2012 WPIAL Girls Basketball Championship Previews

By: HSSN Staff
Friday, March 2, 2012 | 1:19 PM

Rematch is a popular word for the WPIAL girls basketball championships this weekend. Three of the four title games are between teams that already have played this year – South Park vs. Blackhawk, Seton-LaSalle vs. Bishop Canevin and North Catholic vs. Vincentian. Seton-LaSalle-Bishop Canevin and North Catholic-Vincentian are from the same sections.

The only game that is not a rematch is Oakland Catholic vs. Mount Lebanon.

All four championship games will be played at Duquesne University’s Palumbo Center. Here is a look at the four championship games:

CLASS AAAA
The game: Oakland Catholic (24-1) vs. Mount Lebanon (22-3), 7 p.m. Friday

The statistics: Guard Bobbi Baker leads Oakland Catholic in scoring at 14 points per game. Guard Kelly Johnson averages 13 for Mt. Lebanon. … Oakland Catholic has the No. 1 defensive team in Class AAAA, allowing only 35 points a game. Mount Lebanon is third at 38 a game. … Mount Lebanon has had a different leading scorer the past four games. … Oakland Catholic’s only loss was to Seton-LaSalle. Mount Lebanon also lost to Seton-LaSalle.

What to look for: Both teams like to press and play pressure defense. Will it be effective in this game? … Mount Lebanon has a height advantage, but will that be a factor if the Blue Devils’ guards can’t handle Oakland Catholic’s defensive pressure? … Mount Lebanon needs a strong game from guard Kelly Johnson. … Will championship experience mean anything? Mt. Lebanon is making its fourth consecutive championship appearance.

History lesson: Oakland Catholic coach Shannon Boyle was a player on a former Oakland Catholic team that won a WPIAL title. Oakland Catholic won its first WPIAL championship in 1999, under coach Suzie McConnell Serio. The Eagles went on to win four titles in a row. … Mount Lebanon has won three consecutive PIAA championships.

CLASS AAA
The game: Hopewell (23-2) vs. South Park (23-2), 7 p.m. Saturday.

The statistics: Hopewell junior Shatori Walker-Kimbrough averages 25.8 points a game and has scored 36, 33 and 22 points in three playoff games. … Shelby Lindsay leads South Park with a 17.3 average, but Hallie Torris is averaging 18 points in three playoff games. Lindsay is averaging 24 points in the playoffs. … South Park’s offense can be strong, scoring more than 60 points in all three playoff games. Hopewell allows only 38 points a game.

What to look for: Two things are key in this game: 1. Can South Park control Walker-Kimbrough? 2. Will Walker-Kimbrough get much help from her teammates? Walker-Kimbrough is averaging 33 points in the playoffs, but the rest of the team is averaging only 15. Jharrin Gill scored 11 points in a first-round blowout of Belle Vernon and that’s the only playoff game that a Hopewell player other than Walker-Kimbrough has cracked double figures. Hopewell beat South Park, 58-55, in the regular-season finale. In that game, Walker-Kimbrough had 24 and Kari Steuer 14. … South Park is more balanced.

History lesson: Fourteen years ago, Chartiers Valley needed overtime to beat South Park, 57-48, in the WPIAL Class AAA boys championship. The coach of that team was Reggie Wells, who is now South Park’s girls coach. One of the players on that South Park team was Reggie Wells Jr., who is now a South Park assistant for his father. Reggie Jr. is a linemen in the NFL.

CLASS AA
The game: Seton-LaSalle (24-0) vs. Bishop Canevin (21-4), 3 p.m. Friday

The statistics: Seton-LaSalle is the only undefeated team in the WPIAL playoffs. Seton-LaSalle leads the WPIAL in scoring at 71 points a game while giving up only 37. … Sophomore Naje Gibson leads Seton-LaSalle in scoring at 16.1, and junior Angela Heintz averages 14.3. … Junior Erin Waskowiak leads Bishop Canevin at 20.3 a game. In the playoffs, Celina DiPietro is averaging 16.

What to look for: Does Bishop Canevin have any chance in slowing down the runaway train that is the Seton-LaSalle Rebels? Seton-LaSalle has pretty much crushed every Class AA team, but Bishop Canevin did hang with the Rebels somewhat in two previous games this season. Seton-LaSalle won by only 68-60 and 61-50. … Seton-LaSalle has more depth than Bishop Canevin and the Rebels can wear on you with their defensive pressure. Seton-LaSalle will play nine or 10 players. … A key to the game will be how well Bishop Canevin handles the defensive pressure. Also, what does Bishop Canevin do to combat Seton-LaSalle’s size.

History lesson: Twenty-nine years ago, Seton-LaSalle won its first WPIAL championship with a victory over North Catholic. The point guard on that Seton-LaSalle team was Suzie McConnell. … Both Bishop Canevin and Seton-LaSalle joined the WPIAL in the 1970s. At that time, Seton-LaSalle was South Hills Catholic and was an all-boys school. Girls came to the school in 1979 and the name was changed to Seton-LaSalle.

CLASS A
The game: North Catholic (20-5) vs. Vincentian Academy (24-1), 3 p.m. Saturday.

The statistics: Brenna Wise, a freshman, leads Vincentian in scoring at 18 a game. Guards Ashlee Darby and Noreen Fischer average 15.1 and 12.9, respectively. Darby had a carrer-high 35 in a first-round win against Avella. … Guard Lauren Wolosik is North Catholic’s leading scorer at about 13 a game. … North Catholic has not been challenged in the playoffs, winning by 33, 37 and 33 points.

What to look for: Wise, a 5-11 forward, hasn’t played in the playoffs because of an injured ankle suffered in a scrimmage before the playoffs started. She was the Royals’ inside presence, but there is a chance she could play Saturday. Without her, Vincentian has relied more on guard play and outside shooting. The Royals had a Class A playoff record seven 3-pointers in a semifinal win against Fort Cherry. … North Catholic is a balanced team offensively. Wolosik is a talented guard, but the Trojanettes have much more than her. Lynzi Mueller tied a Class A playoff record with five 3-pointers in the semifinals against Riverview. … The teams split two close games during the regular season.

History lesson: Twenty-three years ago, North Catholic won the WPIAL Class AAA title with an undefeated record. The star of the team was Molly Larkin, who is now Molly Rottman and the coach of North Catholic’s girls.

Tags: Bishop Canevin, Hopewell, Vincentian Academy