2023 WPIAL Class 6A baseball championship preview: Mt. Lebanon vs. North Allegheny

By: Bill Hartlep
Tuesday, May 30, 2023 | 3:56 PM

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WPIAL Class 6A baseball championship

5-Mt. Lebanon (12-10) vs. 2-North Allegheny (16-6)

7 p.m. Wednesday at Wild Things Park

On the air: Trib HSSN (video)

How they got here: Mt. Lebanon defeated No. 4 Seneca Valley, 2-1, in the quarterfinals and beat No. 1 Pine-Richland, 3-0, in the semifinals; North Allegheny topped No. 7 Norwin, 3-0, in the quarterfinals and No. 6 Butler, 5-2, in the semifinals.

WPIAL titles: Mt. Lebanon 5 (1959, ‘93, 2002, ‘06, ‘22); North Allegheny 8 (1990, ‘91, 96, 2003, ‘05, ‘09, ‘13, ‘21)

Coaches: Patt McCloskey, Mt. Lebanon; Andrew Heck, North Allegheny

Players to watch: David Shields, Mt. Lebanon; Spencer Barnett, North Allegheny

Extra bases: Mt. Lebanon is the defending WPIAL Class 6A champion after defeating Upper St. Clair, 2-1, last season. The Blue Devils are chasing their sixth district title. They started 0-8 this season before winning 10 of the next 11. In the semifinal win over Pine-Richland, Tyler Smith knocked in two runs, and Matthew Delvaux tossed a three-hitter with five strikeouts. Shields, a sophomore pitcher committed to Miami, boasts a 1.17 ERA and 77 strikeouts. … North Allegheny has won a WPIAL-leading eight championships, including the 2021 title. Barnett, a West Virginia recruit, leads the Tigers after batting .431 in the regular season. Andrew Hart, a Gardner-Webb commit, carries a 1.29 ERA on the mound, and junior pitcher J.D. Costanzo, also a WVU recruit, has a 1.47 ERA and 76 strikeouts. The Tigers have won four straight after a 3-2 nonsection loss to Shaler. In the semifinal win over Butler, Andrew Hart was 2 for 3 with an RBI, and David Posey allowed four hits and two runs with seven strikeouts in a complete-game victory.

Bill Hartlep is the TribLive sports editor. A Pittsburgh native and Point Park graduate, he joined the Trib in 2004, covering high school sports. He held various editing roles before assuming his current position in 2019. He can be reached at bhartlep@triblive.com.

Tags: Mt. lebanon, North Allegheny