Springdale basketball team learns from its 1989 championship counterparts

Springdale’s boys basketball team attended Monday’s practice to touch up on skills and prep for their games this week.

Players also got a lesson in life from a team they hope to emulate.

Before practice, Scott Andrews, a member of the Dynamo 1989 boys basketball WPIAL championship team, spoke to the current team about basketball, his team’s championship run and the importance of giving back.

The 1989 team will be honored at 1 p.m. Saturday during a home game against Clairton. The recognition will mark 35 years since the team’s big win.

“One of the things that was always instilled in us was don’t forget where you came from,” Andrews said.

About 10 players from the 1989 team will be on hand for Saturday’s game. Many of those players have since given back to the community.

Andrews is in his 26th year of teaching in the Allegheny Valley School District. Other players-turned-teachers from that team include Jimmy Christie at Kiski Area High School, David Andrews — Scott’s cousin — at Pittsburgh Miller K-5, and Brian Slencak at Quaker Valley Middle School.

Others from the 1989 team include Jeff Clark, a Fox Chapel police sergeant; Mark Hensel, a commissioning engineer for FirstEnergy; Jason Heininger, the head of outside sales for ABC Supply; Bobby Hensel, a mechanical maintenance engineer for Ellwood Quality Steels; Mitch Karaica, a power station control room operator; Dr. Mike Pazman, a dentist at French Creek Dental Group; and Brian Guerrieri, a senior account business manager for Acadia Pharmaceuticals.

The group remains close, Andrews said. Some of them still meet up for coffee about once a month.

The current Dynamos also have made giving back to the community a priority. Earlier in the season, the team helped to clean up the Rachel Carson Homestead. Seniors on the team prepared and served lunch for families at the Ronald McDonald House on Jan. 12, head coach Kobe Phillippi said.

“It definitely means a lot to give back to the place we’re from,” senior Mason Gent said.

Senior Jackson Pribanic agreed: “It brings us closer overall.”

The team holds a teacher recognition night before a game, where players select a school district staff member who has made a difference in their lives. The girls basketball team also has started to hold the staff recognition night, district spokeswoman Jan Zastawniak said.

“They really are learning things beyond basketball skills,” Zastawniak said.

On Monday, players were able to ask questions about the 1989 run, Andrews’ outlook on basketball and giving back. Many players are his former students.

Andrews recalled Springdale’s 1985 team, which advanced to the WPIAL final but lost to Washington High School. An eighth grader at the time, Andrews remembers watching that whole playoff ride with his friends.

That helped motivate the 1989 run, he said.

The 1989 Dynamos went undefeated in section play, losing only to Monessen in the regular season.

They captured the Class AA title in a two-point win over Brentwood at Pitt’s Field House.

But that run didn’t start off easy, Andrews said. In the playoff quarterfinals, the Dynamos were trailing Wilkinsburg late in the game. They were able to come back and win, 68-63.

After the WPIAL championship, the 1989 Dynamos won four state playoff games before losing a rematch to Brentwood in the state semifinals, to finish with a 29-2 record.

Keys to success, Andrews told the 2024 team, are to play together, be focused, and be committed to the team.

“Don’t make yourself bigger than the team,” he said.

The 2024 team has an overall 9-5 record. Senior John Hughes reached 1,000 career points in a Jan. 3 game against Riverview.

“Seeing other teams have success and are passionate, and that want to put a banner on a wall, that’s pretty cool,” Andrews said. “You want to see the teams you played for be successful.”

The current Dynamos were appreciative of Andrews coming back and sharing the 1989 team’s story. They’re looking forward to Saturday.

So is the 1989 team.

“It’s going to be a good day for celebrating Springdale basketball,” Andrews said.