If the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association state basketball tournament never resumes, if they never get to play another game, it has already been a special season for the Scranton Prep Classics.
The Scranton Prep girls completed a perfect regular season.
“It’s never been done in our school history, boys or girls,” Scranton Prep coach Bob Beviglia said.
The Classics, with junior Meredith Purcell, a resident of the Pittston Area School District, starting at center, were busy adding to that accomplishment when the state tournament was suspended three weeks ago as part of efforts to control the spread of the coronavirus.
Of the 98 teams still remaining across six classifications each of boys and girls basketball, the Scranton Prep girls were one of just four unbeaten teams in the state. Their 27-0 record, included a District 2 championship at Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza and victories in the first two rounds of the state Class 4A tournament.
Purcell is part of the suffocating defense that has helped make that happen.
The top six players on the Classics all average 1.6 or more steals per game. That is one of the biggest reasons Scranton Prep has more than doubled the scoring output of opponents over the course of the entire season while giving up just 30.3 points per game.
Purcell was also a key contributor last season when the team lost just twice, a regular-season, non-league game to state finalist Dunmore and in a state tournament upset. In her three seasons on the team, the Classics are 39-0 in the Lackawanna League with three straight division titles along with District 2 Class 4A championships each season.
Described as an “underrated” part of the team’s success by Beviglia, Purcell provides a significant share of the interior defense for a team that is a bit undersized by the standards of a large school state contender. Known as a team for its ability to harass opponents on the perimeter, Purcell helps make sure the team protects the basket at the same time.
Purcell averages 4.4 points, 3.5 rebounds, 1.6 steals and 1.3 assists. She is a 76 percent free throw shooter on a team that makes 75 percent as a unit.
Avery McNulty is another Greater Pittston resident who has been part of the recent success at Scranton Prep. The sophomore forward has greatly increased her role this season, ranking fourth on the team in 3-pointers made and second in producing points off the bench with about three per game.
Scranton Prep’s championship boys team also includes a player from the Pittston Area School District.
Will Aldrich appeared in 12 games for the Cavaliers, who won the District 2 Class 4A championship, making them the only team that has won titles all five years they have been conducted at the arena.
Aldrich scored seven points this season.
Benjamin Frederick, a sophomore 160-pounder, went 2-1 in varsity matches as a member of the Scranton Prep wrestling team that went 3-3 in Lackawanna League Division 2 and 9-10 overall.
The Scranton Prep girls basketball team is awaiting a final decision from the PIAA.
The Classics are one of eight Class 4A teams left in the state tournament. The PIAA held a Board of Directors meeting by conference call Monday and decided to leave the tournament status unchanged for now while awaiting further developments.
“PIAA will continue to receive and assess information from the Governor’s office, the Department of Health and the Department of Education before making any decisions regarding restarting sports activities,” the organization stated in a press release following the conference call.
Scranton Prep’s next game would be against District 11 champion Bethlehem Catholic (28-0).
The other game in the eastern half of the bracket matches two District 12 teams, champion Lansdale Catholic (24-3) against Bonner-Prendergast (10-16).
The western half of the bracket has a District 3 matchup of Lancaster Catholic (27-3) against Northern Lebanon (24-4) along with a meeting between 26-1 champions of District 7 (Pittsburgh North Catholic) and District 6 (Forest Hills).
The Old Forge girls (20-6) are also on hold in Class 2A. They were scheduled to face District 6 champion Altoona Bishop Guilfoyle (22-5) in the quarterfinals. The winner goes against the winner of the game between District 11 champion Mahanoy Area (22-5) and District 3 champion Linden Hall (22-2).
The other half of the Class 2A bracket does not have a district champion remaining. Bishop McCort (16-11) meets The Ellis School (20-7) and Bellwood-Antis (26-2) plays Penns Manor (25-3) if the tournament resumes.
