Gatorade has selected its baseball and softball players of the year for Pennsylvania, and both honorees call Western Pennsylvania home.
Bentworth’s Sydney Gonglik and Mt. Lebanon’s Graham Keen stood out in the eyes of the selection committees after standout spring seasons which saw them have significant impacts on their teams.
Gonglik made the most of her junior season for Bentworth softball, and the LSU commit is the No. 9-ranked recruit in the Class of 2027 by Perfect Game.
The right-handed pitcher, who also is sharp in the infield at shortstop and first base, led the Bearcats to a 22-3 record, a WPIAL championship, and a berth in the Class 2A state tournament.
Gonglik finished the season 19-3 with 270 strikeouts and 46 hits against in 133 innings.
She had perhaps the best game of her career in the first round of the PIAA tournament. She pitched a six-inning perfect game with 12 strikeouts as Bentworth, the WPIAL champion, defeated District 10 runner-up Wilmington, 10-0.
Gonglik gave up seven hits — three of which stayed in the infield — struck out nine and walked none in a 3-2 loss to District 5 champion Everett in the PIAA quarterfinals.
Offensively, she batted .522 with 24 RBIs, 11 doubles, nine home runs and 33 runs scored in 25 games.
Gonglik maintains a 3.64 grade-point average.
“Sydney is the most gifted player that I’ve had the opportunity to coach at Bentworth,” Bearcats coach Jack Cramer said in a news release. “She has all the skills to play at the next level and be successful there.”
Keen has given a verbal commitment to play in college at Vanderbilt in the SEC.
The 6-foot-5 junior right-handed pitcher and center fielder posted a 7-1 record on the mound with a 0.88 earned-run average this season in leading the Blue Devils (13-8) to the WPIAL Class 6A quarterfinals.
He struck out 71 batters while walking just 13 in 55 2/3 innings.
Mt. Lebanon lost to No. 1 Butler, 3-2, in eight innings in the quarterfinals.
Ranked as the nation’s No. 10 recruit in the Class of 2027 by Prep Baseball Report, Keen also was strong at the plate with a .417 batting average with four home runs, 14 RBIs, 21 runs scored and a .717 slugging percentage.
Keen maintained a weighted 4.10 GPA in the classroom while also giving opposing teams a lot to think about on the diamond.
“Graham is a tremendous player both offensively and on the mound,” Hempfield coach Tim Buzzard said in a statement after playing against Keen and the Blue Devils three times this season.
“He makes a massive impact on how you coach the game against their offense. You have to be so careful because of the power he possesses. On the mound, he throws four pitches for strikes, and he can be overpowering.”
Mt. Lebanon and Hempfield finished tied for third in Section 2-6A at 7-5.
Gatorade Player of the Year celebrates the nation’s best high school athletes for their excellence in sport, academics and community.