It’s hard to imagine a better senior year than the one Zach Gilbert just recently completed at Whitehall.

Not many seniors can claim two district championships in one season. Moreover, his résumé reads that he was the starting quarterback and starting pitcher for both those titles.

After stepping in as the starting quarterback, he led the team to a 9-5 record and a District XI Championship. He also helped them win a PIAA game over Abington Heights, riddling their vaunted defense for 310 yards and four touchdowns.

Once the season was over, Gilbert had carved out a hefty spot in the record books. He’s now the school leader in yards and touchdowns for a season. Gilbert finished the year with 2,746 yards and 31 TDs. That stellar senior season was enough to rank him ninth all-time in passing yards at Whitehall with 2,855, while he’s now tied for fourth with 32 career TDs.

Additionally, Gilbert was among the Pennsylvania Mini Max High School Award Winners. This year sixty-two players were nominated by their coaches and selected based on football performance, academics and community service. The Mini Max Award recipients were honored at a dinner in January at the Drexelbrook Catering Ballroom in Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania.

He was also a pivotal member of the boys basketball team, averaging 8.2 points per game on a team that finished 16-8. The Zephyrs reached both the league and district playoffs. Gilbert was the team’s leading scorer in their Eastern Pennsylvania Conference quarterfinal loss to Bethlehem Catholic, dropping 18 points. He also played some good defense on 6-foot-9 Golden Hawk Ryan Young who had just six points in the game.

As a big, he was also able to step out and knock down a three. He made 26 threes his senior season.

He ended his athletic career at Whitehall on the mound in the finals for the PIAA 5A Baseball Championship. He went 2-1 in the postseason, helping the Zephyrs win the first 5A baseball title in school history as he dominated Southern Lehigh, allowing just two hits en route to the 10-1 win. He also got the game-winning hit over Blue Mountain in the district semifinals which help set up their incredible postseason run.

With such an outstanding year, Gilbert was chosen as the Male Athlete of the Year by the Whitehall-Coplay Press.

Gilbert said that the seeds for success were sewn during the summer when they won two of the passing camps in which they competed. It was highlighted by a game-winning catch from Gilbert to Dez Boykin in the Lion Strong 7-on-7 Passing Camp championship game at Penn State against Penn Manor that helped set the tone.

“That was pretty awesome,” said Gilbert. “Our offense was really working well. We beat all those prep schools that were there, and we knew we could be a good team.”

Gilbert had an excellent grasp of the offense having been it it since his sophomore season. When he finally took over the reins his senior season, he had confidence in himself because it was such a “quarterback friendly” system. Still, he didn’t want to appear cocky and preferred slipping under the radar as the season got underway.

But it’s hard to be obscure when the focal point of any football team is the quarterback, and pressure can easily mount. He experienced that early in the season but responded when adversity struck, orchestrating wins over three tough league opponents defeating Easton, Liberty and Freedom after falling to 1-2 in the EPC.

The highlight of the year came when they won the D-11 Championship over Southern Lehigh, as they rolled to a 35-14 victory. Gilbert threw for 219 yards and three TDs in that historic win.

“That was just a great team effort; it was pretty special,” said Gilbert.

It was made more special by sharing it with so many teammates that have been together since youth football.

“We’ve been together since Hokey when were were five and six, and to share that district title with them was pretty special,” said Gilbert. “All of us played Hokey football together and here we are now.”

That led to their PIAA win over Abington Heights, and that experience turned out to be a memorable moment both on and off the field. While they earned a resounding win on the field, the ride home became an impromptu party bus where they just savored the victory. Gilbert said that it reminded them that where they stood now was a far cry from the “clowns” moniker they were given as sophomores from that senior class.

“That was a really fun bus ride,” said Gilbert. “I’ll remember that for a long time.”

Gilbert was 5-5 as a pitcher for the Zephs this season with a 2.22 ERA. Manager Shaun O’Boyle who coached him for three years said that his improvement from when he first stepped on the mound as a sophomore, until he stepped off it at Penn State in the state finals was testament to the hard work he put into the sport. He said that hos accomplishments this season bore that out.

“It was pretty remarkable,” said O’Boyle.

Together with Alex Bruneio, Matt Dobeck, Zach Hamscher and Eric Smith, the Zephyrs compiled a strong pitching staff. That helped propel them to the brink of a championship.

“He was a big piece of a pretty good pitching staff,” said O’Boyle.

O’Boyle said that Gilbert emerged as a leader, who valued his teammates and the competition, while never resorting to a “me guy.”

“He was always part of that bigger picture,” said O’Boyle.

Gilbert said that pitching in the district championship will remain as one of his fondest memories.

“It was just an awesome experience,” he said.

And then to reach the state finals at Penn State was another milestone that marked a remarkable senior season. While his stint on the mound didn’t go exactly how he wanted, the ability to share that with his teammates will be long remembered.

Gilbert is now preparing to attend West Chester University in the fall where he’ll be part of the Golden Rams family as a freshman quarterback. Gilbert will be studying elementary education, and who knows, one day he may be leading a high school team that features his son at quarterback.