A-K Valley WPIAL basketball playoff preview capsules: Games of Friday, Feb. 25, 2022

By: Michael Love
Thursday, February 24, 2022 | 6:07 PM

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BOYS

Class 4A

Quarterfinals

7-Pine-Richland (12-11) at 2-Fox Chapel (21-1)

7 p.m. Friday

Winner plays: Winner of 6-Butler (13-9)/3-Central Catholic (17-5) Tuesday in semifinals (site and time TBD)

Layup lines: Pine-Richland had no trouble with No. 10 Bethel Park in a 64-41 first-round victory. Joey Dudkowski, who came into the playoffs averaging 15 points, put up 26 against the Blackhawks. Luke Shanahan added 12 points in the win, the Rams’ second straight after a four-game losing skid late in the regular season. Pine-Richland finished tied with Butler for second place in Section 1 behind undefeated North Hills. The Rams last made a run to a WPIAL title in 2017 when they defeated Butler to capture the 6A crown … Fox Chapel is on a roll, having won 20 games in a row since a 30-point loss to North Hills at the season-opening North Hills tournament Dec. 11. The Foxes held off Central Catholic for the Section 3 title. Fox Chapel averaged 67.8 points in the regular season, good for third in Class 6A behind North Hills (75.3) and Butler (69.8). Senior Eli Yofan leads the Foxes in scoring at 20.4 points a game. He surpassed Matt D’Amico’s all-time Fox Chapel boys basketball scoring record (1,437) with a layup in the second quarter of a Feb. 8 victory over Norwin.

GIRLS

Class 4A

Quarterfinals

7-Highlands (19-4) at 2-Southmoreland (17-3)

7 p.m. Friday

Winner plays: Winner of 6-Montour (16-6)/3-Knoch (19-2) Tuesday in semifinals

Layup lines: Highlands extended one of its best seasons into the quarterfinals with a 51-33 victory over No. 10 West Mifflin. The Golden Rams had not won a first-round game since 2008. Before that, they had first-round wins in 1974 and ’75. Sophomore Jocelyn Bielak had 12 points in Tuesday’s win. Highlands lost twice to Knoch, the team it could see in the next round. The Golden Rams also have a 60-57 loss to 6A Hempfield and lost 64-45 to 5A Mars. Sophomore guard Kate Myers, a solid 3-point threat, is the cousin of Duquesne and former North Catholic standout Tess Myers. … Winner of 12 of its last 13 games, Southmoreland is seeking a third straight trip to the semifinals. The Scotties have won 43 straight games on their home floor. Seniors Gracie Spadaro and Delaynie Morvosh join junior Olivia Cernuto as the top scoring threats, but several role players could be key to another deep run. With a 34.6 points-allowed average, the Scotties are keeping with tradition in being one of the WPIAL’s top defensive teams.

6-Montour (16-6) at 2-Knoch (19-2)

7 p.m. Friday

Winner plays: Winner of 7-Highlands (19-4)/2-Southmoreland (17-3) Tuesday in semifinals (site and time TBD)

Layup lines: Montour punched its ticket to the quarterfinals with a 52-42 victory over Deer Lakes in the first round Tuesday. The Spartans got a game-best 20 points from Jordyn Wolfe, who was 6 for 6 from the foul line in the fourth quarter. Olivia Lyscik added 12 points for Montour, who finished third in Section 2 behind No. 1 Blackhawk and No. 4 Beaver Area. The Spartans hope to make a run to their second WPIAL title. Montour won the first WPIAL girls championship in 1971. Lyscik scored her 1,000th career point in a Feb. 10 victory over Hopewell … Knoch enters the playoffs after receiving a bye past the first round. It last played 15 days ago when it edged Freeport, 52-49, in the regular-season finale. The Knights made it to the WPIAL semifinals last year before bowing out of the playoffs at Beaver. Knoch has won 16 games in a row since a five-point loss Dec. 22 at Mars. The Knights reigned supreme in Section 1 with a 12-0 record. The section crown was the first for the program since 1972. Knoch is led by the scoring prowess of senior guard/forward Maddie Boyer (15.5 points per game) and junior guard Nina Shaw (14 ppg).

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

Tags: Fox Chapel, Highlands, Knoch, Montour, Pine-Richland, Southmoreland