The YDL Sports Network is counting down the Top 25 moments, events, performances, games, etc from the 2022-23 school year.
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ERIE, Pa. – It was a run that finished one win shy of a state championship appearance, but it was still a memorable one for the Cathedral Prep boys’ basketball team.
The Ramblers went 24-4, won the D10 title and had some impressive wins en route to the PIAA Class 5A semifinals, where they nearly came back from a double-digit deficit against District 3 champion Exeter Township in what was ultimately a 51-47 loss.
Prep rolled through the regular season. In fact, of their 24 total wins, 19 of them came by double-digit. Their only loss against a District 10 team came in their regular season finale, 53-47 against rival McDowell.
In the playoffs, they beat Meadville for a third time, 58-42 for the D10 title before rallying past a feisty DuBois squad, 40-32 in their subregional game. Semontae Lofton led Prep with 19 points in the win over Meadville.
In the subregional game against DuBois, Prep rallied from a 21-15 halftime deficit, with Tavion Spencer scoring 12 of his 20 points in the second half. The Ramblers limited DuBois to five points in the fourth quarter.
In their first round PIAA game, Prep held off a late South Fayette charge to win 47-45. Lofton had 15 points and Jake Sambuchino 14 as, up by one in the closing seconds, Prep forced a tie-up defensively and was able to go to the free-throw line to close it out.
There was no such drama in the Ramblers’ second round win over Mars, as they built a 13-point halftime lead en route to a 66-54 win. Amaree Pickens led the way with 25 points, while Jake Sambuchino added 21.
Perhaps the most impressive win in Prep’s run came in the quarterfinals, a 68-54 win over WPIAL champion Penn Hills. In that game, Prep went on a 14-4 run, breaking a 24-all tie at the half. The lead grew to as many as 17, as Lofton led the way with 23 points, while Pickens had 19.
Prep trailed by 11 in the second half against Exeter Township, rallying to get as close as three with two minutes to play, but each time it looked as if they might complete the comeback, Exeter had an answer. Pickens led the way with 16 points, while Sambuchino had 13.
