Westmoreland PIAA softball playoff preview capsules: Games for Monday, June 9, 2025

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Sunday, June 8, 2025 | 5:02 PM


PIAA softball playoffs

Class 6A

Semifinals

Hempfield (23-1) vs. Nazareth (21-4)

4 p.m. TUESDAY at Norco Park Softball Complex, Fayetteville

District-place: Hempfield 7-1; Nazareth 11-2

Winner plays: Winner of 3-3 Central Dauphin (19-3)/1-3 Perkiomen Valley (21-4) in the championship at 4 p.m. Thursday at Nittany Lion Softball Park, Penn State

Coaches: Tina Madison, Hempfield; Steve Genzale, Nazareth

Players to watch: Allie Cervola, Hempfield; Alina Weaver, Nazareth

Extra bases: The game was postponed Monday due to rain and moved to Tuesday at the same time and site. Hempfield moved into the state semifinals for the second time in three years and 11th time overall. The Spartans defeated Chambersburg in the quarterfinals, 4-3, holding off a late rally after taking a 4-0 lead. Cervola and winning pitcher Riley Miller had two hits and two RBIs each, and Lauren Howard had two doubles. Miller allowed five hits and struck out six. Cervola is an Ohio commit, Miller is going to Kent State and Howard is off to Virginia after next season. The Spartans have three straight one-run wins in the postseason. Miller is 19-1 and 62-10 for her career. The wins are second most in program history. Howard has 101 career hits, seven off the school record. This year’s seniors were sophomores in 2023 when four-time state champion Hempfield finished as the PIAA runner-up. Its most recent state title was in 2018. The Spartans beat Nazareth, 2-0, in the semifinals that season. Madison hinted she might tweak the lineup for this game. … Nazareth used a three-run seventh inning that included a two-run single by Weaver to hold back Cumberland Valley, 5-4, in the quarterfinals. Lily Moretti had an RBI single to give the Blue Eagles a 3-2 lead, and Weaver gave her team a three-run advantage. Pitcher Kylie Grover scattered eight hits in the win. Weaver, who is hitting .453 with eight home runs, 28 RBIs and 26 runs, is a Division III Hartford commit. Giana Perillo has seven homers, 19 RBIs and 20 runs, and Shauna McNamee bats .451 with seven homers and 20 RBIs. McNamee is a Division III Moravian commit. Nazareth has 32 homers for the season. Grover has 95 strikeouts and 35 walks in 100 1/3 innings. This is the Blue Eagles’ third semifinal trip. They have never won a state title.

Class 5A

Semifinals

Penn-Trafford (21-3) vs. West Allegheny (18-5)

4 p.m. Monday at Pleasant Valley Elementary, McMurray

District-place: Penn-Trafford 7-2; West Allegheny 7-3

Winner plays: Winner of 3-3 Greencastle Antrim (21-3)/1-2 West Chester East (18-8) in the championship at 4 p.m. Friday at Nittany Lion Softball Park, Penn State

Coaches: Denny Little, Penn-Trafford; Mindi McFate, West Allegheny

Players to watch: Kylie Anthony, Penn-Trafford; Ava Henke, West Allegheny

Extra bases: Penn-Trafford is back in the semifinals for the first time since 2019 when it won its lone state softball title. The Warriors clipped Red Land, 6-5, in the quarterfinals on a walk-off RBI single by Annabell Carvajal. Kylie Anthony went 4 for 4 with three RBIs and the tying homer in the seventh. Cam Ponko had two hits and an RBI. The Warriors also won a close game in the first round, 3-2 over Central Mountain. They have played in three straight one-run games. They scored three runs in the first inning against Central Mountain and hung on. Giuliana Youngo had an RBI double, and Allyson Paulone struck out seven in that game. … West Allegheny advanced to the PIAA semifinals for the first time since 2018 with a 5-2 win over Twin Valley in the quarterfinals. Henke and Maylee Rider homered, and Katelyn Cook had two hits and two RBIs for the Indians. Autumn Pielecki picked up the win, scattering eight hits. The Indians made the state finals in 2018. They lost to Penn-Trafford, 6-2, in the 2019 state quarterfinals. Both teams lost to Hempfield this season. Other common opponents include Chartiers Valley, Latrobe, North Hills, Thomas Jefferson, Moon and Shaler. The Indians split two section games with Chartiers Valley, swept Moon, beat Latrobe, Thomas Jefferson and North Hills and lost to Shaler. Penn-Trafford beat Thomas Jefferson, North Hills (twice), Latrobe (twice) and Moon and split with Shaler.

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

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