WARREN, Pa. – Cathedral Prep has its fingerprints all over the All American Awards and Engraving/D9and10Sports.com All-District 10 teams and awards.
That’s what happens when you make a magical run to the state championship.
Rambler senior Liam Galla is the 2021 D9and10Sports.com District 10 Boys’ Basketball Player of the Year Powered by All American Awards & Engraving, while coach Steve Piotrowicz was named Coach of the Year.
In addition, sophomore Khali Horton was a first-team selection for Prep, which knocked off Meadville for the District 10 title, before beating DuBois, New Castle, Lower Dauphin and Archbishop Ryan to win the state championship in Class 5A.
The other major award winner is Franklin’s Damon Curry, who nabbed Rookie of the Year honors.
The 6’5” Galla spearheaded the run to the title for the Ramblers, which began with a 52-36 win over Meadville in the D-10 title game, a Tiger team that had beaten Prep twice during the regular season by double figures.
That was followed by a win over DuBois in the 5A sub-regional, a stunning victory over WPIAL champion New Castle, 52-50 in overtime. The Ramblers trailed by seven with under two minutes to play, but a jumper by Galla in the closing moments put the finishing touches on a Rambler run that forced overtime.
Erie’s Jamie Smith, Franklin’s Easton Fulmer, Hickory’s Peyton Mele and Kennedy Catholic’s Sky’Ler Thomas round out the first team.
Piotrowicz, a Prep alum, guided the Ramblers to a state championship in his second year as head coach. The Ramblers lost a pair of key players before the season to transfer, but came together late in the season, playing their best basketball when it mattered the most, capped by the dominant win over Archbishop Ryan in the state championship game.
Curry, meanwhile, emerged as a key cog for Franklin, which won the District 10 Class 3A title. He averaged 8.3 ppg., including a team-high 15 points in a 53-45 loss to Bishop Guilfoyle in the PIAA quarterfinals. The 6’4” freshman also made 40 3s on the season.
The second team consists of McDowell’s Jonah Bock, Harbor Creek’s Sam Howell, Warren’s Ben Berdine, Grove City’s Michael Brooks, Erie’s Marquell Darnell and Erie First Christian’s Aaron Collins.
Making up the third team are Sharpsville’s Jackson Doyle, Meadville’s Charlie Waid, Hickory’s Connor Evans, Greenville’s Ben Cano, Cambridge Springs’ Nathan Held, Union City’s Matthew Bennett and Fairview’s James Sitter.
All American Awards & Engraving specializes in all kinds of awards, trophies, and engraving products as well as screen printing and embroidery. As the company likes to say, they will put almost anything on almost everything. The 2012 Clarion Area Chamber of Business and Industry Business of the Year in Economic Development is located on Route 322 in Shippenville. It can be found on the web at www.allamericanhq.com and can be reached at 1-877-402-9273.
2021 D9AND10SPORTS.COM BOYS’ BASKETBALL PLAYER OF THE YEAR POWERED BY ALL AMERICAN AWARDS & ENGRAVING
Liam Galla, Sr. – Cathedral Prep (14.4 ppg., 7.0 rpg., 1.1 spg., 45% FG, 37% 3-point FG) – Helped lead Cathedral Prep to its first state championship since 1993. Scored 14 points in 69-49 state title game win over Archbishop Ryan.
Photo by Paul Burdick. See more of Burdick’s work here.
2021 D9AND10SPORTS.COM BOYS’ BASKETBALL CHUCK DALY COACH OF THE YEAR AS PRESENTED BY THE CHUCK DALY FOUNDATION POWERED BY ALL AMERICAN AWARDS & ENGRAVING
Steve Piotrowicz (Cathedral Prep) – Prep alum guided Ramblers to the program’s first state championship since 1993 in his second year as head coach. It was also the first appearance by Prep since 1996, when they lost to a Lower Merion team led by Kobe Bryant.
Photo by Paul Burdick. See more of Burdick’s work here.
About Chuck Daly: Daly was a 1948 graduate of Kane High School who started his coaching career at Punxsutawney High School (1956-63, 111 wins, D9 title in 1958 and league titles in 1958, 1962, and 1963) before moving into the college and pro ranks where he won two NBA titles with the Detroit Pistons. Daly also coached the 1992 United States Olympic “Dream Team” to a gold medal finish. He was inducted into the James Naismith National Basketball Hall of Fame in 1994. In addition to coaching the Pistons for nine years going 467-271, he spent a little under a season coaching the Cleveland Cavaliers in 1981-82 and coached the New Jersey Nets and the Orlando Magic in the 1990s. He was also the head coach at Boston College and Penn in the college ranks. The NBA continues to honor his coaching legacy with the Chuck Daly Lifetime Achievement Award given annually to a longtime NBA coach’s life in basketball and his “standard of integrity, competitive excellence and tireless promotion” of the game.
About the Chuck Daly Foundation: The Chuck Daly Foundation was formed in Punxsutawney in 2016 by 1960 PAHS graduate George “Butch” White, who played basketball under Daly. The foundation was formed primarily to create scholarships for both male and female student/athletes in both basketball and golf.
2021 D9AND10SPORTS.COM BOYS’ BASKETBALL ROOKIE OF THE YEAR POWERED BY ALL AMERICAN AWARDS & ENGRAVING
Damon Curry, Fr. – Franklin (8.3 ppg, 4.7 rpg., 53% FG, 49% 3-point FG) – Played a key role in helping the Knights to the District 10 Class 3A title. Made 40 3s on the season.
2021 D9AND10SPORTS.COM BOYS’ FIRST-TEAM ALL-DISTRICT 10 POWERED BY ALL AMERICAN AWARDS & ENGRAVING
Liam Galla, Sr., Cathedral Prep (see stats above)
Khali Horton, Soph., Cathedral Prep: (14.4 ppg., 6.2 rpg., 1.3 bpg., 52% FG, 32% 3-point FG)
Jamie Smith, Sr., Erie: 13.3 ppg.
Easton Fulmer, Jr., Franklin: (20.4 ppg., 4.7 apg., 3.8 rpg., 45% FG, 40% 3-point FG 71-of-178 from 3)
Peyton Mele, Sr., Hickory: (18.0 ppg.)
Sky’Ler Thomas, Sr., Kennedy Catholic: (15.3 ppg.)
2021 D9AND10SPORTS.COM BOYS’ SECOND-TEAM ALL-DISTRICT 10 POWERED BY ALL AMERICAN AWARDS & ENGRAVING
Jonah Bock, Sr., McDowell: (17.6 ppg., 70 3-pointers made – McDowell’s all-time leader in 3-pointer made)
Sam Howell, Sr., Harbor Creek: (14.6 ppg., 4.8 rpg., 2.2 apg., 56% FG, 31% 3-point FG)
Ben Berdine, Sr., Warren: (17.2 ppg., 8.5 rpg., 1.7 spg., 51% FG, 30% 3-point FG)
Michael Brooks, Sr., Grove City: (18.1 ppg.)
Aaron Collins, Sr., Erie First Christian: (25.0 ppg., led District 10)
Marquell Darnell, Jr., Erie: (12.2 ppg.)
2021 D9AND10SPORTS.COM BOYS’ THIRD-TEAM ALL-DISTRICT 10 POWERED BY ALL AMERICAN AWARDS & ENGRAVING
Jackson Doyle, Sr., Sharpsville: (17.2 ppg., 69 3-pointers, 82% FT)
Charlie Waid, Sr., Meadville: (11.9 ppg., 6.1 rpg., 2.0 spg., 52% FG, 38 % 3-point FG)
Connor Evans, Sr., Hickory: (14.9 ppg.)
Nathan Held, Jr., Cambridge Springs: (16.0 ppg.)
Ben Cano, Sr., Greenville: (17.4 ppg.)
Matthew Bennett, Jr. Union City: (18.2 ppg., 7.5 rpg., 2.8 apg., 32% 3-point FGs)
James Sitter, Jr. Fairview: (12.5 ppg.)
