Fox Chapel, South Fayette again to face off for WPIAL Class 3A girls soccer title

By: Michael Love
Tuesday, October 28, 2025 | 5:18 PM

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Fox Chapel’s and South Fayette’s girls soccer teams will be reacquainted Wednesday night.

The top two seeds in the WPIAL Class 3A playoffs will meet again at Highmark Stadium to decide this year’s champion.

It was just a year ago that the Foxes and Lions clashed in the final, with South Fayette coming out on top 4-0 for its second straight WPIAL crown.

As much as the teams might know about each other, changes that happen to every top team each new season created differences that both coaches, Fox Chapel’s Carlo Prati and South Fayette’s Nick Rosser, recognized.

But with both teams playing high-level soccer heading into the rematch, Prati and Rosser expect a closely contested matchup.

“They are going to be an unbelievable challenge,” said Prati, whose 2023 Foxes team won Class 4A gold before moving down to Class 3A.

“They have so much skill up front with an awesome goalie. They are loaded with talent all over the field. The girls are looking forward to playing them again after last year’s final. We had one of our worst games of the year. But that happens sometimes. They felt the joy of winning a title two years ago and then heartbreak of being so close. They are ready to give a better effort in this year’s final.”

Fox Chapel hopes to win the program’s third WPIAL title and add to the history of the program in the 40th anniversary season of its 1985 championship. As they did last year, the Foxes defeated Plum in the semifinals to get there.

Monday’s 2-1 overtime victory over the Mustangs, one that saw junior striker Emily McKee score her 47th goal of the season in regulation before sophomore Ava Stackhouse netted the game-winner, was the Foxes’ 18th triumph in 20 games.

“We’re so grateful to have the opportunity to be down there for a third year in a row,” Prati said. “There are so many teams that wish they could get to Highmark one time, let alone be there for a third year in a row. Our juniors and seniors have experienced that feeling. It is a pretty amazing feat.”

McKee, a Pitt commit, scored the 100th goal of her career in the quarterfinal win over West Allegheny. She has 12 of her team’s 15 playoff goals through three games.

South Fayette has won 18 games in a row after starting the season with a tie against Class 6A Peters Township and a 2-1 loss to West Allegheny. The Lions, who have 14 goals in their three playoff wins, got scores from sophomore Gabby Beinecke, senior Quinn Miller, freshman Silvi Rossi and senior Mia Deramo in Monday’s 4-1 win over Moon.

Deramo came up big against Fox Chapel with two goals in last year’s title game. Beineke and senior Emma Ferrari added a goal apiece as the Lions scored twice in each half of the shutout.

It’s a quick turnaround for both teams, but Prati and Rosser both acknowledged it’s a similar situation to how the section games were Monday and Wednesday during the regular season.

There is just a little more pressure, they said.

“You would hope that with a big game like this, we would get a little bit more time, but we were able to recover (Tuesday) and stick to our routine,” Rosser said. “The girls are excited and ready to play for another title.”

Last year, the 3A semifinals were on a Tuesday with the finals Saturday. Because of the Riverhounds’ home game Saturday evening, the WPIAL was forced to reconfigure the finals schedule. There will be two games each day Wednesday through Saturday.

“We talked about (Monday) night about when we possibly could play if we win,” Prati said.

“We kind of figured it was going to be Wednesday or Thursday. Both of us are getting the same amount of time to rest and prepare. Neither of us has that advantage. I told the girls that with it being Wednesday, there is less time to overthink stuff and think about all of the what-ifs. They are ready and excited to get going.”

South Fayette had not won a WPIAL title before 2023 when it topped Moon in double overtime at Highmark.

“A lot of the girls have been on these teams that won last year and the year before, but they understood at the start of the season that this year’s team wasn’t the same as last year,” Rosser said.

“It was a whole new start, and the seniors set out with the goal of making what they wanted it to be. The focus was finding themselves and working as a unit. When you lose a few people, it changes everything, and you have to play a different way.”

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, South Fayette