Salisbury Press

Salisbury point guard Sean Snyder has been a three-year starter for head coach Jason Weaver. With 1:44 left to play in last week’s regular season finale against Southern Lehigh, Snyder walked off the court for the final time as a Falcon.

Snyder was the last of three Salisbury seniors to exit the floor and receive a standing ovation last Tuesday. And while the result—a 63-43 loss to the Spartans—officially eliminated the Falcons (8-14 overall; 5-12 in Colonial League) from playoff contention, it was a celebratory night for those in blue and white.

Sarah McGee nearly walked away from basketball after her playing days at Salisbury. She just wasn’t sure if she wanted to try to play in college.

But with encouragement from her family, she decided to give it a shot. And now she’s a key piece in Penn State Lehigh Valley’s successful winter campaign that still has goals left to obtain.

Salisbury senior Jonah Niesenbaum entered the Coal Cracker wrestling tournament much like every other competition—with the intention of winning. And while he came up a few matches short of that goal, he was able to use the competition as a building block for the upcoming district tournament.

Niesenbaum went 4-2 at the competitive tournament at Panther Valley High School nearly two weeks ago, finishing in fourth place to wrap up his regular season.

Head coach Dan Reichenbach had sophomore Melena Koutch, a regular starter, come off the bench last week against Saucon Valley after she missed school the day before when she was feeling under the weather.

But Koutch was on the court in the final seconds in a tie game. She came up with the biggest bucket when it mattered most.

The Salisbury boys’ basketball team has pushed the Colonial League’s top team and another likely playoff squad late in games over the past two weeks. But much like Moravian Academy coming through at the end a week-and-a-half ago, Palmerton was able to separate itself in the final moments as well.

The Salisbury swim team has two regular season meets remaining on its schedule before the postseason gets underway. The District 11 Class 2A Swimming Championships are scheduled for March 1-2 at Parkland High School.

But for now, the Falcons are perfecting their strokes in hopes of making lengthy and rewarding postseason meets. As a team the records might not jump off the page—the boys are 0-8, while the girls are currently 2-6—but plenty of individuals have the opportunity to find themselves on the medal stand in the upcoming weeks.

Daniel Bonge is just two years removed from his final swimming season at Salisbury, one that included eight postseason medals, including gold in the 100-yard butterfly at states.

Now the former Falcon is making a name for himself at the Division I collegiate level.

Bonge’s second season at Rider University is picking up where his first one left off. The 2017 graduate of Salisbury recently set several personal bests, including a school record of 1:47.86 in the 100-yard butterfly at Brown University’s Bruno Invite two months ago.

It was there for the taking. And, if you ask most people who witnessed the end of the game, Salisbury probably should have defeated Moravian Academy and ended the Lions’ perfect season in the process.

Instead, a rebound and put back by Moravian in the final seconds of overtime hurt the chance of handing the Lions their first loss.

Freshman point guard Quinn Wittman admits there were nerves early in the season stepping onto the varsity stage. Not only did she have to prove she belonged with the upperclassmen, she’s been handed the job of leading Salisbury’s offense.

She seems to be settling into her role as one of the Lady Falcons’ leaders on the court.

Wittman scored 13 points, including a late clutch free throw, that helped Salisbury secure its second Colonial League victory of the season with a 36-33 win over Catasauqua on Monday. The Falcons also defeated the Rough Riders back in mid-December.

Devon Alder made the jump from 126 pounds last year to the 145-pound weight class this winter. It’s always tough jumping two weight classes over the course of a year, but Alder feels as if he’s off to a good start at his new spot in the line up.

Despite coming up short in last week’s match against Northwestern, he faced one of his toughest opponents all season, which will only bode well for the future.

Northwestern won three of the four contested bouts last Wednesday to secure the 57-12 victory.