Upper St. Clair grinds out Class 6A quarterfinal win over North Allegheny

By: Don Rebel
Friday, February 20, 2026 | 10:59 PM

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There were times during the WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball quarterfinal between Upper St. Clair and North Allegheny that it looked like both teams hadn’t played a real game in nearly two weeks.

Then there were times against two strong half-court defenses that both teams executed well on offense.

In a close game throughout, though, it was the lack of points in the fourth quarter that led to the downfall of North Allegheny as defending champion Upper St. Clair prevailed, 41-33, on Friday night.

“With us, it’s always a grind,” Upper St. Clair first-year head coach Suzie McConnell-Serio said. “We knew coming in how talented North Allegheny is. They are so physical, and you can’t simulate that in practice or scrimmages. We got into some foul trouble, but our players stuck to the game plan.”

The plan on defense for the Panthers was to control the Tigers inside attack from 6-foot-1 senior Rae Shanahan and 6-foot senior Cate Pingpack.

However, USC also had to find a way to slow down North Allegheny senior guard Vange Balouris, who controlled play with her outside shooting, her penetration and her pinpoint passes through traffic from the perimeter to the blocks.

“Balouris is so relentless and she’s so good,” McConnell-Serio said. “They run a lot of stuff coming off screens, so our No. 1 priority coming in was to minimalize her effectiveness. I thought our players did a great job. We made her earn it.”

North Allegheny took its only lead of the game early in the opening quarter when freshman guard Macy Sundgren hit her only bucket of the night, a 3-pointer that made the score 3-2.

Upper St. Clair looked like it might pull away late in the first quarter, building a 13-5 lead and in possession of the ball looking for a double-digit lead.

However, the NA defense stepped up with a couple of stops and then scored the final five points in the final minute of the opening quarter to trail after one, 13-10.

The Panthers led by one point at halftime without hitting a single 3-pointer in the first half.

That changed in the third quarter when senior Ryan Prunzik, junior Caroline Barnard and junior Audrey Brown each connected on a 3-pointer as the USC lead ballooned to eight points. The Panthers took a six-point cushion into the final quarter.

Upper St. Clair was at its best when it found open lanes and drove to the basket or found cutters open to the hoop.

“There are some things that are predicated on what the set is or where the ball goes,” McConnell-Serio said. “Then there are times when we have the freedom to make the reads and make good decisions, and when that happens, I need the ball in Ryan’s hands.”

Defense was the name of the game in the fourth, as the teams combined for eight points, with North Allegheny limited to three points in what ended up being their final quarter of the season.

With each possession, Upper St. Clair milked some clock in a slow squeeze.

“When we got stops, Ryan (Prunzik) is the one I want with the ball in her hands,” McConnell-Serio said.

While the Panthers won gold a year ago, they had very little experience coming back, which was a concern for their coach.

“I’m so proud of our players,” McConnell-Serio said. “Ryan Prunzik is the only player with any varsity experience from a year ago and the only one with any playoff experience other than Kat (Polstyanko), who saw some minutes in the playoffs a year ago. This was all new for everybody else.”

Rough free-throw shooting did not help the North Allegheny cause.

The Tigers were only 6 of 17 from the charity stripe.

Shanahan led NA with 10 points while Williams scored nine and Balouris added eight in the final game for all three seniors. North Allegheny finishes the season 10-12.

Prunzik led all scorers with 14 points while Barnard scored 10 before fouling out.

Upper St. Clair improves to 12-11 and will face No. 2 Norwin in the district semifinals Tuesday.

It is a rematch of the 2025 Class 6A championship game in which USC defeated Norwin, 45-40.

The Knights swept the Panthers in two games this season, 65-51 and 46-32.

“Our players stepped up,” McConnell-Serio said. “Everything we do is a grind, but we just find ways to win.”

Tags: North Allegheny, Upper St. Clair