A-K Valley WPIAL basketball playoff capsules: Games for Feb. 17, 2025

By: Triblive And Michael Love And Bill Hartlep
Saturday, February 15, 2025 | 3:08 PM

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WPIAL basketball playoffs

Monday’s games

Boys

Class 2A

First round

21-Springdale (14-8) at Northgate (13-8)

7 p.m. Monday

Winner plays: Winner of 4-Neshannock (19-2)/13-Winchester Thurston (16-7) on Thursday in quarterfinals (time, date TBD)

Players to watch: Pat Wylly, Springdale; Kadeen Kemp, Northgate

Layup lines: Springdale advanced into the first round after beating No. 12 Jefferson-Morgan, 42-33, in the preliminary round Thursday. Wylly had 15 points, and Robby Simmen and Liam Dexter each scored seven. The Springdale defense held the Rockets to 12 first-half points. … Northgate finished second in Section 2 with a 10-2 record. The Flames averaged 67.4 points behind Kemp (19.0 ppg) and Ty Daniels (17.9 ppg). They started the season 2-4 after a tough nonsection schedule but rebounded to win five of their next six games. Northgate reached the WPIAL semifinals last season.

SWCAC basketball playoffs

First round

Cheswick Christian Academy (10-0) vs. East Liverpool (4-9)

5 p.m. Monday at Beaver County Christian

Winner plays: Winner of Cornerstone Prep Christian Academy/Jefferson County Christian School at 5 p.m. on Wednesday in semifinals at Cornerstone Prep Christian Academy

Player to watch: Brady Rochkind, Cheswick Christian Academy

Layup lines: Cheswick Christian Academy finished in first place in the Greater Pittsburgh division of the Southwest Christian Academy Conference after going 10-0 in division play. Rochkind scored 20 points in Thursday’s regular-season finale, a 49-42 win over Plants and Pillars. That gave him 999 points for his career. Joseph Rosio added 13 points. … East Liverpool needed a victory late Saturday night to reach the playoffs and be the fourth-place finisher in the Tri-County division of the SWCAC. … The SWCAC championship game is scheduled for 5 p.m. Feb. 22 at Beaver County Christian.

Girls

Class 4A

First round

9-Knoch (12-10) at 8-Laurel Highlands (16-5)

7 p.m. Monday

Winner plays: Winner of 16-Yough (12-11)/1-Blackhawk (20-2) on Thursday in quarterfinals (time, date TBD)

Players to watch: Neah Ewing, Knoch; Miya Harris, Laurel Highlands

Layup lines: Knoch is tied with Riverview for the longest current playoff-qualifying streak among A-K Valley teams. The Knights are in the postseason for the seventh year in a row. That run includes a trip to the WPIAL title game against Blackhawk in 2022. Knoch finished third in Section 1 behind co-champions North Catholic and Oakland Catholic. Ewing, a junior, and senior Karlee Buterbaugh have helped pace the Knights offense. Ewing drained 4 3-pointers and led the way with 13 points in a 37-28 win over Hampton last Monday to cap the regular season. Buterbaugh has committed to the track and field team at Division I Marshall. … Laurel Highlands enters the playoffs on a five-game winning streak. The Mustangs finished third in Section 3 at 11-3 behind champion Elizabeth Forward and runner-up South Park. They defeated No. 6 South Park, 48-31, on Jan. 17. Harris, a senior, scored her 1,000th point in Laurel Highlands’ win over Mt. Pleasant on Jan. 27. The Mustangs led Section 1 in scoring in the regular season at 59.3 points per game.

12-Freeport (6-16) at 5-Beaver (16-5)

7 p.m. Monday

Winner plays: Winner of 13-Hopewell (9-13)/4-Elizabeth Forward (17-5) on Thursday in quarterfinals (time, date TBD)

Players to watch: Nia DiSanti, Freeport; Annsley Baker, Beaver

Layup lines: Freeport is in the playoffs for the first time since 2022, the final season of a five-year postseason run. The Yellowjackets finished tied with Highlands for fifth in the eight-team Section 1. Freeport lost four of five to conclude the regular season but the win in that stretch was a crucial 49-29 victory over the Golden Rams on Feb. 3. DiSanti, a junior, scored a team-best 11 in that game, and freshman Ella Jenkins added 10. Sophomore Lillian Holloway also is one to watch in the Yellowjackets offense. … Beaver suffered a 10-point loss to Aliquippa on Feb. 10, which snapped a five-game winning streak. The Bobcats finished runner-up to No. 1 Blackhawk in Section 2 with the only two losses coming to the Cougars. Baker, a sophomore, leads the way for Beaver with an average of 20.8 points. Junior Ava Wright averages 10.7. The Bobcats captured the 2021 WPIAL Class 4A championship with a win over Quaker Valley in the title game at Peters Township.

11-Burrell (13-9) at 6-South Park (15-5)

7 p.m. Monday

Winner plays: Winner of 14-Mt. Pleasant (6-15)/3-North Catholic (19-3) on Thursday in quarterfinals (time, date TBD)

Players to watch: Julianna Fisher, Burrell; Nika Contakos, South Park

Layup lines: Burrell enters the WPIAL playoffs for the third season in a row based on a fourth-place finish in Section 1 (8-6) behind North Catholic, Oakland Catholic and Knoch. The Bucs were competitive in the games with Knoch losing by just seven the second time around. Wins over Highlands, Derry, Valley and Freeport down the stretch helped Burrell clinch. Fisher, a senior forward, is a strong scoring threat for a balanced Bucs team that averages 43.6 points. The Burrell defense is stingy at 32.4 surrendered per contest. Guards McKenna Miller and Casey Brancato also are at the heart of the Bucs lineup at both ends of the court. … South Park finished runner-up in Section 3 by just one game to Elizabeth Forward, but the teams split their season series. The Eagles beat the Warriors in the section finale Feb. 6. South Park had three players in double figures in the victory: sophomore guard Contakos (16), junior forward/center Bella Stromberg (11) and junior guard/forward Hayley Bennett (10). The Eagles have won three WPIAL titles in the history of the program with the most recent one coming in 2013. South Park made it to last season’s WPIAL Class 3A quarterfinals before falling to Neshannock.

Class A

First round

9-Bishop Canevin (11-9) at 8-Springdale (11-11)

7 p.m. Monday

Winner plays: At Union (22-0) on Thursday in quarterfinals (time TBD)

Players to watch: Ashlyn Ferderbar, Springdale; Natalie Kirsch, Bishop Canevin

Layup lines: Springdale is back in the playoffs after a two-season hiatus. The 2021-22 playoff trip was the only one for the Dynamos in the past 10 years. Springdale won four games in a row before falling to St. Joseph, 46-21, in the Section 1 and regular-season finale Feb. 6. The Dynamos, who finished fourth in Section 1, scored 35.3 points a game in the regular season and gave up 39.5. Ferderbar, the team’s leading scorer who is averaging double figures this season, is the lone senior on a roster with two juniors, four sophomores and four freshmen. … Bishop Canevin earned the No. 5 spot from Section 2 after finishing 6-8. The Crusaders scored at a rate of 46.7 points over their 20 regular-season games. Bishop Canevin split with playoff-bound West Greene late in the regular season. Kirsch, a senior guard/forward, scored a team-best 14 points in the Crusaders’ 35-25 win over West Greene on Jan. 30. Bishop Canevin has won six WPIAL titles, all since 2013. Kirsch and the other seniors were freshmen on the most recent title team in 2022.

11-Sewickley Academy (5-14) at 6-St. Joseph (15-7)

7 p.m. Monday

Winner plays: At 3-Clairton (17-4) on Thursday in quarterfinals (time TBD)

Players to watch: Gia Richter, St. Joseph; Grace Jardini, Sewickley Academy

Layup lines: St. Joseph hopes to make a run to its second straight WPIAL championship game. The Spartans fell to Union in last year’s Class A title clash at Petersen Events Center. The Spartans finished tied with Aquinas Academy for second place in Section 1-A at 11-3 behind champion and No. 1 seed Union (14-0). St. Joseph won eight of its last 10 in the regular season. The losses came to Union and nonsection rival Riverview. Senior Richter, the only starter who returned from last season, leads the Spartans in scoring at 15.5 points a game. Freshman Bella Bartolovic and junior Kasey Cienik also are scoring threats. St. Joseph swept the season series from Sewickley Academy, winning the two matchups by an average of 35.5 points. … The Panthers defeated Leechburg by one point, 36-35, to wrap up the section slate and the regular season. The win snapped Sewickley Academy’s seven-game losing streak. The Panthers averaged just 24.7 points in the regular season, the lowest total in Class A. Only two seniors dot the roster for Sewickley Academy. The other 12 on the roster are either freshmen or sophomores. Jardini, a sophomore forward, scored a team-best 20 points in the win over Leechburg.

Tags: Beaver, Bishop Canevin, Burrell, Cheswick Christian, Freeport, Knoch, Laurel Highlands, Northgate, Sewickley Academy, South Park, Springdale, St. Joseph