Photo by Don Rich
AA Boys | Can anyone stop Grove City?
D10-AA Boys Preseason Team Rankings
2009.
That was the last time Grove City Area didn't win a District 10 team title. And to be fair, this was before Single-A existed and they were apart of AAA (and they won AAA team titles in '10 and '11). They return their top six from last year and all signs are pointing to yet another D10 crown for GCA.
Grove City returns Jonah Powell, who was barely beat out by then-frosh Ryan Starveggi (above) for the district crown, but Powell went on to grab 22nd at states a week later. Ben McKnight, Braydon Pyle, Jacob Hughes, Ryan Myers, and Jacob Powell will look to be a force in not only District 10, but also the state. AA is stacked this year with lots of teams in a similar boat as Grove City: returners, returners, returners. Dallas ('15 champs), York Suburban, and Knoch all return a lot from last season and all finished ahead of Grove City at states. But a new season is upon us and Grove City will be right up there in the mix.
Harbor Creek won't go down without a fight, though. We mentioned Starveggi, who dazzled as a freshman. But fellow rising sophomore Aiden Weber and rising senior Jared Szklenski make up a formidable top three. They return six of seven from last year and four of those returners were freshman last year. With some big freshman to sophomore jumps, Harbor Creek is definitely in line to improve on its tenth place finish at states last season.
If Harbor Creek stumbles at districts, plenty of teams will look to seize on the opportunity to grab one of those two D10 state spots. Expect General McLane, Fort Leboeuf, Warren Area, Hickory, and Corry Area all to be in the mix in what should be a close and fierce battle.