Lincoln Park guard will make history
Holmes will be first player to start in four WPIAL basketball title games
The ball will be tipped Thursday night for the WPIAL Class 3A boys championship — and Keeno Holmes will make history.
The WPIAL has been staging boys championships for more than 100 years and there has never been a player in the finals like Holmes, a 6foot-2 senior guard at Lincoln Park. This is the fourth consecutive year that Lincoln Park is in a title game and Holmes will be the first player to start in four championship games. Lincoln Park (21-4) meets North Catholic (21-4) at 9 p.m. Thursday at Petersen Events Center.
Consider that Holmes will start in four title games, throw in the fact that he has 1,565 career points and it’s safe to say Holmes has had an unforgettable career.
“The total body of work is unbelievable,” Lincoln Park coach Mike Bariski said. “I think he’s one of the best-kept secrets out there.”
Bariski called Holmes “a defensive specialist” when he was a freshman. Now he’s one of the WPIAL’s top allaround guards. Holmes averages 17 points a game, down from 23 a game last season when he helped Lincoln Park to the Class 3A title. But Holmes also averages 6 rebounds and 4.5 assists a game and is shooting 80 percent from the free-throw line.
“It’s just not about points with him,” Bariski said. “He sacrificed probably 10 points a game this year to make this team better. He knew this year that his points probably had to come down for the team to be more successful because of the team we had. His rebounds have gone up and assists have gone up.”
Holmes, whose father is LaVar Arrington, a former WPIAL football great and exNFL player, has not made a college decision yet. Clarion, Gannon and Shippensburg — all Division II colleges — are recruiting him, along with a few Division III colleges.
Against North Catholic, it’s possible Holmes will guard Isaac DeGregorio, who averages more than 20 points a game for the Trojans. It will be one of the key matchups in the title game.
Here is a look at the other two WPIAL title games Thursday:
Class 1A boys
Top seed Vincentian (16-7) will shoot for its second consecutive title while trying to defeat No. 3 Nazareth Prep (18-3) for the third time this season.
Vincentian is led by two talented sophomores — 6-6 forward Angelo Reeves and 61 guard Alex Griggs.
“They’re two of the top sophomores in the state,” coach Tim Tyree said. “Alex Griggs, you look at the bloodlines. His father [Anthony] played in the NFL. His sister [Alexis] is averaging 20-plus points a game at IUP. And he’s only 15, so he’s technically only a freshman. He controls the game and is a really good passer. Angelo Reeves has the length and the ability to get off the floor.”
Ethan Embleton, a 6-6 junior forward, teams with Reeves to give the Royals a formidable frontcourt tandem.
Vincentian beat Nazareth Prep twice in the regular season, but both were close games — 72-67 and 69-65.
Nazareth Prep, which was known as Holy Family Academy before this season, is making its first appearance in the title game. They are led by junior forward Will Taylor (18.5 ppg) and senior forward Tre Harvey (18 ppg).
Class 2A girls
After pulling the stunner of the postseason, what will Our Lady of the Sacred Heart do for an encore? The Chargers (20-4) hope the answer is winning their first WPIAL title. OLSH, the No. 4 seed, upset No. 1 and three-time defending champ Bishop Canevin, 51-45, in the semifinals.
“We put together a little defensive game plan and the kids played it out. As the game went on, our team gained confidence against what was a highly-regarded team,” coach Don Eckerle said.
Senior guard-forward Ashley Norling scored 26 points against Bishop Canevin after pouring in 29 against Serra Catholic in the quarterfinals. She’s averaging 20.3 per game.
OLSH was eliminated in the semifinals in 2016 and 2017, and lost to Brentwood, 51-31, in last year’s quarterfinals. Norling did not play in that game because of an ankle injury. Brentwood fell to Chartiers-Houston in the semifinals.
Brentwood, the No. 2 seed, is seeking its third WPIAL title and first since 1978. The Spartans have won 13 games in a row and are paced by guard Anna Betz (15 ppg), one of five senior starters.
“These girls, since that loss last year in the semifinals, have been working really hard. This has been our goal since the offseason,” coach Rachel Thomas said.