City of Basketball Love

By Olivia Valania
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(Ed. Note: This story is part of CoBL’s “Prepping for Preps” series, which will take a look at many of the top high school programs in the region as part of our 2025-26 season preview coverage. The complete list of schools previewed thus far can be found here.)

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Paul Romanczuk is again looking to the young guys to set the tone for his Malvern Prep team this season. 

Despite his starting five containing three seniors last season, the core of the Friars offensive force was the duo of Nick Harken and Marvin Reed, though freshman Logan Chwastyk showed flashes of dominance during a strong first campaign. 

With Harken and Reed now juniors and Chwastyk turning into one of the area’s top prospects, Romanczuk is ready to make a bigger push in the Inter-Ac and PAISAA, with that trio at the forefront.

Malvern Prep battled through a tough Inter-Ac schedule last season, going 5-5 in the six-team league, finishing fourth in the six-team league. The Friars finished 17-10 overall, getting knocked out by the Perkiomen School in the second round of the PAISAA tournament. 

“We had some really good wins,” Romanczuk said. “I thought it was a good year for us overall. Looking back on the year I know we fell short on our ultimate goal of winning the Inter-Ac. But, all in all, a very good experience for the young guys on our team, great time with the seniors on our team, and it was a fun year.”

Penn Charter dominated the Inter-Ac last year, going undefeated (10-0) as they separated themselves from the rest of the pack with their stellar senior starting five. With that group now graduated, Malvern Prep and the rest of the Inter-Ac are seeing this as an opportunity to be a contender to win the league.

“Last year with Penn Charter going 10-0 in the league it was kind of them and then everyone else,” Romanczuk said. “They definitely separated themselves as the class of the league. With them now gone, I think the rest of the league sees this as an opportunity. 

“I’m sure Penn Charter looks at it as their winning culture and winning attitude and would love to still be at the top of the league. But, I think our team and the talent we have, we’re right there at the top and vying for a title in the Inter-Ac this year.”

Chwastyk and the rest of the team are on the same page as Romanczuk, ready to move away from the middle of the table towards the top.

“We were able to compete with those guys last year, and still having three of our core guys is really going to help,” Chwastyk said. “I think we really are going to compete and go after it. We want it.” 

It will have to be the young trio of Harken, Reed, and Chwastyk taking charge in the Friars Inter-Ac campaign this season. 

Harken, the Friars’ leading scorer last season where he averaged 17.5 points per game, was always the “go-to guy” on the floor. His physicality is what defines his game. The 6-foot-4 forward, who was named Second Team All Inter-Ac, is able to move defenders around inside to score as well as fight for a rebound against the much bigger guys. He has also displayed his ability outside the arc, not afraid to pull up for a three-point shot. 

“Nick has improved by leaps and bounds from his freshman year,” Romanczuk said. “He’s gotten stronger, he’s gotten more athletic, he’s really worked on his shot. I look for him to just continue to evolve.”

The leader when the Malvern Prep squad steps out onto the court is undoubtedly Reed. The point guard’s impressive handle and comfortability with the ball is what gives him the edge against opponents. Also named Second Team All Inter-Ac last season, he is always a consistent and decisive scorer for the Friars.

“I think when you talk leaders you usually talk about point guards because he’s the one with the ball in his hands,” Romanczuk said. “The point guard could be the most vocal on the team. Marvin Reed has started since his freshman year, has experience, has the personality to be vocal and to be a leader. Some are born with that and Marvin has that, he’s got a great personality, he has the respect of others, and a lot is going to be asked of him.” 

After graduating starters Andrew Davis, Junior McFadden, and Taig McErlane, there are now gaps within the starting lineup that are needed to be filled. All three are playing at the Division III level; the 6-3 Deavis at Ave Maria (Fl.), the 6-6 McFadden at Case Western (Ohio) and McErlane playing baseball at Catholic (D.C.).

Romanczuk has an idea of the youngsters he will call on to step into those starting roles.

A budding prospect in the area, Chwastyk, is already on the radar of many D-I programs. The 6-9 sophomore currently holds offers from Rider and Cal State Bakersfield as well as Penn State, which he just received in the last couple of weeks. Chwastyk played the role as the sixth man last year, coming off the bench to provide some valuable minutes as he was still learning the ropes of the high school level along with getting stronger physically. 

“It was a good starting point for me and for the team,” said Chwastyk, commenting on his development last season. “We had a large senior group and they all played a lot so it was a good season for me to learn and insert myself into the program.”

This season, after spending the summer with Team Final on the EYBL circuit, attending a USA Basketball mini-camp, and working to improve his game, he knows a lot more is expected of him as he moves into a starting position. 

“Logan and I talked in the offseason as to what he needed to work on and a lot of that just had to do with him getting stronger,” Romanczuk said. “He’s so skilled, has great size, so I think we can play through him whether that’s in the post or whether that’s out on the perimeter. He’s someone that’s so versatile at his size. The options are endless but I think using him to initiate offense at times and run our offense through him is a dynamic we can do more of this year. He’s a mismatch problem for most high school teams.”

The Friars are gaining a transfer out of the George School, sophomore Ryan Melniczak, as a new addition to the roster. The 6-foot guard started his freshman year at George where he showed impressive ball-handling skills and an ability to facilitate opportunities for his teammates to score. 

Romanczuk’s sons, Cooper Romanczuk, a 6-3 senior guard, and Collin Romanczuk a 6-6 junior committed to Northwestern for baseball, will provide good minutes with their high-energy and athleticism either starting or coming off the bench. Bryce Perkins, a 6-5 forward, will provide more length and size inside with Chwastyk on top of adding his valuable outside shot and leadership on the court.

The Friars begin their season Nov. 22 at home against the Hun School (N.J.) and will spend December taking on tough out of state competition such as Bishop Ireton, the Bullis School, and Gonzaga College High School along with PCL teams to ready themselves for Inter-Ac play in January. For their first Inter-Ac game Jan. 9 they will play Germantown Academy at Germantown Academy. They will go up against back-to-back league champions Penn Charter Jan. 20 as they look to flex a muscle within the Inter-Ac.

“I just hope we set a tone that we’re going to be tough to score against defensively and hard to play against offensively because we have a lot of different options,” Romanczuk said. “We have a really difficult non-league schedule. I just believe that’s the only way to do it if you really want to be a good team and be a top team in the Inter-Ac.”