EPHRATA - It was a holiday tournament championship game.
But it also doubled as a very intriguing all-L-L League first-place match-up game.
And when it was over, it was Lampeter-Strasburg that made the biggest statement.
Taylor Lininger scored 15 points, Lexie Lantz added 12 points - and joined the 1,000-career-point club in the process - and the Pioneers, after a sluggish start, rolled over host Ephrata 59-36, improved to 9-0 overall and won the Mountaineers’ holiday tournament.
VIDEO: Lantz scoring her 1,000th career point.
L-S is 4-0 and tied for first place with Garden Spot in Section 3.
Ephrata is 3-1 and in a three-way for first place with Cocalico and Elizabethtown in Section 2.
Those races will resume next Wednesday.
Friday, Lantz joined the 1,000-point club with 5:52 to go in the third quarter when she kissed in a wide-open lefty layup in the key. She’s up 1,003 career points.
And how sluggish was L-S’s start, you’re wondering?
The Pioneers turned the ball over on their first six trips.
After that, it was pretty much all L-S, which grabbed a 27-17 lead at the break and then outscored the Mounts 19-8 in the third quarter and salted it away from there.
QUOTABLE: L-S first-year coach Tony Fink - “We don’t really talk about our record. Our focus now is on Section 3, and playing Elco next Wednesday night. It doesn’t really matter what our record is because every game is different. Every team is going to give us their best shot, so we need to be ready to go each game. We accept that challenge. … We’re about we and us and not about I and me. That’s the great thing about this team.”
QUOTABLE: L-S senior Lexie Lantz - “The 9-0 start is great and we’ll try to stay undefeated as long as we can. Every win gets us closer and closer to our goal, which is overall improvement every day. The winning keeps giving us momentum, which is nice. But the other side of it is kinda scary. But we’ve gotten through it. … I was nervous all day (about reaching 1,000 points). But once I got it I was able to just play my game. That was the one thing I really wanted to accomplish this season personally. So now that it’s over I can just work on helping the team.”
NOTABLE: L-S feasted on 27 turnovers - “that was the bottom line,” Fink said - including 11 in the third quarter, when Lantz scored her milestone bucket and the Pioneers pulled away for good. … L-S survived 20 turnovers of its own - six on those first six possessions, but “just” 14 after that. … Kelly Liebl scored 13 points and Sarah Haddon, a Franklin & Marshall recruit, chipped in with 11 points and a game-best 11 boards for Ephrata. … Mounts out-rebounded L-S 33-27; Bailey Corbin had six boards for the Pioneers. … In the consolation game, Governor Mifflin topped McCaskey 67-46, as the Mustangs used a 29-point second quarter surge to pull away from the Red Tornado. … Khadijah Williams pumped in 19 points for McCaskey; she was named to the All-Tournament Team, along with Lantz - the MVP - and Corbin from L-S, Haddon and Liebl from Ephrata and Megan McKay from Mifflin.
In Friday’s other games involving L-L League girls’ basketball teams …
SPRING-FORD SHOOTOUT
Hempfield 46, Great Valley 35 - The Black Knights made it 2-for-2 at Spring-Ford behind Alecia Rohrer, who matched her career-high with 15 points for Hempfield, which fell behind 10-2 after the first quarter, but used an 18-3 third-quarter spree to seize control for good. The Knights are set to play their third game in three days on Saturday vs. Downingtown West.
YORK SUBURBAN HOLIDAY TOURNAMENT
Manheim Township 52, Lancaster Mennonite 32 - In an all-L-L League third-place game, Alex Leslie scored 14 points, and the Blue Streaks darted to a 38-13 halftime lead and cruised past the Blazers. Alex Ross added 13 points for Manheim Township, while Mady Reeser scored 13 points for Lancaster Mennonite.
HERSHEY HOLIDAY TOURNAMENT
Middletown 54, Penn Manor 38 - In the consolation-round game, Jalynn Burton-Jones pumped in 32 points, and Middletown jumped out to a 26-15 lead at the half and broke the game open with a 16-7 third-quarter run and topped the Comets. Ilisha Collazo scored a season-high 11 points to pace Penn Manor.
CUMBERLAND VALLEY HOLIDAY TOURNAMENT
Shippensburg 56, Warwick 44 - In a first-round game, Alicia Johnson paced Ship with 14 points, and Warwick couldn’t dig out of a 30-15 halftime deficit and was relegated to Saturday’s third-place game vs. Dallastown. Katie Hipple scored 8 points for Warwick, which slipped to 0-8 overall.
MUHLENBERG HOLIDAY TOURNAMENT
Cocalico 43, Garden Spot 33 - In a battle of first-place L-L League teams, Marissa Gingrich scored 20 points, and the Eagles made their 27-19 halftime lead stand up. Cocalico is in a three-way tie for first place in Section 2 with Elizabethtown and Ephrata. Hailey Fricke scored 12 points for the Spartans, who had their 4-game winning streak snapped - but Garden Spot is tied for first in Section 3 with L-S. Cocalico gets host Muhlenberg in the championship game; Garden Spot gets Schuylkill Valley in the third-place game.
EXETER HOLIDAY TOURNAMENT
Conestoga Valley 37, Wyomissing 26 - Tourney MVP Jahnae Hall-Gaddy scored 15 points for the Buckskins, who held Wyo to 2 second-quarter points and won the tourney championship. That’s four victories for CV, which had just one win last season.
NORTHEASTERN YORK TOURNAMENT
Northeastern York 59, Elizabethtown 54 - In a first-round match-up, host Northeastern York raced out to an early 15-4 lead and then withstood the Bears’ comeback. Erin Sollenberger scored 15 points and Jen Fairbanks chipped in with 13 points for E-town, which will face New Oxford in Saturday’s consolation round. Northeastern York gets Harrisburg in the title tilt.
LEBANON HOLIDAY TOURNAMENT
Elco 33, Lebanon 31 - Cheyenne Hassler paced a balanced attack with 11 points, and the Raiders won tourney gold, holding the host Cedars to 5 second-half points. Lebanon led 26-16 at the half before Elco rallied. Halie Parker added 10 points for the Raiders, while Lauren Chambers had 12 points for the Cedars.
Lebanon Catholic 60, Twin Valley 39 - In the consolation game, the Beavers bounced back from a first-round loss to Elco quite nicely as Abby Shay scored 19 points, Helene Reist added 15 points, and Lebanon Catholic cruised to a 31-12 lead at the break. Holly Marinkov added 10 points for the Beavers, who snapped a 2-game skid.
CENTRAL YORK HOLIDAY TOURNAMENT
Central York 42, Solanco 40 - The Golden Mares settled for fourth place when host Central York closed the game with a 26-18 run. L-L League leading scorer Gillian Glackin had 18 points for Solanco, which dropped its third game in a row.
ANNVILLE-CLEONA HOLIDAY TOURNAMENT
Steel-High 65, Annville-Cleona 63 - The Little Dutchmen took the two-time reigning PIAA-A state champs to OT, but Malia Tate-DeFreitas was too much, with 42 points in the Rollers’ victory. Steel-High outscored A-C 9-7 in the extra session to win it, after the Rollers rallied from a 37-22 halftime deficit. Elaina Wanamaker pumped in 22 points for the Dutchmen.
Northern Lebanon 35, Halifax 34 - In the consolation game, Maria LiBrandi scored 14 points, and the Vikings - minus leading scorer Emily Brandt, who is out with a knee injury - closed the game with a 23-15 run and took third place. Kristen Lessing added 13 points for Northern Lebanon.
EASTERN YORK HOLIDAY TOURNAMENT
Kennard-Dale 46, Cedar Crest 37 - In the consolation game, the Falcons led at the half, but K-D closed the game with a 21-12 blitz and earned third place. Alex Rich scored 11 points for the Falcons.
JEFF REINHART: jreinhart@pennlive.com
ON TWITTER: @JeffReinhartPN