Breaking down changes to the 2022-23 WPIAL girls volleyball alignment
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Tuesday, June 28, 2022 | 10:20 AM
The WPIAL released new section alignments for the next two-year cycle in all sports, and changes will be implemented starting this fall.
This summer, the Tribune-Review will break down changes for each of the WPIAL sports.
Here’s a look at the upcoming WPIAL girls volleyball season:
2021 WPIAL championships
Class 4A: North Allegheny 3, Shaler 2
Class 3A: Freeport 3, Hampton 1
Class 2A: North Catholic 3, Avonworth 1
Class A: Bishop Canevin 3, Greensburg C.C. 1
Notable changes
• Freeport and North Catholic will be trying to defend WPIAL girls volleyball titles this fall, but they will be facing a new path to get there.
The Yellowjackets, who won the Class 3A title last year, dropped to Class 2A and will compete in Section 5 with A-K Valley rivals Apollo-Ridge, Burrell, Deer Lakes and Valley, as well as Derry, Ligonier Valley and Neighborhood Academy.
North Catholic, which won the Class 2A title and has won two PIAA titles the past three years, moved up to Class 3A and will play in Section 4.
• Class 4A got a lot smaller as five teams dropped down to Class 3A — Connellsville, Gateway, Latrobe, Moon and Oakland Catholic — leaving 16 teams across three sections.
• Class 2A will look drastically different this season. Beaver, Burrell, Central Valley, Freeport, Hopewell and Yough all dropped down with Freeport. Apollo-Ridge, Fort Cherry, OLSH and Sto-Rox all moved up from Class A to give the classification 41 teams.
Section 4 will be all new, as Avonworth, Freedom, New Brighton and Quaker Valley moved from different sections and will be joined by Central Valley, Hopewell, OLSH and Sto-Rox.
• Burgettstown, Carlynton, Carmichaels, Chartiers-Houston, Frazier and Serra Catholic all dropped down to Class A, where Bishop Canevin has won five straight titles.
• The top four teams in each section will qualify for the WPIAL playoffs. The WPIAL championships will be played Nov. 6 at Robert Morris’ UPMC Events Center.
New to WPIAL
A pair of teams have joined the WPIAL this season — Riverside and Neighborhood Academy. Riverside will compete in Section 1-2A, and Neighborhood Academy will join Section 5-2A.
Key dates
Aug. 15: First practice date
Aug. 20: First scrimmage date
Aug. 26: First play date
Sept. 6: First section date
Oct. 21: Volleyball playoff pairings
Nov. 1: WPIAL semifinals
Nov. 5: WPIAL championships
Nov. 19: PIAA championships
2022-23 alignment
Class 4A (16 teams)
Section 1: Butler, North Allegheny, North Hills, Pine-Richland, Seneca Valley
Section 2: Baldwin, Bethel Park, Canon-McMillan, Mt. Lebanon, Peters Township, Upper St. Clair
Section 3: Fox Chapel, Hempfield, Norwin, Penn-Trafford, Shaler
Class 3A (36 teams)
Section 1: Gateway, Hampton, McKeesport, Penn Hills, Plum, West Mifflin, Woodland Hills
Section 2: Chartiers Valley, Montour, Moon, Oakland Catholic, South Fayette, Trinity, West Allegheny
Section 3: Albert Gallatin, Belle Vernon, Connellsville, Elizabeth Forward, Laurel Highlands, Ringgold, Thomas Jefferson, Uniontown
Section 4: Ambridge, Blackhawk, Knoch, Lincoln Park, Mars, New Castle, North Catholic
Section 5: Armstrong, Franklin Regional, Greensburg Salem, Highlands, Indiana, Kiski Area, Latrobe
Class 2A (41 teams)
Section 1: Beaver, Beaver Falls, Ellwood City, Laurel, Mohawk, Neshannock, Riverside, Shenango
Section 2: Brentwood, East Allegheny, Fort Cherry, Keystone Oaks, Seton LaSalle, South Allegheny, South Park, Steel Valley
Section 3: Bentworth, Beth-Center, Brownsville, Charleroi, McGuffey, Southmoreland, Washington, Waynesburg Central, Yough
Section 4: Avonworth, Central Valley, Freedom, Hopewell, New Brighton, OLSH, Quaker Valley, Sto-Rox
Section 5: Apollo-Ridge, Burrell, Deer Lakes, Derry, Freeport, Ligonier Valley, Neighborhood Academy, Valley
Class A (29 teams)
Section 1: Aliquippa, Beaver County Christian, Burgettstown, Rochester, South Side, Union, Western Beaver
Section 2: Avella, California, Carmichaels, Frazier, Geibel Catholic, Jefferson-Morgan, Mapletown, West Greene
Section 3: Bishop Canevin, Carlynton, Chartiers-Houston, Cornell, Eden Christian Academy, Hillcrest Christian Academy, Northgate
Section 4: Greensburg C.C., Leechburg, Riverview, Serra Catholic, Springdale, St. Joseph, Trinity Christian
*Cooperative sponsorship
Bill Hartlep is the TribLive sports editor. A Pittsburgh native and Point Park graduate, he joined the Trib in 2004, covering high school sports. He held various editing roles before assuming his current position in 2019. He can be reached at bhartlep@triblive.com.
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