Three area players were part of the The Schuylkill County Football Scholar Athlete Class of 2020.

Tamaqua’s Nate Boyle, Panther Valley’s Blake Morgans and Marian’s Lucca Stroia, will be representing their respective schools during an upcoming reception.

The annual banquet to honor the county’s top scholar athletes was originally scheduled to be held in March, but it was postponed by the COVID-19 pandemic. There are still plans to honor the athletes at a yet to be determined date.

Nathan Boyle, Tamaqua

Boyle (5-9, 180 pounds) was a team captain, and played running back, flanker, linebacker, safety, kicker and long snapper.

He had 4,088 career rushing yards, with nearly 1,900 rushing yards this past season. Boyle finished with 79 career total touchdowns, including 33 during the Raiders’ District 11 championship campaign in 2019.

He received numerous awards from area media, including Morning Call All-Star and Times News and Standard Speaker Offensive Player of the Year. Boyle was also the Republican Herald, Channel 13, and WPPA Player of the Year (2018 & 2019), and a two-time All State running back. He was named to the WNEP Dream Team, and was the recipient of the WNEP Dream Team Scholar Athlete Award.

Boyle completed AP courses and ranks 22nd in a class of 164. He is a member of the National Honor Society, World Language Club, Biology Club, Physics Club, and Step Up. He volunteered for Little League games, and was a fundraiser for a cancer patient.

He also played basketball for two years and baseball for four years at Tamaqua, and was selected All League shortstop.

The son of Mike and Heather Boyle of Brockton, Boyle - with acceptances at Moravian, Shippensburg, and Susquehanna - has not yet made his college decision. He hopes to major in mechanical engineering.

Blake Morgans, Panther Vy.

Morgans (6-2, 210 pounds) played one year for the Panthers at right tackle, defensive end, and kicker. He was a team captain and received the school’s Major William Whitehead Award for leadership, scholarship and service.

A distinguished honors student throughout high school, Morgans ranks 13th in a class of 85 with a GPA of 96.435. He is in college prep and also is a “flex” student for computers at the Carbon Career Technical Institute. He is a class officer and a member of the National Honor Society, yearbook staff, newspaper staff, and the Audio-Visual Club. He also participated in track.

Morgans’ community service projects include volunteering for the Nesquehoning Fire Company, Lansford Fire Company, Carbon County Senior Citizens, American Cancer Society, Toys for Tots, Nesquehoning Historical Society, and Nesquehoning VFW Hometown Hero Banner Project. He volunteers for PV Elementary Fun Days, Santa’s Workshop and Black, Gold and White Day.

The son of Rick and Jacqui Morgans of Nesquehoning, Morgans will attend Lincoln Technical Institute and plans to major in computer networking system technician.

Lucca Stroia, Marian

Stroia, a three-year starter and a three-year letterman, played offense and was the special team kicker/punter for Marian. He was also a team captain his senior year.

He was selected to the Schuylkill County All-Star Team, the Schuylkill County Football Coaches Association North 1st Team, the Times News All-Star team as a specialist, the Standard Speaker All-Area 1st Team, the Republican Herald All-Area 2nd Team, and an honorable mention to Eastern PA Football class A.

Stroia ranked No. 13 in the 2018-2019 PA All-Division field goal competition. He also participated in basketball, lettered in golf, and plays on the Greater Hazleton Youth Soccer Team.

Stroia carries a 94.32 GPA. He is in the honors curriculum and has dual enrollment credits with Lehigh Carbon Community College. He is a member of the National Honor Society, French Honor Society, and the SAT Scholars Club. He is the Senior Class Secretary/Treasurer, a member of the Student Council, FBLA, and had a poem published in the 2019 Rising Stars Collection.

Stroia volunteers at the Hazleton One Center, Communities that Care - Hazleton Integration Project, is a Eucharistic Minister and is an Eagle Rock Resorts Double Diamond ski instructor.

The son of Dr. Luciano and Mary Pat Stroia of Hazle Township, Stroia accepted an academic scholarship and a football grant to Kutztown University and plans to continue his football career and major in biology and pre-med.

The rest of the Schuylkill County Scholar Athletes include Blue Mountain’s Blake Lipko, Mahanoy Area’s Daniel Lawrence, Minersville’s Noah Woodford, Nativity’s Jacob Ferhat, North Schuylkill’s Tyler Elsdon, Pine Grove’s Nathan Minnich, Pottsville’s Mason Barnes, Schuylkill Haven’s Kobe Brish, Shenandoah Valley’s Alex Donchak, Tri-Valley’s Bailey Spittle and Williams Valley’s Brady Miller.