Trey’s PIAA 1A Pre-Season Top 5

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>My pre-season top five teams in the PIAA 1A classification.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>5. Chester Charter</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Chester Charter has a great chance at making another deep playoff run this season as they return multiple key players. [player_tooltip player_id='2427251' first='Nieem' last='Gregory'] and [player_tooltip player_id='2430724' first='Dom' last='Miller'] are poised to be the scoring leaders for a team that lost to Sankofa in the state quarterfinals. In year two under Head Coach Lonnie Diggins, the Sabers should be able to compete for a state championship.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>4. Erie First Christian Academy</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Erie First Christian Academy finished last season as the District 10 champions, backed by the play of lead guard [player_tooltip player_id='2624994' first='Avery' last='Collins']. They ultimately lost to Aquinas Academy in a closely contested first round state matchup. They'll lose scoring as Ayden Blum graduates, however Colin Phillips will be asked to fill that void. The play of [player_tooltip player_id='2624994' first='Avery' last='Collins'] will ultimately dictate how far EFCA goes.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>3. The Neighborhood Academy</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>After winning the state championship a season ago, The Neighborhood Academy graduated their best player, Courtney Wallace, to Yale University. This leaves a lot on the plate of [player_tooltip player_id='2916460' first='Kedron' last='Gilmore'], who had a productive summer and looks a lot stronger going into his junior year. He will have to produce similarly to Wallace in order for TNA to bring home another gold medal.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>2. York Country Day</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>York Country Day was in the midst of a remarkable season at 21-0 when they lost in the District 3 semifinal and then again in the first round of state playoffs to finish the year on a losing streak. Having to face eventual state runner-up Sankofa in the first round proved to be a challenge too difficult to overcome for the Greyhounds. Now with a year of experience under his belt, [player_tooltip player_id='2774556' first='Elijah' last='Slaughter'] is the key to success and will be responsible for wherever York Country Day can advance.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>1. Sankofa Freedom Academy</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sankofa Freedom is coming off a state championship loss where they fought hard but came up just short to a more talented team in The Neighborhood Academy. They will be spearheaded by the exciting ‘26 guard trio of [player_tooltip player_id='3029141' first='Nasir' last='Brown'], [player_tooltip player_id='1608248' first='Nafis' last='Dubose'], and [player_tooltip player_id='3029139' first='Yasir' last='Johnson']. Coach Thomas will need his trio of junior forwards in [player_tooltip player_id='2427265' first='Terrance' last='Fortson'], [player_tooltip player_id='2427371' first='Jasir' last='Henderson'], and Samad West to step up in hopes of getting back to the big game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->