A-K Valley high school soccer playoff preview capsules for Oct. 25, 2025

By: Triblive And Michael Love And Bill Hartlep
Friday, October 24, 2025 | 6:05 PM

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WPIAL soccer playoffs

Boys

Class 4A

Quarterfinals

6-Norwin (11-5-3) at 3-Plum (14-2-2)

2 p.m. Saturday, Mustang Stadium, Plum

Winner plays: Winner of 10-Pine-Richland (6-10-2)/2-Fox Chapel (14-2) in semifinals (date/time/site TBD)

Players to watch: Ian Natale, Norwin; Austin Kolankowski, Plum

Throw-ins: Norwin shook off a slow start to blank Woodland Hills, 4-0, in the first round for its eighth straight shutout. Natale and Danny Metzger each scored two goals, and Tanner Johnson, Obarra Owolabi and Jack Lepore notched assists. The Knights are 0-1-1 against Plum this season, losing 1-0 at home and tying the Mustangs, 0-0, on the road. … Plum will resume play after a first-round bye. The Mustangs reached the WPIAL final last year before falling to Fox Chapel, 1-0. Plum has won seven straight section titles. Christian Alter scored the only goal in 180 minutes against the Knights this season. The goal, which ricocheted off his head and into the net in the 76th minute, came late in regulation in the teams’ first matchup when a handball was called on Norwin near the corner of the box. Hudson “Andy” Strasser had the assist.

10-Pine-Richland (6-10-2) at 2-Fox Chapel (14-2)

Noon Saturday, Burke Stadium, Fox Chapel

Winner plays: Winner of 3-Plum (14-2-2)/6-Norwin (11-5-3) in semifinals (date/time/site TBD)

Players to watch: Jack Kichi, Pine-Richland; Brady Matthews, Fox Chapel

Throw-ins: Pine-Richland opened the playoffs with a victory over No. 7 Mt. Lebanon. After playing to a 1-1 tie after regulation and overtime, the Rams won 4-2 on penalty kicks. Kichi scored in regulation. Pine-Richland lost 1-0 to Mt. Lebanon in the regular-season finale before avenging that defeat in the first round. The Rams finished fourth in Section 3 at 2-7-1. They average 1.5 goals and allow 2.0. … Defending WPIAL champion Fox Chapel is in the WPIAL playoffs for the 25th consecutive season. The Foxes had a first-round bye and haven’t played since a 3-1 loss to West Allegheny on Oct. 15. The Foxes swept Pine-Richland in Section 3-4A play, winning 5-0 on Sept. 4 and 1-0 on Sept. 25. The Foxes won 14 straight games after a 3-2 season-opening loss to Canon-McMillan. The Foxes won Section 3 at 10-0. They outscored section opponents 28-8. The Foxes won their first WPIAL title since 1995 last season.

Girls

Class 2A

Quarterfinals

8-Burrell (10-6-2) at 1-South Park (19-0)

Noon Saturday, Eagle Stadium, South Park

Winner plays: Winner of 12-Shady Side Academy (8-9)/5-South Park (19-0) in semifinals (date/time/site TBD)

Players To watch: McKenna Miller, Burrell; Reese Recker, South Park

Throw-ins: Burrell and South Park are no strangers to each other. The teams met in a classic semifinal contest last year. Junior Makiah Buchak won it for the Bucs and sent them on to Highmark Stadium with a goal with 16 seconds left in regulation for a 3-2 victory. … Buchak did it again for the Bucs with the lone goal, off of an assist from sister, Myla, in Tuesday’s first-round 11-2 home win over Belle Vernon. Junior Leah Waldsmith picked up the win in goal. Regular keeper Casey Brancato was out with an injury suffered late in the regular season. Burrell also hopes history repeats itself from last year as the Bucs reached the semifinals with an upset of No. 1 Mt. Pleasant. … South Park remained the only undefeated WPIAL girls soccer team with a 3-0 first-round triumph over No. 16 Yough. Recker, a sophomore, scored the first goal for the Eagles, and senior Ella Voyten scored the next two. Senior Gianna Cardillo is hard to beat in goal for South Park. Senior midfielder Arianna Beck also is one to keep an eye on. The Eagles have outscored opponents 104-3 this season. South Park is going after its sixth WPIAL title and first since 2018.

7-North Catholic (13-5) at 2-Freeport (16-1)

Noon Saturday, Freeport Area Athletic Stadium, Freeport High School

Winner plays: Winner of 3-Quaker Valley (13-2-1)/6-Central Valley (13-3-1) in semifinals (date/site/time TBD)

Players to watch: Cam Woods, Freeport; Simone Sharpless, North Catholic

Throw-ins: Freeport swept the Section 2 season series over North Catholic with wins of 4-0 and 2-0. The Yellowjackets posted their 12th shutout of the season Tuesday with an 11-0 first-round victory over No. 16 Ringgold. Freeport unleashed its well-known offense abilities, fronted by its leading scorer, junior Woods, who tallied a hat trick in the win over the Rams. Nia DiSanti and Brinley Sullivan each added a pair of goals. Starting goalkeeper Alyssa Alcorn and backup Sophia Crawford combined on the shutout. Freeport has won 15 games in a row. The Yellowjackets will play in the quarterfinals for the fourth year in a row. Last year, as the No. 4 seed, Freeport fell to No. 5 South Park, 5-1. …. North Catholic finished as runner-up to Freeport in Section 2. The Trojanettes won seven of nine games to close out the regular season and edged Beaver, 2-1, in the first round Tuesday at Deer Lakes High School. Sharpless, a senior and Western Michigan commit, tallied a goal and an assist in the win, and fellow senior Reagan Young added a goal. North Catholic made the WPIAL semifinals last year and upset No. 3 Beaver in the quarterfinals. The Trojanettes rebounded from a semifinal loss to Quaker Valley with a victory in the third-place consolation to qualify for the PIAA tournament.

Class A

Quarterfinals

5-Riverside (9-3-1) at 4-Springdale (11-1-1)

Noon Saturday, Springdale High School Athletic Field, Springdale

Winner plays: Winner of 9-Carlynton (11-7-1)/1-Sewickley Academy (16-1) in semifinals (date/site/time TBD)

Players to watch: Hailey Marchlewski, Springdale; Ashley Hare, Riverside

Throw-ins: Springdale began its title defense with a 2-1 victory over Chartiers-Houston on home turf Tuesday. Marchlewski, a senior, scored in the 78th minute to break a 1-1 tie and help the Dynamos avoid overtime. Sophomore Ainsley Wade scored for Springdale in the first half. The Dynamos remained undefeated against Class A teams this season. Tuesday’s game was Springdale’s first playoff contest at home since 2009. Springdale has won its past four WPIAL quarterfinal games. The Dynamos are in the WPIAL playoffs for the ninth year in a row. … Riverside advanced to the quarterfinals with a 2-1 victory over Riverview. The game went to a shootout after 110 minutes of play. Emma Stockton converted her shot in the first sudden-death round to lift the Panthers to the shootout win 5-4. Riverside entered the playoffs as the Section 1 champion. The Panthers have won two in a row after a three-game losing streak. Two of the three losses came to Class 2A playoff qualifiers Beaver and Central Valley, and the other was to section rival and playoff qualifier OLSH. The Panthers have outscored opponents 31-11 over 13 games this season. Riverside, as the No. 12 seed, lost to Sewickley Academy in last year’s first round.

Tags: Burrell, Fox Chapel, Freeport, North Catholic, Pine-Richland, Plum, Riverside, South Park, Springdale