Northgate remembers its WPIAL baseball championship 35 years ago

their 50s — reunited at Treesdale Country Club in Gibsonia. There, they shared stories and re-ignited memories ofthat unforgettable season.

The gathering was the brainchild of Wyland and his wife of 54 years, Donna.

“We couldn’t ignore it,” Wyland said. “We wanted to celebrate with these young people.”

Wyland coached from 1960-87, first at Bellevue High and then Northgate. He won seven section titles, but the ‘82 team was the only one to deliver WPIAL and PIAA crowns

A Freedom resident with three grown children and 10 grandchildren, Wyland said reconnecting with his team last weekend conjured a myriad of memories. One, in particular, was a TV report after the PIAA finals.

“My wife and I set the [VCR] in case we won,” Wyland said. “So, we watched the local news and the gentleman comes on and says, ‘We have the scores from the baseball championships ... No one from the west won.’”

Wyland let a out a hearty laugh.

“Nobody,” he said, “knew about Northgate [ which opened in 1976].”

Not that it mattered to Wyland’s players.

“They were mature — they were quiet and they wanted to learn,” he said. “They were willing to sacrifice for baseball, and they were focused. It was about winning with that group.” Griffith was the star. A left-hander, he pitched in five of six postseason games, including the PIAA semifinal and championship on back-to-back days. He threw 121 pitches to defeat Mount Union, upping his record to 13-1, then closed out Central Columbia by throwing1⅓scoreless innings.

In today’s PIAA, he would not have been permitted to pitch both days.

“I don’t know how I did it,” said Griffith, a Cranberry resident who played for two seasons at California University of Pennsylvania after graduating in 1983. “My arm was just hanging there.”

It was Northgate’s neversay-dieattitude that carried it through the ‘82 season. This was evident in comeback wins against Charleroi in the WPIAL final (where Napier hit a grand slam) and against Mount Union in the PIAA semifinal (where Griffith induced a game-ending doubleplayto preserve the win).

Brubach provided a reliable bat — he went 12 for 17 in the postseason and drove in two runs in the state final. Knable was a picture of consistency — he was the winning pitcher in the PIAA championship and finished 7-1 — and Armenio and Meiser were clutch, each driving in a run in the final.

An up-and-coming backup catcher named Matt Driscoll offered moral support. He is now a Division I basketball coach at the University of North Florida.

“A key to becoming a champion, at least for us, was spending time together,” said Brubach, a Cranberry resident who works in medical device sales and marketing development. “You have to have structure, dedication and determination. ... And with hard work and preparation, you can really do something special.”

Thirty-five years ago, the boys from Bellevue and Avalon did that very thing.