HS: Fall FAB 50, Oct. 10

by Sheldon Shealer

October 10, 2017

St. Benedict's Prep (Newark, N.J.) started No. 6 in the preseason FAB 50.

It didn't take long for this junior-dominated team to climb to No. 1, and its beginning to look like the Gray Bees have a strong chance to claim their fifth FAB 50 crown in the past seven seasons.

St. Benedict's made a major move toward securing a No. 1 ranking by defeating Salesianum (Del.), which has proven to be quite a nemesis in recent years.

St. Benedict's resume, as usual, is quite solid. The 12-0 Gray Bees have wins over nine teams that entered the match with an undefeated record. St. Benedict's has wins over three current FAB 50-ranked opponents and has defeated opponents from six states. The team's next three matches have been historically challenging -- Hill School (Pa.), Chaminade (N.Y.) and Delran. If the Gray Bees can win those matches, they will go into the home stretch as a runaway favorite to finish out the perfect season.

Last year, St. Ignatius (Cleveland, Ohio) ended the fall season as the FAB 50 national champion. St. Benedict's and St. Ignatius have agreed to play next year in what will be quite a showcase event. Both teams are loaded with underclass players and the programs have combined to win six of the past seven FAB 50 fall titles.

On the girls side, top-ranked Penn (Mishawaka, Ind.) rolled through three rounds of postseason play last week, outscoring its opponents 22-0.

BIG MOVERS: BOYS: Waukegan (Ill.). Waukegan scored first but failed to hold on in a 1-1 draw with then FAB 50 No. 2 Libertyville (Ill.). The result, coupled with several Top 25 losses, allows Waukegan to move from No. 32 to No. 21 this week. ... GIRLS: Pennington School (Pennington, N.J.). Pennington School has one FAB 50 title to its credit and its now pushing its way up the rankings with a team loaded with standout underclass players. Pennington moves from No. 29 to No. 19 this week.

NEWCOMERS: BOYS: No. 23 Walt Whitman (Bethesda, Md.), No. 36 C. Milton Wright (Bel Air, Md.), No. 43 Holy Ghost Prep (Bensalem Township, Pa.), No. 45 [Haddonfield Memorial nj-m] (East Haddonfield, N.J.), No. 46 Somerville (Mass.), No. 47 Ann Arbor Skyline (Ann Arbor, Mich.), No. 48 Guilford (Conn.), No. 49 North Raleigh Christian (Raleigh, N.C.) and No. 50 Eau Claire Memorial (Eau Claire, Wis.). ... GIRLS: No. 46 Suffield (West Suffield, Conn.), No. 47 Shenendehowa (Clifton Park, N.Y.), No. 49 Baylor School (Chattanooga, Tenn.) and No. 50 Natick (Mass.).