South Fayette set to face juggernaut Archbishop Wood for PIAA title

By: Don Rebel
Friday, March 28, 2025 | 4:17 PM

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The ongoing debate about boundary and non-boundary schools has surfaced again in these PIAA basketball championships.

Of the 24 teams that qualified for the state championship in Hershey, only seven are public schools despite the fact nearly 70% of all high schools in the state are public schools with set boundaries.

But no matter what your take on that passionate subject, you can’t ignore greatness when it is happening, private or public.

Very few schools have dominated the state in any sport quite like Archbishop Wood has over the last decade and a half in girls basketball.

Since 2010, the Vikings have appeared in 13 of the 15 PIAA girls basketball championship games, winning state gold nine times, including every year this decade.

District 12 juggernaut Archbishop Wood (22-7) is back in the PIAA finals on Saturday when it will face WPIAL runner-up South Fayette (28-2) at the Giant Center in Hershey for the girls 5A crown at 6 p.m.

“I know they have a ton of talent, but they are also well coached,” South Fayette coach Bryan Bennett said. “They are disciplined on both sides of the ball.”

This is the second time in three years that the Vikings and Lions will square off for the 5A girls basketball state championship.

In the 2023 PIAA finals, Archbishop Wood jumped out to an early 10-point lead after one quarter, and then had to hold off South Fayette’s fourth-quarter rally to win 61-54.

Ava Renninger led the Vikings with 21 points thanks to 9-of-11 shooting from the field. Wood teammate Deja Evans added 17 points.

Erica Hall scored 17 points to lead the Lions while the team’s leading scorer, Maddie Webber, was held to 11 points.

Three current South Fayette juniors saw playing time in that state title game as freshmen.

Haylie Lamonde was held scoreless, but Ryan Oldaker tallied nine points and Juliette Leroux added two points for the Lions.

The Archbishop Wood girls basketball program made history once this postseason and is a victory away from breaking another record.

In the Vikings’ quarterfinal triumph over Bethlehem Catholic, they set a new PIAA record for most consecutive state playoff wins with 23, now at 24 with a victory over Crestwood in the state semifinals.

If they beat South Fayette, they will set the record for most consecutive girls basketball state championships with five. They are currently tied with Allentown Central Catholic (2001-04) with four straight PIAA girls basketball titles.

“They have scorers at all five spots on the floor,” Bennett said. “The point guard (Ryan Carter) is the No. 8-ranked sophomore in the country. She creates a lot of mismatch problems because she can drive it on you and will also look to post up. They have shooters all around her which makes it tough to help on her.”

Carter averages 18 points a game, but has scored over 20 points in all four state playoff wins for Archbishop Wood.

St. Joseph commit Emily Knouse is the team’s lone senior. She has more than 1,000 points in her career and has averaged 15 points per game during the postseason. Junior Emma Yogis connected on four 3-pointers in both the quarterfinals and semifinals.

South Fayette’s balanced attack on offense has been on display on the Road to Hershey.

In the first round, Oldaker led the way with 24 points. It was Leroux’s 20 points that led the way in the second round, and she had 21 points in the quarterfinal win against Hollidaysburg. Lamonde contributed 15 points in the quarterfinals, and in the semis, sophomore point guard Lailah Wight had a game-high 14 points in a win over Peters Township.

Archbishop Wood is 9-3 in PIAA championship games, but two of those losses came against Blackhawk in the 2014 and 2015 finals.

“I think back about what we were able to do in beating them and how uncommon that has become,” former Blackhawk coach Steve Lodovico said. “Archbishop Wood is a powerhouse that has been able to stay at the top and will continue to until someone figures out a way to knock them down.

“With that being said, don’t sleep on South Fayette. They have the horses that just may be able to make this happen.”

The Cougars defeated the Vikings in the 2014 finals, 51-43, and then knocked them off again the following winter, 46-40, thanks to shooting 38 of 41 from the free throw line combined in both games.

“When I first watched them, I called my brother who was my assistant, and said I just watched Wood and I’m debating whether to show the team; they were that impressive on film,” Lodovico said. “No weaknesses and I believe all five (starters) went on to play D-1 basketball. This was my Chassidy Omogrosso squad, so I didn’t have anyone up until this point that I felt was better than we were. Needless to say, we watched film and found a way to beat them both years.”

Bennett hopes South Fayette can change the outcome from two years ago, but he also wants the Lions to soak it all in and enjoy the moment.

“We are going to try and really embrace the experience. The first time felt like a blur.”

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