No. 9 Burrell looks to cap run of upsets with 1st WPIAL girls soccer title

By: Michael Love
Friday, November 1, 2024 | 5:45 PM

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The Burrell girls soccer team made history Tuesday with its dramatic, down-to-the-wire WPIAL Class 2A semifinal victory over South Park at North Allegheny.

The 3-2 win put the ninth-seeded Bucs in the WPIAL title game for the first time in program history.

Burrell (14-5-1) has the chance to add on to its historic run Saturday when it faces No. 2 Quaker Valley (16-2-2) for all the gold at 11 a.m. at Highmark Stadium.

“The talk since Tuesday has been that this is such a special thing for the team and for the program to be in this game for the first time,” Bucs coach Frank Nesko said.

“We also want to keep focus that it is another game for 80 minutes, maybe more, but hopefully not. We’re trying to not make too much out of it where they get too hyped up. But they understand where they are and the opportunity they have in front of them. Now it’s time to go out and finish the job.”

Burrell’s trip to Highmark comes just one year after it lost in the Class 2A semifinals and then fell in the third-place game with a trip to states on the line. There is a feeling of redemption, said senior Miley Kariotis who owns eight goals this season.

“Winning the semifinal game against North Catholic was so exciting. We really celebrated,” Kariotis said. “But we’re not done. We have one more to go, and we want that championship.”

Burrell arrived at the semifinal game off a pair of shutouts — 6-0 in the first round at No. 8 Keystone Oaks and 4-0 over No. 1 Mt. Pleasant in the quarterfinals last Saturday.

On Tuesday, the Bucs trailed North Catholic, 1-0, at halftime before sophomore Parker Moore and senior Maggie Nesko scored early in the second half, both off corner kicks from sophomore Eva Wilson, to give their team the lead.

North Catholic rallied to tie the game.

Sophomore Makiah Buchak, who has a penchant for scoring high-level goals, did it again for her team as she gained possession, made her way through two North Catholic defenders, and buried a shot with 16 seconds left to seal the win. The score was her team-leading 12th of the season.

“It was so close to going to overtime,” Kariotis said. “It was crazy.”

This is the first time the current Burrell players will face Quaker Valley.

“From what our coach has been telling us, Quaker Valley is a pretty fast and aggressive team,” said Maggie Nesko, whose goal in Tuesday’s win was her 11th of the season.

“We know it’s going to be a pretty good and competitive game. We have to be ready to play our best. Going into the playoffs, we knew we were a really good team, and our section really helped us prepare. Our section is probably the best in all of 2A. It didn’t matter if we were the No. 9 seed, the No. 1 or the No. 16. Whatever we were, we knew we had a good chance.”

Quaker Valley, the champion of Section 3, takes a 16-2-2 record into its first WPIAL title-game appearance since 2003. The Quakers seek their first WPIAL title since winning back-to-back crowns in 1991 and 1992 when there was just the 3A classification.

They beat Mt. Lebanon for both titles before the Blue Devils returned the favor in 1993.

QV came up short against Springdale in 1996. It was the first Class 2A title game after the WPIAL expanded to two classifications.

The Quakers lost to neighboring rival Sewickley Academy in both 2002 and 2003.

“The girls’ energy level is through the roof,” said co-head coach Rachel Loudermilk, who saw her team defeat No. 6 North Catholic, 2-0, in Tuesday’s second semifinal at North Allegheny.

“At the beginning of the year, we let the girls set goals for what they wanted to see from the season. This was their goal. This is what they had their mind set on. Everything we did this season was going to work toward making it to the WPIAL finals and playing at Highmark.”

Quaker Valley, as the No. 9 seed last year, fell to eventual champion Avonworth in the quarterfinals. A new champion in Class 2A was guaranteed Oct. 22 when Deer Lakes scored a 1-0 first-round win over the Antelopes.

Quaker Valley’s win Tuesday avenged a 2-1 nonconference loss to North Catholic from Sept. 7.

Freshman Lily Baker and sophomore Annabel Miko each scored a goal to help lift the Quakers to their third shutout of the playoffs and 15th clean sheet overall. QV shut out No. 15 Southmoreland, 4-0, in the first round and No. 7 Deer Lakes, 1-0, in the quarterfinals.

Freshman Ava Hajok scored the winning goal for the Quakers, who haven’t lost in their last 12 games (11-0-1). Junior keeper Clara Herman also has helped win games for QV this season.

“Our win Tuesday was a long time coming,” Quakers co-head coach Maggie Behum said. “Both teams always test each other, but for this round, QV earned the win fair and square.”

“We have a long history with North Catholic as both teams used to be in the same section,” Loudermilk said. “We knew the rematch was going to be tough. We did our homework, and we knew what we needed to do to get the win. The girls didn’t let down the whole game, especially when we got the lead.”

Playing the second game Tuesday, QV coaches and players were able to get a quick look at Burrell in action.

“The girls took some mental notes on them, and we did, too,” Behum said. “We look forward to a good soccer game on Saturday.”

“With Burrell not being (to the title game) before, they are going to come in super motivated,” Loudermilk said. “They are playing so strong right now. They are such a tough team. This game is going to come down to toughness, drive and who can hold it together the best for 80 minutes.”

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

Tags: Burrell, Quaker Valley