WPIAL Year in Review – Top 25 Stories of 2010: 5 through 1

By: HSSN Staff
Friday, December 31, 2010 | 12:00 AM

The year 2010 in high school sports in the WPIAL was very memorable. It was a year where some familiar champions were golden again while some new faces surfaced in the championship picture. There were battles with forces on and off the field in which the athletes had no chance of winning. It was a year in which we said so long to some familiar faces and schools while welcoming in some new teams to the district. Over the final few days of 2010, we here at the MSA Sports Network, who were there for it all, count down the Top 25 stories from around the WPIAL concludes with #5 through #1.

#5 – GIRLS POWER AGAIN IN WPIAL BOYS TENNIS

It was a historic day at Keystone Oaks High School as for the second time in WPIAL history, an athlete claimed both the Girls and Boys Singles Tennis Championship in their career. California's Sarah Shashura accomplished the feat by winning the Class AA Boys Championship back in April, defeating Nathan Walch of Southmoreland 3-6, 6-3, 6-2. Shashura won the 2008 WPIAL Girls Singles Championship but elected to play against the boys this year. Shashura joined Annie Houghton of Quaker Valley, who won the boys championship in 2006. Walch was able to overpower Shashura in the opening set, but faltered with his serve in both the second and third sets. Shashura cruised to a 4-0 lead in the final set, but struggled with service problems of her own, she double-faulted on three consecutive points to make it 4-1, but Walch did not take advantage of the break, losing the next two games and the match. Shashura said she tried to stay calm and play her best, she gave credit to Walch for stepping his game up, Shashura had beaten Walch twice earlier this season, including the Semifinals of the Section 1 qualifiers. Of the decision to play against the boys this season, Shashura said she just wanted to be part of a team this season since California does not field a girls tennis team. Shashura would go on to lose in the opening round of the PIAA Class AA boys individual playoffs.

#4 – #1 FROM START TO FINISH

When the MSA Sports Network unveiled the 2009-2010 WPIAL basketball preseason polls, Mount Lebanon was the top ranked team in both the boys and girls Class AAAA rankings. Rare…but what both Blue Devils teams would go on to accomplish is nothing short of incredible. Both Mount Lebanon teams stayed at number one throughout the entire regular season. Joey David and Dori Oldaker's team did not stop there however, as the top seeds in their respective tournaments went on to win three games each to make the WPIAL finals. The Lebo boys edged Gateway 57-51 to win their second district crown in five years while the Lebo girls cruised past Baldwin 59-43 to capture a second consecutive WPIAL championship. While the Mount Lebanon boys lost in the PIAA Class AAAA Second Round, the girls team made it all the way to Penn State University for a third straight trip to the state championship game, where they beat Archbishop Ryan 70-43 to conclude a 29-2 season with a second consecutive PIAA golden crown. It truly was The Year of the Blue Devils on the WPIAL hardwood.

#3 – GOODBYE CENTER AND MONACA, A GOLDEN HELLO TO CENTRAL VALLEY

The 2009-2010 school year was a special one at a pair of Beaver County schools. For students and athletes, it was the final year for the Center Trojans and Monaca Indians. Two rich traditions were about to merge into one new school, Central Valley High School. While there was great excitement about the new school, there were still plenty of questions on the athletic front about how the young athletes from two schools would blend. Those questions are no more going into the winter sports season after a historic run in football this fall. Playing the toughest conference in the WPIAL, the Class AAA Parkway Conference, the Warriors held their own each week, and ended up making the playoffs as the fourth place team in the section. As the 14th-seed in the Class AAA tournament, Central Valley stunned undefeated Ringgold in round one, blanked Knoch in the Quarterfinals and then a 42-24 win over powerhouse Thomas Jefferson to earn a trip to Heinz Field inn their first season ever. Mark Lyons squad finished the amazing season by beating undefeated Montour 24-7. While the Warriors would lose in the Quarterfinals of the PIAA playoffs to Erie Cathedral Prep, it didn't keep the first season at Central Valley High School from being a golden one.

#2 – THE STREAK CONTINUES AS CLAIRTON CONTINUES THEIR DOMINANT WAYS IN CLASS A

Three-peat. The Clairton Bears became just the second team in WPIAL Class A history to win three straight titles, earning the trifecta with a 12-0 victory over the Rochester Rams at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh in late November. It was Clairton's 8th WPIAL title overall, with their current four championships in a 5-year span under head coach Tom Nola. However the Bears were not done. Two wins in the PIAA postseason earned a third straight trip to the state finals in Hershey. The first fifteen minutes of the title game were lopsided, but not the way most people thought as the District 2 champion Taylor Riverside Vikings jumped out to a 24-0 lead. But Clairton was not denied as they turned on the offensive heat and shut down the Vikings offense, scoring 36 consecutive points on the way to back to back PIAA Class A titles with a 36-30 victory at HersheyPark Stadium. The current run by Clairton is building into one for the record books. The Bears have won three straight district crowns, two straight state championships and 31 consecutive victories.

#1 – PITTSBURGH CITY LEAGUE TO SOON JOIN THE WPIAL?

In October, a report came out that the Pittsburgh City League is considering disbanding and joining the WPIAL. The City League has spoken with the WPIAL about possibly joining, as early as the 2012-13 season. Currently, the City League has nine schools, but Peabody is closing after this school year. Schenley also will close and its students will be at different schools. If the City League would join the WPIAL, the City League would combine some of its sports teams at some of its schools under cooperative sponsorship agreements. In other words, two schools might combine for one team. The WPIAL already has some sports teams playing under cooperative sponsorships. The City League has been a part of high school athletics in Southwestern Pennsylvania since the PIAA was formed in 1913. The first City League championship was in baseball in 1913.