Defending champion readying a new lineup
The Seton LaSalle boys volleyball team will make its 14th consecutive appearance in the WPIAL Class 2A playoffs after winning its fourth consecutive Section 3 title, but the Rebels will be without three starters when postseason play begins Tuesday.
Seton LaSalle’s lineup includes three players who transferred from Baldwin. The WPIAL ruled that all three could play during the regular season, but are ineligible for postseason play.
“I used all three players during the regular season,” Seton LaSalle coach John Lawrence said. “I also made sure that everybody on our roster got a chance to play in every match. So everybody on our team has varsity experience.”
The three transfers from Baldwin are junior middle hitter Gavin Poe, senior setter/hitter Aidan Price and junior outside hitter Ty Tamborino.
“I used the same starting lineup until we clinched the section title,” Lawrence said. “I switched to the lineup we will use in the playoffs last week.”
Seton LaSalle will continue to use a 6-2 offense with sophomore Brady Diegelman joining senior Mason Woolensack as the Rebels other setter/hitter. Senior Anthony George move into the lineup as an outside hitter.
“We are also moving senior Nate Kuntz from libero to outside hitter,” Lawrence said. “Senior Justin Hill will take over as our libero. Both have played those positions before.”
Woolensack was voted first-team all-WPIAL last season. He was also recognized on the PVCA all-state team.
“Mason is our team leader, our floor captain,” Lawrence said. “He was our setter in a 5-1 offense last year. This year, we switched to a 6-2 so he could hit when he rotates to the front row.”
Seton LaSalle concluded its Section 3 schedule with a 10-0 record. The Rebels also played nine non-section matches, including four against Class 3A opponents, and posted a 4-5 record. Three of their losses were to the top three teams in the Class 2A rankings — No. 1 Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, No. 2 North Catholic and No. 3 Montour — which are also the top three teams from Section 1. The Rebels did post a victory against Gateway, the Section 2 champion.
“I expect us to be a No. 4 or No. 5 seed,” said Lawrence of the Rebels, who are the defending WPIAL champions. “Our goal is to win in the first round and see what happens after that. We are going to do our best to win at least one match.”
Lawrence waited until last Thursday to honor last year’s championship squad.
“We waited until Thursday to hang the championship banner because I wanted our seniors from that team to be home from college,” Lawrence said. “A couple of them told me they wish they could come back and help us in the playoffs. Unfortunately, that’s not an option.”
Penn-Trafford
Penn-Trafford will also be making its 14th consecutive appearance in the playoffs. The Warriors entered Thursday’s Class 3A Section 3 finale against Norwin with an 8-3 record, which guarantees them a thirdplace finish in a very competitive section.
“When you look at every sport, and how close the two schools are in proximity, Penn-Trafford is probably Norwin’s biggest rival,” Penn-Trafford coach Jim Schall said. “The two schools are always very competitive in every sport.”
Norwin hosted its first section encounter April 19, and the Warriors dropped a 3-1 decision. The rematch will be held at Penn-Trafford.
“We have been very inconsistent,” Schall said. “Our first match against Penn-Trafford is a good example of that. We had a great first game, then struggled to stop one of their middles the rest of the match.”
Schall was referring to Norwin’s Mike Mihalov, a 6-5 junior.
“We’ve been working on our blocking since that match,” Schall said. “Hopefully we’ve made progress in that area.”
Penn-Trafford is led by junior setter Daniel Tarabrella, and senior outside hitters Alex Rugh and Patrick Shaw.
“Daniel has done a fine job in his first year of varsity setting,” Schall said. “Alex and Patrick have been our top hitters, but both have had their ups and downs. We’ve struggled with inconsistency.”
Schall believes North Allegheny and Seneca Valley, the top two teams in the WPIAL Class 3A rankings, are the teams to beat in the Class 3A bracket.
“They have to be considered the teams to beat,” Schall said. “Nobody has come close to beating them thus far.”
N. Allegheny’s streak ends
North Allegheny’s 75match winning streak came to an end Tuesday with a 25-17, 18-25, 25-21, 2523 loss to Seneca Valley.
“Our blocking and passing were much better than the last time we played,” said Seneca Valley coach Brett Poirier, referring to North Allegheny’s 3- 0 sweep in the first half. “That allowed us to control the ball more. And [setter] Aidan Uher did a great job of spreading the ball around.”
Uher recorded 46 assists. Nate DeGraaf led the Raiders with 24 kills, while Coleman McDonough and Coleman McDonough had nine, and Dawson Ward had eight.
“We’re finally going to be co-section champs, “said Poirier, referring to the fact
that both team’s enter Thursday’s final night of play in Class 3A Section 2 tied with a 10-1 record. “It’s a good step in the right direction.”
Seneca Valley moves up to No. 1 in the Post-Gazette’s rankings, while North Allegheny drops to No. 2.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if we faced them two more times, like we did last season,” said Poirier, referring to Seneca Valley and North Allegheny facing off in the WPIAL finals and PIAA semifinals.
Postseason
The WPIAL volleyball committee will meet Friday morning to determine brackets for its two tournaments. Both brackets are expected to have 12 teams, which means four teams will receive a bye in the first round.
“We will most likely hold first- round matches on Tuesday and the quarterfinals on Thursday,” said Mike McDonald, coach and athletic director at Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, who also serves as chairman of the WPIAL volleyball committee. “We haven’t determined sites for those rounds, but it might be similar to the format that was used for the WPIAL basketball playoffs, which had the higher seeded teams hosting in both rounds.”
The date for the semifinals and championship matches have been changed. They were originally scheduled for May 24 and 26. Instead, the matches will be held May 23 and 25.
“Several schools are having graduation ceremonies on [May 26], so we had to switch to Monday and Wednesday for the semis and finals. The title games will be held at Robert Morris University.”
The Class 2A bracket will have McDonald’s Chargers as the top seed, followed by North Catholic and Montour. The fourth seed is unknown. Ambridge is probably the fourth best team, but the Bridgers placed fourth in Section 1. That would mean the top four seeds are from the same section, something that has never occurred in a WPIAL bracket, in any sport.
Making the scenario even tougher is the situation with Seton LaSalle. The Rebels won the Section 3 title, and beat Section 2 champion Gateway in a non-section match, but will be without three starters, who are ineligible for the playoffs.
“The WPIAL has never had a situation like this before, in any sport, where three starters are ineligible for the playoffs. It’s not the same as having kids out with injuries or COVID-19. It’s an unprecedented situation. I’m not sure how we will deal with it.”