technology Charter) added 13 tallies apiece. As if one close game wasn't enough, the second time around was even more thrilling. The late-January heart-stopper saw York (Pa.) top the Blue & White 61-60 in overtime at the Capital Union Building.
The spring matchups between the two schools proved no different. In early April, the Lions' baseball team hosted York (Pa.) in another meeting that came down to the wire. After being hammered by the Spartans a few weeks earlier, Penn State Harrisburg played with a vengeance on this afternoon and jumped out to an early 1-0 lead in the bottom of the third inning when junior John Cataldo (Pine Grove, Pa. / Pine Grove) scored following a sacrifice bunt by junior Cody Henry (Halifax, Pa. / Halifax) and an ensuing York (Pa.) error. The Lions rolled from there as the team got an outstanding effort on the mound from junior pitcher Clint Hicks (State College, Pa. / State College). Unfortunately, with two outs in the top of the ninth inning, a Penn State Harrisburg error on a play that looked like it would end the game allowed the tying run to score. The lone Spartan hit of the stanza drove in another run and gave the visitors a 2-1 advantage they wouldn't relinquish. Hicks was stellar, pitching 8.2 innings and allowing just six hits and no earned runs in addition to striking out three York (Pa.) batters while seven Blue & White batters recorded hits.
One week later, it was the ladies who came oh so close to toppling the Green & White. Penn State Harrisburg's softball team traveled south to take on the Spartans in doubleheader action and left without a victory but not before putting a scare into the hosts in game number two. The Lions fell behind 2-0 in the early going before posting four runs in the top of the sixth inning. A single by junior Gabrielle Wolfe (New Milford, Pa. / Blue Ridge) plated freshman Kayla Seyfert (Lebanon, Pa. / Cedar Crest) and an Erika Love (Harrisburg, Pa. / Central Dauphin East) three-run home run gave the ladies their first lead of the game. York (Pa.) answered back with two runs in the bottom of the stanza and the game went to extra innings. In the top of the eighth, with Seyfert on second base, freshman Leah Palm (Hummelstown, Pa. / Lower Dauphin) laid down a sacrifice bunt to advance the frosh but a controversial interference call resulted in Palm being called out and Seyfert having to return to second base from third. The Blue & White were unable to score and the Spartans took advantage by plating the game-winning run in the bottom of the eighth.
The final showdown between the Lions and Spartans came on the links at the CAC's championship golf outing in late April. After finishing three strokes behind York (Pa.) in the team's home invitational in the fall, Penn State Harrisburg exacted a bit of revenge on its way to a runner-up finish. The two-day outing was neck-and-neck most of the way and the Lions shot a combined 618; three strokes better than their counterparts from York (Pa.). Freshman Tyler Shank (Palmyra, Pa. / Palmyra Area) led the way for the Blue & White, shooting a two-day 149 and finishing tied with a Spartan golfer for the individual runner-up spot. Both men finished just three strokes back of the champion. For his efforts, Shank earned a spot on the CAC all-conference first-team and was named the league's Newcomer of the Year. Sophomore Tyler Serres (Camp Hill, Pa. / Trinity) shot a combined 154, good enough to rank him seventh overall. Senior Jason Long (Rockhill Furnace, Pa. / Southern Huntingdon County) finished tied for tenth thanks to a 156 two-day total. Both young men were named to the CAC all-conference second-team.
Be sure to check back later as we continue counting down Penn State Harrisburg's top ten moments of the 2013-14 season. Next, we remember two players' outstanding Senior Day efforts…against York (Pa.) of all schools…