Alle-Kiski Valley softball playoff capsules: Games of Tuesday, May 24, 2022

By: Michael Love
Monday, May 23, 2022 | 5:51 PM

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Class A semifinals

1-West Greene (13-3) vs. 4-Springdale (11-1)

6 p.m. at Boyce Mayview Park, Upper St. Clair Township

Winner plays: Winner of 2-Union (18-3) vs. 3-Greensburg Central Catholic (12-5) in championship game June 1 at Lilley Field, Cal (Pa.)

Players to watch: Alexis Hrivnak, Springdale; London Whipkey, West Greene

Extra bases: West Greene rolled in to the semifinals with a 7-0 victory over No. 9 Mapletown in the quarterfinals Thursday at Waynesburg University. The Pioneers had earned a bye past the first round. West Greene won WPIAL Class 1A titles from 2016 to 2019 and again in 2021 after covid wiped out the 2020 season. The Pioneers also made it to last year’s WPIAL title game. West Greene has won 13 games in a row since starting the season with three losses at the Ripken Experience in Myrtle Beach. The Pioneers are paced by Whipkey, a junior, and senior Katie Lampe. Both are hitting better than .450. Whipkey hit a home run, and Kiley Meek went 3 for 4 with four RBIs and threw a four-hit shutout with 12 strikeouts in the victory over the Maples. … Springdale also is on a winning streak as it’s won 11 in a row since a loss to Greensburg Central Catholic in the season opener. Senior pitcher Hrivnak allowed just four hits and struck out 18 as the Dynamos edged No. 5 South Side in the quarterfinals Friday. Hrivnak helped her cause with an RBI single, and senior Autumn Sprouse hit a sacrifice fly to score the winning run. Springdale fell to South Side in the quarterfinals last year.

Class 3A semifinals

2-South Allegheny (13-3) vs. 3-Deer Lakes (12-4)

3 p.m. at West Mifflin

Winner plays: Winner of 1-Avonworth (15-5) vs. 5-Southmoreland (13-3) in championship game June 1 at Lilley Field, Cal (Pa.)

Players to watch: Lydia Guthrie, Deer Lakes; Madison Pikula, South Allegheny

Extra bases: Deer Lakes, the Section 1 champion, snapped a three-game playoff losing streak with a 3-2 victory over Waynesburg Central in the first round. The Lancers got a two-run single from senior Guthrie that turned out to be the winner. Sophomore Maddie Kee struck out eight, and Anna Bokulich went 3 for 3 in the victory. Deer Lakes won WPIAL titles in 2012 and 2015 and reached the championship game in 2017. The Lancers beat Class 5A Armstrong and Class 4A Highlands in the regular season by a combined score of 18-4. They also played Class 4A playoff qualifier Knoch and Class 5A qualifier Shaler to close out the regular season. … South Allegheny’s potent offense paced it to a 10-4 victory over Keystone Oaks in the first round. Breena Komarnisky doubled and drove in three runs and also picked up the pitching win. Pikula and Ava Martorelli added 3-for-4 days at the plate. Five players had at least two hits in the Gladiators’ 15-hit attack. South Allegheny is seeking its first WPIAL title. The Gladiators have lost three straight WPIAL quarterfinal games. The last quarterfinals win came in 2011 before they fell to Burrell in the semifinals … The teams last played in 2018 as section foes. The Gladiators won both games against the Lancers that season.

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

Tags: Deer Lakes, South Allegheny, Springdale, West Greene