WPIAL Class 4A girls basketball breakdown

By: HSSN Staff
Monday, December 3, 2018 | 7:30 PM

Class 4A

Preseason Player of the Year

Kylee Lewandowski, North Catholic

6-1, Sr., guard

15.2 ppg last season

Players to watch

Mackenzie Amalia, Blackhawk

5-5, Jr., G, 17.0 ppg

Mady Aulbach, Blackhawk

5-5, Sr., G, 16.0 ppg

Tess Myers, North Catholic

5-10, Jr., G, 13.8 ppg

Gillian Piccolino, Keystone Oaks

5-11, Sr., G/F, 17.4 ppg

Bri Spirnak, Elizabeth Forward

6-1, Sr., G/F, 20.2 ppg

Preseason Top 5

1. North Catholic (25-4 last season)

Three starters return for the defending WPIAL champion Trojanettes — Lewandowski, Myers and 6-foot-1 forward Dani Short (11.6 ppg). They helped lead North Catholic to the PIAA semifinals. The Trojanettes return eight of 11 players from last season. Myers and Lewandowski were all-section and all-state selections and are Division I recruits.

2. Blackhawk (19-4)

The Cougars return four starters from a team that reached the WPIAL semifinals and PIAA playoffs. The group includes Youngstown State recruit Aulbach and Robert Morris recruit Amalia, who make up one of the WPIAL’s top guard tandems. Both were second-team all-state last year. Guard Olivia Roberts and forward Ava Haddox also return.

3. Elizabeth Forward (15-8)

The Warriors return one of the area’s top athletes in Sprinak, who also is a volleyball and track and field standout.

4. Keystone Oaks (17-6)

The Golden Eagles captured the Section 3 title a year ago and return one of the area’s top players in Piccolino, a Kennesaw State recruit. They averaged nearly 57 points per game last season en route to a PIAA playoff berth. Guards Jaylen Hoffman and Isabella Bogdan also return.

5. Freeport (13-9)

Freeport returns three starters, including all-section junior guard/forward Sidney Shemanski (10.0 ppg), and added Harley Holloway, a transfer from Kiski Area. The 5-7 guard was an all-section selection a year ago and averaged 17.6 points. Twin junior guards Maddie and Samantha Clark also return.

Notable

• WPIAL Class 4A girls basketball went from 22 teams to 23 in three sections.

• Apollo-Ridge moved up from Class 3A. Greensburg Salem, McKeesport, Ringgold, West Mifflin and Indiana dropped from 5A.

• Senior guard Megan Kallock returns to lead Greensburg Salem after averaging 23.5 points last season.

• Cali Konek, a second-team all-state selection for Southmoreland last season, transferred to Franklin Regional, a Class 5A team this winter. The Scotties do return senior Maggie Moore, who averaged 11.1 points and 12.4 rebounds in an all-section campaign.

• Ronnie Drennen takes over as coach at Belle Vernon after five years as an assistant. He faces a bit of a rebuilding project after all five starters graduated.

Alignment

Section 1: Apollo-Ridge, Burrell, Freeport, Greensburg Salem, Highlands, Indiana, Knoch, North Catholic

Section 2: Ambridge, Blackhawk, Central Valley, Hopewell, Keystone Oaks, New Castle, Quaker Valley

Section 3: Belle Vernon, Elizabeth Forward, McKeesport, Mt. Pleasant, Ringgold, Southmoreland, West Mifflin, Yough

— Bill Hartlep

Bill Hartlep is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Bill at bhartlep@tribweb.com or via Twitter @TribHSInsider.