There are 1,424 basketball teams in Pa. Making states means you are one of the best
And then there was one.
Central York boys' basketball is the last winter sports team still alive in the state tournament. The Panthers will play for the PIAA Class 6A championship as the last of 14 league teams that qualified for the PIAA championships.
But the other 13 should hold their heads high: win or lose, making states means your team is one of the best.
And while the losses sting at first, take consolation in knowing that you and your teammates were among the few that made the tournament.
Dream season: Central York stuns defending state champs to punch ticket to title game
Follow your team: Find scores, schedules, stats for YAIAA spring sports
Consider these numbers ...
There are 724 schools across the state that field a boys' basketball team. Only 192 made it to the state championships, across six classifications. Six YAIAA teams (Central York, Red Lion, Littlestown, Eastern York, York Suburban, Delone Catholic) were among the field. Broken down by class, we have:
- Central and Red Lion were two of the 32 6A teams out of a possible 114 to make states.
- York Suburban was one out of a possible 116 in Class 5A;
- Eastern and Littlestown were two out of 122 in 4A;
- Delone was one out of 124 in 3A.
On the girls' side, there are 700 schools across the state that field teams. Again, just 192 make it to states (32 per classification). Eight YAIAA teams made the cut: Dallastown, Northeastern, York High, York Suburban, West York, Eastern York, Delone Catholic and York Catholic. That breaks down to:
- Dallastown, Northeastern and York High were three out of a possible 120 teams in 6A;
- Suburban and West York were two of a possible 117 in 5A;
- Eastern and Delone Catholic were two out of 118 in 4A;
- York Catholic was one out of 114 in 3A.
So, congratulations on a well-played season. You made it farther than most and represented the YAIAA to the fullest.
The PIAA website is chock full of other fun stats. Like these ...
District 3 rules the wrestling mat
We're No. 1: Of the 472 schools that offer wrestling, District 3 has the most programs at 92. And girls? D3 leads there, too, hosting 47 of the 183 statewide programs.
Out of the 12 PIAA districts, District 3 also fields the most boys' tennis (79), boys' soccer (114), girls' soccer (103), and girls' tennis (84) teams.
Hotbed of field hockey
D3 also tops all other districts with 89 teams. District 1 follows with 77. After that? District 11 has 29 teams. (There are only 266 programs statewide. Districts 9 and 10 don't have any field hockey teams, while Districts 5 and 8 have one apiece.)
And boys' volleyball: Only 227 schools support boys' volleyball teams, and 58 of them are in District 3. Districts 4 and 5 don't have any, while District 9 sports one.
Settling for second vs. the WPIAL
In most other sports, D3 is second to our neighbors to the west: District 7 (aka the WPIAL). That includes golf (92 for us vs. 112 for them), girls' golf (39 vs. 44), boys' cross country (97 vs. 108), girls' cross country (99 vs. 109), girls' volleyball (103 vs. 128), baseball (107 vs. 126), softball (98 vs. 121), boys' track and field (101 vs. 122) and girls' track and field (101 vs. 125).
In boys' and girls' lacrosse, D3 falls second to District 1: 51 vs. 58 boys teams and 53 vs. 74 girls' teams.
We're No. 3
District 3 ranks third in boys' swimming teams with 59, behind District 7 (72) and District 1 (62). Same for the girls' teams (57) vs. 73 in District 7 and 66 in District 1.
District 3 (52) is bested by District 1 (57) and District 12 (56) in competitive spirit squads.
Finally, football
As a whole, District 3 ranks second with 92 teams, again behind District 7, who has 121 (there are 555 total programs across the state). However, D3 fields the largest number of 5A teams with 26. District 1 has the largest number of 6A teams with 33.
The WPIAL has the biggest concentration of smaller teams with 74 in Classes 3-1A. District 3 has the most big schools with 68 in Classes 4-6A.
District 8 fields just six football teams.