WPIAL Boys Soccer and Girls Volleyball Recaps

By: HSSN Staff
Friday, October 28, 2011 | 9:44 AM

While the WPIAL girls volleyball playoffs were rounding out round one, the boys on the pitch were into Quarterfinals action on a rainy and chilly Thursday evening. Here are recaps from those matches heard here on the MSA Sports Network.

Thanks to Dan Zangrilli, Greg Kuntz, Adam Hoerner, Mike Azadian, Josh Rowntree and Randy Gore for their help on these recaps.

WPIAL BOYS SOCCER CLASS AAA QUARTERFINALS:
Peters Township Indians 2 – Bethel Park Black Hawks 1

The Peters Township Indians were able to survive a late scare in the final seconds from the Bethel Park Blackhawks to prevail 2-1 on Thursday night in the AAA Boys Soccer Quarterfinals at Baldwin High School.  The Indians jumped out to an early 1-0 edge with 29:49 remaining in the first half when Joe Barbati found the back of the net.  The Indians would take that lead into the half before the Blackhawks cracked the scoreboard to knot the score, 1-1.  With 30:46 remaining in regulation, Christian Riley would score what turned out to be the only Bethel Park goal.  Peters Township would take the lead for good with 7:57 in the second half by way of a Jake Harriger goal.  The Blackhawks season ends with an overall record of 12-6-2 while Peters Township advances to the semifinals improving their record to 13-5-1.

WPIAL BOYS SOCCER CLASS AAA QUARTERFINALS:
Upper St. Clair Panthers 2 – Fox Chapel Foxes 1

The Upper St. Clair Panthers were able to command the first half and survive the second half to grab a 2-1 win over the Fox Chapel Foxes on Thursday night at Baldwin High School.  The Fox Chapel Foxes were unable to solve the staunch defense of the Upper St. Clair Panthers as a first half came and gone without a goal for the Foxes.  Meanwhile, USC would use a free kick deflection to grab a 1-0 lead with 9:49 in the first half. Steve Machi scored the first tally for the Panthers to make it 1-0, a lead that USC would take the the break.  With only one goal in the first 30 minutes of play, two were scored in the first five minutes of the second half.  Ethan Dysert whistled a goal at 37:44 to give the Panthers what appeared to be an insurmountable 2-0 edge.  That was until Jack Dickens was awarded a penalty kick that he converted on shortly thereafter to bring the score 2-1.  That was as far as the Foxes would get as their season ends with an overall record of 9-8-1 while the Panthers advance to the semifinals en route to improving their record to 15-1-2

WPIAL BOYS SOCCER CLASS AAA QUARTERFINALS:
Pittsburgh Central Catholic Vikings 2 – Pine-Richland Rams 0 

The top-seeded Pittsburgh Central Catholic Vikings had a long layoff as they earned a bye into the 2nd Round.  The battle-tested Pine-Richland Rams qualified for the quarters by knocing off Norwin , 2-1.  The Rams kept the strong defense going throughout this one, but the Vikings were able to break through in the 78th minute as foul call on PR led to a direct kick taken by senior halfback Osas Malkin.  Malkin sailed the ball over the PR wall and the head of Rams' keeper Grant Goldberg to take a 1-0 lead.  PR would continue pressing the PCC defense, however, but the Vikings were able to clear the zone, and junior halfback Torey Doaty toook the clear and drove the ball into an open net to nail the Rams' coffin shut, 2-0, in the 79th minute.  The PCC Vikings move on to the semis to setg up a rematch with the Peters Township Indians, who earned their spot with a win over Bethel Park Thursday night.  The Vikings record now stands at 18-1-0 overall while the PR Rams' season comes to a close at 10-5-1.

WPIAL BOYS SOCCER CLASS AAA QUARTERFINALS:
Seneca Valley Raiders 1 – Kiski Area Cavaliers 0

It was a tale of two halves in terms of which team controlled the play from North Allegheny's Newman Stadium on Thursday night. Seneca Valley (14-6-0) took a 4-0 advantage in shots and a 3-0 edge in corner kicks during the first 40 minutes while Kiski Area (12-3-2) controlled those two stat lines 4-2 and 2-1 in the second stanza. But it was the Raiders getting the lone goal in the 29th minute to earn a bid to the 2011 Semifinals as Rob Wright used the defender as a screen to deflect a centering feed along the line past Kiski goalkeeper Brandon Smail. Although the Cavaliers did get their chances after that, there was never anything quality in close on Brian Pudlo as he pitched the shutout for the #3 seed, who will face Upper St. Clair on Tuesday night.

WPIAL BOYS SOCCER CLASS AA QUARTERFINALS:
Hampton Talbots 5 – Montour Spartans 2

In Boys AA soccer quarterfinal action at North Allegheny High School the Hampton Talbots take another step in defending their WPIAL and PIAA titles with a 5-2 victory over the Montour Spartans. In the first half both teams played it close to the vest and it was all defense in the early stages of the game. Neither team had a scoring chance, a shot on goal or even a corner kick. But 8:31 seconds into the half Hampton would score to make it 1-0. Justin Carter  junior forward put the Talbots up with a goal off a rebound in front of the net. That goal would open the flood gates for Hampton. They would score  four goals in the first half all within a 10:27 span. They made it 2-0 off a corner kick at 15:05 when Evan Wilson pounced on the kick to drive it into the net. Just 3:15 late at 18:20 Zach Kozak scored after he redirected a direct kick in past Spartan keeper Matt Savoy. In fact the ball was tipped then redirected and he had no chance to stop the shot. Just :38 seconds later Austin Dilts put the Talbots up 4-0 and the route was on. Hampton totally dominated the first half and caused the Spartans to be offside's numerous times with suffocating defense. The second half however was different. Montour would come out and press offensively. and at 18:27 Nate Dearth scored while Tyler Miller the Keeper for Hampton was sprawled out to the right of the goal down due to injury. The Talbots would argue to no avail and it was 4-1. Montour would score again at 25:47 on a Travis Clark goal to cut the lead by two and make it 4-2, but with 15:00 minutes to go and Pressing the Spartan defense gave and Hampton would tally again at 36:04 to put the game out of reach. Justin Carter scores the final goal ending a marvelous night for him. The Spartans end their season at 13-5-1. Hampton at 19-1 however moves on and will play on Tuesday November 1st in the semi finals against the Ringgold Rams.

WPIAL BOYS SOCCER CLASS A QUARTERFINALS:
Greensburg Central Catholic Centurion 2 – Riverside Panthers 0

The Greensburg CC Centurions conitnued their march toward the Class A Championship by knocking off the Riverside Panthers, 2-0 in quarterfinal action from Fox Chapel High School.  The Centurions cracked the scoreboard in the 20th minute as senior fullback Phil Croker fed junior halfback Dakotga Randolph with a beautiful lead pass.  Although Panthers' netminder Rob Hardy was able to get a hand on Randolph's initial shot, he could not handle the rebound, and Randolph drover the ball into an open net.  Riverside kept the score at 1-0 with some outstanding defense, but GCC put the game away in the 70th minute as senior halfback Nate Hoyle was able to get a pass to Brad Appleby, who drove a shot past Hardy to nail the Panthers' coffin shut.  The Centurions move on to the semifinals to face the winner between Neshannock and OLSH, but the win may have come at a huge price for GCC as junior forward Jack Fagan left the game in the 79th minute with an unspecified arm or shoulder injury.  GCC's record is now 17-3-0 while Riverside's season ends at 13-5-1.

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WPIAL GIRLS VOLLEYBALL CLASS AA FIRST ROUND:
West Allegheny Indians 3 – Derry Trojans 0
(25-15) (25-11) (25-8)

Player of the Match: Jaclyn Placha (OH), West Allegheny

The second-seeded West Allegheny Indians made short work of the 15th-seeded Derry Trojans Thursday from West Allegheny High School, dominating the Trojans, 3-0 in a match that was really never a contest. After a bit of a surprising start, Derry found themselves up 4-0 early. However, West Allegheny would record 11 of the next 12 points and never look back in the match. Derry would hang around in game one, but West Allegheny would never let them get within reach, winning 25-15, with Player of the Match Jaclyn Placha dominating towards the end of the game with her tremendous topspin jump serve. Placha would pick up where she left off, building a 6-0 lead for her Indians, who cruised to a 25-11 game two win. Placha continued her service dominance, recording 11-straight points to start game three before she was substituted for by West Allegheny Head Coach Brian Begor. Even with mostly non-starters in the match, the Indians still dominated, winning game three, 25-8 and the match 3-0. The service of Placha was complimented by her fellow senior teammates Barb Lesko and Morgan Seybold each recording 11 kills on the night. West Allegheny, who went 10-0 in section play this season, moves on to face seventh-seeded Knoch in the Quarterfinals on Tuesday night. 

WPIAL GIRLS VOLLEYBALL CLASS A FIRST ROUND:
Bishop Canevin Crusaders 3 – Beaver County Christian Eagles 0
(25-23) (25-13) (25-19)

Player of the Match: Jody Mackin (MH), Bishop Canevin

The fourth-seeded Bishop Canevin Crusaders struggled early, but pulled things together and captured a 3-0 win over the 13th-seeded Beaver County Christian Eagles in the first round of the 2011 WPIAL A Girls Volleyball Playoffs from West Allegheny High School. The Eagles came out strong, building an early lead facilitated by several Bishop Canevin miscues. However, the Crusaders would hang around and eventually gain their first lead of the match at 20-19. They would go back and forth to finish the first game, but the Crusaders would win it, 25-23. Building off the strong finish in game one, the Crusaders would start off game two 6-0 and pounded Beaver County Christian, 25-13. The Eagles would make things interesting in the third game, keeping the game close at 9-8 Bishop Canevin. However, the Crusaders would extend their lead to 19-12 and, despite and strong comeback effort by Beaver County Christian, would win the final game 25-19 and the match, 3-0. Bishop Canevin got a nice performance from Player of the Match Jody Mackin, who put down a match-high 13 kills. Natalie Medved had 10 kills for the Crusaders as well. Bishop Canevin moves on to face the winner of No. 5 Laurel and No. 12 Greensburg Central Catholic on Tuesday in the Class A Quarterfinals.

WEDNESDAY RECAPS:

WPIAL GIRLS VOLLEYBALL CLASS AAA FIRST ROUND:
Mount Lebanon Blue Devils 3 – Kiski Area Cavaliers 1

The Mt. Lebanon Blue Devils seeded third in the girls WPIAL AAA Volleyball Tournament won a hard fought first round match at home 3-1 over the 13th seeded Kiski Cavaliers. It wasn't easy but they made it look so in game one cruising to a 25-16 win. Kiski was its own worst enemy making unforced errors and playing confused on defense as the Blue Devils Caroline Gratton and Christy Tuchnowski led on offense the first game. The second game Kiski turned it around leading the whole game getting a strong offensive effort from Maddie Antone and Nicole Goodiske to win 25-21. Game three was all Lebo again as they took a 25-16 win to go up 2-1.  Laura and Caroline Dadowski, seniors who both will continue their volleyball careers at Florida State University led the Blue Devils. Laura on serves and back court defense, Caroline at the net and at the wing on offense. Jenny Kang was a force at the net for Lebo preventing Kiski and offensive and stuffing numerous cavalier spike attempts. In game four, Lebo took a 4-1 lead and Kiski looked tired but  never flinched. They kept coming back from deficits and kept it close but cold never tie it. At 20-18 Antone served a bullet for an ace to make it 20-19, then trying to ace again she served just wide on the right side and Lebo would go on to win 25-22. The Blue Devils will play again on Tuesday November 1st versus the 6th seeded pen Trafford Warriors. Kiski ends their season at 8-3.

WPIAL GIRLS VOLLEYBALL CLASS AAA FIRST ROUND:
Peters Township Indians 3 – Plum Mustangs 2

At Mount Lebanon High School, the Peters TWP Indians came from behind and  took 5 games to defeat the Plum Mustangs in AAA WPIAL 1st round Girls Playoff Volleyball action by a 3-2 score in a wild affair. Game 1 was intense and was tied a total of fourten times. No team would hold a lead of more than thre points. Each team would take the lead but see the other come back and tie, and at times take the lead. Tied at 19-19, Plum took a thre point lead to go up 22-19 and looked to defeat the Indians. The Mustangs luck would run out and they fell apart as Peters would score the last 6 pointd to win 25-22. The last three point were all aces served by the Indians Shiloh Simonson.  In game two Plum took the ealry lead and again neither team could pull away as they would be tied 14 times during this game. Tied at 21-21. Plum would score the last four points to even the natch at 1-1. In game three it was more of the same thru 13-13, but the Mustangs took off to a 18-12 lead. Peters had unforced errors, net serves, and fell apart at the wrong time. The Mustangs couldnt close them out as the Indians roared back to tie it at 24-24, but Plum rallied to win it 26-24 to put the Indians down 2 games to 1. Both teams lost first round matches last year, and as evenly matched teams Peters the eight  seed and Plum the ninth seed you knew this would be a great match. It got better as in game four  Peters TWP took control at 9-7 after a controversial play. The referee would overrule his own call and give a point to the Indians making a 9-8 score to 10-7. Plum was stunned and Peters went on a run winning 9 of the next 10 points to go up 18-8. The Mustangs had no answer and fell 25-13 and it was all tied 2-2. In the fifth and deciding game Peters took a 6-1 lead but Plum kept coming back. They cut the lead to 11-7 but would get no closer and the Indians prevailed 15-8 and take a hard fought 3-2 match win. The Mustangs had inspired play from Holly Kennedy, great defense and setting by Katie Mower, and strong offense from Alyssa Samarco. The Indians had a total team effort. Everyone chipped in. Seniors Gabriella Santa Lucia , Madison Mincone and Sarah Grippi led the way defensively. Juniors Shiloh Simonson, Lauren Belack, Lauren Tassone and Kelly Johnson were ferocious on offense and at the net defensively. Sopomore Jillian Kovac came in to serve and provided strong back court defense. Head coach Ashley Green was extremely proud of her team after  the game. " We knew Plum was a good team, and to come back down 2 games to 1 is one heck of an accomplishment " The Indians will  play in the quarterfinals against the number 1 seeded Pine Richland rams on Tuesday November 1st at a site and time to be determined.

WPIAL GIRLS VOLLEYBALL CLASS AAA FIRST ROUND:
North Allegheny Tigers 3 – Chartiers Valley Colts 0

Thanks in part to an outstanding hitting night by sophomore Danielle Wall, the North Allegheny Lady Tigers outlasted the scrappy Chartiers Valley Colts, 3-0, in the first round of the Class AAA Volleyball playoffs.  Chartiers Valley entered the match Wednesday night as the 13-seed in the bracket but played well on the big stage of the playoffs, giving the Lady Tigers all they could handle.  Making their first playoff appearance since 2001, the Colts would eventually buckle to Wall and the Tigers by the end of each set.  North Allegheny claimed set wins of 25-21, 25-23 and 25-23. The Tigers pounced on the Colts for a 10-4 lead in the opening set and appeared ready to cruise against their underdog opponent, but Chartiers Valley, behind a pair of kills by Alaina Pandl, rallied to tie the scored at 14-14.  The teams would trade jabs for the next few minutes, with the score remaining tied at 16-16 before NA began to pull away.  Wall, on her way to 10 kills on the night, earned three kills over the set’s stretch run to help lift NA to a 25-21 victory.  Wall was named the Wright Automotive Player of the Match by the North Allegheny Sports Network.  Senior Sarah Swartz was another major factor in the opening set with three kills and a block, delivering the game ending kill. As she did in the set prior, Wall hammered three kills for the Lady Tigers to put NA in front 15-9 in the second set.  Char Valley’s Stephanie Solt pulled the Colts back in the game with a pair of kills to help tie the score late at 22-22.  The North Allegheny bench came up huge in this set as sophomore Jamie Robatisin smoked a kill past the Colts to pull NA ahead, 23-22.  After CV answered to tie the score again, junior Katie Humes came through with a kill to bring the Lady Tigers to game point, 24-23.  The kill was one of three for Humes in the set.  With the set victory within reach, senior Claire Bradshaw wrapped things up with a block as NA claimed a 25-23 win. Things would once again go down to the wire in set three, which was easily the most tightly contested of the night.  The Lady Tigers trailed 22-21 before Bradshaw garnered a kill to knot up the score at 22-22.  Katie Best posted a block and Maura Nolan a kill to up the score to 24-22, Tigers.  CV pulled to 24-23 when Erin Swartz pushed a well placed shot just inside the sideline to finish off the pesky Colts for good, 25-23. Along with Wall’s 10 kills, Bradshaw ended the night with five of her own, and Erin Swartz posted five.  Junior setter Maura Nolan provided her teammates with plenty of good hitting opportunities by notching 27 assists.  Defensively, Best and libero Kristen Mitchell were terrific covering the entire floor and combining for 42 digs. North Allegheny improves to 12-5 on the season and will advance to the quarterfinals on Tuesday night to face Upper St. Clair.   The Lady Tigers defeated the Panthers 3-0 earlier this season on October 3. The site and time of the quarterfinal match-up is to be determined.       

Tags: Beaver County Christian, Bethel Park, Bishop Canevin, Derry Area, Fox Chapel, Greensburg C.C., Hampton, Kiski School, Upper St. Clair, West Allegheny