Seven WPIAL teams remain among Trib HSSN’s state softball rankings

By: Don Rebel
Saturday, June 8, 2019 | 7:26 PM

Four of the six top-ranked teams from a week ago survived the first two rounds of the state playoffs and remain on top in the next-to-last edition of the Trib HSSN state softball rankings.

Hazleton, West Chester East, Pine Grove and West Greene are joined at No. 1 this week by Elizabeth Forward and Cranberry.

There were 14 teams that slipped out of the rankings and six that hung on at No. 5 even though their dreams of state gold came to an end.

Next week’s final rankings will include all of the teams below with a possible shuffling of the deck depending on what happens in the semifinals and title games.

Seven teams from the WPIAL remain, with Hempfield, Penn-Trafford, Elizabeth Forward, Mt. Pleasant, Frazier and West Greene alive heading into Monday’s final four.

Avonworth will not win a PIAA crown, but the Antelopes finished in the top five for the season in Class 3A.

Here is the latest PIAA Top Five in each of the six classifications through Friday, June 7.

The team’s ranking from last week is the number in parenthesis after their record followed by their district.

Class 6A

1. Hazleton (22-1) (1) (D-2)

2. Hempfield (18-6) (2) (D-7)

3. Central Dauphin (23-2) (3) (D-3)

4. Spring-Ford (24-1) (NR) (D-1)

5. Downingtown West (23-3) (4) (D-1)

Out: Parkland (21-4) (D-11)

Class 5A

1. West Chester East (24-2) (1) (D-3)

2. Lampeter-Strasburg (27-1) (NR) (D-3)

3. Donegal (24-2) (NR) (D-3)

4. Penn-Trafford (21-2) (NR) (D-7)

5. Pittston (19-4) (2) (D-2)

Out: Twin Valley (26-3) (D-3), Bangor (16-8) (D-11), Archbishop Ryan (18-9) (D-12)

Class 4A:

1. Elizabeth Forward (19-3) (2) (D-7)

2. Mt. Pleasant (19-1) (NR) (D-7)

3. West Perry (22-5) (NR) (D-3)

4. Honesdale (16-9) (NR) (D-4)

5. Nazareth Academy (18-3) (1) (D-1)

Out: Grove City (16-6), Scranton Prep (14-6) (D-2), Mifflinburg (18-5) (D-4)

Class 3A:

1. Pine Grove (26-0) (1) (D-11)

2. Bald Eagle (21-3) (4) (D-6)

3. Bloomsburg (17-8) (NR) (D-4)

4. Clearfield (14-9) (NR) (D-9)

5. Avonworth (21-3) (2) (D-7)

Out: Girard (18-4) (D-10), Mid Valley Secondary Center (17-4) (D-2)

Class 2A:

1. Cranberry (15-5) (4) (D-9)

2. Frazier (19-4) (NR) (D-7)

3. Susquenita (19-6) (NR) (D-3)

4. Brandywine Heights (16-9) (NR) (D-3)

5. Marion Center (20-3) (1) (D-6)

Out: Laurel (21-3) (D-17), Conemaugh Township (20-2) (D-5), Union City (18-3) (D-10)

Class A:

1. West Greene (21-4) (1) (D-7)

2. Williams Valley (25-2) (2) (D-11)

3. Millersburg (18-4) (NR) (D-3)

4. DuBois Central Catholic (16-9) (NR) (D-9)

5. Bristol (19-4) (5) (D-3)

Out: Claysburg-Kimmel (20-5) (D-9), Bucktail (19-3) (D-4)

Tags: Avonworth, Elizabeth Forward, Frazier, Hempfield, Mt. Pleasant, Penn-Trafford, West Greene