Shaler upends Franklin Regional in PK shootout to earn long-awaited playoff win

By: Dave Mackall
Monday, October 20, 2025 | 10:57 PM

Bill Ament stood facing his players on the sideline and flashed a wide grin.

“We’re practicing tomorrow, you know?” the Shaler girls soccer coach said firmly.

With that, he offered a nod and a wink while hoping for a favorable response. Indeed, his Titans players made no effort to hide their approval.

Moments later, Ament reflected on a grind-it-out season that saw Shaler earn its first playoff victory in as long as he can remember.

“At least 38 years,” he said. “I was 10 back then. I graduated from Shaler in 1996.”

No. 11 seed Shaler outscored No. 6 Franklin Regional 3-2 in penalty kicks Monday night on the road to come away with a 1-0 victory in a WPIAL Class 3A first-round game, .

The Titans advance to the quarterfinals Thursday at a site and time to be determined against No. 3 Moon, which ousted No. 14 Oakland Catholic, 3-0, in another first-round game.

Allie Cieslak’s conversion was the deciding penalty kick for Shaler (9-7-1) and followed successful kicks by Caroline Decheck and Natalie Evangelista.

Allyssa Velasquez and Grace Copeland found the net in the shootout phase for Franklin Regional (14-4), which saw a six-game winning streak of shutouts end.

Three Panthers players clanged penalty kicks off the pipes.

“It’s so hard in the moment to have that much pressure on you to execute,” Franklin Regional coach Scott Arnold said. “It’s no problem. I was terrible at taking penalties when I was a kid. I totally understand. I’ve been through it as a player and a coach. I still recall hitting the crossbar in a shootout when I was a kid.”

Franklin Regional graduates just five seniors, giving Arnold hope for better days in the future.

“We’re so young,” he said after gathering his girls in a circle and joining together to share some raw thoughts.

“A lot of these new girls have never experienced anything like this,” Arnold said. “It’s a little emotional for them now. We’re blessed to be able to play in a game that’s meaningful like this, that we can feel such strong emotions. It’s something that’s going to last with them, and they’re going to have a bond. Even 20 years from now, they’ll have this bond together that they went through this darn shootout together in the cold.”

The teams battled evenly throughout regulation and two overtimes but both were stymied time and again by goalkeepers Paige Querio of Shaler and Addison Ayres of Franklin Regional.

The best scoring chance occurred when Franklin Regional’s Velasquez found the net on an apparent goal that was nullified by a penalty.

“I’d like to see it again,” Arnold said.

Back on the Shaler side, Ament remained giddy.

“I feel fantastic,” he said. “Our section (Section 1) is a meat grinder. We have some really good teams in that section, and I think it really prepared us for this. I wish it didn’t come down to penalty kicks. I feel that is one thing we were prepared for, but it would’ve been so much easier on the stress level if it hadn’t gotten to that.”

Among the Titans’ losses were a pair of one-goal decisions to once-beaten, top-seeded Fox Chapel, the Section 1 champion, which went 9-0-1 in section play.

It gives Ament and his girls hope, he said, heading into the next round.

“I’ll tell you what,” he said, “those girls played with heart the entire season. Tonight was no different. I can’t be more proud of them.”

Tags: Franklin Regional, Shaler