D9-A Boys - Team Breakdown
- A Preseason Team Rankings
- Qualifying Spots For Teams: 2
- 2017 Champion: Elk County Catholic (27 points)
Elk County Catholic took home its third straight District 9 Class A title last fall in dominating fashion. ECC scored just 27 points and put four boys in the top eight at districts, and then a week later at states ECC placed second at states. But this season, Elk County Catholic will need to add depth for a shot at a fourth straight district crown and berth in the state meet.
Reigning district champ Ben Hoffman is back and so is Isaac Wortman, who placed third at districts last year. The lowsticks are in place, ECC just need numbers to make another title a reality.
Clarion Area edged out Smethport Area for the second state spot in D9-A last year. Those two squads will once again be strong and could be battling it out for the top spot this season.
Clarion rode its strong pack to the state meet last year. Its 1-5 gap at districts was just 37 seconds. Nathaniel Lerch, Noah Schill, Nick Schill, and Daniel Ketner return from that top five from a year ago. Clarion was 12th at states last year, but can certainly improve on that this season.
Smethport, meanwhile, returns its full varsity squad last year that missed states by just one point. Surely, this is a motivated team after last year's disappointment primed to make a big run this season. Darian Gregory and Christian Tanner are a very talented top two (the pair went 2-4 at districts last year; Gregory was 12th at states) that will lead the way for Smethport this fall.
Cranberry also returns its full varsity squad from a year ago. That team, led by Daniel Fisher, was fourth in D9-A in 2017. Kane Area, Brookville Area, and Otto-Eldred will look to get in the mix for high finishes this season, as well.