Photos by Mike Longo Jr.
-BASKETBALL-
By Mike Longo Jr.
and Ken Hohman
The western suburbs of Pittsburgh are home to some powerhouse basketball teams. Playoff season for both boys and girls WPIAL teams was fiercely contested this season with eight teams making it to the upcoming PIAA playoffs.
Here’s a look at how teams in the Gazette 2.0 coverage performed during end of the season:
Feb. 21
Girls Class A
OLSH 53 | Frazier 13
The Our Lady of the Sacred Heart Chargers delivered a knockout punch early in the Feb. 21 contest, applying a tenacious full-court defensive press from the game's onset. On offense, OLSH fought hard driving to the hoop with reckless abandon and crashing the offensive glass in the same manner.
By the end of the first half, the Chargers had tallied a 33-8 lead. The second half played out similarly, and the Frazier offense could only muster another five total points to close out the contest.
Kaleigh Constantino led the scoring for OLSH with 11 points, as teammate Kyleigh Nagy tossed in nine points for second place.
Girls Class A
Bishop Canevin 76 | Avella 54
Bishop Canevin rode the shoulders of four key players en route to their opening-round win over Avella Feb. 21.
Building a 17-4 first-quarter cushion and cruising from that point on, the Crusaders had four players in double figures. Ashley Lippold had a game-high 32 points while teammates Amber Cross (15 points) Rachel Boehn (12 points) and Josie Bochicchio (10 points) accounted for 69 of the team’s 76 points on the evening.
Feb. 22
Girls Class 2A
Sto-Rox 35 | Seton LaSalle 48
Sto-Rox girls basketball season ended with a 48-35 loss to Seton LaSalle. The Lady Vikes were led by the school’s all-time top-scorer Alicia Young, who picked up 18 points in the losing effort. Young finishes her career with 1461 career points, surpassing Peggy Vith who had the school record with 2,156 points.
Girls Class 4A
Montour 52 | Deer Lakes 42
The Montour Spartans got their game on in the second half of the contest against Deer Lakes after trailing by three points at the half. They wracked up 35 points in the second half while holding Deer Lakes to 22 to turn the game around. Montour's Jordyn Wolfe was the contest's high scorer with 20 and teammate Olivia Lyscik chipped in with 12.
Girls Class 5A
Moon 51 | Woodland Hills 33
Moon Area built an eight-point halftime cushion against the visitors from Woodland Hills and stepped up their game in the second stanza by netting another 23. Meanwhile, the Tigers held Woody High to just 13 in the second to close out a comfortable win.
The Tiger's dependable point-grabber Emma Theodorsson was the game's high scorer, dropping 22 through the net.
Boys Class 2A
Carlynton 74 |
Jefferson Morgan 40
After a tight first quarter which only saw Carlynton up by a single point, the Cougars elevated their game in sensational fashion, routing the visitors from Jefferson Morgan by 34 points. Carlynton had three players account for 55 of the team’s total 74 points scored in the Feb. 22 contest. Jaiden McClure dropped in 21 points, while Khali Kerr added 20 and Austin Milner netted 14.
Boys Class 2A
OLSH 73 | Chartiers Houston 43
The Our Lady of the Sacred Heart train keeps on rolling, carrying the regular season unbeaten record into the playoffs. During the final regular-season game, OLSH’s relentless defense and a fast-paced offense proved too much for Chartiers’ Houston or any other contender this season to handle.
Four players hit the double-figure mark in the game led by senior standout Jake DiMichele with 30 points. Rocco Spadafora claimed 12, Dawson Summers 11 and Bryson Kirschner netted 10.
Boys Class 2A
Sto-Rox 72 | Springdale 46
The Sto-Rox Vikings defeated Springdale 72-46. Senior Guard Corey Simmons scored 28 points to include 17 of 18 from the charity stripe. Jaymar Pearson had 18 points and pulled down 18 rebounds, Josh Jenkins added 12 points and 10 rebounds.
Feb. 23
Boys Class 4A
Montour 70 | Burrell 50
Montour Boys defeated Burrell 70-50. Diaun Pinkett led the Spartans in scoring with 28 points and to include six treys. Vason Stevenson and Tyriq Eleam each had 14 points.
Boys Class A
Bishop Canevin 66 |
Rochester 34
No. 1 seed Bishop Canevin rolled over the visiting Rams from Rochester 66-34 during their Feb.23 quarter-final matchup at home.
The Crusaders built a 20-point cushion at the half and never looked back. Amari Evans led the Crusaders march with 17 points and teammate KeVaughn Price chipped in with 14.
Feb. 24
Girls Class A
Bishop Canevin 67 | W. Greene 64
In a close and hard-fought Feb. 24 game the Bishop Canevin Lady Crusaders, a No. 7 seed, upset the No. 2 seed West Greene 67-64. Two Bishop Canevin players tallied 49 of the team's total 67 points. Rachel Boehm netted 28 points and teammate Ashley Lippold added 21.
Girls Class 2A
OLSH 70 | Apollo Ridge 28
The No. 1 seeded Our Lady of the Sacred Hearts Lady Chargers rolled to a 70-28 win over visiting Apollo Ridge in a quarter-final matchup. Full court pressure defense was once again the name of the game for OLSH.
The Chargers held Apollo Ridge to just two points the entire first quarter and only 16 at the half building a comfortable 51-16 lead and running away with another not even close contest. Emily Schuck led all scorers with 16 points as teammates Kyleigh Nagy added 13 and Mias Grisafi netted 10.
Feb. 25
Boys Class 2A
Carlynton 63 | Serra Catholic 45
The Cougars advance to the semifinals with their 63-45 win over Serra Catholic on their home court Feb. 25.
Carlynton posted a 33-18 lead at intermission and carried the momentum through the second half. Four players tallied a total of 53 of the team’s 63 total points. Jaiden McClure netted 17 points, Khalil Kerr tossed in 14, Chase Jones added 12, and rounding it out was Austin Miller with 10.
Boys Class 2A
OLSH 87 | Sto-Rox 44
The Chargers’ Jake DiMichele helped his team to another victory by picking up 39 points during Our Lady of the Sacred Heart’s quarter-final against Sto-Rox. Rocco Spadafore added 19 points, Dawson Summers 14 points and Kevin Wilson added 12. DiMichele moved into fourth all-time in WPIAL scoring with 2,430 career points. Top scoring Vikings were Corey Simmons with 18 points and Jaymont Green Miller with 13. Simmons surpassed 1,000 career points.
Girls Class 4A
Knoch 67 | Montour 48
Knoch built a 27-19 halftime advantage and never looked back during their 67-48 win over Montour, ousting the Spartans from the WPIAL playoffs. Lone bright spots in the loss were Olivia Lyscik tossing in 20 points and teammate Jordyn Wolfe netting 11 points for a combined 31 of the team’s 48 total points.
Girls Class 5A
Moon 45 | Indiana 37
The Moon Area Lady Tigers advance to the semifinals with a 45-37 win over Indiana.
Reilly Sunday put in a characteristically dominant performance, as she set the game’s pace and added 27 points to the scoreboard.
Feb. 26
Boys Class A
Bishop Canevin 71 | Geibel 36
The Canevin Crusaders marched on to the WPIAL Finals with three marquee players carrying the team to an easy 71-36 victory over Geibel.
Kai Spears netted 16 points, KeVaughn Price added 14 and Jaden Gales 11 to total 41 of the team’s 71 total points.
Boys Class 4A
Montour 64 | Belle Vernon 53
The Montour Spartans are headed for the WPIAL Finals after defeating Belle Vernon 64-53. Montour held a six-point advantage at the break and poured in 40 more points in the second stanza.
Four Spartans tallied 54 of the team’s total 64 points. Tyriq Eleam dropped in 17, Diaun Pinkett 15, Dante Deltondo 12 and Jake Wolfe 10. The Spartans will play Quaker Valley March 3 at the Petersen Event Center in Oakland. This is the fourth time Coach Bill Minear has coached in a WPIAL Championship Game as head coach. He did so previously three times as head coach at Sto-Rox.