Delcohoops.com

[/caption]

By Jack McCaffery

Because of the rumors, because of his instincts, because his program is so deep that it begins to develop players at the youngest ages and because he has come to know how high school basketball has been warped in the last decade, Keith Taylor had to know it was coming.

Anymore, the basketball coach at Chester High just reduces it all to a vaguely familiar slogan.

“What Chester makes,” he said, “other people take.”

Chester makes plenty. It is particularly adept at developing basketball players, and Taylor was lamenting the latest cost of that make-take dynamic, as high-major Clippers forward prospect Larenzo Jerkins has left after his sophomore season to attend Neumann-Goretti in South Philadelphia. A 6-5 battler with an anticipated growth spurt, Jerkins is a natural rim protector and timely scorer and would have been the key piece for the Clippers for the next two years. But even before his sophomore season, Jerkins was confirming that he was being wooed not by college recruiters but the high-school variety.

(click on this link for the full story)

By Associated Press

In the District 1 Class 5A final, Radnor and Chester waged an epic battle at Temple’s Liacouras Center. Friday, two of the main protagonists in that battle were recognized for their outstanding seasons with spots on the Pennsylvania Sports Writers All-State team.

Radnor junior Jackson Hicke landed on the second team, while Chester sophomore Larenzo Jerkins is a third-teamer. Honorees are nominated and voted on by sports writers statewide.

The 6-4 Hicke led Radnor to the state tournament by averaging 16.5 points per game. He scored 38 points to lead the Raptors to a states win over Susquehannock, the last of 23 victories on the season.

Jerkins, a 6-5 wing, average a double-double at 12.9 points and 10.5 rebounds per game. He was the Clippers’ leading scorer and second-leading rebounder. Jerkins’ Clippers beat Radnor in overtime of the District 1 final.

(click on this link for the full story)

By Matthew DeGeorge

In addition to Player of the Year Izaiah Pasha of Cardinal O’Hara, the rest of the All-Delco team includes:

Jackson Hicke, Radnor: For all the exemplary balance that the Raptors showed in a historic season, Hicke was the clear offensive standout. He led the team by averaging 16.5 points per game, one of five starters averaging at least six points per outing and seventh-best in Delaware County this season. But his scoring touch had the game-breaking potential that forced opponents to craft their defenses around him. At 6-5, Hicke is able to create space for himself in the lane, handle the ball while running the point and be a lethal catch-and-shoot option beyond the arc. He led the Raptors to one of the best seasons in program history, with 23 wins, a 14-2 Central League record on the way to the league championship game and a run to the second round of the PIAA Class 5A tournament. Hicke had 12 games of 20 points or more, the pinnacle coming in the first round of states when he steered Radnor past Susquehannock with 38 points in a 75-56 win. He added 21 points in the District 1 Class 5A final, an overtime loss to Chester. He blitzed Conestoga for 27 points and Holy Ghost Prep for 25, part of a 13-0 start to the season for Radnor. A first team All-Central selection by league coaches, Hicke is the first Radnor All-Delco since Glenn Washington in 2005-06.

(click on this link for the full story)

By Mike White

The critics of Catholic/private/charter schools in Pennsylvania high school sports have been many in recent history. And you can now add to the group a few coaches of WPIAL schools in PIAA basketball championships this weekend.

Five teams — three boys and two girls — from the WPIAL all lost to Philadelphia Catholic League teams this weekend and the average margin of defeat in those games was 20 points. A few coaches of the WPIAL teams weren’t shy about making their feelings known about what they perceive as an uneven playing field between public and Catholic/private/charter schools — and they are calling for the PIAA to address the subject. They believe there should be separate playoffs for public schools and all other schools.

Boys coaches Ralph Blundo of New Castle, Mike Mastroianni of Quaker Valley and Nick Lackovich of Aliquippa all lost to teams from the Philadelphia Catholic League and their teams lost by 15, 25 and 18 points.

The complaint from coaches, fans and even administrators is that public schools can take only students from within their geographical districts. Meanwhile, Catholic/private/charter schools don’t have geographical boundaries and can take students from anywhere.

(click on this link for the full story)

By Matt Smith

When they were freshmen, Cardinal O’Hara seniors Maggie Doogan, Sydni Scott and Annie Welde couldn’t have predicted what their final game as high school players would look like.

They grew up together on coach Chrissie Doogan’s varsity team. Scott was a starter practically from day one. Doogan and Welde worked their way into the rotation and eventually became stalwarts in the lineup.

Friday evening at the Giant Center, O’Hara’s fantastic senior trio put the finishing touches on an amazing high school journey. With the Lions’ 42-19 victory over Chartiers Valley, they became PIAA Class 5A champions for a second year in a row.

“It’s really unbelievable,” Doogan said of consecutive state championships. “We’re all just really close and to be able to do this with them is an amazing feeling. I wouldn’t want to do this with anyone else.”

(click on this link for the full story)

By Jack McCaffery

One by one Friday, in the tradition of PIAA state championship teams, Chrissie Doogan would drape a gold medal around the neck of each of her players.

For each, she had a hug.

For each, she had a smile.

For each, she had pride.

For each, she had gratitude.

Then, the girls basketball coach at Cardinal O’Hara came to the final player in line, and that’s when the video board high above the Giant Center revealed that she had just a little bit more.

“We did it,” she told her daughter, Maggie Doogan. “I love you, Maggie.”

The Lions did plenty during the season, during the postseason, and finally in the Class 5A championship game, a 42-19 triumph over Chartiers Valley. In the process, they would be the first team in the generations-deep tradition of O’Hara girls basketball excellence to win both the Catholic League championship and a state championship. And even if some of the most glorious Lions teams – including the one Chrissie played on as a senior in 1993 – were not yet PIAA members, the 2022 Lions were high among the best.

(click on this link for the full story)