The Parkland High School boys basketball team rode the positive momentum and success from the 2022-23 season, one in which they won the District 11 6A title and two games in the state tournament, and continued it into the summer offseason.

The Trojans won their first three games and have come out on top in eight of their opening nine games in the Lehigh Valley summer league. They sit in first place, one half game ahead of second-place Whitehall (7-1) in the Large School Division.

Current head coach Andy Stephens, who will coach the team for the rest of the summer before stepping into the athletic director role, has been pleased with what he has seen out of the group early on in the summer.

“The guys are playing with great team chemistry,” said Stephens. “They are sharing the ball and having faith in one another. They are also playing very hard and working hard to be their best every time they hit the court.”

The Trojans, for the most part, are a newer group to the varsity level, outside of a small handful of players. But Stephens sees the effort and the work ethics of the players, who want to continue the winning tradition of the team and keep the train moving forward.

“They are a great group,” Stephens said. “They want to be good and are willing to work hard to get to that point. If they continue to keep this same work ethic in the winter, even when it is a lot harder and more of a grind, they will be right there again with the best teams in the state.”

Parkland had off last Thursday, June 22, but won the previous Tuesday, 45-34, over Wilson West Lawn, with Jayden Thomas pouring in a game-high 20 points. The week before, the Trojans won both of their games, hanging on to beat Notre Dame Green Pond, 51-49, and then took down Quakertown, 57-47. Eddie Paz Romero led the way with nine against the Crusaders and Robbie Rausch and Blake Bocorman both had 16 points against the Panthers.

“The more these guys see each other and work together the better we will be,” said Stephens. “Many of them play on different AAU teams and other leagues, and I also think that has merit, but we do need to continue to work together and keep building on chemistry and improvement.”