The Cherry Hill East Athletic Hall of Fame is set to welcome its Class of 2025, honoring a new group of athletes, coaches, and contributors whose achievements have shaped the school’s strong sports tradition. This year’s induction not only celebrates individual excellence on the field and court, but also reflects the lasting legacy of hard work, teamwork, and Cougar pride that continues to inspire current and future athletes at East.

“All of the athletes see it as a big honor and are over the moon when they get introduced into the Hall of Fame,” said Fred Belchikoff, who is in charge of the East athletic Hall of Fame.

The Hall of Fame is a goal for many East athletes in the long run. No matter the sport one may play, it’s always an honor to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.

“Looking up at the wall and seeing all the great players who came before me pushes me to work harder so one day, I can be up there too,” said basketball star Jamieson Young (‘28).

To recognize its most outstanding athletes, Cherry Hill East created a Hall of Fame in 2015. There is a board of 14 people that comes up with the nominees every year. It is not an easy process, though, as it takes a while to go through the process and a long time to find the right athletes to put in every year. The board contains former East students, former East players, coaches, and even teachers now. After coming up with all of the new Hall of Famers, the former players and their families have a ceremony along with people on the board and other former alumni.

The Class of 2025 will honor 14 athletes, along with two coaches and one team, representing nearly five decades of Cherry Hill East sports history. This year’s inductees include graduates dating back to 1975, showing just how deep and wide the school’s athletic tradition runs. From record-setting performances on the basketball court and soccer field to coaches who shaped generations of players, the class reflects the many ways East athletics have left their mark on South Jersey sports.

Out of this year’s class, the most recent graduate is basketball star Jake Silpe (‘15). Silpe played basketball all four years of high school and continued to play at the University of Pennsylvania. He became the Cougars’ second all-time leading scorer with 1,580 points. Silpe led the Cougars to the school’s first-ever two sectional championships. To cap off his legendary high school basketball career, he was named the 2015 “New Jersey Player of the Year”. Silpe was put into the East Basketball Hall of Fame directly after his senior season. He has now just been introduced into the school’s Athletic Hall of Fame.

“Jake Silpe was one of the hardest-working players I have ever been around. Whether it was snowing out, raining, or he was sick, Silpe was always trying to do what he could to get better at his game,” said varsity boys basketball coach Dave Allen.

The oldest graduate for the class of ‘25 is Allen Hickman (‘75). With the school opening in 1967, Hickman was a part of the first decade of graduates. Hickman was a wrestler and football player all four years as a Cougar.

As the Class of 2025 takes its place among the legends of Cherry Hill East, their stories serve as reminders of what’s possible with commitment, teamwork, and Cougar pride. For the next generation of student-athletes, the Hall of Fame wall stands not just as a tribute, but as a goal.