MSA Sports Countdown of Top 25 WPIAL Stories of 2013 – 12/28/13

By: HSSN Staff
Saturday, December 28, 2013 | 2:16 PM

It has become a tradition like no other…at least during the holidays here at MSA Sports. It’s time to look back at another high school sports year with the top stories from around the WPIAL in 2013. We begin our countdown with the five stories that ended up #25 through #21.

#25 – Playoff Drought Ends

In a year when the Pittsburgh Pirates ended a long Major League Baseball playoff drought, a long WPIAL football playoff drought also came to an end when in Week 9, the Avella Eagles clinched a WPIAL playoffs berth with a 55-14 thrashing of Bentworth to clinch fourth place in the Class A Tri-County South Conference.

For the second straight year, Avella started the season 4-0 in the conference and 5-0 overall, but in 2012, the Eagles lost their final four games and missed out on the postseason.

The success of the Eagles over the last two years really stands out when you consider the program won a total of three games the previous five years and nearly was shut down a few years ago when the team made national headlines when a cheerleader dressed for a game so the Eagles could have enough players.

The Eagles stay in the playoffs was short and not so sweet, as they lost to top-seed Sto-Rox 36-7, but the game marked the first playoff berth for Avella since 1976.

By the way, the new longest WPIAL football playoff drought belongs to Southmoreland High School. The Scotties haven’t been to the playoffs since 1979.

#24 – Vulcanized Falcon

From the category of ‘Are you kidding me’. the PIHL high school hockey season is about midway through its campaign, but it has already been a loooooooong season for Connellsville Falcons goaltender Thomas Clark.

While the Falcons are 0-11 in Open Class play, you can’t pin that on the efforts of Clark, who leads the entire league in saves with 640. That an average of nearly 60 saves a game and he has at least faced 52 shots on goal in each of the Falcons 11 losses.

The highlight, or lowlight of his season came just over a week ago on December 16th when Clark faced 108 shots on goal in a single game against Indiana. He made an incredible 97 saves, but Connellsville still lost 11-0. The Falcons were outshot 108-4 in the contest.

#23 – End of a Spartans Era

While Montour does not plan to fall off the face of the football and basketball competitive map, the last four years of success in both sports may never be duplicated thanks in large part to current Virginia Tech point guard Devin Wilson

“The Devin Wilson era is over at Montour,” said Montour football coach Lou Cerro. “It’s tough to see him go because he did a lot for our school in his time.”

Montour basketball coach Adam Kaufman said, “I’m certainly going to miss him and that goes without saying.”

Wilson had a senior year to remember, setting WPIAL records in football and leading Montour to a WPIAL title in basketball. He was the only athlete in the WPIAL named to the MSA Sports Elite 11 all-star football team and All Netters basketball team. Wilson was also named MSA Sports basketball player of the year. And this is rather impressive: Wilson was a four-year starter in both sports.

In football, Wilson was a standout receiver and defensive back. He finished his career as the all-time WPIAL leader in both receptions with 230 and receiving yardage with 3,192. As a senior, he was everything to Montour’s offense. He had 65 receptions for 1,083 yards, but also played running back and had 489 yards on 77 attempts.

“I don’t think I ever got mad at him in all the years he was here,” Cerro said. “He came to work every day, did what he was supposed to do, was never late, was always on time. Kids like that are hard to come by these days.”

In basketball, Wilson played point guard and averaged 17 points a game. He scored more than 1,400 career points.

While the personal statistics were impressive, so was Wilson’s ability to help teams win. During his career, Wilson won two WPIAL basketball titles, one WPIAL football championship, played in a WPIAL football championship game and helped Montour to two appearances in PIAA basketball championship games. During his four years as a starter, the basketball teams went 72-18 and the football teams 33-7.

“All the WPIAL championship games stick out in my mind for football and basketball,” Wilson said. “But probably the WPIAL [basketball] final my senior was most memorable.”
In that game, Montour knocked off perennial WPIAL power Chartiers Valley.

#22 – Imani Christian Bails Out on Football

Less than two weeks before the 2013 high school football season kicked off, Bishop Canevin was suddenly without an opponent for opening weekend. In fact, eight other members of the Class A Black Hills Conference were left trying to fill the void of an open week after receiving letters that Imani Christian was not going to be able to field a team this past fall.

WPIAL Executive Director Tim O’Malley said Imani Christian school officials sent a letter to the district and the eight other teams from the Black Hills Conference that they would not be able to honor their 2013 football schedule because of a lack of players.

2012 was the first year for Imani Christian as a member of the WPIAL and the football team finished tied for third place with Brentwood and Bishop Canevin with a 6-3 record, but the Saints were not eligible for the playoffs after violations put them on a two year probation.

Bishop Canevin, Brentwood, California, Carlynton, Chartiers-Houston, Clairton, Fort Cherry, Monessen and Serra Catholic now were in scramble mode in trying to find games to fill the open weeks in their schedule. Seven of the nine were successful as California and Clairton ended up not filling the void and playing an eight game schedule.

#21 – Seventh Heaven

It is official. West Allegheny just doesn’t lose when it plays for a WPIAL football championship.

The Indians (13-0) made it seven for seven with a 16-6 victory over Central Valley (11-2) to clinch the Class AAA title on a wintry autumn evening at Heinz Field in November. In the process, West Allegheny coach Bob Palko became the first WPIAL gridiron boss to win seven outright WPIAL crowns.

The other titles for Bob Palko and West Allegheny came in 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2009 and 2012.

West Allegheny won the game with its usual method of success that would involve suffocating defense and controlling the ball and taking large chunks of time off the clock on long, methodical drives. The Indians controlled the ball for 29:12, while Central Valley had the ball for just 18:48.

The championship also marked the fifth straight from a team out of the Parkway Conference, the second straight for West Allegheny.

Earlier in the day at Heinz Field, Woodland Hills coach George Novak had a chance to also win his seventh outright title, however the Wolverines were knocked off by the Pittsburgh Central Catholic Vikings in the Quad-A title game.

Tags: Avella, Connellsville, Imani Christian, West Allegheny