North Schuylkill's Caden Mengel shoots a 3-pointer as the buzzer rings to end the second quarter Saturday at North Schuylkill (Photo by Eli Doyle).

FOUNTAIN SPRINGS — North Schuylkill wasted no time giving new head coach Anthony Agosti a moment to remember.

In a wire-to-wire season-opening rout, the Spartans smothered Hanover 54-18 on Saturday afternoon in a non-league boys’ basketball game, delivering Agosti his first win and a statement start to a new era of boys’ basketball in the Cesari-Hope Gynasium.

The Spartans (1-0) exploded out of the gate, racing to a 14-3 lead after one quarter. Sparks came from senior guard Jude Maziekas, who led all scorers with 13 points, knocking down three 3-pointers. He got plenty of help: senior guard Julian Nelson added nine, senior Caden Mengel tallied seven, and junior Sam Wall chipped in eight (including 2-for-2 from the free-throw line). In the paint, sophomore center Xavier McNally anchored the defense and contributed five points as the Spartans stifled Hanover’s offense all night.

North Schuylkill spread the scoring among nine players and pushed the tempo consistently — the Spartans poured in 20 third-quarter points, putting the game completely out of reach. Hanover never found an answer, managing just 18 total points across four quarters.

For Agosti, the victory is more than just a win — it’s the first step in what he hopes becomes a reestablished competitive identity for a program seeking to climb out of last season’s difficulties.

HANOVER (18) — Monge 0 0-0 0, Rivera 2 0-0 6, De. Downey 0 0-0 0, Coleman 0 3-4 3, Vargas 0 0-0 0, Da. Downey 0 0-0 0, Pieke 0 0-0 0, Singh 0 0-0 0, Kolbicka 0 0-2 0, Tejeda 2 0-0 4, Richardson 1 0-0 3, Lucas 1 0-0 2. Totals 6 3-6 54.

NORTH SCHUYLKILL (54) — Cairo 0 0-0 0, Damiter 1 0-0 2, Maziekas 5 0-0 13, Wall 3 2-2 8, Mengel 3 0-0 7, Kacilowicz 3 1-4 8, Kronkowsky 0 0-0 0, Nelson 4 1-2 9, McNally 2 1-1 5, Cabral 0 0-0 0, Gallagher 0 0-0 0, Osenbach 0 0-0 0, Hannon 1 0-0 2. Totals 22 5-9 54.

3-point FGs: Rivera 2, Richardson, Maziekas 3, Mengel, Kacilowicz

Officials: Groody, Rizzo, Shober

JV Score: Hanover 51-41

Salisbury 60, Mahanoy Area 45

ALLENTOWN — Mahanoy Area showed plenty of promise in its season debut, but Salisbury used a strong finish to hand the Golden Bears a loss on the road in a non-league game.

The Bears hung tough early, trailing just 16–13 after the first quarter before a cold second frame put them in catch-up mode.

Sophomore guard Connor Bowman led the way with 14 points, including four 3-pointers, while senior Ryan Zilker powered the inside with 15 points and a 5-for-6 night at the line. Nico Dicasimirro and Cam Smith combined for 16 more as Mahanoy hit eight 3’s overall in a balanced offensive effort.

Despite an 18-point third quarter push that briefly tightened the gap, Mahanoy Area couldn’t slow Salisbury’s response down the stretch.

MAHANOY AREA (45) — Bowman 5 0-0 14, Perez 0 0-2 0, Dicasimirro 2 2-2 7, Smith 3 0-0 9, Contreras 0 0-0 0, Corona 0 0-0 0, Byrne 0 0-0 0, Zilker 5 5-6 15. Totals 15 7-10 45.

SALISBURY (60) — Lozada 4 0-0 9, Leiner 4 1-2 9, B. Gonzalez 2 2-2 7, Petrie 4 3-5 11, Cody 1 0-0 2, J. Gonzalez 0 0-0 0, Muth 0 0-0 0, Smarch 0 0-0 0, Makoul 9 2-3 22. Totals 24 10-12 60.

3-point FGs: Bowman 4, Dicasimirro, Smith 3, Lozada, B. Gonzalez, Makoul 2

JV Score: Salisbury 46-42

Weatherly 67, Panther Valley 55

WEATHERLY — Ian McKeegan paced a trio of double-digit scorers with a game-high 27 points as the Wreckers outlasted the Panthers in a non-league contest.

Corbin Wagner added 14 and Niko Saldukas tallied 13 for Weatherly, which led 29-23 at halftime and used a 22-15 run in the fourth quarter to pull away. McKeegan had nine of his points in the fourth quarter, shooting 7-of-9 from the foul line.

Jarell Thomas led Panther Valley with 19 points.

PANTHER VALLEY (55) — Moyer 1 0-0 2, Crampsie 0 0-0 0, McArdle 3 2-2 9, Hall 2 2-4 7, Breiner 3 0-0 9, Mitchell 0 0-0 0, Revell 0 0-0 0, Wehr 3 1-2 7, Baneravage 1 0-0 2, Thomas 8 3-8 19, Williams 0 0-0 0. Totals 21 8-16 55.

WEATHERLY (67) — Adler 2 0-2 5, D. Kokinda 3 0-0 6, I. McKeegan 9 9-11 27, Saldukas 6 1-2 13, Davis 1 0-2 2, Brown 0 0-0 0, Wagner 6 2-4 14. Totals 27 12-21 67.

3-point FGs: McArdle, Hall, Breiner 3, Adler

Officials: Wise

JV Score: Panther Valley 71-47

Pine Grove 42, Upper Dauphin 40

ELIZABETHVILLE — Dane Hannevig led a balanced attack with 10 points as the Cardinals edged the Trojans to give John Rizzo his first victory as the Pine Grove head coach.

Terrin Witmer had seven of his eight points in a 20-13, second-quarter run that put Pine Grove ahead to stay.

Landon Savage scored a game-high 11 points for Upper Dauphin, which shot 15-for-31 from the foul line, including 0-for-7 in the fourth quarter.

PINE GROVE (42) — Rizzo 0 0-0 0, Smeltz 0 0-0 0, Fairell 1 0-0 2, Hannevig 4 2-4 10, Witmer 3 1-2 8, Shanahan 0 0-0 0, Schneck-Haines 3 0-0 8, Herber 3 0-0 6, Kolb 1 0-0 2, Snyder 3 0-0 6. Totals 18 3-8 42.

UPPER DAUPHIN (40) — Barge 2 3-5 8, Weaver 1 2-2 4, McClain 1 1-3 3, Fernandez 1 1-2 3, Foraker 1 2-4 4, Wertz 0 0-0 0, Savage 4 3-7 11, Heim 2 3-8 7. Totals 12 15-31 40.

3-point FGs: Witmer, Schneck-Haines 2

Officials: Scdzdalocki, Hosk, Murray

Tri-Valley 81, Schuylkill Valley 68

HEGINS — Kingsley Johnson canned eight 3-pointers and scored a game-high 28 points as the Dawgs outgunned the Panthers in a non-league tilt.

Johnson hit four of his triples in the first quarter as Tri-Valley raced out to a 31-14 lead and led by 20 at halftime. Braedon Doyle added 24 points and Trey Porter tallied 11 for the Dawgs, who hit 10 3-pointers.

SCHUYLKILL VALLEY (68) — Urbaez 2 0-0 5, Gehret 2 1-2 6, Ortiz 3 0-0 7, Grim 5 0-0 11, Reeser 4 3-3 11, Santanta 0 1-2 1, Stans 4 2-2 10, Caba 0 1-2 1, Keller 0 0-0 0, Aletras 5 1-2 12, Cammauf 2 0-2 4. Totals 27 9-15 68.

TRI-VALLEY (81) — Carl 4 1-1 9, Doyle 10 3-4 24, Miller 3 0-0 7, Porter 5 1-2 11, Wehry 1 0-0 2, Johnson 9 2-4 28, C. Troutman 0 0-0 0, T. Troutman 0 0-0 0, Maurer 0 0-0 0, Kaslavage 0 0-0 0, Clemmer 0 0-0 0. Totals 32 7-11 81.

3-point FGs: Urbaez, Gehret, Ortiz, Grim, Aletras, Doyle, Miller, Johnson 8

Officials: Gerchak, Wojciechowsky

Shenandoah Valley 57, Hamburg 51

HAMBURG — Niko White scored a game-high 17 points as the Blue Devils topped the host Hawks in the consolation game of the Hamburg Tip-Off Tournament.

David Burrous added 12 points, Izayah Lopez netted 11 and Jonnuel Reyes tallied 10 as Shenandoah Valley placed four players in double figures.

Trailing 27-25 at halftime, Burrous and White combined for 13 points in a 20-9 outburst in the third quarter to put the Devils ahead to stay.

SHENANDOAH VALLEY (57) — Reyes 4 1-2 10, Rivera 1 0-2 3, Gonzalez 0 0-0 0, White 7 3-6 17, Burrous 5 1-1 12, Lopez 3 4-4 11, B. Hernandez 2 0-0 4, Bench 0 0-2 0. Totals 22 9-15 57.

HAMBURG (51) — Henderson 6 0-0 15, Bentz 3 1-2 8, Arroyo 4 3-4 12, Castro 0 0-0 0, McKade 2 1-2 6, Alle 1 0-0 2, Borata 2 2-5 6, James 0 2-2 2, Gotschall 0 0-0 0. Totals 18 9-15 51.

3-point FGs: Reyes, Rivera, Burrous, Lopez, Henderson 3, Bentz, Arroyo, McKade