By ADAM ZAGORIA
Archbishop Stepinac, the New York basketball powerhouse that has won four straight New York Catholic League championships, avoided major sanctions in its battle with the New York Catholic High School Athletic Association.
Head coach Pat Massaroni will serve a seven-game suspension to start the 2026-27 season, but there will be no postseason ban, travel ban or probation for the school or program.
All other proposed sanctions against @step_basketball
— Adam Zagoria (@AdamZagoria) May 21, 2026
have been dropped
– Travel Ban Lifted
– Postseason Ban Lifted
– Probation Lifted
And a committee will be formed to revamp the rules and bylaws, moving forward as a league to adapt to the ever changing athletic landscape https://t.co/h2D0Fdfr5I
At issue was that after winning a record fourth straight CHSAA “AA” championship on March 8 and then defeating Eagle Academy-Bronx 76-68 to win the CHSAA-PSAL Undisputed Championship on March 22, Stepinac played in Chipotle Nationals in Fishers, Indiana where they lost to Kevin Boyle and Spire Academy (OH) on April 1.
Yahoo did a nice job of summarizing how things unfolded after that:
The CHSAA took issue with Stepinac accepting an invitation to Chipotle Nationals despite the league’s warning not to take part in an event that operates outside the framework of the National Federation of State High School Associations. Chipotle Nationals annually showcases the nation’s best high school teams, many of them basketball-centric academies and prep schools that recruit top talent from across the country and beyond.
The letter from Pigott also contended that Stepinac violated CHSAA rules by committing to a tournament that extended beyond 4 p.m. on Holy Thursday. Stepinac lost to Ohio prep powerhouse SPIRE Academy in the opening round of Chipotle Nationals on April 1, the Wednesday before Easter Sunday. Had the Crusaders advanced, they would have played at 6 p.m. on Holy Thursday and then potentially again on Friday and Saturday.
The sanctions endorsed by the CHSAA executive committee resembled the sort of punishment the NCAA used to levy against programs caught funneling money to recruits. The committee called for all levels of Stepinac basketball to be prohibited from participating in the 2027 league playoffs and for the varsity to be banned from playing any out-of-state games. Head coach Pat Massaroni also would have to serve an eight-game suspension next season during league play.
“The Archdiocesan Boys’ CHSAA did try to prevent this from happening by warning Archbishop Stepinac, in writing, of the consequences of participating in this tournament without league approval,” concludes Pigott’s letter, which was obtained by Yahoo Sports. “We believe that the imposition of these sanctions are necessary to protect the integrity and shared mission of all of our member schools.”
In a letter sent by Stepinac principal Paul Carty to Pigott and obtained by ZAGSBLOG, Carty said Stepinac was led to believe by the CHSAA that if the school won the CHSAA-PSAL game on March 22, their participation in Chipotle Nationals “would be considered an extension of their season.”
After receiving a letter from Pigott on March 20, the day after the Chipotle field was announced, Stepinac opted to “detach” itself from the CHSAA for Chipotle Nationals and essentially participated in the event as a club team. They went as the “NY Crusaders,” not as Stepinac, and did not use Stepinac buses, insurance or other infrastructure for the event. (The official Chipotle website did list them as “Archbishop Stepinac” for the event.”
Both the CHSAA and Stepinac then lawyered up but the situation has resolved without legal action.
Follow Adam Zagoria on Twitter
Follow ZAGSBLOGHoops on Instagram
