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Berks Catholic has a chance to become the first team in school history to win a boys basketball PIAA championship.
The Saints (24-4) will play Devon Prep (23-4) for the Class 4A boys state championship on Thursday at 8 p.m., the last of four games in the Giant Center that day.
“We’re happy to be here. If you told me at the beginning of the season that we’re going to be in the state championship, I wouldn’t really believe it,” senior Zach Suski said. “But we all came together as a group, and we played good and hope we play good Thursday too.”
It will certainly be a tall task to contain the District 12 champions, but the Saints’ journey to the championship has prepared them for this level of competition.
As the first seed in the BCIAA playoffs, the Saints fell to Reading High 48-41 in the semifinals at Santander Arena in an upset.
“These kids took it pretty darn hard, and it was a very docile locker room,” Saints coach Snip Esterly said of the Reading High loss. “I mean, the kids were affected by it. I think they said, ‘Let’s make a run.’”
“I think after we lost counties, it became personal because that should have been ours,” junior Jackson Kozik said. “And ever since then, we’ve been playing harder.”
Fast-forward only two weeks, and the Saints won four-straight District 3 Class 4A games to hold up the school’s sixth district title trophy at the Giant Center.
“I thought going in we had a great shot at districts. And with that loss, I wasn’t sure how they were going to rebound or react to it, but they came out very, very, very nicely,” Esterly said. “I truthfully didn’t know what was out there in States. We won four games, and it’s hard, man. You play a different style of team, probably every game, and you’re going to see officials who officiate a different game. So it’s tough.”
Now, the Saints have an opportunity to hold up their second championship title of the season at Hershey.
Devon Prep, a Philadelphia Catholic League team, won the PIAA Class 3A championship last season but moved up a class this year.
The Tide’s seniors will appear in their third state title game in their career.
“Just going to take a lot of teamwork,” Esterly said of their keys to winning. “We’re going to go over some things we’re going to do. We’re not going to change too much. But in this game, we want to control the tempo at our pace. Take some time off the clock each possession, make them work defensively, and hopefully, we’ll be in it.”
Devon Prep is led by seniors Zane Conlon and Reece Craft.
Conlon, a 2023-24 All-State First-Team selection, is a versatile player in every department. His scoring and playmaking ability are what truly set him apart as one of the best in Pennsylvania.
Standing at 6-6, Craft is another serious scoring threat and rebounding machine. In their 64-44 semifinal victory over Valley View, Conlon and Craft combined for 51 points and 17 rebounds.
“I think we just got to push them out of the paint, make them take tough shots, play our defense, and take care of the ball on offense,” Kozik said of stopping the duo.
Berks Catholic freshman Carmelo Harper has played a key role in the Saints’ run to the state title game. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE).
“Have to really lock in,” junior Brady Altimar said. “We have to limit our turnovers, keep them in the single digits, for sure, and we need to really play good defense and knock down shots.”
In their four-game stretch in these playoffs, Devon Prep has won by an average of 19 points per game, without much doubt in any game.
On the other hand, the Saints are coming off a fourth-quarter comeback against North Catholic in the semifinals, along with a narrow four-point win over Sharon in the quarterfinals.
However, one thing each win has in common — defense, even before the state playoffs.
“Coach Snip thrives on defense,” Suski said. “We practice it every day. Practice rebounding and defense every day. We rely on our defense, and our shots will come.”
And as the saying goes, “Defense translates to offense.”
For the Saints, Berks County Player of the Year Kingston McKoy has led the charge averaging 23 points per game during this stretch.
But after McKoy, it’s anyone’s guess who will step up to be the second leading scorer to push this team to victory.
Zach Suski, Bryce Gumby and Carmelo Harper have all delivered multiple double-digit performances during the state playoffs.
“It kind of just flows with the game. Teams double Kingston, so it leaves open lanes for us,” Suski said. “He’ll make his shots, and we’ll make our shots.”
“That’s what is great about playoffs,” Esterly said. “You have no clue who’s going to step it up. Even back when I was an assistant coach when we won it in 1984-85 at Central (Catholic), we had guys that stepped up their game in the playoffs. It’s so neat. And you got Bryce Gumby and Carmelo Harper coming off the bench, and they just stepped it up, and that’s helped us so much. Everybody steps up has a great role in this, and they’re doing a fantastic job.”
As time ticks down until tipoff, the Saints have remained calm and collected for the most part.
Having played in the Giant Center on the big stage already brings a sense of comfort.
“There’s a little nervousness, but that goes away in the first two minutes of the game,” Esterly said of the nerves leading up to tip-off. “We always tell them to get into it defensively, and your heart is going to pump a million miles an hour, but then it’s going to settle down if you get into it defensively. And these kids are focused.”
This will be Esterly’s fifth state championship appearance, having won his first in 2007 with Reading Central Catholic in a 58-33 victory over DuBois Central Catholic in Class 1A.
“It’s different because there’s new faces, which is really neat,” Esterly said. “These kids are pretty special. It’s neat to go through them if kids have never done it before.”
Reminiscing aside, the Saints are fully focused on Devon Prep, with players envisioning what it will feel like to hoist the state championship trophy late Thursday night in a familiar arena.
Continue reading...
The Saints (24-4) will play Devon Prep (23-4) for the Class 4A boys state championship on Thursday at 8 p.m., the last of four games in the Giant Center that day.
“We’re happy to be here. If you told me at the beginning of the season that we’re going to be in the state championship, I wouldn’t really believe it,” senior Zach Suski said. “But we all came together as a group, and we played good and hope we play good Thursday too.”
It will certainly be a tall task to contain the District 12 champions, but the Saints’ journey to the championship has prepared them for this level of competition.
As the first seed in the BCIAA playoffs, the Saints fell to Reading High 48-41 in the semifinals at Santander Arena in an upset.
“These kids took it pretty darn hard, and it was a very docile locker room,” Saints coach Snip Esterly said of the Reading High loss. “I mean, the kids were affected by it. I think they said, ‘Let’s make a run.’”
“I think after we lost counties, it became personal because that should have been ours,” junior Jackson Kozik said. “And ever since then, we’ve been playing harder.”
Fast-forward only two weeks, and the Saints won four-straight District 3 Class 4A games to hold up the school’s sixth district title trophy at the Giant Center.
“I thought going in we had a great shot at districts. And with that loss, I wasn’t sure how they were going to rebound or react to it, but they came out very, very, very nicely,” Esterly said. “I truthfully didn’t know what was out there in States. We won four games, and it’s hard, man. You play a different style of team, probably every game, and you’re going to see officials who officiate a different game. So it’s tough.”
Now, the Saints have an opportunity to hold up their second championship title of the season at Hershey.
Devon Prep, a Philadelphia Catholic League team, won the PIAA Class 3A championship last season but moved up a class this year.
The Tide’s seniors will appear in their third state title game in their career.
“Just going to take a lot of teamwork,” Esterly said of their keys to winning. “We’re going to go over some things we’re going to do. We’re not going to change too much. But in this game, we want to control the tempo at our pace. Take some time off the clock each possession, make them work defensively, and hopefully, we’ll be in it.”
Devon Prep is led by seniors Zane Conlon and Reece Craft.
Conlon, a 2023-24 All-State First-Team selection, is a versatile player in every department. His scoring and playmaking ability are what truly set him apart as one of the best in Pennsylvania.
Standing at 6-6, Craft is another serious scoring threat and rebounding machine. In their 64-44 semifinal victory over Valley View, Conlon and Craft combined for 51 points and 17 rebounds.
“I think we just got to push them out of the paint, make them take tough shots, play our defense, and take care of the ball on offense,” Kozik said of stopping the duo.
Berks Catholic freshman Carmelo Harper has played a key role in the Saints’ run to the state title game. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE).
“Have to really lock in,” junior Brady Altimar said. “We have to limit our turnovers, keep them in the single digits, for sure, and we need to really play good defense and knock down shots.”
In their four-game stretch in these playoffs, Devon Prep has won by an average of 19 points per game, without much doubt in any game.
On the other hand, the Saints are coming off a fourth-quarter comeback against North Catholic in the semifinals, along with a narrow four-point win over Sharon in the quarterfinals.
However, one thing each win has in common — defense, even before the state playoffs.
“Coach Snip thrives on defense,” Suski said. “We practice it every day. Practice rebounding and defense every day. We rely on our defense, and our shots will come.”
And as the saying goes, “Defense translates to offense.”
For the Saints, Berks County Player of the Year Kingston McKoy has led the charge averaging 23 points per game during this stretch.
But after McKoy, it’s anyone’s guess who will step up to be the second leading scorer to push this team to victory.
Zach Suski, Bryce Gumby and Carmelo Harper have all delivered multiple double-digit performances during the state playoffs.
“It kind of just flows with the game. Teams double Kingston, so it leaves open lanes for us,” Suski said. “He’ll make his shots, and we’ll make our shots.”
“That’s what is great about playoffs,” Esterly said. “You have no clue who’s going to step it up. Even back when I was an assistant coach when we won it in 1984-85 at Central (Catholic), we had guys that stepped up their game in the playoffs. It’s so neat. And you got Bryce Gumby and Carmelo Harper coming off the bench, and they just stepped it up, and that’s helped us so much. Everybody steps up has a great role in this, and they’re doing a fantastic job.”
As time ticks down until tipoff, the Saints have remained calm and collected for the most part.
Having played in the Giant Center on the big stage already brings a sense of comfort.
“There’s a little nervousness, but that goes away in the first two minutes of the game,” Esterly said of the nerves leading up to tip-off. “We always tell them to get into it defensively, and your heart is going to pump a million miles an hour, but then it’s going to settle down if you get into it defensively. And these kids are focused.”
This will be Esterly’s fifth state championship appearance, having won his first in 2007 with Reading Central Catholic in a 58-33 victory over DuBois Central Catholic in Class 1A.
“It’s different because there’s new faces, which is really neat,” Esterly said. “These kids are pretty special. It’s neat to go through them if kids have never done it before.”
Reminiscing aside, the Saints are fully focused on Devon Prep, with players envisioning what it will feel like to hoist the state championship trophy late Thursday night in a familiar arena.
Continue reading...
