Breaking down the 2024 WPIAL softball playoffs

By: Bill Beckner Jr. And Michael Love
Thursday, May 9, 2024 | 3:55 PM

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WPIAL softball playoffs breakdown

Class 6A

Favorite: Defending champion Hempfield is chock full of offensive threats — nine returning starters — as the Spartans chase a ninth WPIAL title. They split with Seneca Valley, but won the second meeting convincingly, 15-2 in five innings. Big-game pitcher Riley Miller is a Kent State commit, while outfielder Maggie Howard (Georgetown), outfielder Peyton Heisler (Penn) and shortstop Allie Cervola (Ohio) are also Division I college commits. Hempfield has scored 136 runs and has allowed 20.

Contenders: Seneca Valley, the runner-up last season after a 2-1, extra-inning loss to Hempfield, goes as star pitcher Lexie Hames goes. Hames has battled some late-season muscle stiffness in her shoulder and saw limited action until she threw a no-hitter, with 15 strikeouts against Canon-McMillan. Hames has over 180 strikeouts and a 0.29 ERA. She no-hit Hempfield, 2-0. She also bats .370 with five home runs. Kara Pasquale and Bella Gross are other top bats in the lineup. … North Allegheny finished third behind Hempfield and Seneca Valley. Carlyn Vaupel (.520) and pitcher Samy Plotsko (.475) are key hitters for the Tigers. … Fourth-place Pine-Richland was leading 6A in runs with 167. The Rams put a scare into Hempfield last week in a 10-9 loss. … Norwin is led by Holy Cross commit and shortstop Bailey Snowberger, the leadoff hitter. The Knights are looking to score more runs in the postseason.

Don’t overlook: Canon-McMillan, which finished fifth in the section, features Olivia Ford (.500).

Prediction: Hempfield over Seneca Valley

Class 5A

Favorite: The 2022 WPIAL champion and last season’s runner-up, Armstrong is a powerful offensive team that is averaging 10 runs per game. The Section 2 champs feature Jesse Pugh (.565, 26 RBIs). A late-season, 6-0 nonsection loss to Neshannock has not derailed the River Hawks.

Contenders: West Allegheny won the Section 3 title. The hard-hitting Indians lead 5A in runs scored (178). Aubrey Police was leading the WPIAL in runs with 27 and had 19 RBIs. … North Hills, the Section 1 winner, won nine in a row before a 3-0 loss to 3A Avonworth. Watch Lily Adamski (.567), Abby Sutton (5 HR) and Savannah Bodnar (15 RBIs) for the Indians, who average 8.9 runs. … Penn-Trafford (9.1 runs) finished second to Armstrong and split the two-game section series. … Shaler looked like a formidable team until standout pitcher Bria Bosiljevic went down with an injury.

Don’t overlook: Connellsville and Trinity were Section 4 co-winners. Trinity is the defending WPIAL champion.

Prediction: North Hills over Armstrong

Class 4A

Favorite: One-loss Elizabeth Forward takes an eight-game winning streak into the playoffs, a streak that includes six shutouts. The Warriors’ loss was a 2-1 setback against 6A power Hempfield. Julia Resnick (.654), Julia Johnson (.636), Shelby Telegdy (.577), Carlee Soukop (.565), Hannah Evans (.480) and Alivia Grimm (.455) were all batting above .400. The Warriors reached the WPIAL and PIAA semifinals last season. Elizabeth Forward and Hampton were leading 4A with 192 runs.

Contenders: Hampton won the Section 3 title while averaging more than 10 runs a game. The Talbots have scored 10 or mor runs 11 times. Mackenzie Reese, a Pitt commit, was hitting close to .600, and Charlotte Lomb and Marissa Snyder .500. Reese has 20 RBIs. … Indiana didn’t lose a game in Section 1. … Chartiers Valley (9.7 rpg) also has shown a propensity for extra-base hits. The Colts feature Lily Duffill, who leads the WPIAL with nine home runs. … Belle Vernon is the defending champion and has carried on despite the loss of ace pitcher Talia Ross.

Don’t overlook: Knoch was the Section 1 runner-up.

Prediction: Elizabeth Forward over Hampton

Class 3A

Favorite: Avonworth (12-3), after a 5-2 loss to Deer Lakes in its Section 1 opener, won its final nine section games to claim the title. The Antelopes carried a 10-game winning streak overall into an exhibition clash with Neshannock on Thursday. The victories included a 3-0 triumph over Section 1-5A champion North Hills on Monday. Avonworth won its third WPIAL Class 3A title in four years in 2023. It defeated Southmoreland, 5-1, in the finals at Cal (Pa.). Nine starters returned, led by senior pitcher Alivia Lantzy, a UNC-Pembroke recruit. Senior outfielder Leah Kuban, senior catcher Rylee Gray, junior third baseman Emma Obersteiner, and junior shortstop Sydney Savatt front a potent lineup which has averaged 8.6 runs.

Contenders: South Park improved to 16-1 overall with an 11-0 win over Ringgold on Wednesday. The Eagles went undefeated at 10-0 to claim the Section 4 title. They only allowed two runs and scored 52 in section play. Sophomore pitcher Sydney Sekely has been an anchor. … Mohawk (14-5), the outright Section 2 champion at 9-1, has an experienced lineup led at the top Addison Moskal (third base), Aricka Young (shortstop) and Alivia Hare (center field). … Ligonier Valley (12-5) is fronted by the pitching of senior Cheyenne Piper. The Rams allowed just 24 runs through 17 games and captured a share of the Section 3 title with Southmoreland at 8-2. Ligonier Valley won a pair of low-scoring pitcher’s duals with Southmoreland, 2-1 and 1-0. The Rams, seeded 11th last year, fell to No. 3 Waynesburg in the quarterfinals. They hope to get the offense going after scoring just six runs in six games through a 2-1 win over Latrobe on Wednesday. … Southmoreland (14-2) is just three runs separated from an undefeated regular season. The Scotties have won five in a row since the setbacks to Ligonier Valley on April 18 and 19. Southmoreland came close last year to winning its first WPIAL title since the only district crown in program history in 2018. An experienced lineup features senior shortstop Amarah McCutcheon, a Cal (Pa.) commit. Her battery mate is 2023 second-team all-state selection Makayla Etling, a junior, who went 4 for 4 with seven RBIs in a 12-2 win over Yough last Friday.

Don’t overlook: Burrell (10-7) reached the PIAA tournament the past two seasons. Freshman Shelby Novak handles the pitching, and juniors Pyper Ferres, Bella Stewart and Brae Jones provide pop in the lineup.

Prediction: Avonworth over South Park

Class 2A

Favorite: Neshannock, seeking a third consecutive WPIAL championship, has experience with junior all-state pitcher Addy Frye and six other returning starters. The Lancers, at 18-0 heading into a nonsection game Thursday against Section 1-3A champion Avonworth (12-3), are the only undefeated team left in Class 2A. Neshannock has shut out 14 of its 18 opponents and only surrendered five runs. Only two of the runs were surrendered in 12 Section 1-2A games. Neshannock added a 6-0 nonsection win over Section 3-5A Armstrong (14-2) on Monday. Frye is 12-0 with an 0.46 ERA and 127 strikeouts against only six walks in 61 innings. She also is the leading hitter for the Lancers with a .532 average (25 for 47) with five doubles, three homes runs and 26 RBIs. Sophomore Jaidon Nogay is batting .488, and senior Abigale Measel is hitting .449 with 23 RBIs.

Contenders: Serra Catholic, 11-4 through Wednesday’s nonsection loss at Class A power Chartiers-Houston, captured the Section 2-2A title with a 10-0 record. The Eagles also won last year’s Section 2 crown. They are hoping for a better postseason outcome this year after being upset, as the No. 3 seed, by No. 6 Our Lady of the Sacred Heart in the 2023 quarterfinals. Serra is paced by the pitching of senior Madisyn Zigarovich and junior catcher Cassidy Trahan. Zigarovich struck out 11 and drove in three runs in an 8-4 win over section runner-up Apollo-Ridge on April 29. … Laurel (16-4) only lost to Neshannock en route to a 10-2 record and runner-up finish in Section 1. The Spartans won their 10th in a row, 9-4, at Section 1-5A champion North Hills (13-4) on Wednesday. Laurel hopes to make it back to the WPIAL title game and for a better fate after losing to Neshannock, 12-2, in six innings in last year’s game at Cal (Pa.). Senior first baseman Addison Deal and senior pitcher Autumn Boyd are Division I commits at St. Francis (Pa.) and Youngstown State, respectively. … Bentworth, led freshman pitcher Sydney Gonglik, who is 13-1 with a 0.91 ERA and more than 200 strikeouts and also is batting over .700 with six homers, has turned it around this season after going 6-9 in 2023. It hopes to build on last year’s entry to the Class 2A tournament where, as the No. 12 seed, it fell to No. 5 Greensburg Central Catholic in the first round. Bentworth was 14-2 heading into Thursday’s nonsection home matchup with Class A contender West Greene. The Bearcats captured the Section 3 title with a 12-0 record, posting 10 shutouts and outscoring opponents 138-4. … OLSH (12-4) finished runner-up to Bentworth in Section 3. The Chargers’ only two losses since April 6 came against the Bearcats. OLSH edged Charleroi 6-4 and 4-3 for second place in the section. The Chargers were one win away from states last year as they lost a heartbreaker to Greensburg Central Catholic in the third-place consolation game at Gateway.

Don’t overlook: Charleroi (13-4) hopes for redemption after a one-run loss, as the No. 4 seed, to GCC in last year’s WPIAL quarterfinals. Senior pitcher Sofia Celaschi and senior catcher/shortstop McKenna DeUnger, a Seton Hill recruit, lead an experienced group. The Cougars have won four in a row after close back-to-back, low-scoring losses to Bentworth, 4-0, and OLSH, 4-3.

Prediction: Neshannock over Laurel

Class A

Favorite: It’s been business as usual for Union, which rolled to another section championship and seeks a third straight WPIAL championship. Union, as the No. 1 seed, averaged 13 runs over three games en route to last year’s WPIAL title. That included a high-scoring 10-8 victory over No. 2 Carmichaels in the title game. This year’s Scotties squad was dominant in Section 2, outscoring opponents 190-5. Union improved to 18-1 overall with a 6-3 win over Class 5A West Allegheny (16-2) on Wednesday. The only loss in the first 19 came at Class 2A Neshannock on April 14. The top five hitters in the lineup are batting .425 or better, while junior Mia Preuhs improved to 12-1 in the pitching circle with a 1.73 ERA. Freshman Irelyn Fisher leads the team with 38 RBIs. Preuhs is one of four all-state players who returned from last year’s PIAA runner-up team.

Contenders: Frazier (13-0) survived a pair of close section battles with Jeannette, winning 5-4 and 1-0. Frazier made the WPIAL semifinals last year before falling to Carmichaels, 3-1, and qualified for the PIAA playoffs. Junior all-state third baseman Grace Vaughn and all-section junior catcher Emilia Bednar help lead a potent Commodores attack. … Carmichaels (14-2) came close to winning its first WPIAL title since 1998 as it took Union to the limit in the title game last year. The Mighty Mikes have won eight in a row and finished in a tie for the Section 2 title with Chartiers-Houston at 11-1. Carmichaels defeated the Bucs, 7-5, on May 2. The loss to Chartiers-Houston on April 19 came by just one run. Shortstop Carys McConnell and first baseman Ali Jacobs, both all-state players last year, each drove in two runs in the win over the Bucs. … Chartiers-Houston (15-2) fell to Union in last year’s WPIAL semifinals. But the Bucs edged Frazier in the third-place consolation and won a game in the PIAA playoffs. The loss to Carmichaels last week snapped an 11-game win streak. Chartiers-Houstonrecorded its 10th shutout of the season with an 8-0 win Wednesday over Section 2-2A champion Serra Catholic. The Bucs’ lineup includes 2023 all-state selections in junior pitcher Meadow Ferri, junior Ella Richey and sophomore Lauren Rush. … Jeannette, led by the pitching of sophomore Grace Stein and senior catcher Addy Stout, is 11-2 overall. The Jayhawks’ only two losses through their 13 games came to Frazier. Stein gave up just two hits and two walks while striking out 15 in the 1-0 loss to Frazier on Monday. Jeannette lost to Union in last year’s WPIAL quarterfinals.

Don’t overlook: West Greene, 11-5 through Monday’s section-finale win over Avella and Tuesdays nonsection victory over Waynesburg, won consecutive WPIAL Class A titles from 2016-21 and was a favorite in the covid-canceled 2020 season. The Pioneers’ only WPIAL losses this season came in section to Chartiers-Houston and Carmichaels. West Greene, fronted by junior pitcher Payton Gilbert, held Carmichaels to two runs in a 2-0 loss April 29. Gilbert also leads the team in batting (.540) and RBIs (26).

Prediction: Union over Carmichaels