By: Don Rebel


Wednesday, February 19, 2025 | 12:17 AM

Welcome to the first of three nights of WPIAL basketball quarterfinals action.

Outside of Class 6A and boys Class A, all the teams playing in second round games have a bit of a safety net.

For now, there is no sudden end to the season. Teams that don’t reach the district semifinals still have a chance to play for seeding or a berth into the PIAA postseason through the WPIAL consolation round.

The theme for the boys Class 4A quarterfinals is “Let’s dance again.”

Three of the four matchups are section rematches from the regular season.

The lone exception is No. 5 Knoch (17-6) visiting No. 4 Avonworth (17-5) at 7 p.m. in a game you can hear on Trib HSSN.

Following a second-place finish in Section 1-4A, the Knights earned a spot in the 4A elite eight with a first round victory over West Mifflin, 56-23.

After falling behind early, the Knoch defense took over, allowing one West Mifflin field goal in the entire second half.

Junior Jackson Bauman led the Knights with 30 points.

The Antelopes shared the Section 2-4A title with Beaver and had an opening-round bye.

Avonworth won 16 of 18 games before losing to Beaver and Fox Chapel in its final two regular season contests.

Senior Rowan Carmichael not only led the ‘Lopes in scoring, he finished No. 1 in the WPIAL with 704 points for an average of 32 points per game.

The other three 4A quarterfinals Wednesday are all rematches, one from each section.

• From Section 1-4A, No. 7 Deer Lakes (17-5) travels to No. 2 North Catholic (17-5) at 7 p.m. Senior Nate Moore scored 27 points as the Lancers crushed Quaker Valley in the first round, 83-58, while the Trojans enjoyed a first-round bye. In the regular season, North Catholic swept the two games from Deer Lakes, winning at home, 61-46, and on the road on Feb. 7, 69-60.

• From Section 2-4A, No. 3 Beaver (18-4) will host No. 6 Central Valley (19-4) at 7 p.m. The Bobcats earned a first-round bye while the Warriors won big at home over Derry, 80-55, thanks to 33 points from senior Isaiah Jeter. In the regular season, the two teams split, with Central Valley winning at home in December, 54-49, and Beaver picking up the W at home in January, 59-55.

• From Section 3-4A, top seed Belle Vernon (18-4) welcomes a familiar foe in No. 8 Elizabeth Forward (18-5). The Section 3 champion Leopards enjoyed an opening-round bye while the Warriors picked up their first playoff win in over a decade by beating Highlands, 61-56, thanks to 15 points each from Cy Herchelroath and James Gile. Belle Vernon won both section contests this winter, winning at home, 63-59, and rolling at EF in late January, 71-43.

Lonely Hounds

Only eight teams qualified for the WPIAL Class A boys basketball playoffs, so the second round Wednesday is actually their opening round.

Of those eight remaining schools, only Monessen is a public school.

Perhaps that is a little deceiving, though, because of the 12 schools in the classification this two-year cycle, only Monessen, Avella and Cornell are public schools.

No matter the makeup of the class, one constant is that Monessen will be there taking the court in the district postseason.

The Greyhounds are in the playoffs for a WPIAL record 44th consecutive season.

No. 6 Monessen (13-9) is set to battle No. 3 Nazareth Prep (17-4) at Sewickley Academy at 7 p.m.

The ‘Hounds finished tied for third place, but enter the playoffs on a three-game losing streak.

The Saints are the Section 1-A champions and are on a roll, having won seven consecutive games.

Here are the other three Class A quarterfinals Wednesday.

• Top-seeded Neighborhood Academy (21-1) will be challenged by No. 8 Beaver County Christian (10-9) at Shaler at 7:30 p.m. The Bulldogs have been ranked No. 1 all season and have won 11 in a row since suffering their only loss of the season to Beaver on Jan. 4. They won the Section 2-A crown. The Eagles finished in fourth place in Section 1-A, but limp into the postseason having lost four straight games.

• No. 5 Geibel Catholic (14-8) goes up against No. 4 Aquinas Academy (17-5) at Shaler at 6 p.m. in a game you can hear on Trib HSSN. The Gators earned a tie for third place in Section 2-A with Monessen after beating the Greyhounds in a double overtime thriller to end their regular season. The Section 1-A runner-up Crusaders finished as the highest-scoring offense in the WPIAL, averaging 78 points per game.

• No. 2 Serra Catholic (19-3) hosts No. 7 Summit Academy (9-7) at 7 p.m. The Eagles’ three losses came to top-seeded Neighborhood Academy twice and 3A power South Allegheny. The Knights return to the district playoffs thanks to wins in six of their last eight games.

Bracket busters in girls 5A

Most of the WPIAL basketball brackets have gone according to plan through the opening round with one big exception in girls Class 5A.

The lower-left quadrant was blown to bits in the first round.

No. 4 Shaler was shut down by No. 13 Mars, and No. 5 Franklin Regional was stunned by No. 12 Bethel Park.

That leads to a surprise quarterfinal when the Fightin’ Planets and Black Hawks collide at North Allegheny at 7:30 p.m.

Junior Cecilia Christy scored 13 points to lead Mars (14-9) in the first-round win.

Senior Ella Sabatos tallied 16 points as Bethel Park (12-11) held on to pick up the victory in Round 1.

This will mark the second time this year the two fourth-place teams in Section 3 (Mars) and Section 4 (Bethel Park) go head to head.

Way back on Dec. 6, the host Black Hawks edged the Fightin’ Planets, 56-52.

Senior Sadie Orie had 23 points for Bethel Park while Mars was led by senior Vita Vargo with 13 points.

Here are the other three Class 5A quarterfinals Wednesday.

• Top seed and three-time defending champion South Fayette (22-1) will take on Baldwin (15-8) at Mt. Lebanon at 7:30 p.m. in a game you can hear on Trib HSSN. The Section 3 champion Lions rolled to a first-round win over Greensburg Salem, 57-30, thanks to 19 points from junior Haylie Lamonde. The Highlanders squeezed by Chartiers Valley on the road in the opening round, 73-72, as junior Julianne Ott exploded for 30 points.

• No. 2 Peters Township (20-3) will face No. 7 Indiana (18-5) at Norwin at 7:30 p.m. in a game you can here on Trib HSSN. The Indians played without senior star Natalie Wetzel due to injury and still knocked off Fox Chapel in the first round, 66-58, led by 21 points from junior Bri Morreale. Senior Emily Betsinger and junior Addy Hutton each scored 15 points to help the Little Indians defeat Moon in the first round, 44-39.

• No. 6 Thomas Jefferson (19-4) will challenge No. 3 Penn-Trafford (23-0) at Norwin at 6 p.m. in a game you can see here on Trib HSSN. Sophomore Kaylee D’Angelo scored 20 points to lead the Jaguars past Latrobe in the playoff opener, 68-47. The Warriors remained undefeated in Round 1 as senior Bella Klobucar registered 14 points in a triumph over Plum, 63-46.

Scoring stars square off

Two of the top scorers in WPIAL girls basketball this season prepare to square off in a Class 3A quarterfinal.

A lot of focus will be on junior Erica Gribble and senior Mimi Thiero when No. 2 Greensburg Central Catholic (18-5) battles No. 7 Quaker Valley (15-8) at Mt. Lebanon at 6 p.m.

Gribble was sixth in the district with 491 points and an average of 22.3 points per game during the regular season.

She enjoyed a great start to the postseason in the first round by tallying 29 points in the Centurions’ 66-31 rout of Brownsville.

Thiero has been excellent all winter as well.

She is No. 5 in the WPIAL with 493 points and averaged 22.4 points per game.

Thiero also had a standout start to the postseason with 25 points in the opening round as the Quakers edged McGuffey, 39-35.

GCC has won 11 of its last 13 games while QV is riding high on a seven-game winning streak.

Here are the other three Class 5A quarterfinals Wednesday.

• Top-seeded Shady Side Academy (22-0) gets a first taste of the postseason when it squares off against No. 8 Riverside (15-8) at Fox Chapel at 7:30 p.m. The defending champion Bulldogs had a first-round bye after ending the regular season undefeated and winning the Section 2-3A crown. The Panthers advanced to the elite eight with a Round 1 win over Deer Lakes, 56-26, with freshman Emma Meyer scoring 23 points.

• Upset-minded No. 12 Ellwood City (14-8) goes up against No. 4 Keystone Oaks (19-2) at North Allegheny at 6 p.m. in a game you can hear on Trib HSSN. In a first-round stunner, the Wolverines got 28 points from senior Delaney Sturgeon in upsetting No. 5 Seton LaSalle, 49-41. The Golden Eagles eliminated Ligonier Valley in their playoff opener, 56-31, as senior Alynna Wagner led a balanced attack with 11 points.

• No. 3 Our Lady of the Sacred Heart (20-3) will battle No. 6 Avonworth (16-7) at Fox Chapel at 6 p.m. The Chargers totally shut down South Allegheny in the opening round, 56-8, as senior Claudia Ierullo had a team-high 15 points. The Antelopes jumped on the back of senior Greta O’Brien, who registered a career-high 33 points in a first-round win over Beaver Falls, 67-35.