News

Tom Heston ’12 moves over one chair on the bench to replace his mentor Tony Chapman ’71, who retired after 45 years of coaching Holy Ghost Prep basketball with a mind-boggling 928-351 record. Heston will build his first Firebirds squad around two returning starting guards, 6-2 junior Adrien “Ace” Varella (pictured) and 6-foot senior Gavin McLaughlin. 

Holy Ghost Prep senior Tim Devine has been the starting varsity soccer goalie for the Firebirds for the past four years. And like anyone who has played the game, Devine has dreamt of playing collegiately at the Division One level. On Nov. 15, Devine saw his Division One dream become a reality as he signed a national letter of intent to attend the University of South Florida (USF). (photo courtesy of Catalano Studio) 

For a fifth straight year, English department chair Justin Goulet ’99 and a group of students delivered nonperishable food items to Preston & Steve’s annual “Campout for Hunger,” benefiting Philabundance. The group blew their goal of delivering 5,000 pounds of food out of the water—ultimately collecting 8,620.5 pounds.

HGP’s College Guidance Office expanded on its tradition of offering a college bus tour trips with a Spiritan Immersion college tour from Nov. 8-11. The bus tour took 42 HGP students (21 sophomores, 21 juniors) on visits to Denison University, the University of Dayton, University of Cincinnati, Xavier University, Duquesne University, and the University of Pittsburgh. 

Holy Ghost Prep senior Brendan DiEnna was named a commended student in the 2024 National Merit® Scholarship program. A letter of commendation from the school and the National Merit® Scholarship Corporation (NMSC) was recently presented to him.

The Holy Ghost Prep cross-country team captured a fourth straight PIAA District One Class 2A cross-country team title on October 27 at Lehigh University. The Firebirds had four top-10 finishers in the District One race and all four were district medalists: senior Papakojo Danquah (fourth place), junior Daniel Perez (fifth place), senior Maurece Jean-Brian (ninth place), senior Brendan DiEnna (10th place).

Nine former Holy Ghost Prep student-athletes will be inducted into the HGP Athletic Hall of Fame on Saturday, January 27, 2024 at the Bensalem Township Golf Course, joining this exclusive group of people (and others) as Hall of Famers. 

From November 16 through 19 in the Frederico Theater, Holy Ghost Prep’s award-winning Drama Society will present “Arsenic and Old Lace” by Joseph Kesselring. The HGP Alumni Office welcomes back all “Arsenic and Old Lace” cast members from the 1966, 1984, and 1995 productions for a pre-show reception on Sunday, November 19.

Holy Ghost Prep had three teams place among the top five teams in the state of Pennsylvania in the first CyberPatriot competition of the season on Oct. 20. These competitions challenge teams of students to find and resolve cyber security vulnerabilities in simulated environments.

With about 30 founding members, the Firebird Pops is the newest addition to Holy Ghost Prep's performance programming. Comprised of performers from every musical family, the group blends concert band, orchestra, jazz band, rock band, and choir into one comprehensive ensemble.