The Pine Grove Area Cardinals opened their 2025–2026 boys basketball season on Saturday, earning a hard-fought 42–40 victory over Upper Dauphin in what also marked the debut of new head coach John Rizzo.
The two teams battled through a tightly contested first quarter, ending knotted at 7–7. Pine Grove found its rhythm in the second, outscoring Upper Dauphin 20–13 to take a 27–20 lead into halftime.
Upper Dauphin surged back after the break, cutting Pine Grove’s lead to just two points by the end of the third quarter, 35–33. The fourth quarter remained tense from start to finish, but the Cardinals held firm in the final minute to clinch the narrow two-point win.
Scoring Leaders
Pine Grove Area
- Dane Hannevig – 10 points
- Terrin Witmer – 8 points
- Teagan Schneck-Hannes – 8 points (including two 3-pointers)
- Dru Herber – 6 points
- Braylon Farrell – 2 points
- Tanner Kolb – 2 points
Upper Dauphin
- Landon Savage – 11 points
- Maddock Barge – 8 points
- Ian Weaver – 4 points
- Braden Forker – 4 points
- Chris McClain – 3 points
- Alex Fernandez – 3 points
Friday’s win marks a strong start to the Rizzo era at Pine Grove, setting the tone for the season ahead.
Pine Grove now prepares for its home opener on Monday, when they welcome Kutztown to Cardinal Gym.