Clay Scovill, who was last seen in these parts scoring in droves for Manheim Township while leading the Blue Streaks into the state playoffs, has left Penn State and will play for legendary coach Glenn Robinson at Franklin & Marshall. Here is my story on Scovill’s decision to leave Happy Valley and come back home from Tuesday’s New Era:
One of the most prolific scorers in Lancaster-Lebanon League boys’ basketball history is headed home.
Manheim Township grad Clay Scovill, who walked on at Division 1 Penn State and played in seven games as a non-scholarship athlete the last two seasons for the Nittany Lions, is transferring to Franklin & Marshall, where he will continue his basketball career with the Division 3 Diplomats.
“I enrolled at F&M and I’ve been accepted to F&M,” Scovill said Monday. “I can honestly say that my experience at Penn State made me a better player and, more importantly, a better person. I learned a lot, especially about being a good teammate and being part of a family.
“I gave it my best shot. I didn’t fail at Penn State. Going to Penn State was the best thing that’s happened to me.”
But after appearing in just seven games, scoring four points, grabbing a pair of rebounds and forcing a pair of steals in two seasons, Scovill, a 6-3 guard, was itching for more time on the court. So he made the move.
“I just wanted to play more,” he said. “That’s what it came down to.”
So it was goodbye Happy Valley. Hello Diplomats.
“It was a tough decision,” said Scovill, who scored 1,715 points for Township, most in school history. He averaged 25.2 points per game his senior season, leading the Blue Streaks to a 23-8 record and the L-L League Section 1 championship.
Scovill, whose dad, Brad, played tight end under coach Joe Paterno for Penn State’s football team, led the L-L League in scoring in his junior and senior seasons and was a two-time New Era All-League selection.
“I went back and forth with the decision,” Scovill said. “It probably took me two and a half months to make the final decision, so it was really tough. One day I was sure. The next …”
Scovill eventually landed in Penn State coach Ed DeChellis’ office, letting him know he was headed back home.
“He’s always been very open about coming to him and talking about things,” Scovill said of DeChellis, who recently completed his fourth season as the Lions’ head coach.
“We have a great relationship. When we talked about it, he told me he knew it was tough on me because I was a walk on. So he was really supportive.”
DeChellis’ loss is F&M coach Glenn Robinson’s gain.
The Diplomats, who finished just 8-17 and out of the playoff picture last season, will return six seniors later this year: guards Adam Leonard, Mantas Paulauskus and Brandon Chasen, centers Evan Hamme and Brandon Yost, and forward Derek Hines, Scovill’s former teammate at Township.
Scovill will be a junior, but he’s hoping to gain another year of athletic eligibility because he played in so few games for Penn State. He said he’ll likely petition the NCAA to get another season, but it could be a long shot because he didn’t redshirt and he didn’t miss any time because of injury.
“I talked to Coach Robinson about it,” Scovill said, “and he suggested that I seriously look into getting a year back.”
Scovill will play at least two seasons for F&M, where he’ll major in business after majoring in accounting at Penn State.
“I was always interested in F&M, and I feel really comfortable there now,” Scovill said. It’s a great situation and I’m definitely excited. F&M basketball has a great reputation and it’s a great program. It’s also a great academic school, so it’s a perfect fit for me.”
JEFFREY REINHART jreinhart@LNPnews.com
