George Guido: Saying goodbye to hoops season with local ‘awards’

By: HSSN Staff
Tuesday, March 20, 2018 | 11:33 PM

It's time to say goodbye to the local high school basketball season.

All that's left is the annual Cager Classic all-star event Saturday, which in just over two decades has become one of the highlights of the Alle-Kiski Valley sports menu.

Highlands had another banner season, making it to the PIAA quarterfinal round for the second time in three seasons before losing to long-time nemesis Mars.

Six local teams made it to the PIAA playoffs, with the Golden Rams the only one advancing past the first round.

So while the first springtime snowfall has made its way to the area, it's time to pass out this year's awards:

• Buzzer beaters: Burrell's Jake Okapol hit 3-point buzzer-beaters Feb. 2 vs. Shady Side Academy and Feb. 6 vs. Apollo-Ridge to propel the Bucs to a section title.

• Best turnaround: Valley's boys won one game two years ago. But the Vikings, under coach Mark Faulx, won 14 games, narrowly missed beating section champ Indiana at home and qualified for the PIAA playoffs for the first time since 2009.

• Quote of the Year: Washington's veteran coach Ron Faust, 66 and winner of more than 550 games, when asked if he's returning next year after the Prexies were eliminated from the playoffs: “I plan to be unless the Aliquippa School Board moves to Washington.”

• Infirmary Award: A promising season by the St. Joseph boys was cut short by injuries to Matt Arvay and Daniel Fábregas. If the Spartans stay healthy next season, they'll be a team nobody wants to play.

• Elvis Presley Award (Heartbreak Hotel): The Riverview girls were poised to post a huge upset over Serra Catholic in the first round of the Class 2A playoffs, only to see Eagles guard Gigi Mele-Madigan toss in a prayer at the buzzer.

• Career Legacy Award: Leechburg's Mikayla Lovelace finished her days with the Blue Devils as the second-leading scorer in A-K Valley girls history with 2,047 points. She also ranks as the second-leading scorer in Armstrong County history behind Ford City's Lizzie Suwala, who had 2,266. That includes non-WPIAL schools from Armstrong County such as West Shamokin, Redbank Valley and Karns City.

• John Waite Award (Missing You): It was reminiscent of the 1984 No. 1 hit song when a contingent from Armstrong High School showed up at the WPIAL pairings meeting Feb. 13 only to find that the River Hawks were omitted from the Class 5A playoff brackets.

• Stat of the Year or Whistle While You Work: When Valley played Deer Lakes on Feb. 3, there were 47 fouls called. When the same two teams played three days later, 54 fouls were called. That's 101 fouls whistled in a little more than 72 hours.

• Outlook for 2018-19: There will be, as David Bowie once sang, “Ch-ch-ch-changes” as the second cycle of six-class basketball will be installed. Locally, at least, some rivalries will be rekindled. Plum will move down to Class 5A against the likes of Kiski Area and Franklin Regional. Highlands will move from 5A to 4A and again face Knoch and Freeport. Valley and Deer Lakes move to 3A and will be reunited with Burrell. Apollo-Ridge goes to 2A and will rekindle its rivalry with Riverview, and Leechburg will move to Class A and face St. Joseph, renewing one of the best local rivalries of the past four decades. That can only help local athletic coffers because attendance has been deplorable with the distance between schools that six classes brings.

On the girls side, it's Plum down to 5A, and Apollo-Ridge, in a bizarre quirk of enrollment figures, up to Class 4A.

George Guido is a Valley News Dispatch scholastic sports correspondent. His column appears Wednesdays.

Tags: Apollo-Ridge, Armstrong, Burrell, Deer Lakes, Highlands, Kiski School, Leechburg, Plum, Riverview, St. Joseph, Valley, Washington