Cumberland Valley came within one win of capturing a PIAA Class AAA championship last fall. The Eagles are using the loss to Peters Township as motivation for 2013, and with the talent that is back in the fold, Seth Lehman's club is primed for another run at a Mid-Penn Commonwealth title and a deep postseason run.
The consensus among the Commonwealth coaches is that CV is once again the team to beat. The battle for the second spot, though, will be entertaining with up-and-coming Cedar Cliff, State College and Red Land all in the mix. Plus, how much will Central Dauphin improve and is Carlisle the division's dark horse?
PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH
1. Cumberland Valley
2. Cedar Cliff
3. State College
4. Red Land
5. Central Dauphin
6. Carlisle
7. Chambersburg
8. CD East
9. Mifflin County
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Coach: Seth Lehman (6th season)
2012 record: 23-3-1, 14-1-1
2013 outlook: A ton of expectations have befallen an Eagles' squad that not only won the Mid-Penn Conference title, but also made it to the District 3-AAA semifinals and the PIAA Class AAA championship game. CV is determined to get back to the state final and get over the hump. Plenty of last year's standouts, including Falconer (19g, 11a) and Sneidman (27g, 12a) are back in the fold.
Players: Lisa Nanov (sr mf), Emily Hoke (sr def), Amy Elgin (sr mf), Maddie Titus (sr for), Jess Pink (sr for), Jen Falconer (jr for), Taylor Sneidman (jr for), Molly Stanton (jr mf), Delaney Liu (jr def), Lilly Shover (jr mf), McKenna McMaster (jr mf), Jenny Bail (so mf), Emily Keitel (so def).
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Coach: Koren McKay (9th season)
2012 record: 14-5, 12-4
2013 outlook: McKay lost top scorer Katie Jaxheimer, but the contributions made by some of the younger players in getting Cliff to the 3-AAA playoffs are back. Chapman, DiSante, Frank and Esser all contributed offensively and all are juniors or younger. Certainly enough talent and skill to be right with State College and Red Land for the second spot.
Players: Miranda Gallucci (mf), Taylor Chapman (for), Paige Byers (def), Devon DiSante (for), Madison Gulliford (def), Lauren Esser (def/mf), Olivia Shade (def/mf), Kira Pushart (mf/for), Maddie Ortenzio def/mf), Katey Frank (mf/for).
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Coach: Kevin Morooney (23rd season)
2012 record: 14-5-1, 12-4
2013 outlook: Derr and the Crawford sisters are three terrific options for Morooney as they look for another District 6 title and a trip to the state playoffs. The Little Lions made a nice account of themselves in their first season in the Mid-Penn. SC will have a lot of new faces on defense, though, as they look to make a jump to the second spot in the Commonwealth.
Players: Megan Reid (sr), Victoria Crawford (sr), Robin Derr (sr), Caitlyn McCarthy (sr), Luba Hristova (sr), Korey Taylor (sr), Chloe Melnick (sr), Rachel Chambers (so), Lauren Campolongo (jr), Megan Fry (jr), Sarah McNutt (jr), Lauren Holleran (sr), Molly Pate (jr), Lauren Anderson (so), Haley Crawford (so), Taylor Campbell-Phipps (jr).
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Coach: Jamie Miller (6th season)
2012 record: 16-3-1, 13-2-1
2013 outlook: Miller admits the Patriots have some holes to fill, particularly on the offensive side. The loss of the ultra-talented Bryce Watts (torn ACL) and the graduation of Maddie Todd leaves Red Land without two of its scoring threats from the 2012 team that made the District 3-AAA quarterfinals. Still some good, veteran experience in the midfield and on defense to keep Miller's club in the mix.
Players: Rachel Fox (jr gk), Chelsea Flower (jr def), Emmi Santoleri (sr def), Erin Keller (sr mf), Marisa Yeager (sr def), Taylor Zeiders (jr mf), Taylor Simmons (sr mf/def), Jessica Thomas (sr mf/for).
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Coach: Chris Fox (1st season)
2012 record: 8-9-1, 6-9-1
2013 outlook: Fox, an assistant last season, takes over a CD side that returns 15 players with varsity experience. Amstutz is a solid option up front with good scoring punch. Flamm, Burkholder and DeFebo are also capable scoring options for the Rams. Looking to get over the .500 mark this season and into the postseason.
Players: Zoe Fletcher (sr gk), Somer Meadath (sr def), Shayna Pressley (sr def), Mikaela Paris (sr mf), Kimmy Benkovic (sr for), Haley Burkholder (sr mf), Gretchen Wenrich (sr for), Gabby Flamm (jr for), Emily Matte (jr def), Christina Powley (jr mf), Chloe DeFebo (jr mf), Caitlyn Mann (sr def), Anne Long (jr def), Allie Amstutz (sr for).
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Coach: Lester Felician (1st season)
2012 record: 6-12, 6-10
2013 outlook: There is some high optimism with the Herd this season as a strong nucleus returns coupled with the well traveled Felician now at the helm. A lot of good, young talent starting with Coplen and Varner lead us to believe that this group could be a dark horse in the division.
Players: Brooklyn Ashby (so), Caroline Bixby (sr), Jess Brumbach (jr), Michaela Coplen (sr), Teagan Felknor-Edwards (sr), Paige Finkenbinder (so), Jessica Kuhn (jr), Rylie Patterson (so), Nikita Price (sr), Mallory Ranck (so), Maddison Reapsone (jr), Christina Sherer (jr), Kirstyn Sokolsky (jr), Marguerite Stasyszyn (sr), Jolyne Stroup (jr), Mariah Varner (jr), Taylor Wiley (jr).
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Coach: Eric Guyer (2nd season)
2012 record: 4-13-1, 4-11-1
2013 outlook: The Trojans return most of last season's core, so Guyer is eager to see whether or not his team can improve on last season's win total. Furness and Haley Guyer are two capable scoring options at forward, while Weigel and Keyes will anchor the defense in front of keeper Shannon Edwards.
Players: Allison Reinhardt (sr mf), Devin Furness (sr for), Hayley Guyer (sr for), Amelia Fox (sr mf), Kat Lippincott (jr for), Mackenna Peters (jr mf), Taylor Brown (jr mf), Isabella Weigel (so def), Saige Keyes (jr def). Shannon Edwards (sr gk).
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Coach: Ian Kauffman (7th season)
2012 record: 4-14, 2-14
2013 outlook: A host of new faces will appear on the Panthers' roster, so Kauffman will lean heavily on Winston, Hurst, Goodyear, Pollack and Eberts, all of whom are returning seniors with experience. Winston finished with 13 goals and 4 assists and was a Commonwealth second team selection.
Players: Paris Winston (sr for), Courtney Hurst (sr def), Sami Goodyear (sr gk), Alexis Pollack (sr def), Monica Villa (jr mf), Courtney Eberts (sr mf), Sara Desso (jr def), Marissa Zupanovic (sr def/mf), Abby Ebright (jr), Brooke Rotheram (so), Aigner Zook (fr).
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Coach: Trevor Eckley (1st season)
2012 record: 2-16, 1-15
2013 outlook: Eckley takes over a Huskies club that endured plenty of bumps during its first season in the Mid-Penn Conference. Mifflin County will benefit from playing against the quality of competition offered in the Commonwealth, but the noticeable dividends in the win and loss column may still be a season or two away.
Players: Brianna Kline (sr), Taylor Deitrich (sr), Blake Yoder (sr), Kaitlyn Eckley (jr), Haley Predix (jr), Bryce Papp (jr), Kelsey Spicher (jr), Lexi kibe (so), Kenzie Sweitzer (so).