What to watch for in WPIAL sports for Jan. 13, 2025:

By: Don Rebel
Sunday, January 12, 2025 | 9:21 PM

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The first half of section play in WPIAL girls basketball concludes with several head-to-head matchups to determine first place.

In Class 5A, two of the four sections have showdown contests to conclude the first half.

In Section 1, Shaler will try to continue its turnaround season at Franklin Regional.

The Titans missed the postseason a year ago with an 8-14 record. They enter Monday’s game with a 4-0 record in the section and 11-1 mark overall and are winners of six straight.

The Panthers are 5-0 in the section and have a record of 8-5 overall with three straight wins.

In Section 2-5A, Penn-Trafford visits Indiana where both teams are 5-0 atop the section and a combined 23-2 overall coming into their game Monday.

The Warriors are a perfect 12-0 while the Little Indians are 11-2 and have won five consecutive games.

More battles for first place

There are three other district girls basketball games Monday which pit two teams tied for the section lead.

In Section 3-4A, South Park visits Elizabeth Forward with both teams tied for the lead with 5-0 section records.

The Eagles are 8-2 overall and have won three straight games.

The Warriors are 8-3 this season, but have won seven in a row after a three-game skid in early December.

In Section 2-2A, Fort Cherry hosts South Side.

The Rangers are 4-0 in the section and 11-2 overall with nine consecutive victories.

The Rams are 3-0 in section play and 8-4 for the season with two straight wins and victories in five of their last six games.

Finally, in Section 4-2A, the two top teams collide in Oakmont when Riverview welcomes Winchester Thurston.

The Raiders are 3-0 in the section and 7-2 overall with a six-game winning streak.

The Bears have a section record of 4-0 and are 9-2 this season with wins in each of their last six contests.

Midway madness continues

While the games above will determine who sits alone atop their section, there are games that could forge a tie for first place at the halfway point of the regular season.

One of those games is in Section 1-6A when front running Seneca Valley (9-4) visits Pine-Richland (4-9).

The Raiders are 4-0 in the section, one game ahead of the 3-1 Rams and 3-1 Butler (8-5).

• In Section 3-3A, first-place Seton LaSalle (9-3) heads south to battle McGuffey (9-4).

The Rebels are 5-0 in the section, one game ahead of the Highlanders at 4-1 and Keystone Oaks at 3-1 (9-1).

• Section 1-2A front runner Aliquippa (10-2) is home to face Rochester (7-6).

The Quips sit in first place with a 4-0 record, one game in front of both the Rams and Neshannock (11-2) with 3-1 section records.

• One game separates the top four teams in Section 4-2A and, on Monday, they all go head-to-head.

First-place Chartiers-Houston (9-1) is 3-0 in the section and is on the road to visit Bentworth (6-6) at 2-1.

Beth-Center (8-5) is 3-1 in the section and travels to California (5-3), which is tied for second place at 2-1.

Tags: Aliquippa, Bentworth, Beth-Center, California, Chartiers-Houston, Elizabeth Forward, Fort Cherry, Franklin Regional, Indiana, McGuffey, Penn-Trafford, Pine-Richland, Riverview, Rochester, Seneca Valley, Seton La Salle, Shaler, South Park, South Side, Winchester Thurston