North Allegheny looks ahead after ‘bittersweet’ PIAA runner-up finish
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Saturday, June 21, 2025 | 11:01 AM
North Allegheny’s Matthew LaMay hugs head coach Dan Long while receiving his silver medal after the PIAA Class 3A championship match against Cumberland Valley on June 14 at Penn State.
North Allegheny’s Elijah Braun accepts the runner-up trophy with teammates after the PIAA Class 3A state championship match against Cumberland Valley on June 14 at Penn State.
Cumberland Valley’s Avery Reynolds battles North Allegheny’s Peter Bratich at the net during the PIAA Class 3A championship match June 14 at Penn State.
North Allegheny’s Will Robertson scores against Cumberland Valley’s Avery Reynolds and Isaiah Sibbitt during the PIAA Class 3A championship match June 14 at Penn State.
North Allegheny’s Matthew LaMay scores against Cumberland Valley’s Avery Reynolds and Aidan Dunwoody during the PIAA Class 3A championship match June 14 at Penn State.
Cumberland Valley’s Avery Reynolds scores past North Allegheny’s Peter Bratich and Will Robertson during the PIAA Class 3A championship match June 14 at Penn State.
North Allegheny head coach Dan Long talks with his team during the PIAA Class 3A championship match against Cumberland Valley on June 14 at Penn State.
North Allegheny’s Elijah Braun scores against Cumberland Valley’s Bryson Walsh during the PIAA Class 3A championship match June 14 at Penn State.
The sting of its state championship loss had eased by the time the North Allegheny boys volleyball team gathered two days later for its season-ending banquet.
“It was bittersweet,” coach Dan Long said. “But more sweet than bitter.”
A memorable 2025 season that included a WPIAL Class 3A championship came to an end with a 3-0 loss to undefeated District 3 power Cumberland Valley (22-0) on June 14 at Penn State in the PIAA finals.
The Tigers, who finished 18-2, lost by scores of 25-21, 25-21 and 25-12 in their first trip to the state title game since winning four in a row from 2018-22.
“They have the best defense in the state, and they don’t let just about anything hit the ground,” NA first-team all-WPIAL outside hitter Matthew LaMay said of Cumberland Valley. “It’s very hard to combat. We knew to beat them, we were going to have to play our 100% best, and I don’t think we found that.”
The loss didn’t diminish a bounce-back season for the Tigers, who defeated Seneca Valley, 3-1, in the WPIAL finals on May 24 after losing to Shaler in the past two district championships. It was the program’s 23rd WPIAL title, by far the most in league history.
Bolstered by a tight-knit senior class and a loaded junior class, the Tigers won 13 in a row following an early April loss at Seneca Valley and reached the PIAA championship with a 3-2 semifinal victory over Central York.
The Tigers had no answer for Cumberland Valley, which also had swept them in the finals of the York Invitational in mid-April.
Long remained proud of his team in what he called “a really special team and a really special group of seniors.”
“We take winning really seriously,” Long said, “but we also take the big-picture lessons of what it means to compete together and be a part of this program just as seriously. Honestly, that’s the stuff that matters more in life than what color medal you got.”
The Tigers graduated 10 seniors, including LaMay (152 kills, 178 digs, 49 aces), outside hitters Elijah Braun and Ryan Young, opposite hitter Garen White and middle blocker Dominic Laswell.
Seniors Brandon Goetz, an outside hitter, and Ryan Dyga, a middle blocker, won the season-ending Andy Grossman Award, given to the team’s unsung heroes.
Rounding out the Class of 2025 were reserves Caleb Chen, Aidan Mowry and James Zimmer.
“We accomplished a lot,” said LaMay, who will play at Geneva. “We just didn’t get quite everything, but I’m thankful for the chances we did get.”
The Tigers dotted postseason all-star teams. Junior outside hitter Will Robertson (260 kills, 263 digs, 23 aces, 18 blocks) and junior middle hitter Peter Bratich (158 kills, 14 aces, 11 blocks) were named first-team all-WPIAL for the second straight year.
Junior setter Jackson Failla (458 assists, 131 digs) was named second-team all-WPIAL and junior opposite Brendan Moore (248 kills, 17 blocks) was third team.
Braun (107 kills) earned second-team all-Section 3-3A honors, and a trio of juniors, right-side hitter Nate May (104 kills), libero Emmett Morris (322 digs) and setter Elliott Swierczynski (513 assists, 119 digs), as well as White (118 kills) made third team.
All told, 10 Tigers earned postseason accolades, and seven of them were juniors.
“I think the team next year has a really good chance at winning everything,” LaMay said.
The juniors comprise the U17 Pittsburgh Volleyball Club Sandlot team that will be competing at the AAU Boys Junior National Championships in Orlando, Fla., on July 4-7.
“There are not a lot of unknowns with what’s coming back,” Long said. “We’re certainly going to miss the senior guys. But we also can configure the existing guys a little differently and not really have to worry about any new components.”
Tags: North Allegheny
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