BY GREG GULAS
      Boardman News Sports
      bnews@zoominternet.net
      With two consecutive district championships and a regional runner-up finish a year ago to their ever expanding resume, the Cardinal Mooney Cardinals boys’ basketball team is chomping at the bit to get underway with the hopes this year of making it a district championship trifecta.
      Head coach Carey Palermo enters his seventh season at the helm with a 73-70 overall ledger, the team going 18-10 last season – they were 3-3 in the Steel valley Conference – and 35-15 the past two campaigns.
      “It’s very special to be able to say that you are back-to-back district champions,” noted Palermo as he recapped last season’s run. “We advanced to the regional finals with a senior heavy team that just got better every week so that, too, was also very special.
      “We played our best basketball at the end of the year, beating NE8, All-American Conference, Steel Valley Conference, and MVAC Grey and Red Tier conference champions. That team was built on defense.”
      Palermo must find a way to replace six very special players off last year’s squad, players that were scorers, rebounders and leaders both on and off the court if he expects his team to make a run at another district title.
      Gone are leading scorer Mick Hergenrother, who averaged a team-best 13.4 points per game and a senior leader whose steady play also contributed 4.0 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 3.0 steals per outing.
      Also gone are Drew Pecchia (3.5 points, 3.3 rebounds), Jack Pepperney (5.6 ppg, 2.8 rpg), James Campbell, Jack Phillips (1.2 ppg, 2.8 rpg) and Jack Desmond (1.4 rpg).
      Players returning to the fold must jell early if they expect to enjoy the success that they have over the past two seasons.
      “We have a very talented group returning, an inexperienced yet hungry group,” Palermo said. “We return three starters but the next six players were junior varsity players, all moving up after leading our JVs to a 16-5 record last season.”
      The three starters returning to the fold include senior Jaxon Menough (3.9 points,1.9 rebounds, 1.4 steals), junior Rocco Turner (12.8 points, second on team, 2.9 rpg, 1.9 steals) and junior Ashton O’Brien (7.2 ppg, third on team, 2.7 rpg, 1.2 assists, 1.6 steals), who is the starting quarterback on the Cardinals’ football team and will undoubtedly need a few weeks before he works himself into basketball shape.
      Rounding out the roster and competing for playing time will be seniors Nolan Radinsky, also a football player and Aiden Kim, juniors Anthony Allen, Jibri Carter, Jr., Will Desmond, Dominic Graziano, Matt Kay, Eddie Nieves and Nick Pregibon, and sophomore Aiden Radinsky.
      “Jaxon [Menough] is our senior leader and best defender on the team,” added Palermo. “This will be his third year playing varsity, he is our most experienced player and has been a key player on our two regional squads. He brings a ton of energy every day.
      “Nolan [Radinsky] has great length at 6’ 3,” is a very good spot up shooter and member of our play-off football team as well. Rocco Turner is our returning scoring leader, is a state champion on our golf team and can really shoot the basketball.
      “Ashton O’Brien, quarterback on the football team, is our second leading scorer from last year, a player who is long and athletic and a great all-around player who shoots extremely well. Nick Pregibon is a very versatile player who can do many things including shoot, handle the ball and pass. He is a key player on our soccer team while Will Desmond is a scrappy, athletic post player who also plays on our play-off football team. He does a lot of the dirty work while Dom Graziano is a scrappy player, a good shooter, can handle it and is yet another key player on our play-off soccer team.
      “Matt Kay is a tough defender, knock down shooter and football guy while Eddie Nieves, who is 6’ 5” tall, is athletic and very long, can shoot and is very skilled.”
      The Cardinals open their season with two road games, the first at Liberty on November 29 then at Boardman on December 2.
      Their home lidlifter is set for December 6 when they play host to Academy for Urban Scholars, a team they defeated 62-28 a season ago.