WPIAL grants Josh Pratt eligibility at Lincoln Park, yet basketball star must sit out playoffs

By: Chris Harlan
Tuesday, July 22, 2025 | 1:39 PM

Josh Pratt, one of the top WPIAL basketball players, can join Lincoln Park on the court for his senior season, but he’s not eligible for the playoffs.

The WPIAL on Monday granted eligibility to both Josh and Jeremiah Pratt, brothers who transferred from Aliquippa to Lincoln Park. The two were approved on paperwork alone, said WPIAL executive director Scott Seltzer, noting that neither school flagged the transfers as athletically motivated.

However, under PIAA transfer rules, Josh Pratt is ineligible for the postseason for one year.

The PIAA rule impacts all athletes who transfer after their sophomore season. Josh Pratt will be a senior in the fall. Jeremiah Pratt, who’ll be a sophomore, is eligible for the playoffs.

Lincoln Park can seek a postseason waiver for Josh Pratt by requesting an appeal hearing.

A rising senior with Division I offers, Josh Pratt was named the 2025 PIAA Class 3A Player of the Year in all-state voting. The 6-foot-2 guard averaged 22.2 points per game for Aliquippa, a WPIAL finalist and state semifinalist. The Quips won WPIAL and PIAA titles his sophomore year.

Pratt attended Lincoln Park as a freshman.

Jeremiah Pratt, a 5-10 rising sophomore, joined his brother as an Aliquippa starter this past winter.

Baumans denied waiver

The WPIAL denied postseason waiver requests from Moon transfers Jackson and Brody Bauman, leaving the brothers ineligible for the basketball playoffs this winter.

The transfers from Knoch already were granted regular season eligibility by the WPIAL.

Jackson Bauman, a 6-2 rising senior, averaged a team-best 16 points last season. Knoch made its first state playoff appearance since 2006, and Bauman and was named the Valley News Dispatch Boys Basketball Player of the Year.

Younger brother Brody Bauman came off the bench as a sophomore.

Their father, Alan, resigned as Knoch boys basketball coach in April.

Chris Harlan is a TribLive reporter covering sports. He joined the Trib in 2009 after seven years as a reporter at the Beaver County Times. He can be reached at charlan@triblive.com.

Tags: Aliquippa, Lincoln Park