North Catholic into semifinals
North Catholic broke new ground with the program when it won its first WPIAL Class 2A girls soccer title.
Now the Trojanettes have pushed themselves deeper into the PIAA playoffs than they have ever been.
Sophomore Jayden Sharpless scored a goal and added two assists and Grace Billman and Tehya Dace scored goals a minute apart as the Trojanettes moved into the state semifinals for the first time with a 5-0 victory against Bald Eagle Area. Their previous best was a second-round loss in Class 1A to Shady Side Academy in 2017.
“That loss gave us some confidence and allowed us to give some of our younger players some experience,” North Catholic coach Emily Karr said. “This is the best we’ve been this season.”
Goalkeeper Andrea Bean now has posted shutouts in each of her past four postseason games.
Class 4A
Boyertown 3, North Allegheny 2 (OT): North Allegheny was hoping to make history by winning the first state girls soccer championship in school history, but the Tigers’ overtime loss to Boyertown will be remembered for a different reason altogether. North Allegheny’s defeat, coupled with Norwin’s loss to McDowell in the first round, marks the first time the WPIAL will not have a representative in the PIAA semifinals in the state’s highest classification since girls soccer was first recognized at the state level in 1992. Ava Ruppersberger scored the game’s opening goal and the Tigers Sarah Schupansky tied it up midway through the first half.
Class 3A
Mars 4, West Allegheny 0: Taylor Hamlett scored two goals and chipped in an assist, while Caroline Wroblewski added a goal and two helpers as the Planets moved into the state semifinals for the first time since winning the Class 2A title in 2011. Mars has scored at least four goals in five of its six postseason games — the only exception being a 2-0 victory against Belle Vernon in the WPIAL semifinals — and have outscored their postseason opponents, 30-1.
Class 1A
Greensburg Central Catholic 1, Freedom 0: Sophomore goalkeeper Lyndsey Szekely posted her 10th shutout of the season and senior Samantha Nemeth made it stand with the only goal as the Centurions moved into the state semifinals for the third time in four years.
Shady Side Academy 3, Mercer 0: The Indians extended their current winning streak to 17 in a row as junior Melissa Riggins scored two goals and goalkeeper Molly Skvorak posted her consecutive state playoff shutouts and 12th overall to earn a spot in the PIAA semifinals for the fourth consecutive year.