A-K Valley WPIAL softball playoff capsules: Games for Monday, May 15, 2023

By: Michael Love
Sunday, May 14, 2023 | 4:15 PM

WPIAL softball playoffs

Class 5A

8-Thomas Jefferson (13-5) vs. 9-Plum (10-6)

3 p.m. Monday at Gateway

Winner plays: Winner of 1-Armstrong (16-1)/16-Upper St. Clair (8-8) Wednesday (time/site TBD) in quarterfinals

Players to Watch: Taylor Lorish, Plum; Olivia Stock, Thomas Jefferson

Extra bases: Plum is in the WPIAL playoffs for the fourth year in a row. The Mustangs last won a playoff game in 2017 when they defeated Thomas Jefferson in a Class 5A first-round game. Plum won its last three Section 1 games to secure third place. Lorish, fellow senior Mackenzie Lang and sophomore Dani Pici are among Plum’s top hitters, and Mustangs pitcher Riley Stephans is just a freshman. … Thomas Jefferson made the Class 5A quarterfinals last year before losing to WPIAL champion and PIAA runner-up Armstrong. This year’s Jaguars team finished second to No. 3 Trinity in Section 4 at 7-3 and won five of its final six regular-season games. The only loss was 1-0 to Trinity on May 5. Stock, a sophomore; junior Emma DeSimone; sophomore Ali Chalovich; and freshman Addi Bracco pace a Jaguars offense batting .325 as a team.

Class 5A

4-West Allegheny (18-1) vs. 13-Fox Chapel (8-11)

5 p.m. Monday at Montour

Winner plays: Winner of 5-North Hills (14-3)/12-South Fayette (10-9) Wednesday (site/time TBD) in quarterfinals.

Players to Watch: Hunter Taylor, Fox Chapel; Aubrey Police, West Allegheny

Extra bases: Fox Chapel finished fourth in Section 1 at 4-6 and completed season sweeps of Oakland Catholic and Penn Hills. The Foxes also challenged section champion Shaler in a 4-1 loss April 21. Fox Chapel is in the WPIAL playoffs for the third year in a row. Hunter Taylor, a senior, leads the team from the pitching circle and also is the cleanup hitter. Sophomore Adina Rosen also is a potent bat for the Foxes. … West Allegheny went 10-0 to win Section 3 over playoff qualifiers Western Beaver (5-5), South Fayette (5-5) and Moon (5-5). The Indians’ lone loss during the regular season was to Class 4A No. 2 seed Montour. The Indians won three straight WPIAL titles from 2017-19. Senior AJ. Arnal, sophomore Savanna Benish and junior Adriana Vicari-Baker connected on home runs as West Allegheny closed out the regular season with a wild 13-12 win over Hopewell last Tuesday.

Class 4A

6-Knoch (10-8) vs. 11-Uniontown (5-9)

4 p.m. Monday at West Mifflin

Winner plays: 3-Chartiers Valley (16-2) Wednesday (time/site TBD) in quarterfinals

Players to watch: Lindsay Edwards, Knoch; Sequioia Dunlap, Uniontown

Extra bases: Knoch shared the Section 1 title with West Mifflin. The Knights won 10 of their final 13 games after an 0-5 start. Knoch qualified for the WPIAL playoffs for the ninth year in a row. Edwards, a senior outfielder; junior outfielder Brynne Smith; and freshman pitcher Marlee Fraser lead at the plate for the Knights, who hope to make it to the quarterfinal round for the fourth time in the past five seasons. … Uniontown finished fourth in Section 2 at 5-6. The Red Raiders hope to snap a four-game losing streak. Uniontown is in the WPIAL playoffs for the first time since 2018. The Red Raiders were winless last year at 0-12.

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: Fox Chapel, Knoch, Plum, Thomas Jefferson, Uniontown, West Allegheny