BOYS OUTLOOK
Seneca Valley did the WPIAL soccer committee a huge favor last Thursday when it scored a pair of goals in the first three minutes of the second half for a 2-0 victory against North Allegheny in its Section 1 finale.
By pulling out a win, the Raiders made the choice of the No. 1 seed in the Class 4A tournament a no-brainer. A tie would have meant that both Seneca Valley and North Allegheny would have been unbeaten in regular season and both would have had identical section records.
That was the easy part. The rest of Class 4A was a challenge when the committee met Wednesday to assemble brackets for all four classes.
Only one of last year’s four WPIAL champions did not qualify for the playoffs this year as Pine-Richland was squeezed out in the ultra-competitive Class 4A Section 1. Of last year’s finalists at Highmark Stadium, the Rams were joined by Ambridge in Class 3A as teams that did not make it into the tournament.
Here is a breakdown and analysis of all four classifications.
Class 4A
Defending champion: Pine-Richland
Top seeds: 1. Seneca Valley (13-0-3). 2. North Allegheny (13-13). 3. Butler (13-2-3). 4. Upper St. Clair (14-1-2).
Winner will be: Seneca Valley. This isn’t the same dominant Raiders team that cruised to section titles the past six years, played in the past three WPIAL finals and is the defending state champion. But these Raiders are awfully close. Junior Tyler Prex has too many clutch goals to count this season and senior Cole Kamarec has worked very well with him as the other striker.
Team that could surprise: Fox Chapel. If you want to know just how tough Section 1 was, consider this: The Foxes were 9-4-2 this season and gave up only 12 goals. Their problem is generating offense as they only scored 30 goals in 15 games.
The scoop: Here’s the thing about WPIAL Class 4A soccer. There is a distinct style difference between teams that play in the north and south. Their systems and shapes are different as is the physicality of the play. It’s just the way it is. Since the split into four classifications in 2016 a team from the north suburbs has won six of the seven titles with Canon-McMillan in 2019 the only team to break it up. Any of the four teams from Section 1 could win the title and it would not be a surprise if two teams from the section make the finals. … North Allegheny may be one of the more difficult teams to defend because it can get scoring from everywhere. The Tigers have five players with at least five goals … Butler took Seneca Valley to overtime twice, losing 3-2 the first time and getting a result in a 1-1 tie the second. Butler also has a 2-2 tie with North Allegheny. … Upper St. Clair won Section 2, but did not play any teams from the other section. Coach Uwe Schneider’s 300 wins with a pair of WPIAL and four state titles are not to be discounted.
Class 3A
Defending champion: Moon
Top seeds: 1. Plum (17-1). 2. Hampton (13-2-1). 3. Moon (14-31). 4. Bethel Park (15-1-1).
Winner will be: Hampton. You don’t see many 30-goal scorers at this level but Luke Fiscus is not your typical player. He is the only remaining starter from the 2021 Talbots squad that won the WPIAL and PIAA Class 3A titles and he has some help up front with fellow striker Coleman Docherty.
Team that could surprise: South Fayette. Although the Lions came in third in Section 2, this is a strong team with a couple of signature results. They have a tie and an overtime loss against Moon and split their season series with Montour.
The scoop: Plum has been, oh, so close these last few years and could certainly make a run at its first championship since 2005. The Mustangs have won 17 consecutive games. … Montour was a semifinalist last season and has only gotten better in the interim behind senior Jaxon Camp and junior Andrew Prunier, who have 27 goals between them. … Bethel Park only lost two matches in the regular season, its first against Peters Township and its last to Canon-McMillan. In between, the Black Hawks went 15-0-1.
Class 2A
Defending champion: Deer Lakes
Top seeds: 1. South Park (180). 2. Quaker Valley (14-3). 3. Deer Lakes (14-2). 4. Avonworth (14-2-1).
Winner will be: Quaker Valley. The Quakers have four players with at least 11 goals, led by Kiril Grin with 14. They also have only allowed nine goals this year with 12 clean sheets and are coming into the postseason riding a sixgame shutout streak.
Team that could surprise: Knoch. Do not be fooled by the 11-7 record. The Knights are a team to be reckoned with. Of their seven losses, two were to Deer Lakes, while dropping tight decisions to Mars, Hampton, Fairview and Butler.
The scoop: South Park is the No. 1 seed and rightfully so after being one of only two teams in the WPIAL to finish with a perfect record. The Eagles (18-0) only allowed six goals this season. Senior Kaiden Fischer is a returning all-state player up front. … Defending champ Deer Lakes suffered a shocking 6-2 loss to Shady Side Academy late in the season but the Lancers are still a top contender. … Belle Vernon has junior Trevor Kovatch up front, a 40-goal scorer who can now concentrate fully on soccer now that golf season is over.
Class 1A
Defending champion: Winchester Thurston
Top seeds: 1. Charleroi (16-0). 2. Sewickley Academy (12-2-1). 3. Burrell (12-3). 4. Seton LaSalle (12-2-1).
Winner will be: Charleroi. Although the Cougars are the No. 1 seed, this is not as easy a pick as it might appear. Class 1A is a topsy-turvy mess with every team in each section beating up on each other all season. Every team except Charleroi, that is. Senior Arlo McIntyre has stepped out of his brother Eben’s shadow to become a solid goal scorer in his own right with 27 this season.
Team that could surprise: Winchester Thurston. No, the Bears are not one of the top seeds. In fact, they finished third in their section behind Springdale and Burrell. But you don’t win back-toback WPIAL titles and make two runs to the state championships without having something left in the tank.
The scoop: Seton LaSalle only gave up six goals this season, yet shared the Section 4 title with Serra Catholic. Seton LaSalle had a nine-game shutout streak end Monday in a 2-1 loss to Montour, which was not a bad postseason tune-up. … Burrell and Springdale tied for the Section 3 title. … Sewickley Academy improved tremendously as the season went on with its only loss in the last month coming in a non-section game against Avonworth.