High school roundup for Oct. 29, 2020: Strong defense carries Moon to Class 4A semifinals

By: Tribune-Review
Thursday, October 29, 2020 | 11:15 PM

Defense and a couple of clutch goals can carry a team a long way in WPIAL girls soccer playoffs.

Just ask Moon.

Kayla Leseck scored off a free kick in the first half and Alayshja Babel recorded the shutout as the No. 6 Tigers (9-3-2) grabbed a 1-0 Class 4A quarterfinal victory over No. 3 Fox Chapel (11-3) on Thursday night.

It was the second straight 1-0 win for Moon, which defeated Pine-Richland in the first round Monday.

“They’ve been playing very connected, playing together as a unit, and that makes it a lot easier,” Babel said of her defense. “I’ve got a very fast back line. When balls get through, they use their speed. A couple times, I had to get to some balls, too.”

Moon will meet No. 2 Butler in Monday’s semifinals. No. 1 Peters Township and No. 5 North Allegheny will square off in the other half of the bracket.

It’s a hard field to identify a favorite in.

“That’s the mentality our team has,” coach Keith Little said. “No matter how many all-WPIAL or all-state players a team has, we feel like we’re in the game.”

Peters Township 1, Seneca Valley 0 – Irene Doleno scored the decisive goal to lead No. 1 Peters Township (11-1-1) to a Class 4A quarterfinal win over No. 8 Seneca Valley (7-4). Goalkeeper Emma Sawich not only recorded the shutout, but also assisted on Hensinger’s goal.

Butler 4, Upper St. Clair 0 – Chloe Weiland had two goals and Sam Miller and Gabby Boden also scored to lead No. 2 Butler (10-1) past Upper St. Clair (8-6) in Class 4A.

Mars 6, Oakland Catholic 0 – Caroline Wroblewski scored a pair of goals and No. 1 Mars (14-0) rolled to another victory, topping No. 9 Oakland Catholic (10-5) in a Class 3A quarterfinal. Gracie Dunaway, Aly Cooper, Piper Coffield and Ava Lewis also scored for the Planets, who will meet No. 13 Montour in Wednesday’s semifinals.

Montour 1, Franklin Regional 0 – Salveria Ulizzi scored 12 minutes into the game and the lead held up for No. 13 Montour (10-6) in a Class 3A quarterfinal upset win over No. 5 Franklin Regional (11-2-1).

West Allegheny 2, Hampton 0 – Kyleigh Trecki had a goal and an assist and Mackenzie Evers also scored to lead No. 6 West Allegheny (11-3) past No. 3 Hampton (12-3) in Class 3A. West Allegheny will meet No. 2 Plum in Wednesday’s semifinals.

Boys soccer

Shady Side Academy 4, Ambridge 1 – Eli Naughton, Caleb Massie, Drew McKim and Jackson Suski scored as No. 1 Shady Side Academy (13-2) rolled to a Class 2A quarterfinal win. Nathan Lambert scored for No. 8 Ambridge (11-4). Shady Side Academy will meet No. 5 Elizabeth Forward in Monday’s semifinals.

Elizabeth Forward 2, Avonworth 0 – Andrew Smith scored a pair of goals and Austin Onofrey recorded the shutout as No. 5 Elizabeth Forward (12-2-2) defeated No. 13 Avonworth (5-7-2).

Mt. Pleasant 2, North Catholic 1 – Luke Rivardo and Lucas Toohey scored to lead No. 6 Mt. Pleasant (13-1) past No. 3 North Catholic (13-2-1). Rivardo’s goal gave Mt. Pleasant the lead for good in the first half. Toohey scored to make it 2-0 after halftime. Dom Rivetti scored on a free kick as North Catholic closed to within a goal. Mt. Pleasant will meet No. 2 Deer Lakes in Monday’s semifinals.

Girls volleyball

Beaver 3, Albert Gallatin 0 – No. 1 Beaver (13-0) stayed undefeated with a 25-16, 25-17, 25-15 Class 3A first-round win over No. 17 Albert Gallatin (7-7). Beaver will meet No. 8 Mars in Monday’s quarterfinals.

Mars 3, Hopewell 0 – No. 8 Mars (10-3) captured a 25-22, 25-17, 25-17 victory over No. 9 Hopewell (10-3).

Franklin Regional 3, Elizabeth Forward 0 – No. 4 Franklin Regional (13-2) handled No. 13 Elizabeth Forward (10-4) 25-19, 25-13, 25-14 in its playoff opener. Franklin Regional will meet South Fayette in the quarterfinals.

South Fayette 3, Hampton 2 – No. 5 South Fayette (11-2) came away with a narrow 25-22, 20-25, 25-21, 20-25, 16-14 win over No. 12 Hampton (9-4) in a back-and-forth match.

Plum 3, Trinity 0 – Second-seeded Plum got its Class 3A playoff run off to a dominant start in a 25-10, 25-18, 25-9 victory over No. 15 Trinity (10-4). Plum will meet No. 10 Armstrong in the quarterfinals.

Armstrong 3, Thomas Jefferson 1 – No. 10 Armstrong (10-3) roared back losing the second set for a 25-19, 24-26, 25-11, 25-8 win over No. 7 Thomas Jefferson (10-3).

Montour 3, Central Valley 0 – No. 3 Montour came away with a 25-14, 25-16, 28-26 win over No. 14 Central Valley (8-6) and will meet No. 6 Laurel Highlands in the quarterfinals.

Laurel Highlands 3, Freeport 1 – No. 6 Laurel Highlands (12-1) won the first two games and held on for a 25-22, 25-15, 16-25, 25-23 victory over No. 11 Freeport (9-4), ending the season for the 2019 WPIAL champs.

North Catholic 3, Neshannock 0 – No. 1 North Catholic (12-0) opened its Class 2A playoff run with a win over No. 17 Neshannock (9-7). North Catholic will meet Shenango in Monday’s quarterfinals.

Shenango def. Carmichaels, forfeit – Carmichaels forfeited because of a player’s presumed positive covid case.

Frazier 3, Deer Lakes 1 – No. 13 Frazier (10-4) knocked off No. 4 Deer Lakes (11-2) 25-22, 18-25, 25-14, 25-20 in a Class 2A first-round match. Frazier will meet No. 5 Waynesburg in the quarterfinals.

Waynesburg 3, Seton LaSalle 0 – No. 5 Waynesburg (12-1) claimed a tight 28-26, 26-24, 26-24 victory over No. 12 Seton LaSalle (8-5).

Ellwood City 3, Ligonier Valley 0 – No. 2 Ellwood City (15-0) overcame a slow start for a 25-23, 25-13, 25-19 victory over No. 15 Ligonier Valley (8-5). Ellwood City will meet No. 7 Serra Catholic in the quarterfinals.

Serra Catholic 3, South Allegheny 0 – No. 7 Serra Catholic (11-2) took a 25-15, 25-18, 25-23 win from No. 10 South Allegheny (9-3).

South Park 3, Chartiers-Houston 0 – No. 3 South Park (12-1) opened its playoff run with a 25-19, 25-16, 25-18 win over No. 14 Chartiers-Houston (9-5). South Park will meet No. 6 Avonworth in the quarterfinals.

Avonworth 3, Laurel 0 – No. 6 Avonworth (9-2) secured a 25-17, 25-18, 25-22 win over No. 11 Laurel (11-4).

Neshannock 3, Derry 2 – No. 17 Neshannock held off No. 16 Derry (5-4) in a WPIAL Class 2A preliminary round match, 26-24, 25-18, 21-25, 22-25, 15-13.

Football

Carlynton 48, Riverview 8 – Shawn Curry ran 11 times for 162 yards and four touchdowns and Bryan Lee had nine carries for 87 yards and two scores as Carlynton (3-5) defeated Riverview (0-8) in a nonconference matchup.

Shady Side Academy 28, Valley 21 – Josh Castro ran for 202 yards and three touchdowns on 37 carries to lead Shady Side Academy (2-5) to a season-ending nonconference victory. Castro also threw a touchdown pass to Isaiah Greer. Cayden Quinn scored a rushing touchdown and threw scoring passes to Adisun Jackson and Elijah Murray for Valley (2-5).

Tags: Moon