Baseball
Scholastic Notebook – 05/08/2015
May 8, 2015
You know the saying. April showers bring May flowers and Seneca Valley blooms. OK, so the last few words aren’t part of the saying. But in WPIAL baseball lately, it fits. If Reggie Jackson used to be Mr. October, then Seneca Valley coach Eric Semega is Mr. May. Seneca Valley has made it to the WPIAL Class AAAA title game four years in a row. The Raiders are believed to be the first team in almost 100 years to make the championship four consecutive seasons. Allegheny High School won six consecutive titles from 1917-22. The WPIAL baseball playoffs start next week, and a natural question is will be a drive for five for Seneca Valley?MSA Sports Top Ten – WPIAL Baseball Playoff Teams – 05/07/2015
May 7, 2015
Every Monday during the regular season, MSA Sports ranks the Top 10 WPIAL baseball teams in each classification. For our final rankings this spring though, we will slot all 61 district baseball postseason bound squads with 16 in AAA, and 15 each in AAAA, AA and A. As is the case in all of our playoff rankings, its more of a seeding than true ranking as we follow the WPIAL rules in an effort to avoid teams from the same section playing each other. There will be ONE First Round bye in Quad-A, Double-A and in Single-A and a full, clean bracket of 16 in Triple-A. To figure out our First Round projected matchups, use the bracket formula of 1 vs 16, 2 vs 15, 3 vs 14, 4 vs 12, 5 vs 12, 6 vs 11, 7 vs 10 and 8 vs 9.This Week on the MSA Sports Network – 05/03/2015
May 3, 2015
It's the final week of the regular season in WPIAL baseball, softball, lacrosse and boys volleyball this week here on the MSA Sports Network. We have the final tune-up before WPIAL postseason play from the diamonds in both baseball and softball and the fields and courts of lacrosse and volleyball, plus The WPIAL Baseball Show, the weekly edition of Rappin' on Racin' and the WPIAL Softball and Baseball Playoff Pairings Shows ALL here at MSAsports.net Monday, May 4th: TALK SHOW - Rappin' on Racin' at 6:00pm on MSAsports.net TALK SHOW - Carlow Sports Talk at 8:30pm WPIAL High School Baseball - Bethel Park vs Baldwin at 4:00pm on MSAsports.netScholastic Notebook – 05/01/2015
May 1, 2015
Apparently, Bo knows softball. Bo Teets is in his sixth year as the girls softball coach at Monessen High School and is conducting one of the biggest turnaround stories in the WPIAL in any sport. Earlier this week, Monessen qualified for the WPIAL Class A playoffs. It is a monumental feat for the Greyhounds when you consider this will be the first time they will be in the postseason. It’s also quite impressive when you consider how far the Greyhounds have come under Teets. Teets was hired as Monessen’s coach before the 2010 season. He took over a program that was, in a word, horrible. The Greyhounds were 9-88 in six years before Teets.MSA Sports Top Ten – WPIAL Baseball – 04/27/2015
April 27, 2015
Each week during the regular season, MSA Sports will rank the top ten baseball teams in the WPIAL in all four classifications every Monday at www.MSAsports.net Here are this weeks rankings. Log on every day for updated standings and game broadcasts on your exclusive home for the 2015 WPIAL Baseball Playoffs, the MSA Sports Network at MSAsports.net WPIAL CLASS AAAA TOP TEN: 1. MOUNT LEBANON BLUE DEVILS (11-1) (Last Week #1) 2. PLUM MUSTANGS (14-1) (Last Week #2) 3. FRANKLIN REGIONAL PANTHERS (11-2) (Last Week #9)This Week on the MSA Sports Network – 04/26/2015
April 26, 2015
The final full week of section play in both District 7 baseball and softball comes your way as we say so long to a wet April and hello to a hopefully dry and warm May this week here on the MSA Sports Network. We have WPIAL section play from the diamonds in both baseball and softball along with several more Hometown Softball Broadcasts while we also have WPIAL section coverage in boys volleyball and boys lacrosse, plus The WPIAL Baseball Show and the weekly edition of Rappin' on Racin' ALL here at MSAsports.net Monday, April 27th: TALK SHOW - Rappin' on Racin' at 6:00pm on MSAsports.net WPIAL High School Baseball - Canon-McMillan vs Baldwin at 4:00pm on MSAsports.netScholastic Notebook – 04/25/2015
April 25, 2015
It opened some eyes in October when Bailey Parshall accepted a scholarship from the Penn State softball team. Parshall is a freshman and when she accepted the scholarship, she had yet to pitch an inning in high school. But after a month of the WPIAL softball season, it has become clear why Penn State went after Parshall. Parshall already has established herself as one of the WPIAL’s top pitchers – as a ninth-grader. In the latest WPIAL statistics published by the Post-Gazette, Parshall leads the WPIAL in strikeouts with 115 and she is tied for the WPIAL lead in wins. She has a 10-1 record. Chartiers-Houston’s Kaitlyn Dittrich also is 10-1.MSA Sports Top Ten – WPIAL Baseball – 04/20/2015
April 20, 2015
Each week during the regular season, MSA Sports will rank the top ten baseball teams in the WPIAL in all four classifications every Monday at www.MSAsports.net Here are this weeks rankings...including another NEW #1 team in Class AAAA and also in Class AAA. Log on every day for updated standings and game broadcasts on your exclusive home for the 2015 WPIAL Baseball Playoffs, the MSA Sports Network at MSAsports.net WPIAL CLASS AAAA TOP TEN: 1. MOUNT LEBANON BLUE DEVILS (8-1) (Last Week #3) 2. PLUM MUSTANGS (7-1) (Last Week #8) 3. NORWIN KNIGHTS (6-2) (Last Week Unranked)This Week on the MSA Sports Network – 04/19/2015
April 19, 2015
It's another week of Mother Nature vs Spring High School Sports as we close in on the end of a wet month of April this week here on the MSA Sports Network. We have WPIAL section play from the diamonds in both baseball and softball along with several more Hometown Softball Broadcasts, while we also have WPIAL section coverage in boys volleyball and boys lacrosse, plus The WPIAL Baseball Show and the weekly edition of Rappin' on Racin' ALL here at MSAsports.net Monday, April 20th: TALK SHOW - Rappin' on Racin' at 6:00pm on MSAsports.net TALK SHOW - Carlow Sports Talk at 8:30pm on MSAsports.net WPIAL High School Baseball - Thomas Jefferson vs Laurel Highlands at 4:00pm on WMBS-AM 590Scholastic Notebook – 04/17/2015
April 17, 2015
Life in Section 1 of WPIAL Class AAAA baseball is full of close calls. The WPIAL season is a little less than a month old and it’s remarkable how many close games there are in Section 1. Heading into Friday’s action, there have been 12 games played in the section. Two-thirds were decided by two runs or less and five had been decided by one run. The close games certainly reflect the balance of the section. But they also reflect the strength of the section. This should tell you the strength of Section 1: It includes four teams – Moon, North Allegheny, Pine-Richland and Seneca Valley – that have made 17 WPIAL championship appearances in either Class AAAA or AAA over the past 11 years. The other members of the section are North Hills and Butler.MSA Sports Top Ten – WPIAL Baseball – 04/13/2015
April 13, 2015
Each week during the regular season, MSA Sports will rank the top ten baseball teams in the WPIAL in all four classifications every Monday at www.MSAsports.net Here are this weeks rankings...including another NEW #1 team in Class AAAA. Log on every day for updated standings and game broadcasts on your exclusive home for the 2015 WPIAL Baseball Playoffs, the MSA Sports Network at MSAsports.net WPIAL CLASS AAAA TOP TEN: 1. BETHEL PARK BLACK HAWKS (3-1) (Last Week #2) 2. MOON TIGERS (5-1) (Last Week #1) 3. MOUNT LEBANON BLUE DEVILS (5-1) (Last Week #3)This Week on the MSA Sports Network – 04/13/2015
The clouds have parted after a week of washouts and the diamond action gets back into a mid-season groove this week here on the MSA Sports Network. We have WPIAL section play from the diamonds in both baseball and softball along with several more Hometown Softball Broadcasts, while we also have WPIAL section coverage in boys volleyball and boys lacrosse, plus The WPIAL Baseball Show and the weekly edition of Rappin' on Racin' ALL here at MSAsports.net Monday, April 13th: TALK SHOW - Rappin' on Racin' at 6:00pm on MSAsports.net WPIAL High School Baseball - Hempfield vs Penn-Trafford at 4:00pm on MSAsports.netScholastic Notebook – 04/10/2015
April 10, 2015
Beaver Falls High School is trying to make sure the school’s 1975 baseball team won’t be forgotten. At a baseball game in two weeks, the ’75 team that won a WPIAL title will be honored before a Beaver Falls game. No one is quite ready to call this year’s Beaver Falls team championship caliber, but the Tigers are doing a pretty good job of grabbing some attention for themselves. It’s still extremely early in the WPIAL baseball season, but Beaver Falls is 3-0. That might not sound like much, but considering the past few years, it is a gigantic step forward for Beaver Falls.
WPIAL Hall of Fame Class of 2015
April 9, 2015
Four athletes who would later go on to professional careers, several multi-sport athletes, four coaches who won nearly 40 WPIAL championships between them, an old-school baseball player whose son continued his Major League Baseball legacy and a team that won nine WPIAL and PIAA playoff games en route to a state basketball title by an average margin of victory of 25.8. Those are some of the headliners of the WPIAL Hall of Fame class of 2015. The WPIAL held a news conference Thursday morning to announce its ninth annual class. You can watch the video stream archived here on MSA Sports. All inductees will be honored at a banquet June 12 at the Doubletree Hotel in Greentree.MSA Sports Top Ten – WPIAL Baseball – 04/06/2015
April 6, 2015
Each week during the regular season, MSA Sports will rank the top ten baseball teams in the WPIAL in all four classifications every Monday at www.MSAsports.net Here are this weeks rankings. Log on every day for updated standings and game broadcasts on your exclusive home for the 2015 WPIAL Baseball Playoffs, the MSA Sports Network at MSAsports.net WPIAL CLASS AAAA TOP TEN: 1. MOON TIGERS (1-0) (Last Week #1) 2. BETHEL PARK BLACK HAWKS (3-1) (Last Week #3) 3. MOUNT LEBANON BLUE DEVILS (5-1) (Last Week #6) 4. SHALER TITANS (4-1) (Last Week #7)This Week on the MSA Sports Network – 04/05/2015
April 5, 2015
We go hopping back to our normal busy schedule with a post-Easter blossom of spring high school sports action this week here on the MSA Sports Network. We have WPIAL section play from the diamonds in both baseball and softball along with the debut of the 2015 Hometown Softball Broadcasts, while we also have District 7 section coverage in boys volleyball and girls lacrosse, plus The WPIAL Baseball Show and the first gold of the spring is handed out with the 2015 WPIAL Boys Singles Tennis Championships ALL here at MSAsports.net Monday, April 6th: TALK SHOW - Rappin' on Racin' at 6:00pm on MSAsports.net WPIAL High School Baseball - Carmichaels vs McGuffey at 4:00pm on the McGuffey Highlanders Sports Network at MSAsports.netThis Week on the MSA Sports Network – 03/31/2015
March 31, 2015
As March sails off with the chilly wind, we welcome in April with various spring high school sports this holiday week here on the MSA Sports Network. We have the start of secton play in WPIAL baseball along with more section softball action from around the WPIAL, plus we have WPIAL girls lacrosse and the debut of The WPIAL Baseball Show ALL here at MSAsports.net Monday, March 30th: WPIAL High School Softball - McGuffey vs Waynesburg at 4:00pm on Greene Sports Network 3 at MSAsports.net AND on the McGuffey Highlanders Sports Network at MSAsports.netScholastic Notebook – 03/28/2015
March 28, 2015
The best distance runner in WPIAL history might not compete in track this season because of an illness and injuries. That leaves the door open for someone. Madeleine Davison has her foot in the door. Davison is a junior at North Allegheny. While Shaler’s Brianna Schwartz was running her way to records last year, Davison was often close behind, sometimes just a second or two away. Now, Davison could gain a reputation as one of the best distance runners in the WPIAL in recent history.
2015 WPIAL BASEBALL PREVIEW
March 27, 2015
With a new season upon us and WPIAL section play about to begin for most teams next week (weather permitting), MSA Sports takes a look at some of the district baseball players and the teams to watch for this 2015 campaign. Obviously, there are a lot of good players who did not crack the below list, but we will be hearing about them and their diamond successes as the campaign rolls on from the chill of March through the heat of late May. Four teams enter the season looking for back-to-back WPIAL baseball titles as Seneca Valley, West Allegheny, Steel Valley and California look to repeat.
2014 WPIAL BASEBALL REVIEW
March 25, 2015
Wow, what a magical season 2014 turned out to be on the district baseball diamonds. While Brendan McKay had an historic season to cap off a career for the ages, he and his Blackhawk teammates had to settle for silver after losing in the Triple-A finals to a scrappy West Allegheny team. But that wasn't the only surprising championship run as Seneca Valley has a postseason run for the ages to win another district baseball crown, this time from the #16 and final seed in Quad-A. Here is a look back at the 2014 WPIAL Baseball season with final regular season standings along with WPIAL and PIAA playoff results. FINAL 2014 WPIAL REGULAR SEASON BASEBALL STANDINGS:
