High school roundup for Feb. 21, 2024: Shady Side Academy girls escape OLSH upset bid
By:
Wednesday, February 21, 2024 | 10:49 PM
Neighborhood Academy’s Courtney Wallace drops a shot over Aquinas Academy’s Jonah Burchill during a WPIAL Class A quarterfinal Wednesday at Norwin.
Neighborhood Academy’s Junior Onwubiko and Derick Hardeman defend on Aquinas Academy’s Joshua Schlemmer during a WPIAL Class A quarterfinal Wednesday at Norwin.
Neighborhood Academy’s Shamar Simpson fouls Aquinas Academy’s Joshua Schlemmer during a WPIAL Class A quarterfinal Wednesday at Norwin.
Neighborhood Academy’s Courtney Wallace defends on Aquinas Academy’s Sam Duer during a WPIAL Class A quarterfinal Wednesday at Norwin.
Neighborhood Academy’s Junior Onwubiko fouls Aquinas Academy’s Jacob Guillen during a WPIAL Class A quarterfinal Wednesday at Norwin.
Neighborhood Academy’s Junior Onwubiko scores between Aquinas Academy’s Sam Duer and Jonah Burchill during a WPIAL Class A quarterfinal Wednesday at Norwin.
Neighborhood Academy’s Derrick Hardeman fights for a rebound with Aquinas Academy’s Jonah Burchill and Jacob Guillen during a WPIAL Class A quarterfinal Wednesday at Norwin.
Maggie Spell buried the go-ahead free throw with 1.6 second left to lift No. 2 Shady Side Academy to a 37-35 victory over No. 7 Our Lady of the Sacred Heart in the WPIAL Class 3A girls basketball quarterfinals Wednesday.
Spell finished with nine points, while Karis Thomas and Cassie Sauer scored 13 points apiece for the Bulldogs (22-2). Claudia Ierullo put up 15 points to lead the Chargers (16-8). Shady Side Academy will face No. 3 Beaver Falls in Saturday’s semifinals.
Aliquippa 35, Clairton 34 – Carla Brown scored 12 points and Yaree Carter followed with 10 as No. 2 Aliquippa (21-3) escaped with a win over No. 10 Clairton (18-5) in the WPIAL Class 2A quarterfinals. Iyanna Wade carried the Bears, producing 30 points. The Quips will take on No. 3 Serra Catholic in the semifinals Saturday.
Avonworth 69, Keystone Oaks 45 – Becca Goetz scored 17 points, Emma Obersteiner added 14 and Eden Schleis finished with 10 to lead top-seeded Avonworth (21-1) to a Class 3A quarterfinal win. The ‘Lopes will take on No. 4 Neshannock in the semifinals Saturday. Bailey Rieg led No. 8 Keystone Oaks (16-7) with 17 points.
Beaver Falls 56, Seton LaSalle 41 – Avina Norman scored 17 points, Taylor Pullen tallied 14 and Cali Legzdin finished with 11 for No. 3 Beaver Falls (16-6) in a Class 3A quarterfinal win. Mallory Daly and Tiara Curry scored 11 points each to pace No. 11 Seton LaSalle (14-9). Beaver Falls will take on No. 2 Shady Side Academy in the semifinals Saturday.
Neshannock 69, South Park 46 – Payton Newman dropped 19 points, Jaidon Nogay sank four 3-pointers and produced 17 points and Kaitlyn Fries chipped in with 12 points for No. 4 Neshannock (17-7) in a Class 3A quarterfinal win. Ella Clifford led No. 5 South Park (16-8) with 15 points. The Lancers will face top-seeded Avonworth in the semifinals Saturday night.
Plants and Pillars 36, Cheswick Christian Academy 8 – Ruth Bartley scored 14 points as Plants and Pillars rolled to a SWCAC semifinal win over Cheswick Academy (8-9). Plants and Pillars will take on the winner of Portersville Christian and Cornerstone Prep in the championship game Saturday night.
Serra Catholic 67, Winchester Thurston 42 – Caitlyn Cooley scored 15 points and Abby Genes added 14 to lead No. 3 Serra Catholic (20-4) to a Class 2A quarterfinal win. Nikki Sfanos finished with 13 points and Cate Clarke tallied 10 for the Eagles. Jasmine Hollins put up 17 points and DaShae Cochran had 10 for No. 11 Winchester Thurston (10-13). Serra Catholic will play No. 2 Aliquippa in Saturday’s semifinals.
South Side 50, Fort Cherry 42 – Bailey Strnisa dropped 17 points and Charity Tellish added 14 to boost No. 12 South Side (14-9) to a Class 2A quarterfinal upset of No. 4 Fort Cherry (18-6). Raney Staub led all scorers with 19 points and Ava Menzies finished with 14 for the Rangers. South Side advances to play top-seeded Greensburg Central Catholic in the semifinals Saturday.
Boys basketball
Hampton 69, South Allegheny 40 – Liam Mignogna led all scorers with 28 points and Peter Kramer drained four 3-pointers and finished with 22 as No. 2 Hampton (21-3) cruised to a Class 4A quarterfinal win. Mike Michalski led No. 7 South Allegheny (17-7) with 16 points. Hampton will take on No. 6 Avonworth in Saturday’s semifinals.
Imani Christian 60, West Greene 26 – Top-seeded Imani Christian (12-10) jumped out to a 43-9 lead at halftime and cruised to a Class A quarterfinal win over No. 8 West Greene (16-8). The Saints will meet No. 5 Union in the semifinals Saturday in a rematch of last year’s WPIAL championship game.
Neighborhood Academy 79, Aquinas Academy 56 – Shamar Simpson and Kedron Gilmore each scored 19 points and Courtney Wallace hit for 18 as No. 2 Neighborhood Academy (17-5) defeated No. 7 Aquinas Academy (14-9) in the Class A quarterfinals. Jake Guillen put up 24 points to lead all scorers and Sam Duer added 10 for the Crusaders. Neighborhood Academy will play No. 3 Rochester in Saturday’s semifinals.
Rochester 46, Carlynton 38 – Xavier Rigby scored 14 points, Brady Gorman produced 11 and Jayden Norman and Jayvin Hemer added 10 points apiece as No. 3 Rochester (17-6) broke a 25-25 halftime tie and outscored No. 6 Carlynton (8-15) by 10 in the third quarter to take home a Class A quarterfinals victory. Jake Moldovan dropped 14 points for the Cougars. Rochester will play No. 2 Neighborhood Academy in the semifinals Saturday.
More High School Basketball
• WPIAL schedules eligibility hearing for Imani Christian all-state basketball player R.J. Sledge• 19 WPIAL players picked for 2024 all-state girls basketball team
• 23 WPIAL players picked to 2024 all-state boys basketball team, including 2 players of the year
• Hampton basketball readies for rare coaching search
• Hall of fame basketball coach Joe Lafko steps down at Hampton
