Fannick, Kriner make all-state teams
By CHRIS MASSE, cmasse@sungazette.comArticle Photos
Fannick played with a painful thigh injury all season, but still led Milton to a district final. Kriner overcame the growing pains associated with being a point guard on one of the district’s youngest teams and helped the Panthers make a surprise playoff run.
That hard work has continued the last two years and Tuesday it helped Fannick and Kriner earn all-state status. Fannick was named to the Class AAA First Team, while Kriner was selected to the Class A third team. Fannick achieved all-state status all four years in high school and yesterday marked his second straight First Team honor.
“He continually got better. He did whatever we asked him to do in whatever aspect of the game you could come up with,” Milton coach and Tony’s father, Tony Fannick Sr. said. “I think he’s one of the best players in state and he’s proved that.”
Kriner helped North Penn win its first District 4 championship since 1976 and is the first Panther all-state player since that decade. The senior point guard helped the Panthers win a school-record 27 games and reach the state tournament’s second round for the first time in 28 years.
“It’s a super nice way to end my career. It’s a privilege to be nominated for all-state and I have to give most of the credit to my team and coach and my parents,” Kriner said. “We had a great run and I’ll never forget these guys. They’ve always been there for me.”
Fannick has been there for Milton the last four years, winning two District 4 championships, two CSC-I championships and 86 games. Milton went 22-4 this past season and likely would have won another district crown had Fannick not broken his foot late in a quarterfinal win over Shikellamy.
It was a testament to his strength that Fannick, who encountered as much physical abuse as any area player, had never missed a game at any level prior to that injury. Fannick served as pseudo-assistant coach in the district semifinals against Selinsgrove.
“You have to look at the bigger picture and make the best of it,” Fannick said. “They played hard and didn’t give up. To know you have teammates who will compete no matter what is a good feeling.”
Fannick provided Milton with plenty of good feelings, helping a young team jell quickly and win its first 13 CSC-I games.
Last year’s Class AAA Player of the Year contracted mono last summer just before he was supposed to attend an elite AAU camp with several Division I prospects. The illness caused him to lose 15 pounds, but Fannick aggressively hit the weights and worked himself back into shape for Milton’s season opener.
Fannick then averaged 22.4 points, 11.8 rebounds, 5.2 assists and 3.4 blocks per game. As dangerous outside as he was inside, Fannick also ran the court well and hit 55.6 percent of his shots. Fannick topped 2,000 points midway through the season and ended his scholastic career as the school’s all-time leading scorer.
The former towel boy is now one of Milton’s best players ever.
“I remember going on the bus and carrying towels into the game and then sitting in the rowdy section when I was younger and thinking that’s the best couple hours you can spend, not knowing exactly how hard they had to work and what they had to go through and endure in a long season,” Fannick Jr. said. “Once I got older and was able to do that with friends I’ve grown up with is an amazing feeling. I can’t compare or trade it with anything.”
A strong passer with excellent court vision, Fannick recorded 16 double-doubles and had a career-high 37 points against Jersey Shore. Still undecided about where to attend college, but leaning toward Mansfield, Bloomsburg or Pitt-Johnstown, Fannick could be two weeks away from fully recovering from his broken foot and returning to the baseball field.
“He’s been able to do so much and enjoy so much,” Fannick Sr. said. “He’s had the kind of career most kids dream of having.”
One could call Kriner’s senior year a dream season. The three-year starter helped the Panthers steam roll the NTL-West competition and played some his best basketball in the postseason where North Penn won four straight games.
It was the culmination of a long journey for Kriner, who struggled as a first-time starter his sophomore year after playing almost all JV his freshman year. Kriner made big strides as a junior, helping the Panthers again reach the district championship and did a little bit of everything this season.
“The difference between my sophomore and junior years was amazing. I could see the floor better and communicate better,” Kriner said. “We worked hard as a team to improve ourselves.”
Like Fannick, Kriner often was the primary focus of opposing defenses and like Fannick he often shredded them. The senior averaged 19.6 points, 6.6 assists and 3.1 steals per game. He had a game-winning assist to Nick Bowne against Neumann in the district semifinals and found Bowne again for the game-tying basket against Lourdes in the championship with five seconds remaining in regulation.
Kriner learned of his all-state selection while working with future Panthers, much like former standouts like Jeff Everett and Derek Hall used to work with him. It’s a cycle that has produced three state playoff appearances in four years and it’s a cycle Kriner can only boost with his latest achievement.
“He has been unbelievable. He’s been all you can ask for in a player, a leader, a person and a student,” North Penn coach Nate McNamara said. “Jessie and the seniors could be cocky and say, ‘we’re good and we don’t have to hang out with you’ and it’s the complete opposite.
“They are the backbone of our program.”
