PIAA Class 5A State Championship Tournament Preview (Kehler On Hoops)
Written by: Andy Herr on March 4, 2026
Article by David Kehler
This is the fifth in a series of tournament previews. For schedules and updated results, see piaa.com.
The PIAA state championship tournament begins on Friday and concludes on Saturday, March 21. Champions will be crowned in a single elimination format in six classifications largely based on enrollment. The smallest schools are in Class 1A, and the largest are in Class 6A. Seeding is not based on power rankings, and key games can occur in early rounds of the tournament. Just for fun, and to spark discussion, here are some predictions:
Two Lancaster-Lebanon League teams are in the field of 32 squads vying for the Class 5A state championship: Octorara and Cocalico.
Octorara, which is in the eastern side of the bracket, has a favorable first round matchup: they play Frankford, of the Philadelphia Public League, at a neutral site in Philadelphia on Friday evening. Frankford has a losing record this season, 13-14, and they were defeated 70-44 in the District 12 championship game by defending PIAA Class 5A state champion Neumann-Goretti. However, in Frankford’s previous game, they lost by just three points to a fine West Philadelphia squad in the Philadelphia Public League playoffs. Frankford’s top player this season is senior Duron Ross, a Public League honorable mention selection. Frankford’s combined record versus teams that are participating in any class in this season’s PIAA state championship tournament is 0-7. Octorara should defeat Frankford, but the water gets much deeper in the second round.
Octorara’s second round opponent will be the winner of the game between District 2 champion Abington Heights and Springfield, of Delaware County.
Abington Heights is 19-5. Having seen them, they play up-tempo offense and have multiple dangerous outside shooters. Abington Heights has four senior starters. Their senior leader is steady and sharp-shooting Jordan Shaffer, and they have an ace defender in Finn Goldberg. They are on a long winning streak, all against opposition from northeastern Pennsylvania. In fact, they are undefeated in calendar 2026. They played an ambitious non-conference schedule in December and lost some games, falling to Holy Ghost Prep by 16, Berks Catholic by 18, Pocono Mountain West by 6, and Cardinal O’Hara by 9, but this sort of excellent scheduling prepares a team for a deep March run.
Springfield Delco is a member of the Central League. They were 14-2 in league play and 21-5 overall, with three of those losses coming to Central League champion and District 3 runner-up Penncrest. At one point in this season, they had a 13-game winning streak, but they have lost three of their last four, most recently a 13-point loss to Holy Ghost Prep in a seeding game.
Should Octorara get past the second round, their quarterfinal opponent would likely be either Philadelphia Catholic League power Bonner-Prendergast or District 1 champion Upper Dublin, both top state championship contenders.
Bonner-Prendergast is terrific. They advanced to the semifinals of the Philadelphia Catholic League playoffs and have a slew of impressive wins. Early in the campaign, they defeated District 3 Class 6A champion Central Dauphin in overtime, beat District 1 Class 6A runner-up Coatesville Area by 27, topped Central League champion Penncrest by 11, and had two big wins against Florida teams in a tournament in Miami. Bonner’s Catholic League wins include victories over league champion and defending Class 6A state champion Father Judge and always outstanding Roman Catholic. Bonner’s Catholic League nemesis this season has been Neumann-Goretti, falling to that Class 5A rival by two points in the regular season and by four points in the league playoffs. Bonner’s top player is 6’ 3” junior Korey Francis, the Catholic League most valuable player this season and a 2nd team All-State selection last year. Francis can slash and also shoot from beyond the arc. As a team, Bonner shoots 39% from 3-point range, and they score an average of about 66 points per game.
Suburban One League champion Upper Dublin has been on a roll lately, winning their last six games, including victories over District 1 Class 6A champ Plymouth-Whitemarsh and two teams in the Class 5A state championship tournament, Penncrest and Holy Ghost Prep. Upper Dublin has a veteran team, can play well at various tempos, and has multiple scoring threats. Their record is 21-4.
There are two other very good teams in the eastern side of the bracket: defending Class 5A state champion Neumann-Goretti and Holy Ghost Prep.
Neumann-Goretti returned most of the key players from last season’s state championship squad, including last season’s Class 5A player of the year Stephon Ashley-Wright, 6’ 6” senior Alassan N’Diaye (a 2nd team All-State selection last year), and 5’ 10” senior DeShawn Yates (also a 2nd team All-State selection last season). It’s a veteran crew led by one of the most successful Pennsylvania high school basketball coaches ever, Carl Arrigale. Like all of the leading Philadelphia Catholic League teams, Neumann has played an impressive non-conference schedule. They have at least one win versus opponents from six other states. They also have a 16-point victory at Class 4A Cathedral Prep and are the only team to beat that squad this season.
Holy Ghost Prep is not a member of a league, but they are joining the Philadelphia Catholic League next season. Ghost like to run, and they have both size inside and multiple outside shooters. Located in Bensalem, they are 19-3. They have defeated, among others, Abington Heights, Pennsbury (which is in the Class 6A state championship tournament bracket), and Murrell Dobbins Tech (which is in the Class 4A bracket of the tourney).
Cocalico is in the western side of the bracket, and they open their drive to the title at Hampton, located in Allison Park (which is a bit north of Pittsburgh), on Friday. Hampton is 16-8, and they have a senior lineup. Hampton is not particularly quick, which works to Cocalico’s advantage. However, Hampton will run in transition. They are accurate outside shooters, and their top player, Jonas Cupps, and Gavin Guinn are both dangerous from beyond the arc. Their most notable non-conference win was by 11 points over District 8 Class 6A champ Taylor Allderdice. They were 7-5 in league play and had difficulty with really athletic teams, such as Penn Hills. Cocalico certainly has a chance to advance to the second round, where they would likely play the very formidable District 7 champion Chartiers Valley.
Chartiers Valley is 23-2 and crushed Thomas Jefferson 63-37 is the District 7 title game. Their two losses were by a combined nine points. They subsequently reversed one of those losses, to Moon Area, in the District 7 playoffs. They are adept at playing at any pace. Their key player is a sensational sophomore, Luca Federico, who scored 31 points in the district title game and has wonderful ball skills.
Three strong District 3 teams are in the western side of the bracket: District 3 champion West York (25-2), Milton Hershey (23-4), and Hershey (22-3).
Lancaster-Lebanon League fans are probably familiar with West York, as that squad has wins this season over Manheim Township by 14, Penn Manor by 36, Conestoga Valley by 19, and ELCO by 27. West York got hot in the district playoffs and defeated Hershey by 8 and Milton Hershey by 24. West York’s two losses were doozies, falling to two Class 6A teams that are in the state championship tourney: Central Dauphin by 17 and York William Penn by 20.
Milton Hershey is the District 3 runner-up; along the way they defeated Octorara 81-55. During the regular season, they twice defeated Hershey, and they topped JP McCaskey, Manheim Township, and Donegal in non-conference games. Their nemesis has been Class 4A Bishop McDevitt, losing to that rival twice. Milton Hershey has the size and quickness to make a deep run in the PIAA tournament.
Hershey also has a win over Octorara, 73-39, in the district playoffs. During the regular season, they downed Lampeter-Strasburg, Conestoga Valley, and Lebanon, and they had a district playoff win over Manheim Central. Hershey’s top player is 6’ 3” senior Cameron Sweeney, a 1st team All-State selection last year. Hershey has a wonderful coach, Paul Blackburn, and they know how to navigate the path to the Giant Center, having advanced to the state championship game last season.
Top teams: Upper Dublin, Bonner-Prendergast, Abington Heights, Springfield Delco, Penncrest, Neumann-Goretti, Holy Ghost Prep, West York, Hershey, Chartiers Valley, and Milton Hershey
Dark horse: Moon Area
Best first round game: Moon Area at Hershey
Projected final four: Bonner-Prendergast, Neumann-Goretti, West York, Chartiers Valley
Projected championship game: Neumann-Goretti over Chartiers Valley
On X (formerly Twitter): @david_kehler
David Kehler chairs the Pennsylvania Sportswriters’ selection of the boys All-State basketball teams
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