Westmoreland PIAA basketball playoff capsule: Games for March 15, 2023

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Tuesday, March 14, 2023 | 3:18 PM

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PIAA basketball playoffs

Girls

Class 6A

Second round

Penn-Trafford (18-9) vs. McKeesport (22-5)

7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Norwin High School, North Huntingdon

Tickets: Upcoming Events | PIAA Box Office (hometownticketing.com)

District-seed: Penn-Trafford 7-7; McKeesport 7-3

Winner plays: Winner of 7-2 Oakland Catholic (23-4)/6-1 Hollidaysburg (24-0) Saturday in quarterfinals (time, site TBD)

Players to watch: Lilly Palladino, Penn-Trafford; Rachael Manfredo, McKeesport

Layup lines: This is the third meeting of the season for these teams, who finished 2-3 in WPIAL Section 3-5A. McKeesport won both times, 59-35 and 47-32. … Penn-Trafford won its first state playoff game since 2013, 40-39, at Greencastle-Antrim. The win made the near-three-hour trip much more bearable. Lilly Paladino had 12 points and Lauren Marton added 11. Palladino had 10 in the second quarter. Freshman Tori DeStefano made a free throw with 8.1 seconds left for the difference. The Warriors missed two more free throws after that but dodged last-second heroics from the home team. … The Tigers ran past Northern, the fourth-place team from District 3, 54-40, in the first round. McKeesport has plenty of state-playoff experience, having reached the PIAA semifinals last year. During that state run, Tigers played “local” teams in Obama Academy, Oakland Catholic, Moon and Chartiers Valley. That made the game against Northern more of a state playoff feel. Manfredo is a leader on both ends of the floor. Malina Boord is a sharp-shooting guard, and Maddie Hertzler and Kaylee Charles also make the offense go.

Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.

Tags: McKeesport, Penn-Trafford