PREPS Pa. team has two talented weapons

William Penn Charter is prospering with Sean Singletary and Rob Kurz.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
William Penn Charter in Philadelphia might have the best 1-2 punch in Pennsylvania high school basketball this season.
Penn Charter (21-7) won the Inter-Academic League regular season title behind Sean Singletary, a 5-foot-11 guard headed to Virginia, and Rob Kurz, a 6-9 forward who will play at Notre Dame.
Singletary averaged 23.5 points, seven rebounds, six assists and four steals per game and was chosen as the Inter-Academic League's MVP. Kurz averaged 19 points and 12 rebounds and was an Inter-Ac first-team pick.
"They're both outstanding players and they set the bar high for the other guys on the team with their hustle and determination," Penn Charter coach Jim Phillips said. "The way they approached practices and games rubbed off on the others and made us a better team."
Rebounding guard
Singletary is considered one of the best guards in the Philadelphia area, getting 14 rebounds in one game.
"He's just special and very, very athletic," Phillips said. "I think he's going to go in and have an immediate impact on the ACC."
Kurz had an excellent all-around game when Penn Charter, a private school, defeated Germantown Academy 86-75 in the final game of the Inter-Academic showcase. He finished with 19 points, 12 rebounds, eight assists and seven blocks.
"He's really a versatile player," Phillips said. "Rob can step out and make 3-pointers and he can go inside and score. Plus, he's an outstanding passer."
Also playing key roles for the Quakers were Zack Zelinski, a 5-11 junior, and brother Sam Zelinski, a 5-11 freshman; 6-foot sophomore Joe Rauchut, 6-4 junior R.J. Hollinshead, 5-7 senior Hanif Hopkins and 6-3 sophomore Brian Teuber.
Difficult schedule
Penn Charter played a difficult schedule and was only 6-6 heading into January after losing to Cardinal Dougherty and Saint Joseph's Prep. Both teams went on to win their Philadelphia Catholic League divisions.
Toughened up by their schedule, the Quakers went 12-0 in Inter-Ac play.
"I was a little surprised that we went through our league undefeated," Phillips said. "But we went out and played some outstanding competition in our non-league games. That's the thing about being in the Philadelphia area. You don't have to go very far to find good teams and doing that helped us."
Good, then bad
Cheltenham's boys team defeated Ridley 67-34 in Class AAAA to advance to a PIAA District 1 championship game for the first time since the 1967-68 season. Cheltenham (26-2) will meet defending district champion Chester for the title Friday night at Villanova.
The news wasn't as good for the girls' team. Laura Harper, a 6-4 center and team leader, has a broken bone in her left hand and will probably miss the rest of the season. The injury occurred in practice last week.
Harper, a Maryland recruit, averages 19.5 points and 16 rebounds a game. She has been selected to play for the East team in the McDonald's All-American game March 31 in Oklahoma City.
Elite company
Jeannette senior Larry Hall beat Josh Bable of South Side Beaver 11-2 in the 130-pound Class AA final to become the 12th PIAA District 7 (WPIAL) wrestler to win four consecutive individual titles.
Out of action
Erie Cathedral Prep sophomore wrestler Jon Wentz, who qualified for the PIAA tournament last year, has a broken bone in his right hand and is out of action. The injury occurred in a 6-4 overtime loss to Warren's Jake Lauffenburger in the District 10 Class AAA 160-pound final.
Record setters
Philadelphia West Catholic's sprint medley team of Nicole Leach, Kneshia Sheard, Clarra Lawson and Latavia Thomas set a national record for Catholic high schools.
They were timed at 3 minutes, 59.8 seconds at the Hall of Fame Invitational indoor track meet at the New York City Armory last weekend.
Leach ran 400 meters in 54.5 seconds, Sheard ran 200 in 25.9, Lawson ran 200 in 26.9 and Thomas ran 800 meters in 2 minutes, 12.6 seconds.