A-K Valley girls soccer preview: Riverview ready for new challenges

By: Michael Love
Thursday, August 22, 2024 | 5:41 PM

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Senior defender/midfielder Katerina Tsambis said she can’t stop smiling when she thinks of Riverview’s run last year to the WPIAL and PIAA Class A title games.

“We just formed such a strong bond throughout the entire season,” Tsambis said. “The way the community supported us was just really special. It’s an experience I’ve talked about for months since then. It was such a great memory.”

The Raiders came close to achieving gold but had to settle for silver against Freedom in the WPIAL championship match at Highmark Stadium and also against Christopher Dock Mennonite in the state-title matchup in Mechanicsburg.

But Tsambis, an all-WPIAL honoree last year, and the other returning players know that life goes on in high school soccer and a new season with new goals and expectations is here.

“We have that same mindset as last year,” she said. “We want to come out strong. We’ve made some adjustments on the field and have things we can still work on, but we can’t be underestimated because of all we have coming back. We know we have a target on our backs, but by working together, we’re ready to take on all those challenges.”

The entire team, except for two key graduates, returns.

Though there are big shoes to fill with the loss of Gatorade Pennsylvania Player of the Year and current Pitt freshman Lola Abraham, who capped her standout three-year Raiders career with 77 goals last year, the team returns the likes of sophomores Mary Quinlan (16 goals, 19 assists) and Hannah Hudack (10 goals 17 assists), all-section picks a year ago, and senior Caily Trosch (13 goals).

Sophomore defender Juliette Brun, senior goalkeeper Ciara Brun and sophomore Emma Battaline also are back for a standout Raiders defense.

Riverview was one of nine Alle-Kiski Valley teams to earn WPIAL playoff berths last year, joining Fox Chapel, Kiski Area, Plum, Freeport, Burrell, Deer Lakes, Knoch and Springdale.

Old rivalries will be renewed, such as the Class A clashes between Riverview and Springdale, and new section matchups will form under the WPIAL’s new two-year alignment plan.

Friday marks the first day of play for teams in the Alle-Kiski Valley and throughout the WPIAL. Section play comes fast as the first games that count towards the playoffs are Monday afternoon and evening.

The top four teams in each section in the four classifications again make the playoffs.

Around the valley

• Fox Chapel, last year’s WPIAL Class 4A champion, moved to Class 3A, and Foxes coach Carlo Prati said a repeat championship performance won’t be easy.

Defending PIAA champion Moon, returning WPIAL champion South Fayette and perennial state power Mars will have something to say about that.

The Foxes will face Mars twice in section play.

Fox Chapel finished last season 14-5-2, stunning North Allegheny, 1-0, in the WPIAL title game before ultimately losing the PIAA quarterfinals to Conestoga.

• Deer Lakes returned to the WPIAL postseason last year after a one-year hiatus ended a five-year playoff-qualifying streak.

The Lancers won four of their final five Section 2-A matches to clinch their spot. They saw their season come to a close with a 3-0 loss to Shady Side Academy in the WPIAL first round.

A trio of juniors — forwards Claire Cacurak and Bry Simonetti and defender Brooke Cacurak — will help lead Deer Lakes into a whole new section and a great deal of travel with games against East Allegheny, Ligioner Valley, Mt. Pleasant, Southmoreland and Yough.

• While Deer Lakes hopes to make it back to WPIALs for the second consecutive season, a series of long playoff streaks will be put to the test.

Plum, which will go after its sixth straight section title this fall against Elizabeth Forward, Franklin Regional, Greensburg Salem, Indiana, West Mifflin and Kiski Area in Section 4-3A, owns the Alle-Kiski Valley’s longest playoff streak with 12 straight appearances.

The Mustangs, who welcome back senior all-star midfielder Serena Carnahan and junior all-section midfielder Gianna Revetta, the leading scorer last year among the returnees with 13 goals, lost just once in the regular season last year.

But they had their streak of WPIAL semifinal appearances stopped at four with a loss to Montour in the quarterfinals.

“Every team and every season is unique,” Plum coach Jamie Stewart said “The seniors every year want to leave a legacy. We have new girls coming in with fresh attitudes ready to work. Every year, we have people stepping up and stepping into roles, and this year is no different. We’ve had many conversations about what everyone wants from this season. What we’re working on as a coaching staff is putting them in the best position to reach their goals.”

• Freeport is out to defend its Section 2-2A championship and reach the WPIAL playoffs for a 12th straight time. The Yellowjackets, under new coach Steve Kukic, welcome back eight starters including all-WPIAL Class 2A performers in sophomore forward Cam Woods and junior midfielder/defender Peyton Los.

Woods had a standout varsity debut last year with a team-best 31 goals to go along with 13 assists.

“We expect to be contenders for both our section and the WPIAL overall,” Kukic said. “I think we are a little under the radar but have a young, talented squad.”

Freeport will try to fend off rivals Burrell, Knoch and Valley, as well as Shady Side Academy and North Catholic in the race for the Section 2 title.

• Burrell, with senior all-WPIAL midfielder Miley Kariotis, a Slippery Rock commit, back for one more varsity season, will try to extend its WPIAL qualifying streak to nine seasons.

Kariotis tallied 10 goals and nine assists as the Bucs finished just one point behind Freeport in the Section 2 title chase before a run to the WPIAL semifinals.

• Kiski Area, which also seeks a ninth consecutive trip to WPIALs, was in a unique situation last year. The Cavaliers didn’t have any seniors and bring back all 11 starters, including senior all-section performers in midfielder Camryn Kunz and defender Alexis Zidek from a team that fell to Plum in the WPIAL first round.

Kunz and Zidek are team captains with fellow seniors Rachael Spaniel and Addison Bell.

“The girls have been working hard all summer,” Cavaliers coach Dave Anderson said. “We added a weightlifting program, so they hit that hard. We had a lot of training on the field. They are ready to show what they’ve been working on and hope it pays off on the scoreboard.”

• Springdale has made the WPIAL playoffs each of the past seven seasons. The Dynamos, in addition to last year’s run to the WPIAL final four, were runners-up to Freedom in the 2022 Class A title game at Highmark Stadium.

The team also reached the WPIAL semifinals in 2021 and the quarterfinals in 2020 and 2018.

Coach Marc Bentley said with all-WPIAL performers in seniors Briana Ross (51 goals, 23 assists in 2023) and Molly Hurley (15 goals, 12 assists) along with junior Hailey Marchlewski (11 goals, eight assists) leading the way, the sky’s the limit for what his team can do.

“We’re really excited to have all the quality back that we’ve had in recent years,” Bentley said. “It’s nice to be able to add some really talented freshmen to the group. Hopefully, it’s going to be an exciting year.”

• Apollo-Ridge moves down to Class A as it hopes to qualify for the WPIAL playoffs for the first time since 2018. The Vikings will take on Riverview, Springdale, The Ellis School, Greensburg Central Catholic, Jeannette and Winchester Thurston.

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, Fox Chapel, Freeport, Highlands, Kiski Area, Leechburg, Plum, Riverview, Springdale