March Calendar of Events

Here is a monthly calendar of events for activities in Columbia, that COLUMBIA TALK has been able to find.


If you want community events publicized or information gotten out to the community, please send me an email (tides.cln@gmail.com) and I will help promote your event for free. Thank you.

Also, if you have other news, COLUMBIA TALK will publish it as well.

You can also get your community events posted as well by contacting the Susquehanna Valley Chamber of Commerce at 684-5249.

March 1

Fastnacht Bake at Holy Trinity
6 p.m., Coaches Council meeting at Columbia High School.
6:30 p.m., Parents-Teachers Partnership meeting, Taylor Elementary School.
6:30 p.m., Columbia Borough Council Safety Committee meeting, Borough Hall.

March 2

6 p.m., Columbia Borough Council Legislation Committee meeting, Borough Hall.
6 p.m., Columbia School Board Finance Committee meeting, DAC.
7 p.m., Columbia School Board Property Committee meeting, DAC.
7 p.m., Columbia Board of Health meeting, Borough Hall.
7:30 p.m., Columbia Borough Council Property Committee meeting, Borough Hall.

March 3

Fastnacht Bake at Holy Trinity
1 p.m., Census testing at Columbia Public Library.
6 p.m., Movie Night at Columbia Public Library.
6 p.m., Columbia School Board Curriculum Committee meeting, DAC.
7 p.m., Columbia School Board Extra-curricular committee meeting, DAC.

March 4

9 a.m., Columbia Market House opens.
6 p.m., Columbia Parks and Recreation committee meeting, Borough Hall.

March 5

World Day of Prayer
9 a.m., Columbia Market House opens.
4 p.m., PIAA regional wrestling at Wilson High School.
4 p.m., Lenten Fish Fry, St. Peter’s Church

March 6

Risk Watch Program at Hempfield Rec Center.
10 a.m., PIAA Regional wrestling at Wilson High School.
10 a.m., Story time at Columbia Public Library.
4 p.m., Spaghetti dinner at St. James Lutheran Church.
5 p.m., Homes of Hope Spaghetti dinner at Columbia United Methodist Church.

March 7

9 a.m., Tide Pride Craft Show at the Columbia Market House.

March 8

Fastnacht Bake, Holy Trinity.
First day of spring sports practice at Columbia High School
National Middle School Week, Columbia High School
7 p.m., Columbia Borough Council meeting, Borough Hall.

March 9

National Middle School Week, Columbia High School.
1 p.m., Census testing, Columbia Public Library
6:30 p.m., Columbia Shade Tree Commission meeting, Borough Hall.

March 10

Fastnacht Bake, Holy Trinity
National Middle School Week, Columbia High School.
Middle School Observation Day, Columbia High School.
6 p.m., Family Movie Night, Columbia Public Library.
6:30 p.m., Tide Pride meeting, DAC
6:30 p.m., Borough Council Finance Committee meeting, Borough Hall.

March 11

National Middle School Week, Columbia High School
9 a.m., Columbia Market House Open.
6:30 p.m., Columbia Borough Council market committee meeting, Borough Hall.
7 p.m., Columbia High School musical GREASE, Columbia High School.7 p.m.,Columbia Public Library Board meeting
7 p.m., Columbia School Board Committee of the Whole meeting, DAC.

March 12

National Middle School Week, Columbia High School
9 a.m., Columbia Market House Open.
4 p.m., Lenten Fish Fry, St. Peter’s Church
7 p.m., Columbia High School musical GREASE, Columbia High School.

March 13

10 a.m., Story time, Columbia Public Library.
Noon, K-9 Chocolate Bingo, Columbia Consolidated Fire Department
2 and 7 p.m., Columbia High School musical GREASE, Columbia High School.

March 14

Daylight Saving Time begins

March 15

Fastnacht Bake, Holy Trinity
9 a.m., Columbia Civil Service committee meeting, Borough Hall.
7 p.m., Columbia Education Foundation meeting, DAC.
7 p.m., Columbia Planning Commission meeting, Borough Hall.

March 16

6 p.m., Columbia Basketball Banquet, Taste of Styles.

March 17

St. Patrick’s Day.
6 p.m., Movie Night, Columbia Public Library
7 p.m., Columbia Historic Architectural Review Board meeting, Borough Hall.

March 18

9 a.m., Columbia Market House opens
4:30 p.m., Columbia Municipal Authority meeting, Borough Hall.
6 p.m., Columbia Borough Council Waste Water Committee meeting, Borough Hall.
7 p.m., Columbia School Board meeting, DAC.

March 19

9 a.m., Columbia Market House opens.
4 p.m., Lenten Fish Fry, St. Peter’s Church.

March 20

10 a.m., Story time, Columbia Public Library.
8 p.m., American Cancer Society Dance, Susquehanna Fire Company.

March 21

No events

March 22

No events

March 23

1 p.m., Census testing, Columbia Public Library
6:30 p.m., Columbia Borough Council Community Development committee meeting, Borough Hall.

March 24

1:15 p.m., Early dismissal, Columbia Elementary Schools.

March 25

9 a.m., Columbia Market House opens
6:30 p.m., Columbia River Park committee meeting, Borough Hall.

March 26

9 a.m., Columbia Market House opens
4 p.m., Columbia baseball at Conestoga Valley.
4 p.m., Upper Dauphin at Columbia softball
4 p.m., Lenten Fish Fry, St. Peter’s Church
5 p.m., Fourth Friday at Columbia galleries.

March 27

10 a.m., Treasure in Your Attic, Antique Appraisal, Susquehanna Valley Chamber of Commerce, Burning Bridge
10 a.m., Story time, Columbia Public Library

March 28

No events

March 29

CHS Student Council Spring King contest and Spirit Week.
4 p.m., Northern Lebanon at Columbia track
6:30 p.m., Columbia High School parent steering committee, CHS.

March 30

Columbia High School Student Council Spring King contest and Spirit Week.
1 p.m., Census testing, Columbia Public Library.
4 p.m., Columbia baseball at Reading Central Catholic
4 p.m., Reading Central Catholic at Columbia Softball

March 31

6 p.m., Movie Night, Columbia Public Library
7 p.m., Columbia Zoning Hearing Board meeting, Borough Hall.

Semi-final/consi game predictions/schedule

Boys AAAA: In the semi-finals on Tuesday at Giant Center, take Reading over Wilson and feeling an upset as York High's athletes are beter and too much to handle for unbeaten Hempfield.
In consi games, Red Land over Penn Manor and Daniel Boone over Warwick.
Boys AAA: Monday at the Giant Center, two easy picks -- Eastern over East Pennsboro and Steel-High over Lancaster Catholic.
In consi games, I'll take West York over Susquehanna Township and Hershey over York Suburban.
Boys AA: Wednesday at Giant Center. Mennonite (assuming they beat Upper Dauphin on Monday) has a challenge against Delone Catholic. Not liking the L-L League here, so I see a Delone win and Trinity with ease over Hanover.
Boys A: Semi-finals are at Lower Dauphin on Monday. Reading Central Catholic over Millersburg and Greenwood over Lebanon Catholic.
Girls AAAA: Semi-finals are Monday and Tuesday ar Giant Center.
In one semi-final, go with Central Dauphin over Reading and in a toss-up Mechanicsburg over Harrisburg.
Consi round picks: Red Lion over Hershey and Governor Mifflin over CD East.
Girls AAA: Semi-finals are Wednesday at Giant Center. West York over Oley Valley and Trinity over Palmyra.
Consi round: Shippensburg over Oley Valley and Lancaster Catholic over Manheim Central.
Girls AA: Semi-finals are Monday at East Pennsboro.
Like York Catholic, who is going for a fourth straight trip to the state finals and not feeling the love for Mennonite over Delone Catholic, but I'll still take the L-L League team.
Girls A: The Rollers over Bible Baptist and Greenwood over Camp Hill. Semi-finals are Tuesday at Cedar Crest.

District Three scores/prediction results

All of the scores are in from Saturday's Day of Basketball Across District Three. There were some upsets.
Boys AAAA: Hempfield stays unbeaten with a 60-54 win over rival Penn Manor. The Black Knights now meet York at the Giant Center on Tuesday (8 p.m.). The Bearcats clawed their way to an upset of Red Land, 55-50. In the lower bracket, its a re-match of two teams from Berks County as Wilson meets Reading. Wilson crushed Warwick, 44-23, while Reading knighted Daniel Boone, 63-38. That game is Tuesday at 6:30 at the Giant Center.
Prediction Results: 3-1.
Boys AA: No surprises here. Mennonite and Upper Dauphin will play Monday. The winner meets Delone Catholic on Wednesday. The Squires were 58-50 winners over McDevitt. In the lower bracket, Trinity had a huge win over York Catholic, 63-38 and Hanoverm a public school earns a berth in the semi-finals with a 54-34 win over Annville-Cleona.
Prediction Results: 3-0, pending the results of Monday's game.
Boys A: Millersburg over Living Word, 61-39 and Greenwood over Camp Hill.
Prediction Results: 4-0 for entire bracket. Other two games were played last night.
Girls AAAA: Central Dauphin upsets Red Lion, 50-41 and Harrisburg wins over Mifflin, 67-55.
Prediction results for entire bracket (other two games were played last night): 3-1.
Girls AAA: West York over Daniel Boone, 48-36; Oley Valley over Shippensburg, 62-43;.Trinity over Manheim Central, 48-38 and Palnyra downs Lancaster Catholic, 56-48.
Prediction Results: 2-2.
Girls A: Steel-High over Central Catholic, 56-27; Bible Baptist over Country Day, 44-40; Camp Hill over Lebanon Catholic, 44-42 and Greenwood over Conestoga Christian, 64-25.
Prediction Results: 3-1.
Overall Boys: 32-9.
Overall Girls: 32-13
Overall Record: 64-22 (74 percent)

One step closer

Two Columbia wrestlers have moved one step closer to the ultimate prize in high school wrestling -- the chance to wrestle for a state championship.

One has been a career wrestler, the other has been wrestling for just two years. Meet Columbia's two regional qualifiers -- seniors Joey Ronca and Jake Sentz. They medaled at the two-day District Three Class AA championships at the old Hersheypark Arena. Sentz, the second year grappler placed third at 285 pounds to continue his season. Ronca, the career wrestler, settled for fourth place at 135 pounds.

There were seven Columbia wrestlers who made the trek to Chocolatetown and only one other wrestler, John Markley (130) made it to the second day of competition.

Sentz brings home the bronze medal following a pin in 2:28 over Tyler Unger of Boiling Springs in the third place bout. Sentz (27-16) started off  the championships on a positive note Friday morning, showing Malcolm White of Wyomissing the lights in 3:24, putting him into the quarter-finals against Milton Hershey's Chris Ramirez. It was a quick ending for the Columbia wrestler, who was pinned by the Spartan wrestler in just 13 seconds.
To keep his goal of reaching the regionals alive, Sentz had to work his way back through the consolation bracket. He started that remarkable run off by pinning Dakota Hoagland of Halifax in just 81 seconds. His next victim was Nic Aguliar of Biglerville and Sentz moved on with another fall in 2:58.
He was now in a position to medal and moved into the third place bout with a 9-6 win over Raul Leyva of Littlestown. The two had split their previous meetings at the Hanover Duals back in December and at last week's sectional tournament. The third time was a charm for Sentz.

Ronca settled for fourth place at 135 after falling for the second time in the championships to Tyler Thumma of Boiling Springs in the third place bout. Thumma scored a 14-3 major decision over Ronca.
While placing at districts was a highlight for the Tide senior, he also recorded a personal milestone in the opening round of the championships against Hamburg's Bryan Weidenhammer. A pin in 4:14 over the Hamburg wrestler was Ronca's 100th career win. It was also the third time this season that Ronca (36-8) had beaten Weidenhammer.
That put Ronca, the newest member of Columbia's century club, into his first match with Thumma. The Bubbler wrestler was at his best, scoring a pin in 3:44.
Now in the consolation bracket, Ronca had a tough first match against Robbie Moretz of Halifax, scoring a 5-4 win. Ronca continued his march toward the medal stand with a dominating 14-2 major decision over Sean Emerich of Kutztown and followed that with another major decision by a 12-2 score over Noah Blascone of Bermudian Springs.
That win set the stage for a rematch with Thumma, with third place on the line.

At 130 pounds, Markley fell short in his bid to get in the medal round when he lost to York Suburban's Kyle Arnold in the third round of consolations.
Markley opened the championships with a a second period pin over Kyle Christianson of Kutztown in 3:36, but was the victim of a tech fall in the quarter-finals to Joe Spisak of Boiling Springs, 16-0, in 2:41. Now in the consi round, Markley stayed alive for a match by pinning Annville-Cleona's Seth Lehman in 4:35.

The other Columbia wrestlers never made it to the second day.

At 119, Derek Zercher easily won his first round bout with Annville Cleona's Tim Renninger by a 13-6 score to advance to the quarter-finals. Zercher lasted 70 seconds in his next match in which he was pinned by Pete Renda of Boiling Springs and then was eliminated from the tournament when he lost a 13-9 decision to Wyomissing's Cody Rank.

At 140, Jordon Halter, who will probably be the next Columbia wrestler to reach the 100 win plateau lost a tough 6-5 decision in the opening round to Zeb Sheaman of Tulpehocken by a 6-5 score and then saw his sophomore season end when he was pinned by Sam Rhoads of Boiling Springs in 2:33.

At 160, sophomore Nate Warner lost a 3-0 decision in his opening match to Pequea Valley's Mitch Ball and then was eliminated following an 11-2 major decision loss to Schuylkill Valley's Ryan Maurer.

At 215, senior Brandon Felus saw his wrestling career end after losing to Dylan  Powell of Juniata in the opening round by a 6-2 score and then suffered a 13-2 major decision loss to Sam Matter of Boiling Springs in the consolation round.

The regional championships, featuring wrestlers from Districts 1, 3 and 11 begins Friday night at Wilson High School. The top five finishers in each weight class advance to the state tournament.

District 3 scores

Boys AAA: Eastern still unbeaten with a 74-55 win over Susquehanna Township. Thought that would be closer. Andrew Nicholas become's Eastern's All-Time leading scorer.
Lancaster Catholic stuns Hershey, 52-46.
Steel-High rolls past York Suburban, 55-47.
East Pennsboro upsets West York, 52-48.
Semi-finals are Monday night at the Giant Center -- Eastern vs. East Pennsboro (a team with East in their name will win) and the Rollers get Catholic. Others now in consolation bracket.
Went 1-3 with the picks there.

Boys A: Lebanon Catholic outscores New Hope Academy, 74-61. Thought that would be closer.
Reading Central Catholic 63, Antietam 43.

Girls AAAA: Reading over Hershey, 43-26 and Mechanicsburg holds off CD East, 41-40.

Girls AA: York Catholic nears finals again with a 61-26 win over Holy Name. Lancaster Mennonite advances with a 51-23 win over Biglerville. Wyomissing 43, Kutztown 32.

Columbia business notes

The banking comunity in downtown Columbia will shrink later this year. The M&T Bank, which at one time was Dauphin Deposit and who knows what other name, at Fourth and Locust streets, will close in June.

Also, the Columbia Eye Care Center owned by Dr. John Kepple, 548 Chestnut St. is changing owners.
The new owner is Dr. Kathryn E. Collins, who purchased the business from Dr. Kepple.
Kepple, who began his practice in Columbia in 1966, is retiring.

Collins also owns the Kissel Village Eye Center in Lititz, since 2001.

Ronca gets 100th win

The first day of wrestling for the Columbia wrestling team is over at the Hersheypark Arena and the good news is there are still three Tide wrestlers alive, with the possibility of advancing to next weekend's regionals.

The big news came in the first round of the 135 pound weight class where senior Joey Ronca joined a small list of Tide wrestlers to win 100 career matches. Ronca's pin in 4:14 over Bryan Widenhammer of Hamburg was his 100th career win, whic will get his name played on the banner in the gym, following renovations.

The win placed Ronca into the second round where he was pinned by Boiling Springs wrestler Tyler Thumma in 3:44. He kept his chances of moving on alive when he scored a 5-4 win over Robbie Moretz of Halifax. Ronca will wrestle Sean Emerich of Kutztown in the consolation bracket tomorrow. If he wins that, he'll be guaranteed to finish in the top six.

Also a match away from the medal round are John Markley (130) and Jake Sentz (285).

Markley in his first match was a win by pin over Kyle Christianson of Kutztown in 3:36. However in the second round he ran into Joe Spisak of Boiling Springs and was a 16-0 (2:31) loser via a tech fall. In the consolation round, Markley pinned Seth Lehman  of Annville-Cleona in 4:35. Markley will next wrestle Kyle Abbott of York Suburban.

At 285, Sentz won his first round match, via a pin in 3:24 over Wyomissing's Malcolm White, but then lasted just 13 seconds getting pinned by Milton Hershey buzz saw Chris Ramirez. In the consolation round, Sentz stayed alive when he showed Derek Hogland of Hamburg the lights in 1:21.

The result of the results are as follows:

119: Derek Zercher was a was a 13-6 winner over Tim Renninger of Annville-Cleona in the opening roun and then was pinned by Boiling Springs' Pete Renda in the second round in 1:20. In the consolation round, Zercher was a 13-9 win over Cory Rank of Wyomissing.

140: Jordan Halter was a tough luck 6-5 loser to Zeb Sheaman of Tulpehocken and saw his sophomore season end when he was pinned by Sam Rhoads of Boiling Springs in 2:33.

160: Nate Warner was also two and out. He lost by major decision in the first round, 11-2, to Ryan Maurer of Schuylkill Valley. His season ended with a 3-0 loss to Pequea Valley's Mitch Ball.

215: Brandon Felus was a 6-2 first round loser to Dylan Powell of Juniata and then was a loser via a major decision to Sam Matter of Boiling Springs by a 15-2 score.

Interviews done

Interviews were completed yesterday at Columbia High School for its vacant football  coaching position.

The next step is expected to be to take the name of the successor to Jason Shoff to the school board's extra-cirrucular committee meeting.

That committee meets Wednesday night. The following week, the Columbia School Board will hold its Committee of the Whole meeting.

Current CHS assistant Michael Burke III is considered the front runner.

Fire damages building in township

Fire caused $600,000 in damage to the Columbia Pattern and Machine Company, 4604 Klinesville Road around 4 a.m. this morning in West Hempfield Township.

PSP Fire Marshal Brian Herr said there was $100,000 damage done to the builing and $500,000 to its contents.

Fire officials said a passing motorist spotted the blaze. When firefighters arrived smoke was coming from the roof with an orange glow. Damage was contained to computer controlled machines, equipment and the roof.

The fire was brought under control around 6 a.m.

Assisting at the the West Hempfield Fire Department on the scene were the Susquehanna and Consolidated Fire Departments from Columbia, Mountville, Fire Department Mount Joy (yes that is correct), Maytown-East Donegal, Rheems, Marietta, Washington Boro and Wrightsville. Many were tankers.

Season ends

They played twice this year. Each won a game on the others' home court.

Wednesday, Annville-Cleona and Columbia met for the third time this season in boys' basketball. Unlike the two league games, one held about 10 before on the Tide's home floor, this one had a lot at stake. Win and you advance in the District Three Class AA playoffs. Lose and its the end of the season and high schoo, careers for many.

At Hershey High School, the two evenly matched foes from Section 4 of the Lancaster-Lebanon League, battled in the first round of the District Three playoffs. To the winner went a Saturday meeting against third seeded Hanover.

And it was Annville-Cleona who is moving on following a 42-41win over the Crimson Tide. Columbia's sesason ends with a 7-16 record.

The story of the game was the play of Annville-Cleona guard Trey Blanding. He scored 24 of his team's 42 points, including the first 11. On the other end of the court, Tide senior Brandon Arnold scored all six of his team's first quarter points. After eight minutes, it was Blanding 7, Arnold 6.

A-C continued to led the game in the second quarter. A big basket was a three-pointer from A-C's Tyler Napierala,, which gave the eventual winners a six-point lead. The Tide bounced back, tying the game at 14-14, before falling behind 16-14 at the half.

The Tide took their first lead of the game to open the second half  by Arnold (13 points), but A-C got a couple of three-pointers in the third quarter, including one by Josh Henning to go up as many as five points in the third quarter. A-C still owned a three-point, 28-25 lead entering the final eight minutes.

The Little Dutchmen increased their lead to 32-25 early in the fourth quarter, before the Tide got back into the game outscoring A-C 8-1 over a three minute span to tie the game at 33-33 on a basket by Tre Simms.

Back in the game, the Tide turned the ball over four straight times and A-C took advantage, taking control of the game, leading 40-35 with under two minutes left. Blanding hit 4-of-4 from the foul line to ice the game for A-C. A three-pointer by Nate Wall (11 points) at the buzzer made it a one point game.

District Three picks

Here are the basketball picks.
Boys 4-A: Hempfield over Penn Manor in a close one; Red Land over York; Wilson easily over Warwick and Reading shoots down Daniel Boone.
Boys 3-A: Eastern over Susquehanna Township; West York over East Pennsboro; Hershey melts Lancaster Catholic and the Rollers falll to York Suburban.
Boys 2-A: Trinity over Upper Dauphin; Delone over McDevitt; Trinity over York Catholic and Hanover easily over Annville-Cleona.
Boys 1-A: Central Catholic rolls over Antietan; Millersburg tops Living Word; Greenwood goes "green" over Canp Hill and Lebanon Catholic has some hope against New Hope.
Girls 4-A: CD upsets Red Lion; Reading tops Hershey; Mifflin beats Harrisburg and Mechanicsburg moves on over CD East.
Girls 3-A: West York over Daniel Boone; Shippensburg over Oley Valley; Trinity rolls over Manheim Central and Lancaster Catholic uphends Palmyra.
Girls 2-A: York Catholic over Holy Name; Wyomissing over Kutztown; Mennonite over Biglerville and Delone overe Brandywine Heights.
Girls 1-A: Steel-High over Central Catholic; Lancaster Country Day over Bible Baptist; Lebanon Catholic over Camp Hill and Greenwood over Conestoga Christian.

District Three scores, prediction results

Here are the scores from Wednesday's District 3 playoff games:
Boys AAAA: Hempfield 71, Central Dauphin 40; Penn Manor 63, Harrisburg 61; York 71, L-S 38; Red Land 45, Red Lion 36; Wilson 61, McCaskey 33; Warwick 61, Solanco 41; Reading 63, Exeter 48; Daniel Boone 49, Central York 41.
Boys AA: Upper Dauphin 59, Holy Name 55 (2OT); McDevitt 53, Pequea Valley 41; York Catholic 60, Tulpehocken 42.
Girls AAA: Lancaster Catholic 52, Muhlenberg 45; Palmyra 49, Twin Valley 28; Manheim Central 43, Boiling Springs 41; Trinity 48, Elco 35; Shippensburg 61, Northern Lebanon 45; Oley Valley 42, Susquenita 28; Daniel Boone 63, Kennard-Dale 44; West York 49, Eastern 46.
Girls A: Steel-High 77, York Country Day 9; Reading Central Catholic 58, Millersburg 20; Lancaster Country Day 28, Living Word 12; Bible Baptist 56, Harrisburg Academy 54; Lebanon Catholic 61, Antietam 20; Camp Hill 51, Harrisburg Christian 10; Greenwood 69. Lititz Christian 24 and Conestoga Christian 32, Christian School of York 30.
Boys Record for 4-A and 2-A: 9-3 -- overall 22-5.
Girls Record for 3-A and 1-A: 15-1-- overall 22-7
Two-Day Total: 44-12.

First round scores, prediction results

Okay, the first round is over in four of the eight classes in the PIAA playoffs. As I told you, Solanco probably would have a hangover in Girls 4-A from their big week in the L-L League playoffs last week and Cedar Crest needed to guard against a letdown from winning the L-L League. I still picked them, but...
In Boys' 3-A, I picked seven of the eight games right -- losing only when I picked Middletown over East Pennsboro.
In Boys A, I had five of the six first round games correct, losing out when Camp Hill beat out Lancaster Country Day.
I took a bath in girls' basketball.
In 4-A, I lost one of my finalists in Lebanon took a bath last night. In 3-A, I went 4-4, while in 2-A, I went 3-2. There are no L-L League teams left in those two classes.
Here are the scores:
Boys 3-A: Eastern 71, Wyomissing 48; Susquehanna Township 57, Boiling Springs 41; West York 70, Big Spring 36; Hershey 56, Lancaster Catholic 34; York Suburban 60, Muhlenberg 34; Steel-Highh 52, Oley Valley 34.
Boys 1-A: Millersburg 69, Lancaster Christian 34;  Living Word 41, Harrisburg Christian 34; Greenwood 75,  Dayspring Christian 34; Camp Hill 47, Lancaster Country Day 41; New Hope 50,  Mount Calvary 34 and Lebanon Catholic 72, Christian School of York 39.
Girls 4-A: Red Lion 46, Cumberland Valley 36; Central Dauphin 59, Solanco 34; Hershey 50, Cedar Crest 39; Reading 57, Spring Grove 42; Harrisburg 44, Cedar Crest 34; Governor Mifflin 54, Manheim Township 52 (OT); Mechanicsburg 42, New Oxford 23; CD East 43, Lower Dauphin 41.
Girls 2-A: Holy Name 45, Upper Dauphin 28; Wyomissing 54, Hanover 9;  Kutztown 54, Fairfield 29; Biglerville 40, Annville-Cleona 24; Brandywine Heights 36, Tulpehocken 17.

Parent's Club announces event

The Columbia Elementary Parents Club will host a Quarter Auction on Sunday, March 28 at the Columbia No. 1 Fire Company.
Doors open at 1 p.m. and the auction starts at 2 p.m.
The cost is $3.

Columbia Public Library events for March

The Columbia Public Library has released its schedule of events for March.
Tuesday, March 2nd, at 1 PM - Census Testing - must have prior appointment (367-9306)

Wednesday, March 3rd, at 6 PM - Family Film Night - “The Rookie”
Saturday, March 6th, at 10 AM - Saturday Morning Storytime with Mrs. Dottie Johnson. “Happy Birthday, Dr. Seuss!”
Saturday, March 6th, at 10 AM - Census Testing - must have prior appointment (367-9306)
Tuesday, March 9th, at 1 PM - Census Testing - must have prior appointment (367-9306)
Wednesday, March 10th, at 6 PM - Family Film Night - “The Aristocats”
Thursday, March 11th, at 7 PM - Columbia Public Library Board of Directors Meeting. Public is welcome.
Saturday, March 13th, at 10 AM - Saturday Morning Storytime with Mrs. Dottie Johnson. “Are You Wearing Green?”
Saturday, March 13th, at 10 AM - Census Testing - must have prior appointment (367-9306)
Tuesday, March 16th, at 1 PM - Census Testing - must have prior appointment (367-9306)
Wednesday, March 17th, at 6 PM - Family Film Night - “Darby O'Gill and the Little People”
Saturday, March 20th, at 10 AM - Saturday Morning Storytime with Mrs. Dottie Johnson. “Welcome, Spring!”
Saturday, March 20th, at 10 AM - Census Testing - must have prior appointment (367-9306)
Tuesday, March 23rd, at 1 PM - Census Testing - must have prior appointment (367-9306)
Wednesday, March 24th, at 6 PM - Family Film Night - “Angels In the Outfield”
Saturday, March 27th, at 10 AM - Saturday Morning Storytime with Miss Lisa. “Hooray For Easter!”
Saturday, March 27th, at 10 AM - Census Testing - must have prior appointment (367-9306)
Tuesday, March 30th, at 1 PM - Census Testing - must have prior appointment (367-9306)
Wednesday, March 31st, at 6 PM - Family Film Night - “Alvin and the Chipmunks: Mystery of the Easter Chipmunk”
Friday, April 2nd and Saturday, April 3rd - Library Closed for Easter Break
Saturday, April 10th at 10 AM - Saturday Morning Storytime with special guest appearance by Peter Rabbit!
The Census Questionnaire Assistance Center will be open Monday through Thursday from 10 AM to 1 PM beginning March 15. If you did not receive a Census form via the postal service for whatever reason (address unknown, temporary resident, no permanent address, etc.), please stop in between 10 AM and 1 PM Monday through Thursday beginning March 15. It is very important that all citizens be counted for the census!
Our webmaster Samuel Edmond is ready and willing to help you with your income taxes! An appointment must be made in advance - please call 684-2255 to set one up. We have most federal tax forms here at the library and can print out any specialized ones you may need from the IRS website. No charge for forms or assistantance.
Webmaster Samuel Edmond is also taking registrations for his one-on-one computer classes now! Please call 717-435-2039 to register throughout the month

District Three girls' picks

In each of the last two years, there have been two teams from District Three playoffs in the PIAA finals at the Bryce Jordan Center at Penn State. Two years ago, it was Central Dauphin and York Catholic. Last year, it was York Catholic and Lampeter-Strasburg.
So what teams will make the trip to the state finals out of District 3? There are a couple of candidates, but over the next month, it will take a lot of luck, lack of injuries and getting a win when a team doesn't play their best to move on.
So, with that in mind, here are my first round picks and teams that could meet in the finals at the Giant Center next week.
AAAA: Red Lion over Cumberland Valley; Central Dauphin over Solanco, only because the Mares/Mules might still be drained from an unbelieveable schedule from last week, but it could be a toss up; Cedar Crest over Hershey, but the Falcons must avoid a first round letdown after winning the L-L championship; Lebanon over Harrisburg; Township over Governor Mifflin; Mechanicsburg over New Oxford and Lower Dauphin over C.D. East.
Probable finalists: Red Lion over Lebanon.
AAA: West York over Eastern (if this were a boys' game, wow); Daniel Boone over New Oxford; Oley Valley over Susquenita; Shippensburg over Northern Lebanon;. Trinity over Elco. Manheim Central over Boiling Springs; Palmyra over Twin Valley and Lancaster Catholic over Muhlenberg.
Probable finalists: West York over Trinity.
AA: Holy Name over Upper Dauphin; Hanover over Wyomissing; Biglerville over Annville-Cleona and Tulpehocken over Brandywine.
Probable finalists: Lancaster Mennonite over York Catholic.
A: Steel-High over York Country Day; Reading Central Catholic over Millersburg; Lancaster Country Day over Living Word; Bible Baptist over Harrisburg Academy; Lebanon Catholic over Antietam; Camp Hill over Harrisburg Christian; Greenwood over Lititz Christian and Christian School of York over Conestoga Christian.
Probable finalists: Lebanon Catholic over Steel-High.

District Three boys' basketball

The District Three playoffs, otherwise known as the first step in the “Road to Happy Valley” and a trip to the state finals at Penn State and the PIAA finals begins tonight.


Games will be played in Boys Class AAA and A and Girls AAAA and AA tonight and the remaining classes tomorrow night.

So what teams will have the opportunity to play on the big floor at the Giant Center at the end of next week for a district title?

Well, after reading all of the previews, following all the scores for the season and the various league playoffs, I would be surprised in there is a team from the L-L League playing for a district title in boys’ basketball, but it is more likely in girls’ basketball.

Not wait, aren’t two teams from the L-L League top seeds in their respective classes – Hempfield and Lancaster Mennonite? Yes, but while I don’t see neither team making the finals, one of them could and it won’t be Hempfield.

Locally, there is a team that should play for a district title and one that should get into the second round. And the surprise, which I already mentioned is that Hempfield won’t be playing for gold despite their unbeaten record. But I do see the Black Knights playing in the PIAA playoffs because half of the field makes the state tournament in Class AAAA and Class AAA.

First the local team that should be playing for a district title and deep into March are the Golden Knights from Eastern. They have two of the best players in the Class AAA field in guard Austin Tillotson and big man Andrew Nicholas. They also have a solid nucleus of other players.

The Knights meet Wyomissing in their opener tonight and probably will see an athletic Susquehanna Township team on the big floor at the Giant Center on Friday. Their semi-final game should be a battle with YAIAA foe West York and a meeting with either second seed Hershey, the Mid-Penn champion or York Suburban in the finals.

It will be a different story in the state playoffs, because the Knights, if they are in the East will have to run the gauntlet of District 12 schools, which are among the top three ranked teams in the state.

Now let’s talk about the Class AA field and the first round rematch between Columbia and Annville-Cleona at 7:30 p.m., tomorrow night at Hershey High School. Saw both of them play and they are about equal and it depends which Columbia team shows upm who wins. The winner gets third seeded Hanover in the quarter-finals.

Here’s something to think about – with Hanover, the Tide and A-C in the bottom of the bracket, there will be a public school in the semi-finals. The other three teams in the semi-finals, barring any major upsets, which I don’t see will be Catholic or a private school.

So in this class, I’ll take defending champ Trinity.

Next for Boys AAAA, Hempfield is the top seed and unbeaten, but hasn’t had a lot of success in the playoffs recently and has to go through a land mine of a bracket to get to the finals. After tomorrow’s game with a pesky Central Dauphin, the Black Knights will have to face either Penn Manor or Harrisburg, then either YAIAA runner-up York or Mid-Penn runner-up Red Land.

That’s why I don’t see the Black Knights making the finals, but they will make the PIAA playoffs.

Take Reading and Red Land in the finals.

In Boys’ Class A, the Private and Catholic School Invitational, there’s no doubt Reading Central Catholic is the “cream of the crop,” but also watched this private school New Hope Academy from York, who played an independent schedule this year and it made up of castoffs from a number of York area teams.

Here are the first round predictions

Boys A: Antietam over Harrisburg Academy; Millersburg over Lancaster Christian; Greenwood over Day Spring Academy; Lancaster Country Day over Camp Hill; New Hope over Mount Calvary and Lebanon Catholic over the Christian School of York.

Boys AA: Holy Name over Upper Dauphin; McDevitt over Pequea Valley; York Catholic over Tulpehocken and Columbia over Annville-Cleona.

Boys AAA: Eastern over Wyomissing; Susquehanna Township over Boiling Springs; West York over Big Spring; Middletown over East Pennsboro; Hershey over Milton Hershey (that game was moved to Cedar Crest. It was originally scheduled for Milton Hershey); Catholic over Greencastle; Suburban over Muhlenberg and Steel-High over Oley Valley.

Boys AAAA: Hempfield over Central Dauphin; Penn Manor over Hempfield; York over L-S; Red Land over Red Lion; Wilson over McCaskey; Solanco over Warwick; Reading over Exeter and Daniel Boone over Central York.

District 3 wrestling pairings

Here are the first round pairings, schools and record of the opponents of the Columbia seven, who will compete for a district title, starting Friday at the old Hersheypark Arena.

119: Derek Zercher (16-20) vs. Tim Renninger, Annville-Cleona (23-11).
130: John Markley (27-11) vs. Kyle Christianson, Kutztown (10-11).
135: Joe Ronca (32-6) vs. Bryan Wiedenhammere, Hamburg (17-21).
140: Jordon Halter (29-10) vs. Zeb Sheman, Tulpehocken (11-11).
160: Nathan Warner (28-9) vs Mitch Ball, Pequea Vallley (26-10).
215: Brandon Felus (25-6) vs. Dylan Powell, Juniata (14-8).
285: Jacob Sentz (22-15) vs. Malcolm White, Wyomissing (7-15).

Wrestlers advance 7

The first step in the mythical “Road to Hershey” was a successful one for the Columbia Crimson Tide wrestling team on Saturday.


Coach Scott Rupp and his staff took 14 wrestlers to the Class AA sectional tournament at Bermudian Springs High School and seven of those 14 advanced to this week’s District Three championships at the old Hersheypark Arena.

Leading the way for the Tide wrestlers were Joe Ronca and Nate Warner, who placed second at their respective weight classes, 135 and 160 pounds. Both lost in the finals.

Ronca, who moved down a weight class for the post-season, entered the sectional tournament needing three wins for 100 for his career. He fell one short when he lost in the finals 10-7 to Noah Blascone of Bermudian Springs.

At 160, Warner, a sophomore, was also a top seed. He lost in the finals to Tyler Fitzkee of Bermudian Springs, 10-0.

Placing third for the Tide were Jake Sentz (285), Jordon Halter (140) and John Markley (130).

Placing fourth for the Tide were Derek Zercher (119) and Brandon Felus (215).

Others participating from Columbia and not advancing were Tony Barton (103), Phil Stark (112), Alan Foehlinger (125), Todd Lingafelt (145), Derrick Brooks (171) and Marcus Fischer (189).

District 3 scores

Here are the scores from the pig-tail round of the District Three playoffs. Games were played Friday and Saturday.
The "official" tournament starts Tuesday. Working a preview of all the classifications, telling you who to watch and who might not end up in Hershey.

Boys Class AAAA

Central Dauphin 64, Dover 40
L-S 47, Carlisle 43
Red Lion 69, Governor Mifflin 52
McCaskey 69, Cocalico 56
Warwick 61, Mechanicsburg 46
Exeter 57, Chambersburg 50

Central York 56, Dallastown 49

Boys Class AAA

Wyomissing 60, Donegal 38
Big Spring 48, Schuykill Valley 47
Milton Hershey 57, Shippensburg 52
Muhlenberg 53, Kennard-Dale 52

Girls Class AAAA

Cumberland Valley 43, Carlisle 37
Hershey 37, South Western 26
Spring Grove 36, Wilson 33
Harrisburg 49, Hempfield 32
New Oxford 49, Dallastown 45
CD East 56, Penn Manor 39

Girls Class AAA

Eastern 45, Schuylkill Valley 37
Susquenita 48, Big Spring 42
Northern Lebanon 37, West Perry 30
Elco 50, Bermudian Springs 44
Twin Valley 37, East Pennsboro 31

League champs

Here is a list of various league basketball champions around District 3

Lancaster-Lebanon

Boys: Hempfield 44, Cocalico 35
Girls: Cedar Crest 53, Solanco 45

York-Adams

Boys: Eastern 62, York High 55
Girls: Red Lion 36, West York 33

Mid-Penn

Boys: Hershey 58, Red Land 45
Girls: Central Dauphin 49, Trinity 31

Berks County

Boys: Reading 64, Daniel Boone 55
Girls: Reaading 40, Wilson 39

Pequea Valley 61, Columbia 59

Photos by Pat Kreider

The Columbia boys' basketball team closed its regular season with a disappointing 61-59 loss to Pequea Valley.

Both teams were using the game as a tune-up for this week's District 3 playoffs, which begin Wednesday.

The Tide will travel the Hershey Highway for a 7:30 p.m. game with Section 4 foe Annville-Cleona. PV takes on Bishop McDevitt. (There is an earlier post on the playoff game).

Columbia had trouble most of the game guarding PV's leading scorer. He ripped the Tide for 29 points and hit 7 of 10 from the foul line.

The Tide jumped out quick against the Braves, leading 22-14 after one quarter and looked well on the way to a win. But has been so often the case this season, the Tide struggled in the second quarter, scoring just four points. They trailed 31-26 at the half.

The second half wasn't much better for the home team as they fell behind by eight points, before putting ona furious rally, only to fall short when a three-pointer at the buzzer rimed out.

Tre Simms led the Tide with 21 points, followed by Nate Wall with 12.

Wrestling update

Just got a phone call from coach Scott Rupp at Bermudian Springs High School -- site of the Section 1 sectional.
Columbia has two wrestlers -- Joe Ronca (135) and Nate Warner (160) going for sectional titles tonight.
Five others -- Derek Zercher (119), John Markley (130, Jordan Halter (140), Brandon Felus (215) and Jake Sentz (285) going for third and fourth.
All seven advance to the District Three championships next Friday and Saturday at the ancient Hersheypark Arena.

As a side note, if Ronca wins his championship bout tonight, it should give him 100 wins for his CHS career.

Trivia question

Okay Columbia basketball fans -- since Harriton High School in Lower Merion is in the news for some computer spying on students. Anyone recall the year Columbia played Harriton in the state basketball playoffs? What was the year? Where was the game at? Who was the famous baseball player who had a son playing on Harriton?

Attention Columbia High School seniors!

Here's a challenge for seniors at Columbia High School. President Obama is looking for a high school in the United States to deliver a commencement address.

The web site is www.whitehouse.gov/commencement.
It gives you the details on how to get the President, who visited the Columbia Market House (see picture) during the campaign in September 2008, to consider a school for a commencement address.

There is a form to fill out and the principal must sign off on it. It's worth a shot and would bring positive publicity to our great scshool and community.