WPIAL releases new-look girls volleyball alignment with 6 classes

By: Don Rebel
Thursday, March 12, 2026 | 2:44 PM

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On the 10-year anniversary of the PIAA expanding football, basketball, baseball and softball from four to six classifications, girls volleyball is next to grow in class.

The WPIAL released the new section alignment and schedules for the 2026 and 2027 seasons, the first two years of girls volleyball entering the world of six classifications.

“Six classifications came forward at the state level volleyball committee about four years ago,” WPIAL volleyball committee chairman Michael McDonald said. “Softball had six classifications and the committee noticed that girls volleyball had the same amount of schools playing girls volleyball, so it was proposed at that time. The PIAA tabled it for the previous two-year cycle, but we kept revisiting it, and eventually it was passed.

“Two main reasons stuck out. Schools that had 4A enrollments were playing against schools that had 6A and 5A enrollments. Also, girls volleyball had only four district and state championships, and many other sports had six district and state championships. This was about the opportunity for additional schools to experience championship opportunities in an appropriate enrollment classification.”

McDonald, who is also the athletic director at Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, has overseen the district volleyball committee for both boys and girls for 25 years.

With four classifications, the breakdown of WPIAL teams in each class in the 2024 and 2025 seasons were 24 in Class 4A, 33 in 3A, 37 in 2A and 28 in Class A.

There were four sections in 4A and five sections in the other three classifications.

Like other six-class sports, Class 6A takes a hit numbers-wise in District 7 with only nine total schools — four in Section 1 and five in Section 2.

The other class breakdown is 30 teams in Class 5A with four sections, 16 schools in 4A with two sections, 26 teams in 3A with four sections, 27 schools in 2A with four sections and 16 teams in Class A with two sections.

“Personally, I feel like having six classes are good overall, despite some challenges with the amount of teams in each classification,” McDonald said. “So we had to be creative about what that would look like as far as sections and playoff qualifiers. Class 4A and 1A don’t have as many teams (16 each), while 5A, 3A and 2A have between 26-30 teams.

“Geography and section strength across the board were a challenge, but like every sport we have, they continue to be challenges every two years because of enrollment changes, voluntary upgrades by schools, and the success formulas/transfers that may also affect classification.”

There are 124 WPIAL schools scheduled for the 2026 and 2027 girls volleyball seasons, up two from the 122 schools the last two fall seasons.

Sewickley Academy has added a girls volleyball program and Calvary Chapel, a small private school in Brownsville, is new to the district.

WPIAL executive director Vince Sortino admitted this is a big change for girls volleyball overall.

“Fall is probably a good starting point as it gives our teams time to digest the new landscape,” he said.

Here is the new WPIAL girls volleyball section alignment for the 2026 and 2027 seasons.

Here are the new WPIAL girls volleyball section schedules for the 2026 and 2027 seasons.