A-K Valley high school basketball playoff preview capsules for Feb. 25, 2026

By: Michael Love
Tuesday, February 24, 2026 | 3:59 PM

WPIAL basketball playoffs

Girls

Class A

Fifth-place consolation

7-Sewickley Academy (15-10) at 5-St. Joseph (14-10)

7 p.m. Wednesday

Winner plays: District 10 champion in PIAA first round March 7 (time, site TBD)

Loser plays: District 9 champion in PIAA first round March 7 (time, site TBD)

Players to watch: Kasey Cienik, St. Joseph; Nina Caputo, Sewickley Academy

Layup lines: St. Joseph clinched its fifth straight trip to the PIAA playoffs with Monday’s 61-48 home victory over Eden Christian. It was the Spartans’ third win over Eden this season and the 10th time they scored 60 or more points. St. Joseph continued a shared scoring trend with four players finishing in double figures. Sophomore Bella Bartolovic led all scorers with 24 points, while Cienik, a senior, added 14. Junior Jocelyn Spinelli and sophomore Gemma Hornack added 11 and 10 points, respectively. The Spartans split with Sewickley Academy in the regular season, losing 51-45 at home in early January before scoring a 53-39 win in the rematch Feb. 2. … Sewickley Academy bounced back from a tough four-point loss to No. 2 Serra Catholic in the championship quarterfinals with Monday’s 57-32 win over West Greene. Caputo, a freshman guard, led the Panthers with 19 points, and freshman forward Mikaela Mbandi added 16 in the victory. Another freshman, Athena Ameredas, scored 15 in the loss to Serra Catholic. The win clinched a spot in the PIAA playoffs for Sewickley Academy for the first time since 2020. The Panthers fell to District 9 champion North Clarion in the first round just days before the entire PIAA playoff schedule was canceled in wake of the expanding covid pandemic.

Boys

Class 4A

Third-place consolation

13-Deer Lakes (12-13) at 2-North Catholic (18-6)

7:30 p.m. Wednesday

Winner plays: District 10 runner-up in PIAA first round March 6 (time, site TBD)

Loser plays: District 5 or 6 champion in PIAA first round March 6 (time, site TBD)

Players to watch: Evan Moore, Deer Lakes; Jason Fredericks, North Catholic

Layup lines: Deer Lakes moved into the WPIAL consolation bracket after falling 44-42 to Quaker Valley in the semifinals Saturday. Evan Moore scored 15 points to lead the Lancers. Deer Lakes had lost its final three games of the regular season but bounced back to upset Derry and Hopewell in the first two rounds of the playoffs. … North Catholic dropped a 70-46 decision to Knoch in the semifinals Saturday. Jason Fredericks had 22 points for the Trojans, who fell behind 36-16 in the first half. The Trojans won both meetings against the section rival Lancers this season — 80-67 on Jan. 13 and 81-77 on Feb. 6. North Catholic shared the Section 1 title with WPIAL finalist Knoch.

Tags: Deer Lakes, North Catholic, Sewickley Academy, St. Joseph