Norwin knows its 6A opponent

Spring Ford won December game

It’s going to be an all too familiar setting when Norwin takes the court for its PIAA Class 6A quarterfinal on Friday.

Not only have the Knights played their opponent, District 1 runner-up Spring-Ford, already this season, they did it on the same State College High School floor where the two will vie for a spot in the semifinals.

“The first game, it was obviously a while ago and we understand that both teams are going to be different,” Norwin coach Brian Brozeski said. “What we’re taking from it is their offensive explosiveness. The team puts out five players who can shoot from well behind the arc, can all get to the rim and they can all handle (the ball) well.”

What Norwin (23-3) is hoping for is a different outcome. Spring-Ford (23-6) tagged the Knights with their first loss on Dec. 8 (51-46).

In that first meeting, Anna Azzara and MacKenzie Pettinelli each scored 14 points for the Rams. Lauren Palangio led Norwin with 18 and Ava Kobus had 11.

Azzara, a 5-foot-8 point guard, is a Wright State commit who averages 16 points. Aaliyah Solliday, a 5-8 forward who came back from a torn ACL this season, averages 10, while Pettinelli is headed to St. Bonaventure.

Taking a loss from this team early could end up being a good thing. Watching a team on film or looking at stats is a lot less tangible preparatory tool than having actually faced it and remembering how it played.

Though both are still made up of the same DNA as the first meeting, both have obviously added wrinkles.

“You’ve had the eye test and you’ve actually seen them,” Brozeski said, “but the other part is that it’s been a while and both teams are going to have improved. So some of the things you’ve seen in the beginning of the year, you have to cross-reference with what you see now on film.”

Rematches and revenge

Shady Side Academy exacted a measure of revenge against Avonworth when it beat the Antelopes in the WPIAL Class 3A title game a year after Avonworth knocked the Bulldogs out in the semifinals.

Now, both are alive in the quarterfinals and, if they win Friday, will face each other in the semifinals.

For that to happen, Shady Side Academy (26-2) will have to get past a Westmont Hilltop squad 7:30 p.m. Friday at Norwin. Westmont Hilltop finished second in District 6 and already has two wins against WPIAL teams in the PIAA tournament (Beaver Falls and Seton LaSalle). Avonworth won’t have an easy time weaving its way into the semifinals, either, as it will face a Mercyhurst Prep (23-3) squad that also beat a WPIAL foes in Our Lady of the Sacred Heart and Neshannock.

Mercyhurst Prep also appears to be peaking at the right time with wins in 16 of its past 17.

But it’s not just Shady Side Academy and Avonworth that could end up in a grudge match. If Greensburg Central Catholic (22-6) can get by District 5 champion Everett (20-7), it could conceivably play Kennedy Catholic (22-4) in a 2023 semifinals rematch.

Kennedy Catholic won that game, 56-44, and took home the state championship. Kennedy Catholic will get another 2023 rematch in the quarterfinals when it plays Bishop McCort 6 p.m.Friday at Gateway.

North Catholic could face two teams that might have a seek-and-destroy mission against the Trojanettes. North Catholic obliterated Wyomissing, 60-27, in the 2023 quarterfinals and the two teams will meetagain Saturday.

If that weren’t enough, a North Catholic win could mean a rematch of the WPIAL championship game with Blackhawk in the semifinals. The Cougars are coming off a running-clock victory against District 9 champion St. Marys and will face District 10 winner Fairview on Saturday.

Locked in

Armstrong ( 23- 5) and McKeesport (23-4) both lost to South Fayette in the WPIAL playoffs. They now face each other Saturday. It should be an interesting matchup between the teams’ senior leaders — Armstrong’s Emma Paul and McKeesport’s Rachel Manfredo.

In the other quarterfinal, Oakland Catholic (26-2) lost its final two games in the WPIAL tournament (including consolation), but has found new life and will now get a shot at District 10 champion Cathedral Prep (21-3).