Girls soccer quarterfinal playoff preview capsules for Westmoreland County

By: HSSN Staff
Wednesday, October 25, 2017 | 1:12 PM

Class AAAA

WPIAL quarterfinals

No. 2 Penn-Trafford (14-3-1) vs. No. 7 Fox Chapel (13-5-1)

8 p.m. Thursday at Norwin

Winner plays: No. 11 Upper St. Clair (10-5-2)/No. 3 Peters Township (15-3) winner Monday in semifinals

Free kicks: Penn-Trafford and Fox Chapel met at the end of the regular season, and the Foxes won 2-1 in overtime. Hannah Nguyen, a Duquesne recruit, recorded a hat trick in the Warriors' 6-1 victory over Penn Hills in the first round Monday, giving her 20 goals. Jordan Lawrence, Brady Tramuta (Seton Hill) and Lauren Stovar (Army) also scored for Penn-Trafford. Stovar has 12 goals and nine assists. The Warriors, who last made the semifinals in 2014, lost to Fox Chapel in the first round in 2015. … Fox Chapel outscored Butler, 4-2, in penalty kicks to earn a 2-1 win Monday. Katie Livingston had the match-clinching PK. Sabrina McQuarrie, Maura Curry and Claudia DeMartino also scored on their PK attempts, and Abby Pogue scored in regulation. The Foxes have made the semifinals each of the past two seasons.

No. 12 Kiski Area (11-6) vs. No. 4 Norwin(15-1-1)

8 p.m. Thursday at PENN-TRAFFORD

Winner plays: No. 1 Pine-Richland (16-1-1)/No. 9 North Allegheny (11-6-1) winner Monday in semifinals

Free kicks: The Section 4 rivals will meet for the third time. Norwin won the two regular-season meetings, 5-0 and 4-2. The second meeting represented the most goals Norwin surrendered in a game all season. Two-time defending WPIAL champion Norwin opened its title defense with a 6-1 victory over Canon-McMillan. Emily Harrigan and Lexy Kendro both scored a pair of goals. The Knights have outscored their opponents 91-7. … Kiski Area is coming off a 2-1 upset of No. 5 Mt. Lebanon. Senior Lexi Moyer scored both goals for the Cavaliers. It was their first playoff victory since 2005. Kiski Area has 63 goals this season.

Class AAA

WPIAL quarterfinals

No. 7 Franklin Regional (11-5-1) vs. No. 2 Mars (14-1)

6 p.m. Thursday at Hampton

Winner plays: No. 3 South Park (15-2-1)/No. 11 Thomas Jefferson (16-3) winner Monday in semifinals

Free kicks: Franklin Regional will try to solve Section 1 rival Mars after going 0-2 against the Planets in the regular season. The Panthers won their first postseason game in eight years when they downed Mt. Pleasant, 4-1, on Monday. Victoria Rothrauff and Bella Larese scored a pair of goals each. Franklin Regional last played in the quarterfinals in 2004. The Panthers ended Mars' 85-game section winning streak last year. … Ellie Coffield had a hat trick, and Maggie Williams scored twice as Mars rolled past Laurel Highlands, 8-0, in the first round on Monday. The Planets went undefeated in Section 1 and did not allow a goal during section play. Goalie Claire Valentine has surrendered only six goals all season. Mars has won four WPIAL titles in the last eight years.

Class AA

WPIAL quarterfinals

No. 5 Burrell (12-3-1) vs. No. 4 Yough (13-2)

6 p.m. Thursday at Norwin

Winner plays: No. 1 Freedom (17-0)/No. 9 Brownsville (14-4-1) winner Monday in semifinals

Free kicks: Burrell is coming off a 5-0 victory over Charleroi in the first round, the Bucs' first WPIAL playoff win since 2007. Leesha Wagner led the offensive attack with two goals. The Bucs lost to Charleroi in the 2016 first round. Burrell has won 12 of its last 13 games, including the past seven. The Bucs are outscoring their opponents 35-7 during their current winning streak. Two of their losses came against second-seeded Freeport. … Yough had a first-round bye after finishing second in Section 3-AA. The team's two losses came against No. 3 seed Waynesburg. A large number of freshmen and sophomores are Yough's top contributors. Justine Appolonia, daughter of coach Dann Appolonia, is the Cougars' top scorer. Yough advanced to the WPIAL quarterfinals last season.

District 6 quarterfinals

No. 10 Ligonier Valley (8-5-5) vs. No. 2 Central (15-2-1)

8 p.m. Thursday at Altoona's Mansion Park

Winner plays: No. 3 Central Cambria (12-5-1)/No. 6 Penn Cambria (9-7) winner Monday in semifinals

Free kicks: Mia Lynn scored a hat trick to lead Ligonier Valley to a 3-0 victory over No. 7 Forest Hills in the preliminary round Tuesday night. Lynn has 19 goals and 13 assists to lead the team in both categories. Olivia Anto has added 10 goals and three assists. Against WPIAL competition, the Rams earned three wins over Derry this season and tied Hempfield, 1-1, and Indiana, 2-2. They also lost to Indiana. … Central's only losses came to Altoona and Hollidaysburg during a tournament Sept. 16. The Dragons finished 13-0-1 in the Mountain Athletic Conference. Junior Ashley Negley scored 27 goals this season and has 10 assists.

Class A

WPIAL quarterfinals

No. 3 Greensburg Central Catholic (12-3) vs. No. 6 Vincentian (12-4)

6 p.m. Thursday at PENN-TRAFFORD

Winner plays: No. 2 Cardinal Wuerl North Catholic (14-4)/No. 10 OLSH (11-5-3) winner Monday in semifinals

Free kicks: The Centurions and Royals met twice in the playoffs last year with Greensburg Central Catholic winning both times, 5-0 in the WPIAL semifinals and 2-1 in the PIAA quarterfinals. GCC will look to advance to the semifinals for the eighth consecutive season after a 7-1 win over Eden Christian in the first round on Monday. Sydney Ward scored twice and Sarah Orndoff, Sam Felder, Alexa Scherwa, Jesse Bodine and Ashley McWilliams all scored once. The Centurions have won four WPIAL titles in the last six years. … Lauren Donnelly and Liz Gorman scored for Vincentian Academy in a 2-1 first-round victory over Bishop Canevin. The Royals are in the quarterfinals for the third consecutive season. Vincentian Academy finished second in Section 3 behind Cardinal Wuerl North Catholic.

— Jerin Steele

Tags: Burrell, Fox Chapel, Franklin Regional, Greensburg C.C., Kiski School, Ligonier Valley, Mars, Norwin, Penn-Trafford, Vincentian Academy, Yough