WPIAL reveals new basketball sections for 2020-21 season

By: Chris Harlan
Tuesday, May 12, 2020 | 9:47 AM

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Central Catholic coach Brian Urso will use this stay-at-home time to binge watch some game film. He spent his first season at Central learning all about the boys basketball teams to the north and now will study Westmoreland County.

“I‘ll have the time,” Urso said.

The WPIAL revealed updated boys and girls basketball section alignments Tuesday and almost every team has at least one new opponent for the 2020-21 season. Some found themselves in an entirely new section.

In fact, only one section saw no changes.

“Playing against different opponents every couple of years is actually a good thing,” Urso said. “You get to see what else is out there. You have a chance to re-energize your guys for scouting reports and preparation and new venues and new student sections.”

Central Catholic was one of the teams that joined an entirely new section. The Vikings went from a Class 6A section with northern schools to one that’s centered farther the east. They join Fox Chapel, Greensburg Salem, Hempfield, Norwin and Penn-Trafford after sharing a section last season with Butler, Pine-Richland, North Allegheny, North Hills and Seneca Valley.

“I’m excited for the change,” Urso said.

The trickiest part of this year’s realignment was deciding how many sections each classification should have, WPIAL associate executive director Amy Scheuneman said. In boys and girls, Classes 5A and 2A increased from three sections to four because the number of teams in those classifications grew.

For scheduling purposes, the WPIAL limited sections to eight teams or fewer. That became an issue in Class 6A boys, where there are only 17 teams, forcing the WPIAL to create small sections of five, six and six.

“The number of teams in some classifications — like 6A — created a lot of debate and discussion,” Scheuneman said. “Nobody wants a five-team section, but you also can’t have a nine-team section because we’d have too many play dates.”

The WPIAL decided to shift Central Catholic east to better balance the sections competitively. The WPIAL doesn’t always have the ability to consider section strength during realignment but does so when possible.

“Three factors decide your sections,” Scheuneman said. “One is the amount of teams — you try to keep sections similarly sized when possible. Geography is your driving force and then competitive balance.

“Competitive balance is usually the last factor,” she added, “because you can’t push people all over the district.”

The girls sections released Tuesday were finalized, but the boys alignment included one variable, with Lincoln Park temporarily listed in both Class 4A and 3A, depending on whether the PIAA competitive-balance rule forces the Leopards into a higher classification.

The PIAA will hear Lincoln Park’s appeal next week. Once that’s decided, the WPIAL can release schedule grids for all teams, Scheuneman said. The WPIAL also must decide how many teams from each section qualify for the playoffs. That will be discussed Monday by the WPIAL board of directors, she said.

Four reigning WPIAL champions switched sections. The Highlands boys jump to Section 4-5A, the North Catholic boys join Section 1-4A, the North Catholic girls fall to Section 1-3A and the Bishop Canevin girls drop to Section 1-A.

The only section to return unchanged was Section 2-6A boys.

• Class 5A boys saw a number of newcomers with New Castle, Latrobe and Highlands joining the classification. New Castle and Highlands moved up, and Latrobe dropped from 6A.

• Lincoln Park essentially could replace New Castle in Section 2-4A boys, joining a section that includes Quaker Valley. Or, if the PIAA grants Lincoln Park’s appeal, the Leopards would be in Section 1-3A with Beaver Falls, Ellwood City and others.

• Beaver County rivals Aliquippa and Beaver Falls are headed to separate boys sections in Class 3A. The Quips move to Section 2.

• The Springdale and Riverview boys have some road trips ahead. They join a Class 2A section that stretches from Our Lady of the Sacred Heart in the west to Shenango in the north.

• Class 6A girls drops from 16 to 15 schools after Connellsville and Fox Chapel fall to 5A, and Penn-Trafford moves up. The largest classification still will have two sections, one with seven teams and another with eight.

• Ligonier Valley, in its first WPIAL season, will play in Section 3-3A (boys) and Section 3-4A (girls).

• Beaver moves up and joins a traditionally strong Class 4A girls section with Blackhawk and Central Valley.

• North Catholic, which won WPIAL Class 4A last season, drops to Class 3A based on the school’s enrollment size. The team joins a section with defending WPIAL champion Mohawk.

BOYS BASKETBALL

Class 6A

Section 1

Butler, North Allegheny, North Hills, Pine-Richland, Seneca Valley

Section 2

Baldwin, Bethel Park, Canon-McMillan, Mt. Lebanon, Peters Township, Upper St. Clair

Section 3

Central Catholic, Fox Chapel, Greensburg Salem, Hempfield, Norwin, Penn-Trafford

Class 5A

Section 1

Albert Gallatin, Connellsville, Laurel Highlands, Ringgold, Thomas Jefferson, West Mifflin

Section 2

Chartiers Valley, Moon, New Castle, South Fayette, Trinity, West Allegheny

Section 3

Franklin Regional, Gateway, Latrobe, Kiski Area, McKeesport, Penn Hills, Woodland Hills

Section 4

Armstrong, Hampton, Highlands, Indiana, Mars, Plum, Shaler

Class 4A

Section 1

Burrell, Deer Lakes, Derry, Freeport, Keystone Oaks, Knoch, North Catholic

Section 2

Ambridge, Beaver, Blackhawk, Central Valley, Hopewell, Lincoln Park*, Montour, Quaker Valley

Section 3

Belle Vernon, Elizabeth Forward, Mt. Pleasant, South Park, Southmoreland, Uniontown, Yough

Class 3A

Section 1

Beaver Falls, Ellwood City, Laurel, Lincoln Park*, Mohawk, Neshannock, Riverside

Section 2

Aliquippa, Avonworth, Freedom, New Brighton, Seton LaSalle, Summit Academy

Section 3

Apollo-Ridge, East Allegheny, Ligonier Valley, Shady Side Academy, South Allegheny, Steel Valley, Valley

Section 4

Beth-Center, Brentwood, Brownsville, Charleroi, McGuffey, Washington, Waynesburg

Class 2A

Section 1

OLSH, Riverview, Sewickley Academy, Shenango, South Side, Springdale

Section 2

Burgettstown, Carlynton, Chartiers-Houston, Fort Cherry, Northgate, Sto-Rox

Section 3

Clairton, Greensburg Central Catholic, Jeannette, Propel Braddock Hills, Serra Catholic, Winchester Thurston

Section 4

Bentworth, California, Carmichaels, Frazier, Jefferson-Morgan, Monessen

Class A

Section 1

Cornell, Nazareth Prep, Quigley, Rochester, Union, Western Beaver

Section 2

Avella, Bishop Canevin, Geibel, Mapletown, Propel Montour, West Greene

Section 3

Aquinas Academy, Eden Christian, Imani Christian, Leechburg, Neighborhood Academy, St. Joseph, Propel Andrew Street

GIRLS BASKETBALL

Class 6A

Section 1

Butler, North Allegheny, North Hills, Norwin, Penn-Trafford, Pine-Richland, Seneca Valley, Shaler

Section 2

Baldwin, Bethel Park, Canon-McMillan, Hempfield, Mt. Lebanon, Peters Township, Upper St. Clair

Class 5A

Section 1

Chartiers Valley, Lincoln Park, Moon, Oakland Catholic, South Fayette, West Allegheny

Section 2

Armstrong, Fox Chapel, Hampton, Indiana, Kiski, Mars, Plum

Section 3

Albert Gallatin, Connellsville, Laurel Highlands, Ringgold, Thomas Jefferson, Trinity, Uniontown

Section 4

Franklin Regional, Gateway, Latrobe, Greensburg Salem, McKeesport, Penn Hills, Woodland Hills

Class 4A

Section 1

Burrell, Deer Lakes, Derry, Freeport, Highlands, Knoch, Valley

Section 2

Ambridge, Beaver, Blackhawk, Central Valley, Hopewell, Montour, New Castle, Quaker Valley

Section 3

Belle Vernon, Elizabeth Forward, Ligonier Valley, Mt. Pleasant, Southmoreland, West Mifflin, Yough

Class 3A

Section 1

Beaver Falls, Ellwood City, Freedom, Laurel, Mohawk, North Catholic, Riverside

Section 2

Bentworth, Brownsville, Charleroi, McGuffey, South Park, Washington, Waynesburg

Section 3

Avonworth, Brentwood, East Allegheny, Keystone Oaks, Shady Side Academy, South Allegheny, Steel Valley

Class 2A

Section 1

Aliquippa, Neshannock New Brighton, OLSH, Sewickley Academy, Shenango, South Side

Section 2

Beth-Center, California, Carmichaels, Frazier, Serra Catholic, Seton LaSalle

Section 3

Burgettstown, Carlynton, Chartiers-Houston, Fort Cherry, Northgate, Sto-Rox

Section 4

Apollo-Ridge, Ellis School, Greensburg Central Catholic, Jeannette, Springdale, Winchester Thurston

Class A

Section 1

Bishop Canevin, Cornell, Eden Christian, Quigley, Rochester, Union

Section 2

Avella, Geibel, Jefferson-Morgan, Mapletown, Monessen, West Greene

Section 3

Aquinas Academy, Clairton, Leechburg, Propel Andrew Street, Riverview, St. Joseph

Chris Harlan is a TribLive reporter covering sports. He joined the Trib in 2009 after seven years as a reporter at the Beaver County Times. He can be reached at charlan@triblive.com.