Trib HSSN Top 20 Stories of 2020: Chartiers Valley girls basketball proves unbeatable
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Thursday, December 31, 2020 | 3:32 PM
Chartiers Valley’s Megan McConnell (4) and Perri Page celebrate with teammates as time expires in the WPIAL Class 5A championship game against Trinity on Feb. 29.
The most unique year in our lifetime is coming to an end. With so many mass starts and stops, highs and lows, just about all walks of life were affected by the coronavirus in 2020.
High school sports were no different. The first two and a half months of the year were carefree and business as usual. Then the final nine and a half months were greatly affected by the pandemic, whether scholastic contests were played or not.
Trib HSSN will close out the year with a daily countdown and a look back at the top 20 WPIAL stories from the year 2020.
No. 3 – Streaking Stallions
Very few high school basketball teams get a chance to go undefeated in winning district and state championships.
The chances of doing it in back-to-back seasons are mind-numbing.
It is also record setting.
The Chartiers Valley girls basketball team followed up on a perfect 30-0 season in 2018-2019 with another golden season of nothing but victories in 2019-2020.
The win streak got a serious scare on Jan. 23 when CV had to rally when Perri Page hit a buzzer-beating shot to beat Thomas Jefferson, 42-41. The dramatic victory was not without controversy as time was put back on the clock after a timeout before the winning shot, and some fans felt the winning shot came after time expired.
Also during the season, legendary Chartiers Valley coach Tim McConnell picked up his 600th career victory. He coached the Colts boys team for 25 years and was in his second year as CV girls coach.
The Colts won another Section 1-5A title and finished the regular season 22-0.
CV defeated Penn Hills and section rival Thomas Jefferson in the district postseason before facing Trinity in the WPIAL 5A finals.
The Colts picked up their third win of the year against the Hillers in a 58-40 triumph and claimed their second straight WPIAL championship and third crown in four years.
After two wins in the state playoffs, Chartiers Valley saw their hopes of a PIAA repeat end when the covid-19 outbreak first forced the postponement, then the cancellation of the rest of the state postseason.
However, a second-round victory over Hollidaysburg, 55-38, was significant in that it broke the WPIAL girls basketball record of 57 consecutive wins held for 31 years by North Catholic.
The Colts began the 2020-2021 season with a victory over Baldwin before the four-week shutdown of all high school sports. That win leaves Chartiers Valley five shy of the all-time state record for most consecutive wins by a girls basketball team.
No. 7 — T.J. All the Way…Again
No. 10 – West A Senior Drafted
No. 12 – Emotional Championship
No. 14 – The Bucs Aren’t Stopping Here
No. 16 – An Overdue Golden Storm
No. 17 – Lots of Mercy for Central Valley Foes
No. 20 – Golden Knights of the Tennis Court
Tags: Chartiers Valley
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