Saturday, February 14, 2026

1948-49 Chambersburg Cardinals (ESABL)

1948-49 CHAMBERSBURG CARDINALS
EASTERN STATES AMATEUR BASKETBALL LEAGUE
Northern Division
13-1, .929, 1st place
Championship - Defeated Hagerstown, 3-0

An absolute powerhouse, the Cardinals rolled through the regular season with the only blemish being a 2-point loss in Harrisburg. They would outscore their opponents by an average of 17 points and in the championship series pounded Hagerstown in three straight games, the last two being 39 and 24-point margins. Joe Howard of Gettysburg College lead the team with 14.2 point per game while Jack Dorsey chipped in 12.2 PPG.




Jack Dorsey
Co-Head Coaches:

L. Kenneth Barbour (May 16, 1904 - March 9, 1968)
Robert Rines (March 1, 1914 - April 16, 2004)

PLAYERS:

Jack Dorsey (March 12, 1926 - December 1, 2002)
Don Flory (December 30, 1929 - September 1, 2007)
Jim Gillespie (July 9, 1929 - November 1, 2003)
Jack Goulding (September 17, 1929 - December 5, 1995)
Bert Henry (May 22, 1929 - November 12, 2012)
Joe Howard (June 4, 1928 - December 17, 1993)
Nick Koutris
Nick Koutris (June 4, 1927 - February 13, 1989)
Merle Leisher (July 6, 1929 - December 23, 2012)
Clarence Lesher (July 9, 1927 - March 21, 2001)
Ted Lesher (October 12, 1926 - November 9, 2021)
Dick Naugle (January 13, 1930 - December 20, 2011)
Clarence Zweizig (March 23, 1921 - June 23, 1985)



Jim Goulding



Jim Gillespie

Merle "Doggie" Lesher

Dick Naugle

Clarence Lesher

Joe Howard

1948-49 Alexandria WASCO Bullets (ESABL)

1948-49 ALEXANDRIA WASCO BULLETS
EASTERN STATES AMATEUR BASKETBALL LEAGUE
Southern Division
7-6, .538, t-4th place
(10-3, .769, before game reversals) 

At the end of the season, player eligibility issues surfaces league wide and a bunch of games had their results reversed and turned into forfeits. Alexandria was involved in 5 such games, both on the winning and losing side. The reversed scores downgraded their 10-3 finish into a 4th place finish and missing the playoffs.




Head Coach:
  • Mike Patterson  
PLAYERS:

Aud  
Nose Burling (October 27. 1922 - January 2, 1995)
Cranford
Jack Haggerty
Jimmy Higgins (October 28, 1923 - July 7, 2014)
Laekhart 
Tommy McGuire  
Phillips  
Bill Rorer (January 28, 1930 - March 14, 2019)
John Smerick (April 10, 1918 - October 21, 2004)
Duky Washington 
Jack Washington 


Tuesday, February 10, 2026

1948-49 Eastern States American Basketball League (ESABL)

The Eastern States American Basketball League was formed in 1948, featuring 16 semi-pro teams split into two divisions. As seemed to be the case with most smaller semi-pro leagues, some teams were very successful at the gate while others faltered and failed to finish the season. After the inaugural season, the Eastern States League would re-organize as the Penn-Maryland League and run two more years before folding.

Northern Division

  • Chambersburg Cardinals
  • Hanover AA
  • Harrisburg Modern Army and Navy
  • Letterkenny / Scotland Generals
  • McSherrystown Knights of Columbus
  • Progress Susquehanna Boosters
  • Steelton Friendly Tavern Five
  • York Howard Cleaners

Southern Division

  • Alexandria WASCO
  • Frederick Moose
  • Greencastle VFW
  • Hagerstown Fairchild Aircraft Packets
  • Martinsburg Legionnaires
  • Rockville Stars
  • Waynesboro VFW
  • Winchester Royals

Monday, January 19, 2026

New updates, identifications, corrections, December 2025

Taking some time and looking back to fill in some holes or close some things out.

DETAILS ADDED:

Dave Laub, ABL - Died April 3, 2025

Clint Parmer, PBLA - Died March 3, 2025


PROPERLY IDENTIFIED:

Pat Walsh, NEBL / Boston Goodwins - Patrick Joseph Walsh

CORRECTED:


NEW LEADS UNRESOLVED:


Friday, October 31, 2025

Wednesday, October 15, 2025

1950-51 Eastern Basketball League - Connecticut - Revisit

 Additions


Bristol

Foster is Joe "Chuck" Foster

Joyce is corrected to Mike Joyce

Hartford:

Added Johnny Barker

Manchester

Joyce corrected to Mike Joyce

Identified John Letvinchuk

Head coach corrected to John Falkowski

Meriden

Identified John Gaffney, Ed DiPersio

Torrington

Added Andy Hricko

Schick is Al Shiels

Identified Tom Gibbons

Wallingford

Added Joe "Chuck" Foster

Identified Frank O'Shea, Joe Di Stanislo, Milt Woolman

Added Frosty Frauham as coach