Westmoreland PIAA basketball playoff preview capsules for Tuesday, March 11, 2025

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Monday, March 10, 2025 | 5:03 PM

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Boys

Class 5A

Second round

Latrobe (21-6) vs. Greater Johnstown (25-1)

7 p.m. Tuesday at Pitt-Johnstown

District-seed: Latrobe 7-6; Greater Johnstown 6-1

Winner plays: Winner of Chartiers Valley (24-3)/Montour (25-2) on Friday in quarterfinals (time, site TBD)

Players to watch: John Wetzel, Latrobe; Dante Tisinger, Greater Johnstown

Layup lines: Latrobe rallied for a 23-point fourth quarter to defeat District 3 runner-up Exeter Township, 64-58, in the first round. The win was the 300th of coach Brad Wetzel’s coaching career at Latrobe, which began in 2002. It also was the Wildcats’ first in the state postseason since 1990. Ian DeCerb had a career game with 25 points, and Max Butler added 13 to lead the uptempo Wildcats, who trailed 52-41 after three quarters. … Greater Johnstown got 33 points from Tisinger and 16 from Amire Robinson to pull past Moon, 60-53. The Trojans average 68.6 points per game. They ran through their conference with an 18-0 record. Their lone loss came against Bishop Guilfoyle, 58-55. The program has 32 district titles and has won six of the last seven D6 crowns. The Trojans made the PIAA 4A second round last year but lost to Hampton, 50-48.

Class 4A

Second round

Belle Vernon (22-4) vs. Sharon (19-8)

6 p.m. Tuesday at North Allegheny

District-seed: Belle Vernon 7-1; Sharon 10-2

Winner plays: Winner of Berks Catholic (21-4)/Scranton Prep (19-7) on Friday in quarterfinals (time, site TBD)

Players to watch: Dom Ghilani, Belle Vernon; Levi Hailstock, Sharon

Layup lines: WPIAL champion Belle Vernon captured its first PIAA win since 2022 with a 74-63 win over Farrell. Trevor Kovatch and Tommy Davis scored 18 points apiece, with Davis grabbing 11 rebounds for his second straight double-double. Zion Moore contributed 17 points, and Ghilani added 12 and 15 rebounds. Belle Vernon was up big early before the Steelers cut it to 52-50 after three quarters with a 27-point third quarter. Retiring coach Joe Salvino led Monessen to two PIAA titles, in 1988 and ’89. He did not win a WPIAL title, however, in those years. … Sharon canceled out a potential rematch for Belle Vernon with Avonworth with an 82-74 win over the Antelopes in the opening round. Hailstock, a senior guard, scored 25 points, and freshman Cedrick Boyd added 18 and senior Derek Douglas had 15. The Tigers average 66.8 points. They have wins against WPIAL teams Mars (81-55), Indiana (79-57) and Beaver Falls (76-42). They lost to Mohawk, 67-64. Sharon split two games with Farrell, winning at home 70-60 and falling 71-67 on the road.

Girls

Class 3A

Second round

Greensburg Central Catholic (22-5) vs. Our Lady of the Sacred Heart (23-4)

6 p.m. Tuesday at AHN Arena, Peters Township

District-seed: Greensburg Central Catholic 7-1; OLSH 7-3

Winner plays: Winner of Central Cambria (18-8)/Karns City (23-3) on Friday in quarterfinals (time, site TBD)

Players to watch: Jayla Peterson, Greensburg Central Catholic; Claudia Ierullo, OLSH

Layup lines: This is a rematch of the WPIAL semifinals when GCC romped over the Chargers, 41-18, at Peters Township. OLSH went over 20 minutes without a field goal and managed only five field goals in the game. GCC revved it up after a slow start against Cambria Heights in the first round and won 61-31 as Erica Gribble and Peterson combined for 44 points and eight 3-pointers. Peterson had 23, and Gribble added 21. GCC, which won back-to-back WPIAL titles (in 2A and 3A), scored 26 in the fourth quarter to slam the door on the Highlanders. GCC reached the state semifinals in 2A the last two years. Avery Jones had a career-high 14 points against OLSH in the first meeting. Gribble had 16 and Peterson 10. … OLSH, the third-place team in the WPIAL, held back Seneca, 53-44, in the first round. Ierullo had 14 points, Lola Garner added 13 and Leah Parker had 12 for the Chargers, who have won 14 of their last 16 games. OLSH lost to Mercyhurst Prep, 40-37, in the PIAA first round last year after reaching the state semifinals in 2023 where it lost to River Valley, 44-38. Veteran coach Don Eckerle has 415 career wins in 22 seasons.

Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.

Tags: Belle Vernon, Greensburg C.C., Latrobe, Our Lady of the Sacred Heart