Last year’s rash of injuries may prove helpful to the Quaker Valley boys basketball team in 2025-26.
“We have a very young roster with only two seniors but return a number of key letter winners,” coach Mike Mastroianni said. “We battled a number of injuries last season that allowed our younger players to gain valuable playing experience.
“We have an experienced team returning but are still a very young team.”
QV’s returning starters are led by senior Zach Washington, a 6-foot-2 guard, and junior Sam Chapman, a 6-3 junior guard.
“Zach averaged 14 points last year in limited (playing time) as he was injured less than halfway through the season,” Mastroianni said. “Sam is so valuable in so many areas as he does so many things well. We are excited to have him in a leadership role and will lean on his experience.”
Chapman, who is a member of the National Honor Society and the peer jury at his school, has high hopes for the Quakers in 2025-26..
“I am hoping that we can make a strong push in the playoffs this season and even possibly get a WPIAL title,” Chapman said. “I am also hoping that we continue to grow as a team throughout the year. We have a lot of returning players, so I feel good about what we can accomplish together.
“I’m excited for the season and grateful for my teammates and coaches. We’ve been working hard and are looking forward to the season. We’ve been working on connecting as a team and playing together on both ends of the floor. We have also emphasized how important defensive communication and intensity will be to reach our goals.”
Other QV players with varsity experience include Kolton Johnson, a 6-2 junior forward, and sophomores Nic Cohen, a 5-10 guard, Conner Dwyer, a 6-4 forward, and Harrison Kerley, a 5-8 guard.
Key newcomers include 6-2 senior forward Atticus Barr, 6-2 junior forward James Irwin, 5-5 sophomore guard Isaiah Council and 6-3 sophomore forward Lukas Baldwin.
Mastroianni, who is in his 33rd season of coaching and with a 595-244 record needs five wins to reach 600 for his career, said the Quakers have been working ardently on improving their play on the defensive end of the floor.
“Our preseason has been geared to defensive continuity,” said the veteran coach.
Mastroianni predicted Central Valley, Hopewell and Beaver would be the teams to beat in Section 2-4A.
The Quakers started out 6-1 and 8-2 last season before finishing 15-8 overall. QV lost to Deer Lakes, 83-58, in the first round of the WPIAL playoffs.
Beaver (8-2) and Avonworth (8-2) tied for first in the section in 2024-25 followed by Central Valley (7-3), QV (4-6), Hopewell (3-7) and Ambridge (0-10).
“Our section is very balanced across the board,” Mastroianni said.
One of Washington’s goals for this year’s team is to win the section championship.
“My expectations are that we compete at a high level in every game and practice and aim to be at the top of our section,” he said. “We’ve been working on improving our team rebounding and communication on the defensive end.”