Unbeaten teams headed into WPIAL tournament
Tri-State Sports & News Service And then there were two. Only two unbeaten teams remained when the WPIAL boys volleyball playoffs began this week.
North Allegheny and Bethel Park both posted a 16-0 overall record during the regular season. Both went undefeated in section play and both recorded four wins in nonleague play.
With that in mind, it’s no surprise that North Allegheny, the defending champion, is the top seed and Bethel Park is the No. 2 seed in the Class 3A bracket.
“It’s nice to get a bye in the first round and to be at home for our first match,” said Bethel Park coach Zach Smith, referring to the 12team bracket. “We may be the No. 2 seed, but after looking at this bracket, I can honestly say that anybody can beat anybody. So we can’t overlook anybody.”
North Allegheny and Bethel Park were two of four teams that had a bye in Tuesday’s first round in the Class 3A bracket. The other two were No. 3 Penn-Trafford and No. 4 Butler. The quarterfinals were held Thursday with the top four seeds facing off against the four first-round winners.
“My guys worked very hard in the regular season and put together an impressive record,” Smith said. “We were rewarded with a home match. But we started out the season with a young team, so most of my kids don’t have playoff experience.”
Penn-Trafford has made it to the WPIAL title match the past two years. The Warriors claimed their first WPIAL title in 2016 and were runner-up to North Allegheny last year.
“There are a lot of good teams who can make a good run in this bracket, so we have to play really well in every match,” Penn-Trafford coach Jim Schall said. “We have to play our best volleyball at this point.”
North Allegheny is a prohibitive favorite after sweeping all 16 opponents this season. The Tigers have won nine WPIAL Class 3A titles in 11 years since the PIAA split its teams into two classifications.
“It will take a great performance from a team to beat North Allegheny,” said Schall, referring to the Tigers sweep of the Warriors in a non-league match. “We would be glad to have that opportunity.”
Butler was ranked No. 2 most of the season, but dropped to the No. 4 seed after a loss to Upper St. Clair, an unranked team, late in the season.
“We put together a stellar season, but one non-league loss hurt us in the seeding,” Butler coach Lew Liparulo said. “Our only other losses were to North Allegheny in section play. It’s going to take somebody playing a perfect match to beat [North Allegheny] in the playoffs.”
Class 2A
In Class 2A, it looks to be a three-team battle for the title.
Derry Area is the top seed, Ambridge is No. 2 and Deer Lakes is No. 3.
Derry and Deer Lakes shared the Section 2 title after splitting their two section matches. The Trojans claimed the top seed after defeating Ambridge, 3-1, in a non-league match the final week of the season.
“The Ambridge win was a nice boost for us,” Derry coach Shawn Spencer said. “We finished with a pretty strong resume overall. I feel we are deserving of the top seed, but there are other teams that have a strong resume, too.”
Derry won its only WPIAL title in 1988, when there was only one classification. The Trojans have made it to the WPIAL Class 2A finals four of the past eight years, but had to settle for second best each time.
“I was surprised at how well we played in our match against Ambridge,” Spencer said. “Our setter Jake Griffin tore up his knee during Marine Corps training four days before the match and was lost for the season. We also had two other matches that week before playing Ambridge, so we had no chance to practice.”
Griffin had become the Trojans setter midway through the season. Nathanial Marinchek, the setter Griffin replaced, was moved back to setter.
Ambridge has won seven WPIAL Class 2A titles and placed second once in the past 11 years.
“If you want to be the best, you have to beat everyone,” Ambridge coach Glenn Freed said. “Our goal every year is to win the WPIAL title. We took the first step toward reaching that goal by winning our section.”
Deer Lakes lost to Beaver County Christian in last year’s title match. The Lancers and Bridgers are in the same half of the bracket, which means the two would have to face off in the semifinals.
Derry, Ambridge and Deer Lakes received a first-round bye in the 13-team Class 2A bracket. All three were in action Thursday in the quarterfinals.
The semifinals in both classes will be held Tuesday. The finals and consolation finals in both classes will be held May 24 at Baldwin High School.