Resilient Shady Side Academy stops OLSH to reach state title game for 1st time

By: Josh Rizzo
Friday, March 21, 2025 | 9:56 PM

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Karis Thomas leapt in the air and chest bumped a yelling Leah Buford in front of the Shady Side Academy bench as the time wound down Friday night at Fox Chapel.

The Bulldogs’ junior guard and her teammates made adjustments on the fly to become a team capable of reaching the PIAA Class 3A final.

Shady Side Academy hasn’t stumbled since suffering its only loss, a defeat to Greensburg Central Catholic in the WPIAL final, beating OLSH 43-29 to reach the state championship game for the first time in school history.

“It means everything to me, really,” said Thomas, who scored a game-high 21 points. “This is like a second family to me, and I look at every one of them as my sister. It’s a special moment, and I love them to death.”

The Bulldogs (28-1) will play District 4 champion Loyalsock Township in the championship game.

Shady Side Academy had to figure out a plan for how to win without 6-foot-2 forward Cassie Sauer.

Thomas said all of the Bulldogs felt they had to contribute more. Sauer suffered a season-ending leg injury during the Bulldogs’ win over Riverside in the WPIAL quarterfinals.

“I think we obviously had to get a lot more rebounds,” Thomas said. “Cassie’s a great leader, and we all had to use our voices out there.”

Shady Side Academy coach Jonna Burke said the team had to take a pause.

“We were all shook up about that,” Burke said. “We weren’t sure this postseason was going to be what we thought it was going to be. But I thought if I had Karis Thomas on my team, I had a shot.”

OLSH (25-5) threw everything it had at stopping Thomas. During the first quarter, the Chargers sent constant double teams in her direction.

Shady Side Academy shot poorly, only making two of its 13 field goal attempts in the first quarter. The Bulldogs trailed 10-5 after the first quarter thanks to the strong shooting of Leah Parker.

The Chargers guard scored eight of her team-high 12 points in the opening quarter.

OLSH limited Thomas to two points in the first quarter.

“I thought we did a good job,” Charger coach Don Eckerle said. “We lost her a few times, and she made us pay with those set shots.”

OLSH’s offense hit a roadblock in the second quarter. The Chargers didn’t make any field goals, and Shady Side Academy surged ahead with a 10-0 run.

“We switched out defense because what we started in wasn’t great because (Parker) kept getting loose for 3s,” Burke said. “We made a change to a different zone in the second quarter.”

Laila Banner made a layup in the middle of the second quarter to put the Bulldogs ahead for good, 12-10. Shady Side Academy took a 19-12 lead into halftime.

Eckerle said that Parker getting in foul trouble hurt OLSH’s momentum on offense.

“Her picking up a second foul impacted the second quarter as well,” Eckerle said. “We wanted to take her out for a minute or two. That slowed down her momentum and ours as well.”

In the second half, Shady Side Academy leaned on its excellent defense to close out the win. The Bulldogs limited OLSH to six points in the fourth quarter.

Leah Buford scored eight points for Shady Side Academy.

“It feels great,” Burke said. “It’s unbelievable really because I’ve been doing it for 30 years, and I played in high school for four years prior to that, and it’s always been a dream to get to a state championship game. I think for anyone who plays or coaches, it’s the pinnacle.”

Tags: Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, Shady Side Academy