By Josh Rizzo
MONROEVILLE - Mike O'Lare came out of the locker room following Mohawks' 59-45 loss to Forest Hills in the second round of the PIAA Class 3A boys basketball tournament full of reflection. The Warriors graduated six players from last season's team that made the state quarterfinals and only had guard Bobby Fadden to lean on.

Mohawk (21-7) responded by placing third in the WPIAL and beating Chestnut Ridge in the first round of the state playoffs. But against the Rangers, the Warriors ran into a deeper team.

"We discussed that in the locker room," O'Lare said. "I have a ton of sophomores and a year from now, we've got to be at that point and that's on me. We have to have nine or 10 guys ready. You know, we have to develop a bench. You can't play in a state quarterfinal game with five games and expect to win those games. You have to have some depth. I thought Forest Hills had some nice depth to them. We've got to get back to work."

Mohawk led 15-10 after the first quarter. However, the Rangers' stifling defense made life difficult of Fadden. Fadden scored a team-high 18 points, but he was shut out in the second and fourth quarters.

Drew Wrona knocked down three 3-pointers for the Warriors and he finished with 10 points.
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"It's hard for Bobby to accept losing and we tell him he doesn't have to do it himself," O'Lare said. "We've got guys to help. Tonight, I thought he did. He moved the ball. When they started covering him up a little bit, he was trying to find other guys and did."

Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas can be submitted to [email protected] or on X @J_oshRizzo.

The PIHL Class 3A finals is set for next Monday at the UPMC Lemieux Complex. Seneca Valley and South Fayette will battle for the Penguins Cup. The Raiders being in the final should come as no surprise. Seneca Valley was the top seed in the tournament, but needed overtime to best Upper St. Clair in the semifinals.

The Lions, who were seeded seventh, won comfortably by toppling North Allegheny 4-2.

Josh Rizzo is editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas can be submitted to Rizzo42789@Gmail on @J_oshrizzo on X.

The PIAA playoffs started this weekend. Much of the talk surrounding the opening of the state tournament, sadly, was taken up by the brawl at the Meadville-Uniontown boys basketball game Friday night at Meadville. The PIAA executive director Bob Lombardi told Chris Harlan of the Tribune Review and Tom Reisenweber of the Erie Times-News that no decision would be made on discipline until Monday.

The game was stopped with Meadville ahead in the fourth quarter. 

Wade moves into second-place on WPIAL's all-time scoring list
Clairton senior Iyanna Wade scored 24 points to finish her career with 3,119 points. That put the Bears senior guard in second place on the WPIAL's all-time scoring list.

Fields reaches 2,000 points
Kennedy Catholic's Layke Fields reached 2,000 career points during a win over Fort Cherry.

Canon-McMillan picks up first-ever PIAA playoff win
The Big Macs' girls basketball team were able to make a couple of key plays in the final minute to slide by Allderdice on Friday night to win their first-ever state playoff game in Class 6A. Canon-McMillan grabbed a 48-44 victory.

Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges.
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Plum senior guard William Beckner announced his commitment to Saint Vincent College on X Friday afternoon. Beckner averaged 12 points, four rebounds and three assists per game for the Mustangs. 

Beckner was selected second-team all-section by the Big 56.

The 5-foot-9 guard will be heading to a program that has had strong run of season in the past few seasons. The Bearcats went 20-6 this season, but were eliminated by the Washington & Jefferson in the Presidents' Athletic Conference semifinals. Two years ago, Saint Vincent lost in the PAC championship game to Geneva.
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Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and College. Story ideas can be submitted at [email protected] or on X @J_oshrizzo.

The Fairmont State women's basketball team earned the regular season crown in the Division II Mountain East Conference by finishing with a 24-4 record, including a 17-3 record in conference play. The Falcons have done so with two Pittsburgh-area players on their team.

Guard Alyssa DeAngelo, a Thomas Jefferson graduate, was named first-team All-MEC. She appeared in all 28 regular-season games for the Falcons this season. She averaged 14.7 points and 2.2 rebounds per game.

Taylor Allderdice graduate Zaniya Murray is also a guard for the Falcons. Murray averages 3.5 points per game and has made 27 appearances this season. Fairmont State is ranked fifth in the latest NCAA Atlantic Regional rankings. The top eight make the NCAA Tournament.

The Falcons would like to win the MEC Conference Tournament to ensure a bid to the tournament.

Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas an be submitted to [email protected] or on X @J_oshrizzo.

The Fox Chapel hockey team is inching closer to another appearance in the Penguins Cup. The Foxes have been red hot since the start of the new year. Fox Chapel beat Canon-McMillan 6-3 Monday at the Alpha Ice Complex to win for the 10th time in 11 games. 

The top-seeded Foxes were able to apply pressure from the second period on. Fox Chapel outshot Canon-McMillan 40-24, allowing the Big Macs to take only five shots on net in the third period. Hayden Ferra and Dom Casile each scored twice for the Foxes. Crosby Wukotich and Tucker Cullen added goals for the Foxes.

Tristan Bobbs, Luka Grkman and Elliot Mose scored for the Big Macs.

​Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges.

Playing 12 championship games over three days means the WPIAL will always see a number of trends emerge and end. History will be made and dreams will be crushed. The Aliquippa girls basketball team and South Allegheny boys basketball team were on the good side of history Saturday at Petersen Events Center.

The Gladiators rallied from a four-point deficit in the final 40 seconds to stun two-time defending champion Aliquippa in the Class 3A boys game. Aliquippa was able to hold on in the fourth quarter to topple section rival Neshannock. The Quips won their first championship since 1990 and the fifth in program history.

Block or Charge?
Blackhawk thought it had taken a lead in the WPIAL championship game when Aubree Hupp scored on a driving layup in the final minute. However, the play was waived off when it was ruled Hupp committed a charge. Instead, Oakland catholic's Alayla Bivins made the game-winning shot with six minutes remaining to propel the Eagles to a 52-50 win in the Class 5A game.

It was the seventh WPIAL championship for Oakland Catholic's program and first since 2006. Hupp had an excellent game for the Cougars (23-3). She finished with a team-high 20 points and eight rebounds. London Creach led Oakland Catholic with 12 points, while Madi Pullen had 11.

Upper St. Clair asserts dominance
The Panthers split with Norwin during the regular season. But during the rubber match of the Class 6A title game, Upper St. Clair's defense helped carry them to a 45-40 win over the Knights. Norwin only shot 20 percent (3-of-15) from the 3-point line in the loss.

Rylee Kalocay led the Panthers with 16 points, while Ryan Prunzik added 11 for Upper St. Clair. Ava Christopher led Norwin with 11.

Chartiers Valley climbs back on top
Wherever Corey Dotchin lands, championships seem to follow. The first-year Chartiers Valley coach led the fourth-seeded Colts to their seventh WPIAL title by knocking off Peters Township 73-66 in the 5A final. Dotchin was an assistant on the Highlands team that won the district in 2020.

Jayden Davis, who is a 2,000-point scorer in his career, led the Colts with 28 points. Ben Miller led the Indians with 18 points.

Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas can be submitted to [email protected] or @J_oshRizzo.

Ellen Guillard always has the desire to push the Allderdice girls basketball program forward. The Dragons took the next step in their development process when they beat Erie High School 64-48 to win the District 8/10 PIAA subregional championship. This is the first time Allderdice (20-5) has won the subregional to advance to the PIAA Tournament.

The Dragons, who have won 16 straight games and were the City League champions, will open up the state tournament against the WPIAL's third-place finisher, Canon-McMillan, on Friday.

"It meant a lot to the program," Guillard said. "It was great to witness the girls play with confidence and their handywork that they put forth all season paid off."

Bailey White led Allderdice with 23 points, while Peyton Lynch added 16. Seena Teshome also scored 10 points for Allderdice. The Dragons lost by 17 points in the subregional game last year. To try and halt Allderdice's struggles on the road, Guillard scheduled a game with Erie McDowell in early January.

The Dragons won that game in overtime. Allderdice didn't need overtime this time around. The Dragons built a 16-8 lead by the end of the first quarter against the Royals.

"We played really good defense and really played as a team on the road to secure a win," Guillard said. "Thankfully, we had the experience of playing Erie McDowell earlier this season. It prepped us for the long ride, the atmosphere and the refs."

Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas can be submitted to [email protected] or on X @J_oshrizzo.

The Jeannette Jayhawks are kings of the WPIAL for the second time. The Jayhawks beat Union 63-39 to win their second WPIAL title in school history and first since 2008. Jeannette never let Union in the game and controlled the game with its defense.

Union girls overcome slow start to beat Clairton
The Scotties had a horrible start to the Class A girls game. Union shot 2 of 12 in the field quarter and fell behind by seven points. But the Scotties (25-0) were able to turn things around defensively to beat Clairton 51-40.

Union has the challenge of trying to contain 3,000-point scorer Iyanna Wade of Clairton (19-5). Wade put up 22 points, but shot 2-of-14 from beyond the arc. The Scotties had the game tied at 19 at halftime. Kylie Fruehstrofer led Union with 12 points, while Hayden Strickler finished with 10 points.

The Bears were making their first-ever appearance in the WPIAL finals. Clairton outscored Union by nine points in the fourth quarter.

Peters Township wears down South Fayette
The Indians proved they were conditioned to the go the distance. Peters Township played six players and were able to slowly wear down thee-time defending champion South Fayette.

The Lions led by seven points at halftime and six after thee quarters, but only scored three points in the fourth quarter.

Upper St. Clair turns away New Castle
The Panthers closed the first half with a 6-0 run to help spark a 65-43. Upper St. Clair (23-20 was more effective at getting to the foul line than the Red Hurricane was. The Panthers made 21 free throws compared to two for New Castle. The Red Hurricane (21-4) only made four trips to the free-throw line.

Ralphie Blundo led New Castle with 13 points, while Damian Harrison had 11. Tyler Robbins led Upper St. Clair with 12 points and 12 rebounds. 

Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas can be submitted to [email protected] or on X @J_oshrizzo.

The Shady Side Academy girls basketball team appeared to be headed toward the state playoffs with an opportunity to finish the year unbeaten. But section rival Greensburg Central Catholic made sure the Bulldogs would feel some adversity before the PIAA Class 3A playoffs started. The Centurions leaned on 31 points from Erica Gribble to steal a 56-51 win on Thursday night at Petersen Events Center.

GCC, which was the No. 2 seed, lost both of its regular-season meetings with the Bulldogs (24-1). Shady Side Academy won the first meeting between the two teams this season by 29 points. During the WPIAL championship game, Gribble, who is committed to Richmond, controlled the game down the stretch.

Gribble scored 14 points in the fourth quarter. The Bulldogs were playing without 6-foot-2 forward Cassie Sauer. Karis Thomas led the Bulldogs with 5 points. The Bulldogs only played six players. Cameron Capel, the daughter of Pitt men's basketball coach Jeff Capel, also finished with 12 points for the 

Belle Vernon wins first WPIAL championship since 1978
The top-seeded Leopards played an excellent first half and were able to ride that 13-point lead at the break to a 54-49 win over North Catholic in the 4A title game. Belle Vernon coach Joe Salvino, 73, collected his seventh WPIAL title of his coaching career. Salvino led Monessen to six titles, the last of which game in 2017.

This was the second time Salvino guided Belle Vernon (21-4) to the WPIAL championship game. The Leopards lost to Highlands in the 2020 championship game. Tommy Davis led Highlands with 20 points and 10 rebounds in the win against the Trojans. Trevor Kovatch and Zion Moore also scored 12 points for the Leopards.

Jason Fredericks led North Catholic (19-6) with 20 points. The Trojans struggled from the field, only making 38.1 percent (16-of-42) of their field goal attempts.

All in the Neighborhood
Neighborhood Academy has only been a part of the WPIAL in boys basketball since 2020. The Bulldogs brought home their first championship in the Class A game by beating Serra Catholic, 67-44. This was Neighborhood Academy's second straight year in the title game.

The Bulldogs lost to Imani Christian in the final last year. Courtney Wallace led Neighborhood Academy with 21 points and 18 rebounds. Serra, which lost to the Bulldogs twice in the regular season, only trailed by a point after the opening quarter.  Mark Johnson and Owen Dumbrowski tied for a team-high 14 points for the Eagles (21-4).

Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas can be submitted to [email protected] or on X @J_oshrizzo.