Berks Catholic’s Parker Nein was pulled to the bench during the first quarter of a closely contested West Reading Ron Krick Memorial League championship game Thursday evening at Wyomissing.
After an impassioned sideline talk from coach Snip Esterly, Nein re-entered the game moments later and started to find his groove, scoring a game-high 18 points as Berks Packing defeated Lamm & Witman Funeral Home (Conrad Weiser) 46-29.
“I was getting yelled at for not hedging and not playing good defense,” Nein said. “It all came through defense. So when I came back to play defense, the offense came with it.”
Superior shooting proved to be the difference for Berks Packing, as it outscored Lamm & Witman Funeral Home 22-12 in the second half and an uplifted Nein recorded 10 second half points.
Nein helped orchestrate a momentum-shifting play two minutes into the third. After scoring a 3-pointer, the senior forced a turnover that led to a field goal by Kingston McKoy and gave Berks Packing a 31-17 lead.
Suffice it to say, the stern first quarter pep talk had a positive impact.
“When I was coming up I never had any coach talk to me that way,” Nein said, “so earlier it would affect me a little bit but not anymore. Now I’ve grown into it.
“For sure (Esterly brings out my best).”
Kingston McKoy finished with 13 points and Berks Packing led 35-27 after three quarters.
A 3-pointer by Kingston McKoy started the fourth quarter strong for Berks Packing, and relentless defensive pressure stifled any chance of a comeback by Lamm & Witman Funeral Homes, as it failed to convert a field goal in the fourth.
Joshua McKoy finished with six points, Brady Altimar had three points, Armani Dominguez had four points and Zachary Suski had two points for Berks Packing. Berks Packing converted seven 3-pointers while Lamm & Witman Funeral Homes made five 3-pointers.
“The shooting tonight for sure,” Nein said on was the key to victory. “These rims are tough to shoot on, and us making 3s helps a lot.”
Donovan Gingrich led all scorers at the half with nine points and finished with a team-high 15 points and three 3-pointers for Lamm & Witman Funeral Homes. Josh Plummer scored five points, James Arnold had two points, Alex Malone finished with four points and Kaiden Leonard had three.
According to Nein, togetherness propelled Berks Packing to its successful summer season, which will carry over when the winter sports seasons roll around.
“Togetherness (was key),” Nein said. “Last year we weren’t as together as we were this year. We all want to win for each other.
“When we’re together we can beat any team in the county.”
In the league All-Star game immediately following the championship, the Division I All-Stars defeated the Division II All-Starts 79-61.
Carter Horst of Warwick was named MVP, Kingston McKoy was named Defensive Player of the Year, Wilson’s Luke Levan won Most Improved Player and Logan Hyde of Wyomissing won the sportsmanship award.
Kingston McKoy had 13 points and Donovan Gingrich had 12 points off four 3-pointers for the Division I All-Stars. Daniel Boone’s Brendan Gaines had a team-high 15 points and Aiden Schippers of Wyomissing had 12 points for the Division II All-Stars.
Source: Berkshire mont