What to watch for in high school sports for Jan. 12, 2021: OLSH, Springdale square off
By:
Monday, January 11, 2021 | 8:16 PM
Springdale’s Demitri Fritch works out next to head coach Aaron Epps during practice last season.
Our Lady of the Sacred Heart and Springdale were on a collision course for a semifinals showdown in last year’s WPIAL Class 2A boys basketball playoffs.
Only problem is the Section 1 co-champion and No. 4 seed Dynamos were stunned by section foe and No. 12 seed Winchester Thurston, 57-54, in a quarterfinals eyebrow raiser.
So the much-anticipated Springdale-OLSH showdown never happened in 2019-2020.
However, now that the defending champion Chargers and Dynamos are Section 1 foes after realignment, the Class 2A powers will meet for the first of at least two times on Tuesday at Springdale.
The game features three of the top guards in the WPIAL in 6-foot-3 senior Demitri Fritch of Springdale and the senior tandem of 6-3 Jake DiMichele and 6-0 Dante Spadafora for OLSH.
You can watch the game on HSSN at 7:30 p.m.
Class A effort
Another early season boys basketball showdown Tuesday is a Section 3-A clash between Top 5 teams in the latest HSSN rankings when Leechburg hosts Eden Christian Academy.
It will be the season opener for the host Blue Devils, who are ranked No. 4 in Class A, while the Warriors, ranked No. 3, are 1-0 after beating Cheswick Christian on Saturday by 44 points.
Each team is led by a standout senior. Dylan Cook averaged 19 points per game for Leechburg last season while Elijah Manges averaged 16 points per game for Eden Christian.
Both teams qualified for the postseason a year ago.
East Hills neighbors
One is a big public school located in Churchill. The other is a small private school located less than six miles away in Shadyside.
The two things Woodland Hills and Winchester Thurston have in common are they are located just east of the city of Pittsburgh, and they both have very good girls basketball programs.
On Tuesday, they meet in a nonsection friendly at Woodland Hills.
The hosts Wolverines are 1-0 and ranked No. 3 in Class 5A while the Bears are also 1-0 and ranked No. 2 in Class 2A.
Tags: Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, Springdale
More Basketball
• Westmoreland high school notebook: Puck drops for area’s PIHL teams• Penn Hills notebook: Basketball grad to play professionally in Ireland
• New coach Gabby Baldasare excited to fill big shoes with North Allegheny girls basketball
• Woodland Hills provides ‘right situation’ for Steve Scorpion’s 2nd chance as head coach
• Gene Brisbane resigns as Derry girls basketball coach
