LOWELL — It’s not like this is some “rags to riches” story.
Georgetown boys basketball had been a winning program for really the past decade, overseen by proud alum-turned-coach Josh Keilty — who just won the Division 2 State Championship, his second straight title, in his first year at powerhouse St. Mary’s of Lynn. Keilty left Winter Street with a 100-61 overall record across eight seasons, success fueled by former program greats like Harrison Lien, Grant Lyon and Jackson Lasquade.
For some visual representation, here are the program’s five previous seasons before last year.
2023-24: 16-6, Div. 4 Sweet 16.
2022-23: 16-6, Div. 4 Sweet 16.
2021-22: 15-7, Div. 4 Sweet 16.
2020-21: 5-0 (season ended early with pandemic).
2019-20: 12-11, Div. 4 North Semifinals.
Not bad, right?
But over the past two years, Georgetown has been put on the statewide map.
And that’s in large part because of this senior class.
No, the No. 3-seeded Royals (19-6) weren’t able to go back-to-back and defend their Division 4 State Championship crown, falling to No. 1 Wareham (21-5) in Saturday’s title game at the Tsongas Cener, 80-73. But for seniors Brendan Loewen, Irvin Zapata, Aleks Dimov and Tony Tavares Roman, after helping to deliver the program’s first ever championship a year ago, they put the team right back in position to do it again.
They took a culture of winning to a whole new level.
“Today hurts,” said Georgetown coach Ted Schruender. “But that’s a great group of young men I have in front of me.”
Loewen never thought that it was over.
Even with 0.3 seconds left and his Royals down five, the senior captain waved to the bench to not sub him out, pointing up at the clock not accepting that the game was over until he saw all zeros. But that’s what we’ve all come to expect from Loewen, who can only be described as an ultimate winner and teammate. The recently-crown CAL Baker MVP will likely leave both a three-time All-CAL First Teamer and three-time Daily News All-Star, having earned the honors each winter after transfering back home following spending his freshman year at St. John’s Prep. He averaged a team-high 15.1 ppg with 31 3s this season, and led the program to back-to-back Division 4 title games with one championship.
And perhaps the stat that best sums him up:
Loewen in last year’s title game: 19 points, 8 rebounds.
Loewen in this year’s title game: 16 points, 6 boards, 6 assists, 2 charges.
Then you get to Zapata, who is arguably the greatest shooter to ever come through the program. He broke the school’s single-season record for 3s made with 79 last year, and is believed to have broken the all-time Georgetown record after making 63 more this year (162 career total) — while averaging 12.7 ppg. He will almost certainly leave as a two-time Daily News All-Star, and had a similar knack for playing his best in the biggest moments.
Zapata during last year’s title win: 22 points on 7-of-8 shooting from 3.
Zapata during this year’s semifinal win: 20 points on six 3s.
Finally, both Dimov and Tavares were key role player for the Royals over the past two years. Dimov (4.2 ppg) missed seven games with a nasty sickness this season, but finished strong and had arguably his best game against Wareham with 9 points. Tavares similarly stayed ready all season long, and he even came in late on Saturday and hit a 3 to bring the Royals within two possessions at 76-70 with 22.4 seconds left.
It’s just a special group.
“Tony, Aleks, Brendan, Irvin, and then we had an injured player who couldn’t play the entire season, Ryan Skahan, they embody what Georgetown is all about,” said Schruender. “Their effort, their attitude every day, their leadership, it’s just tremendous, and we’re going to miss them. But we said it in (the locker room), it’s not a ‘goodbye’ it’s a ‘see you later.’ We talk about family, and we’re a family for life. They know that.”
And it’s a group that made Georgetown basketball a statewide name.