Now this is starting to get difficult.
Not at the top of course. The league's only two undefeated teams (William Penn boys and Northeastern girls) have a solid grasp on the No. 1 spots. What what about the rest of the boys rankings? After all, West York beat Central York which beat Red Lion which beat York Suburban which beat Eastern York. Are you sill with me?
Even on the girls side, while Courtney Rhein, Katie Althouse and Eastern York (above) proved their worth with a road win at York Catholic, there's still questions as to how Red Lion, Delone Catholic and York Catholic should be ranked to round out the top five.
Find out where I put them all after the jump and let the world know your opinions of the rankings in the comments section.
Boys
1. William Penn (16-0): They've beaten West York, Central York and Red Lion. If there is a team out there that's going to stop the Bearcats from finishing the regular season undefeated, I'm not sure who it is.
2. Eastern York (14-1): The Golden Knights move up a spot because they continue to post big victories, in a week when York Suburban suffered a double-digit loss to Red Lion. Eastern's only defeat of the season was a two-point loss in double overtime on the road against Suburban, so the Golden Knights are about as close to undefeated as a one-loss team can be.
3. Red Lion (10-4): Two words: Josh Lauver. The Lions are undefeated when the senior is healthy and in the lineup. Lauver helped his team pick up a huge victory over Suburban last week and the Lions are playing well with the playoffs just around the corner.
4. York Suburban (14-1): The Trojans are still one of the strongest teams in the area and should be considered a season District 3 Class AAA title contender, but the loss to Red Lion raises some questions.
5. West York (7-5): The Bulldogs are doing their usual number on league opponents other than William Penn and had a decisive 69-53 win over Central York.
6. Central York (10-4): The Panthers are in the midst of a brutal stretch of their schedule, following up the West York contest with games against New Oxford, William Penn and Red Lion. If Central goes 0-4, they will probably be shut out of the YAIAA tournament.
7. New Oxford (10-4): The Colonials just keep winning, making it nine of their last 10. They get Central and West York in two of their next three games.
8. Delone Catholic (10-3): Chris Hartmann and the Squires continue to show improvement, enough so that it wouldn't be much of a surprise to see them make a return to the District 3 Class AA title game.
9. Dallastown (7-7): The young Wildcats are doing enough to avoid dropping below .500, keeping themselves in a position to qualify for district play. They'll need to make more strides if they hope to make any noise in that tournament.
10. Hanover (11-5): The Nighthawks were pounded by York Suburban, but continue to hold first place in Division IV.
Girls
1. Northeastern (15-0): Entering a hostile environment against an aggressive and fundamentally sound Red Lion team, the Bobcats prevailed. If it wasn't already clear, that win proved Northeastern is among the top teams in the district at any level.
2. Eastern York (14-1): That's nine in a row now for the Golden Knights. It's a shame Eastern and Northeastern don't meet in the regular season this year, but it looks like a relatively good chance they will run into each other in the YAIAA title game.
3. Delone Catholic (11-2): The only team to beat Eastern this year, the Squires came through with another big victory earlier this week when they took down Trinity.
4. Red Lion (11-4): The Lions played the Bobcats tough the entire way and gave Northeastern its closest game of the season. Red Lion is young and there is still room for improvement before the postseason. I don't think any team wants to draw the Lions in the YAIAA tournament.
5. York Catholic (10-3): Speaking of young teams with a lot of potential, the three-time defending state champions have looked good so far, especially since opening the season with a couple of losses, but still need to kick it up a notch to reach championship-level status.
6. West York (11-4): The Bulldogs will show a lot about how ready they are for the playoffs in their upcoming three-game stretch that includes Eastern and Suburban.
7. Spring Grove (11-5): The Rockets are starting to blossom (or, I guess, blast into orbit?), coming through with several strong performances this month.
8. York Suburban (8-5): They are still lurking in Division III, but four league losses hurt their chances of reaching the YAIAA tournament. Luckily for the Trojans, they still have two games left against division leader West York.
9. New Oxford (8-5): The Colonials are in a three-way fight with the Rockets and the Rams for two spots in the YAIAA tournament and New Oxford's battle on Friday against Kennard-Dale could be pivotal,
10. Kennard-Dale (9-5): The Rams have a pivotal three-game stretch of their own starting Friday, including contests against New Oxford and Spring Grove.
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