Freedom High School boys basketball team left it all on the floor

Of all the quad-A boys basketball teams in Pennsylvania that qualify for postseason, only one ends its season with a win. That would be the team that is crowned state champion in Hershey.

Freedom was one of the many that fell short. The Patriots dropped a heartbreaking 47-45 decision to Parkland Saturday night in the District 11 Class AAAA quarterfinals at Easton Area Middle School.

It's doubtful that if Freedom had won Saturday it would have kept winning all the way to Hershey. But somehow it's rather shocking that a team that put forth such a magical season could have it end so soon.

Freedom, Parkland and Emmaus are arguably the three best teams in District 11 and the quirky playoff system landed all three of them in the same bracket.

Therefore, it was a foregone conclusion that at least one of the three wasn't going to the state playoffs.

"It's a shame, but that's just the way the brackets fell," Freedom coach Joe Stellato said. "It was two good teams going at it. Unfortunately we're going home."

As they have all season, the Patriots left it all on the floor Saturday night. They were a Jarrod Dilts 3-pointer away from advancing to Wednesday's semifinals against top-seed Emmaus.

When the ball left Dilts' hand, the trajectory looked perfect. The ball rattled the cylinder before agonizingly dropping off at the buzzer.

Parkland's Rob Dvoracek, a Temple football recruit, snatched the rebound with one second left and flung the ball toward the rafters. The buzzer sounded while the Trojans and their fans rejoiced in a wild celebration.  

"I thought it was in," Stellato said afterward. "It was a great look. He's a great kid and he deserved it. Unfortunately it just didn't fall for him."

Freedom was involved in a seemingly endless string of white knucklers (barn-burners) this season, and this reporter had the great fortune of covering many of them. I honestly can't recall seeing a team that played more high intensity, down-to-the-wire games than the Patriots the past couple months. "I knew this was a magical year," Stellato said. "There was something special going on in our locker room. The hardest thing to swallow is I don't get to coach the seniors on Monday."

The team was a joy to watch. They played the game with passion and integrity and never backed down until the clock read 0:00.

Stellato will dearly miss seniors Joe Lococo, Jordan Young, Tajmire Flood and Dilts.

"This is the toughest group of kids I've ever been around," Stellato said. "They're just tough kids physically and mentally. I just hope the younger guys learned by watching (the seniors)."

The raucous "Freedom Family" student cheering section turned out in large numbers all season and showed its support right to the end Saturday. After the game, the students appropriately began a "Freedom Family" chant that exemplified the best in good sportsmanship.

It was a season to remember for Freedom and one it might not duplicate for quite some time. It was also a season that ended just a little too soon.

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Freedom High School boys basketball team left it all on the floor