Gov. Mifflin Summer League Notebook: Mustangs Top Manheim Central in Final, Super Offer, Fleetwood Freshmen
- Sean McBryan
- Jun 26
- 5 min read
The Gov. Mifflin Summer League wrapped up Tuesday night with the Mustangs, Fleetwood, Schuylkill Valley (the Panthers weren't present Tuesday), Elco, Manheim Central, and Schuylkill Haven girls basketball teams meeting up in Shillington for the past few weeks.
The annual league organized by Gov. Mifflin head coach Mike Clark and Athletic Director John Guiseppe held games at the Gov. Mifflin Athletic Community Center and Auxiliary Gym with starting tip at 5:50 p.m. and final tip at 8:20 p.m.
Here are a few takeaways from the league.
Hosts Win It All
Gov. Mifflin, which has won the most Berks girls basketball titles and fell in the championship to Reading High last year, defeated Manheim Central 44-27 to win the summer league title Tuesday.
Mifflin 2027 guards Bridget Martin (11 points, five rebounds, three assists, two steals) and Bella Super (10 points, six rebounds, three assists, steal) led the way for the Mustangs. Saray Renninger, a 2028 forward, chipped in 10 points, five rebounds, two steals, and a block.
Assistant coach Mike Clark Jr. was calling the shots for the Mustangs and deployed a starting lineup that is likely to hold once the regular season rolls around: Martin, Super, Renninger, 2027 forward Ja'Tiyah Case, and 2027 G/F Brooklyn George.
Adding Case back to the mix for the Mustangs is a good sign as she is recovered from an injury that kept her out the majority of last season for the Berks runners-up.
Carsyn Zeiset (nine points, three rebounds) and Eden Buckwalter (eight points) led Manheim Central, which was without many of its top players. Head coach Michael Smith was on the sideline for the Barons.
The Mustangs defeated Schuylkill Haven 51-28 to advance to the final. Martin (10 points, five rebounds, two assists, two steals), Super (10 points, two rebounds, two assists, five steals), Case (seven points, four rebounds, a block, a steal), and Renninger (three points, seven rebounds, two assists, two steals) again led a balanced attack for Mifflin.
Schuylkill Haven, which only had five players in uniform Tuesday, lost in the District 11 Class 3A championship to Notre Dame Green Pond last season before winning their first state playoff game in program history. They finished 23-7.
Manheim Central topped Elco 44-43 in a wild summer league semifinal game after a foul was called on a 3-pointer as time expired and Buckwalter made two of three free throws to give the Barons the win.
Gov. Mifflin fell in the first round of the District 3 Class 6A tournament 74-43 to Central Dauphin last season. Manheim Central lost 48-39 to Middletown in the District 3 Class 5A semifinals.
Super Attention
Coming off an appearance at Philly Girls' High School live event where both she and teammate Bridget Martin made City of Basketball Love's standout list and the Mustangs topped Woodbury (N.J.) and Bensalem on June 13, Bella Super announced she picked up her first college offer from Mercyhurst on June 22.
"It was like a relief, but I'm just grateful," Super said Tuesday.
Super's father, Paul, mentioned multiple mid- and low-major Division I programs that have been in contact including Towson, Lafayette, Princeton, Harvard, Florida Atlantic, and Bowling Green.
Super's stock has progressively risen throughout her high school career with appearances in the BCIAA semifinals (a 50-42 loss to eventual champ Wyomissing) as a freshman and the BCIAA championship last year.
"We were so excited last year to get to the championship," Super said. "My freshman year, we fell short...coming back stronger, even though we were younger than all of [champion Reading High], it was just a good feeling."
Super, along with Martin, Renninger, George, and Case, gives the Mustangs a formidable starting lineup heading into next season with the goal of capturing a county title, making noise in the District 3 playoffs, and hopefully qualifying for the PIAA tournament.
Super said she's been playing with her 2027 classmates since they were kids, so being able to take the court together during the offseason allows them to build on that chemistry and work on their durability.
"We're just working on building endurance," she said. "Trying to be able to stay on the court for as long as possible."
Super switched over to the Sports City Angels AAU team, an Ohio-based program that plays on the Nike EYBL circuit, in May and will be heading out to play in the enormous Run 4 The Roses event in Louisville, Ky. on July 11 and then a tournament in Chicago.
"Coming onto my new team, it was just good," Super said. "They just took me in right away, even though I came mid-season, it wasn't awkward at all."
Super averaged 7.0 points, 2.3 assists, 2.0 rebounds, and a steal in her first tournament with her new squad.
She'll be aiming to garner even more attention throughout this offseason and into her junior year.
Fleet Freshman
Fleetwood has struggled ever since Kansas State's Alexis Hess graduated following the 2022-23 season. The Tigers went 46-38 in Hess's four seasons — each of which ended with a winning record — and head coach Courtney Mitchell is trying to build the program back to that as she enters her third season.
The Tigers went 2-19 in 2023-24 and improved that win total last season, finishing 4-18. It appears even more improvement is in Fleetwood's future.
Fleetwood fell 21-16 in a grind-it-out affair to McCaskey — which was being guided by new head coach Kenny Jason Jr., who recently took over for Brian McCloud after his 21 years at the helm — Tuesday in Mifflin's Auxiliary Gym, but the Tigers showed some of the talent they have been fostering in their youth program.
Kai-Lee Lamont, a 2029 guard, moved to Fleetwood from Antietam last summer and was part of the Tigers' middle school team that went undefeated in its regular season this past year.
Lamont played above her years Tuesday, acting as the primary ball handler, picking up steals, and drawing fouls on drives to the rim. While she scored only four points on 4-for-8 shooting from the stripe during the game, the potential is still there and Mitchell expects her to have a big role this upcoming varsity season.
Rising senior Teagan Hilburt, an all-division pick last season, hit two 3s and scored a team-high eight points in the loss and is the top returner for the Tigers.
Rising sophomore Blair Rauenzahn, who played in all 22 games for the Tigers last season, will also return.
Opportunity has opened in Berks III with stalwart Wyomissing taking graduation and injury hits. Amaya Stewart (Albany), Alexis Hardy (Delaware track), Audrey Hurleman (North Carolina lacrosse), and Lily Marshall have graduated.
Rising junior Karly Hyde suffered a knee injury during the lacrosse season and rising senior Kacey Maggs, who is already committed to High Point for lacrosse, has been dealing with a nagging shoulder injury that may require surgery. Those injuries will likely keep them out for some, if not all, of the upcoming basketball season.
If it does, Wyomissing will need to replace nearly 80 percent of its scoring from last year.
What's Next?
Wyomissing's Varsity Summer League wraps up next Wednesday with the Spartans, Berks Catholic, Oley Valley, Exeter, Conrad Weiser, and Kutztown all in action. The first games start at 6:00 and last tip is at 7:40 in either the main or back gym.
The Jack McCloskey Girls' Team Camp occurs this Friday through Sunday at Alvernia University. Blue Mountain, Caesar Rodney, Conrad Weiser, Gov. Mifflin, Hughesville, Lewisburg, Mahanoy Area, Manheim Central, North Schuylkill, Shamokin, Shenandoah, Solanco, and Wilson will be there.
コメント