By Tom Robinson, NEPABasketball.com
The Dunmore girls program was one of seven around the state to file an appeal Friday to try to avoid being moved up in classification based on the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association’s new “competition formula,” which was created two years ago and is set to enter its first two-year cycle.
A total of 15 PIAA basketball teams met the criteria of combining success within the past two years with at least one transfer into their program.
According to PIAA transfer rules, teams that fit both categories are pushed up one class for the next two-year enrollment cycle. Schools are, however, able to attempt to reverse that decision in a two-step appeal process.
PIAA staff is set to rule on the initial appeals Monday, according to PIAA associate executive director Melissa Nash Mertz. Schools that lose in the initial appeals process, can have their cases heard in a second and final appeals process in a Zoom meeting with the full PIAA Board May 20.
If it fails in the appeal attempts, Dunmore will have to compete in Class 4A in girls basketball despite having a Class 3A enrollment.
The competition formula was part of the PIAA’s response to public outrage over recruiting allegations, primarily at private schools, which were seen by many to be gaining a competitive advantage over public or “border” schools.
One of the highest-profile examples in the debate that led to the new rules was the late-season transfer of major Division I prospect Diamond Johnson from Virginia to Neumann-Goretti in time to help the Philadelphia school win the 2018 state Class 3A state championship. Dunmore had the best record in the state at 28-1 when it fell to Johnson and Neumann-Goretti in the semifinals.
Unlike the Neumann-Goretti, in-season roster addition, which was determined by District 12 officials to have been legal under PIAA rules in place two years ago, Dunmore’s transfers did not involve a future Division I player coming from out of the area.
According to sources, neither of the two Dunmore players counted as transfers in the PIAA’s collection of eligibility lists even played varsity basketball. Both students, who were originally from nearby schools, were members of the junior varsity team, which, at Dunmore, routinely practices separately from the varsity.
PIAA eligibility lists, submitted by schools, have varsity and junior varsity players listed together.
The PIAA office confirmed that Dunmore’s appeal had been received prior to the noon Friday deadline.
When contacted, Lady Bucks coach Ben O’Brien said only that, “I’m aware of the situation, but don’t have any further comment at this time.”
The 15 basketball teams in question all earned at least six competition points in the past two seasons for progress in the state tournament.
Teams earn four competition points for a state finals appearance, three for reaching the state semifinals, two for being in the quarterfinals and one for qualifying for the state playoffs. The PIAA counted the points for teams that had earned spots in the quarterfinals this year when the remainder of the tournament was canceled because of the coronavirus.
Dunmore made the list by reaching the 2019 state final and the 2020 quarterfinals.
The 15 teams on the list ranged from the 15 “possible transfers” on the Sankofa Freedom Academy Charter boys team in Class A to three girls teams – Bellwood-Antis, Pittsburgh North Catholic and Chartiers Valley – with just one possible transfer and Dunmore as the only team on the list with two.
According to a Friday e-mail from Mertz, responding to inquiries from NEPABasketball.com, the Lincoln Park and Trinity boys had filed appeals along with five girls teams with three or fewer possible transfers. Delone Catholic, which beat Dunmore in the 2019 state Class 3A championship game, was the other girls program to file an appeal.
Bethlehem Catholic, which was scheduled to face Scranton Prep in a Class 4A girls quarterfinal meeting of unbeatens at the time the tournament was halted, did not appeal its move from Class 4A to 5A. PIAA records list it as having eight transfers.
Archbishop Carroll, with four transfers listed, did not appeal its push from Class 5A to 6A.
The boys teams that did not appeal, with their original classes and number of possible transfers were: Sankofa Freedom, A, 15; Bishop Guilfoyle, 2A, 14; Math, Civics and Sciences Charter, 2A, 11; Archbishop Wood, 5A, 11; Archbishop Bonner-Pendergast, 4A, 7; and Imhotep Charter, 4A, 6.
Trinity and Lincoln Park, the two boys programs appealing a move from Class 3A to 4A, had 12 and 11 transfers respectively.
