DÉJÀ VU
FOR BOYS
BASKETBALL
I
t was some kind of regular
season for the Foxes’ boys
basketball program – gratifying,
exhausting, and fun – as it
accomplished a milestone that only one
other team in school history had done
before: The team won every section
game, registered 20 consecutive wins,
and ended up 21-1, the only loss at the
hands of Upper St. Clair in the second-
to-last game. The only other time a
The Fox Chapel Area High School 2019-2020 boys basketball team.
Fox Chapel Area boys’ basketball team
had done that was in 1977, when, in
an eerily similar way, that team’s only loss also came in the
next-to-last regular season game. Afterward, the ‘77 team
went on to become WPIAL and PIAA champions.
Since Coach Zach Skrinjar took over 11 years ago, the
program has reached the WPIAL playoffs nine times and
made three trips to the PIAA playoffs.
Sophomore Eli Yofan, the top scorer on the team this season,
says, “I feel proud to be a part of a team that has the talent
and work ethic that we have. We, as a team, are not necessarily
focused on statistics, but on being the best team we can be
each and every night.”
That consistency, game after game and week after week,
started to catch the attention of 1977 team member Ron Urso.
Now a faculty adviser and clock manager at home games, Ron
says that after watching about a half-dozen games, he started
getting a feeling of déjà vu.
“I knew early on that this was a special team that reminded me
of my own and was going to be hard to beat,” he says. “Both
teams were great at both ends of the court, even though we
both were best-known for being strong defensive teams. The
players on each of the teams also had a lot of chemistry.”
The Fox Chapel Area High School 1977 boys basketball team.
Senior Will Livingston says it was the players’ team-based
mindset and their capacity to rise above challenges that made
them special. “Our biggest accomplishment was our ability
to overcome adversity,” he says. “With different injuries and
sicknesses, especially early in the season, the path was not very
smooth. But our younger guys stepped up and helped us out
when we needed them to.”
But, every player on this year’s team says it’s not just singular
performances that made the season such a memorable one
– it was the coaches who made the difference, and they have
paved the way for a bright future.
“Every single coach that is part of our team brings a lot to the
table. Along with that, they are just very good people who I
enjoy being around every day. I don’t think we would be where
we are today without them,” says Will. “But I also would like
to remind one of our coaches, Ben Bailey, that the Foxes ’77
team was so good that they beat his team (Norwin) in the
WPIAL championship that year!”
The other members of the varsity team who made this year
such a success were seniors Sam Brown, Shane Susnak, and
Arnold Vento; junior Kent Baldauf; and sophomores Jacob
DeMotte, James Dockey, Russell Fenton, and Lorenzo Jenkins.
Eli Yofan was the top scorer on the team this season.
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FOX CHAPEL AREA
Despite the strong comparisons with the 1977 team, the 2020
team didn’t experience as long of a playoff run. The season
came to an end in the second round of the WPIAL playoffs
on February 22 as the Foxes lost to Central Catholic, 42-34.