Player of the Year Ruben Rodriguez highlights All-Berks basketball team
A year from now Ruben Rodriguez could join an impressive list that includes Lonnie Walker IV, Wesley Butler and Donyell Marshall.
All played at Reading High and were twice named Player of the Year in Berks basketball. Rodriguez is halfway there.
The dynamic junior guard earned that honor Sunday, fronting the 2022 All-Berks team, selected by Berks head coaches.
He’s one of two repeat selections, along with Muhlenberg senior Edwin Suarez. They’re joined on the first team by Antietam’s Hector Tiburcio, Berks Catholic’s Josiah Jordan, Exeter’s Colin Payne, Fleetwood’s Jake Karnish and Reading High’s Daniel Alcantara.
Matt Flowers, in his first season with Muhlenberg, was named Coach of the Year. The Muhls are 18-6, reached the Berks semifinals and open play in the District 3 Class 6A Tournament Tuesday.
Reading High coach Rick Perez simply calls Rodriguez a winner, and that’s all he’s done in his three seasons. He was the starting point guard as a freshman on Muhlenberg’s District 3 Class 5A championship team and the lead guard on the Red Knights’ District 3 and PIAA Class 6A championship teams last season.
Friday he scored a game-high 22 points to lead the Red Knights to a 51-35 win over Berks Catholic in the Berks Conference championship game.
“Ruben is a born winner,” Perez said earlier this season. “(He) does whatever it takes to keep the game going. He plays with such joy and is just out there having fun.”
Rodriguez is averaging 19.4 points, tops in the league, set a program record with 50 points in a game earlier this season and surpassed 1,000 career points last month. He enters the District 3 Tournament this week with 1,183 points and is on pace to top 1,800 in his career.
He was a first-team All-State pick as a sophomore.
The 6-6 Suarez is the league’s most dominant post man and lifted the Muhls to their second straight Berks II title — a first in program history. He leads the Muhls in rebounds and blocked shots and is averaging 19.0 points per game, second in the league.
Suarez is Muhlenberg’s first two-time pick since Dave Kapaona in 1989 and 1990.
Tiburcio, a 6-1 senior, is the second-leading scorer in program history with 1,381 points. He’s averaging 16.5 points and led the Mounts to the Berks IV title and the No. 1 seed in the District 3 Class 2A Tournament. He leads the team in rebounds (8.8), assists (3.5) and steals (2.8). He is the first Antietam player selected since Andy Wrobel in 2015.
Jordan, a 5-10 junior, is the leading scorer on a Saints team that has won 20 games, reached the Berks Conference final and is the No. 1 seed in the District 3 Class 4 Tournament. He averages 15.5 points per game and is a game-changing player on the defensive end.
Payne, a 6-3 senior, is a dynamic offensive player who averages 18.7 points and has 49 3-pointers, fourth-most in the league.
Karnish, a 6-2 wing, averages 17.5 points and led the Tigers to their first division title in more than 60 years. He is the first Fleetwood player to earn All-Berks honors in at least 30 years. None have been selected since 1990.
The 6-5 Alcantara is a three-year starter who averages 16.5 points and has 34 3-pointers in 20 games. He was a third-team All-State pick last season.
Flowers, a long-time assistant at Reading High, has brought that same winning culture to the Muhls, who are 18-6 and the only Berks team to beat the Red Knights this season.
Wilson’s Stevie Mitchell was a three-time All-Berks pick and Player of the Year last year as a senior.
Walker was a three-time Player of the Year, in 2015, 2016 and 2017.
| Player of the Year | |
| Ruben Rodriguez | Reading High |
| Coach of the Year | |
| Matt Flowers | Muhlenberg |
| All-Berks | |||
| Ruben Rodriguez | Reading High | 6-1 | Jr. |
| Edwin Suarez | Muhlenberg | 6-6 | Sr. |
| Josiah Jordan | Berks Catholic | 5-10 | Jr. |
| Daniel Alcantara | Reading High | 6-5 | Sr. |
| Colin Payne | Exeter | 6-3 | Sr. |
| Jake Karnish | Fleetwood | 6-2 | Jr. |
| Hector Tiburcio | Antietam | 6-2 | Sr. |
| All-Division 1 | |||
| Xavier Davis | Reading High | 6-2 | Sr. |
| Myles Grey | Reading High | 5-11 | Jr. |
| Ryan Koch | Berks Catholic | 6-3 | Jr. |
| Cameron Jones | Wilson | 5-10 | Jr. |
| Matt Harley | Gov. Mifflin | 6-5 | Sr. |
| Aidan Sands | Berks Catholic | 6-3 | Sr. |
| All-Division 2 | |||
| J’Daniel Mosquera | Muhlenberg | 5-8 | Jr. |
| Charlie Dobb | Conrad Weiser | 6-7 | Sr. |
| Kannon Zdimal | Twin Valley | 6-2 | Jr. |
| Aanjay Feliciano | Conrad Weiser | 6-2 | Sr. |
| Danny Yost | Twin Valley | 5-10 | Sr. |
| Alex Tomlinson | Muhlenberg | 6-2 | Sr. |
| All-Division 3 | |||
| Julian O’Brien | Wyomissing | 6-0 | Sr. |
| Amory Thompson | Wyomissing | 6-1 | Sr. |
| Aiden Soumas | Fleetwood | 5-11 | So. |
| Will Ryan | Fleetwood | 6-5 | Sr. |
| Xander Menapace | Hamburg | 6-4 | Jr. |
| Troy Frantz | Schuylkill Valley | 6-2 | Sr. |
| All-Division 4 | |||
| Josh McKoy | Antietam | 6-3 | So. |
| Bryce Mellen | Tulpehocken | 6-3 | Sr. |
| David Bednarczyk | Tulpehocken | 6-1 | Jr. |
| Spencer Miller | Brandywine Heights | 6-0 | Sr. |
| Danny Turchi | Oley Valley | 6-2 | Sr. |
| Xavier Goodman | Kutztown | 6-0 | Sr. |
Honorable mention
Berks I: Tyler Givens, senior, Berks Catholic; Joey Schlaffer, junior, Exeter; Delsin McNeil, junior, Gov. Mifflin; Gerrell McNeil, junior, Gov. Mifflin; Joey Chapman, senior, Reading High; Justin Walker, senior, Reading High.
Berks II: Donovan Gingrich, freshman, Conrad Weiser; Adam Noll, junior, Conrad Weiser; Brendan Gaines, freshman, Daniel Boone; Mason Sacarello, junior, Daniel Boone; Xzavion Robertson, junior, Muhlenberg; Tashiro Alexis, senior, Muhlenberg.
Berks III: Nate Herb, sophomore, Fleetwood; Dylan Fickes, senior, Fleetwood; Kevin McFarland, junior, Hamburg; Conner Licklider, junior, Hamburg; Ben Eddinger, senior, Schuylkill Valley; Nevin Carter, senior, Wyomissing.
Berks IV: Jovan Hollis, junior, Antietam; Gunnar Wetzel, senior, Brandywine Heights; Grant Fitzgerald, senior, Kutztown; Andrew Fleming, junior, Kutztown; Chase Reifsnyder, junior, Oley Valley; Aidan Miller, senior, Tulpehocken.
