Amon Hawthorne wanted to find a way to play basketball in college at the highest level. During Hawthorne's senior season with Penn Hills, he made it impossible for anyone to not pay attention to what he had to offer. Hawthorne averaged 21.1 points per game to help the Indians advance to the second round of the PIAA Class 5A playoffs.

Hawthorne topped 1,000 points in his career during the postseason to become the first Penn Hills player since Daemar Kelly to reach the mark. Penn Hills won the Section 1-5A crown and finished with a 20-8 record overall with an 11-1 mark in section. Hawthorne scored a season-high 44 points in a loss to Thomas Jefferson in the WPIAL quarterfinals.

Slippery Rock finished last season 17-12 and 10-10 in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference play.

Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas can be submitted to [email protected]

A pair of WPIAL basketball player were recently honored by the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference by winning their respective Freshman of the Year awards. Rowan Carmichael, an Avonworth graduate, plays at Edinboro. He led the Fightin' Scots in scoring, averaging 16.5 points per game.

Carmichael also contributed 2.0 rebounds per game, 59 assists and 29 steals. Edinboro finished the season 13-15 overall and 9-11 in conference.

Iyanna Wade, a Clairton graduate, was also chosen on the women's side. She is the second Slippery Rock University player to earn the award in three seasons. Regan Atkins, a Laurel graduate, won the award for the 2023-24 season. Wade set a program record by playing 937 minutes and she started all 26 games. 

Wade averaged 14.0 points and 4.2 assists per game. SRU finished the season 7-19 overall and 5-15 in conference.

Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. All story ideas can be submitted to [email protected] or on X @J_oshRizzo.

Montrell Johnson was fortunate to have plenty of people in his corner. Johnson, a Highlands graduate, struggled with homelessness during his time in high school. 

After he committed to Saint Francis (Pa.) to play football during his senior year, the school announced it was dropping from the Division I Football Championship Subdivision level to Division III. Johnson, who played wide receiver for the Golden Rams and graduated in 2025, chose to go a different way and went back to work looking for a new school. Johnson spent time living with a high school teammate and his family while he attended community college.

Johnson announced this week he will play at Slippery Rock University. The Rock had a rare down season last year, finishing 6-5. SRU reached the Division II national semifinals in 2024 and made the playoffs every season from 2018 to 2024, with the lone exception coming during the COVID-19 year in 2020 where no season was played.

"I've chosen SRU because of their interest level in me as a student athlete," Johnson said. "Despite the year I've had with finding a home and not playing a snap of football since our loss to Imani Christian in the second round of the playoffs (in 2024) their coaching staff still has faith me in being a game-changing football player."

Johnson said that he lived with four or five different families while he was in high school. Over the past year, Johnson stayed sharp by working out with Tre Tipton. Tipton, a former Apollo-Ridge standout, played collegiately at Pitt. In the classroom, Johnson maintained a 3.0 GPA while attending community college.

"I'm most excited for getting the opportunity to play football again," Johnson said. "Most of us athletes don't realize that after high school another chance to put on the pads isn't guaranteed. You have to work for every single second of it. If you aren't willing to work for it, there are thousands of other athletes to replace you. You'll be sitting on the couch, regretting not putting in the work to earn a roster spot somewhere."

Josh Rizzo the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas can be sent to [email protected] or on X @J_oshRizzo.

The list for the watchlist for the Shrine Bowl is an expansive one. But it is still a rare honor for players below the Division I level. Slippery Rock University offensive lineman Joe Cooper was one of 10 Division II players of the 1,000 players named to the list.

A number of players from Pitt and Penn State were also selected for the watch list.

Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas can be submitted to [email protected]