PIAA Class 4A girls championship breakdown: North Catholic vs. Bethlehem Catholic
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Saturday, March 23, 2019 | 3:42 AM
North Catholic’s Tess Myers leads the fast break against Central Valley during the 4A girls WPIAL Championship at Petersen Events Center.
PIAA Class 4A girls championship
North Catholic vs. Bethlehem Catholic
Noon, Saturday at Giant Center, Hershey
TV: PCN
North Catholic (26-3)
Coach: Molly Rottmann
No., Name, Pos., Ht., Yr.
2, Emma Pospisil, G, 5-5, Jr.
3, Cassie Foster, G, 5-7, Jr.
21, Kylee Lewandowski, G, 6-1, Jr.
23, Tess Myers, G, 5-10, Jr.
24, Dani Short, F, 6-2, Sr.
Bethlehem Catholic (26-4)
Coach: Jose Medina
2, Isabelle Rosario, G, 5-5, Jr.
3, Jaleesa Lanier, G, 5-4, Jr.
5, Briana Barnard, F, 5-9, Sr.
13, Kourtney Wilson, G, 5-9, Fr.
22, Abby Brown, C, 5-10, Jr.
How they got here: District 11 champion Bethlehem Catholic defeated Carver E&S, 68-19, Gwynedd, 44-33, Danville, 60-37, and Bonner-Prendergast, 64-50. WPIAL champion North Catholic defeated McKeesport, 58-42, Blackhawk, 47-41, Villa Maria, 61-41, and Mifflinburg, 58-46.
Notable: These two schools met in the 1993 PIAA Class 3A finals and North Catholic won 62-52. North Catholic is 8-5 all-time in PIAA championships. The Trojanettes last won a state title in 2016. Myers (15.4 points) and Lewandowski (15.0) are North Catholic’s leading scorers. Short is third at 11.5 ppg. They’re also the top three rebounds: Short 6.9, Lewandowski 5.8 and Myers 5.5. Myers lists scholarship offers from William & Mary, St. Bonaventure, LaSalle, Charlotte and Kent State. Lewandowski has Quinnipiac, Marshall and Bucknell. Rottmann, who won her 400th game in January, owns PIAA titles as both a coach and player. She won as a player in 1988 with North Catholic. Wilson is Bethlehem Catholic’s leading scorer at 11.5 ppg. The Golden Hawks are 1-2 all-time in PIAA finals with their lone win in 2017. Bethlehem Catholic junior Taliyah Medina, a 6-1 forward and two-time all-state pick, was sidelined all season by injury.
Preview story: North Catholic girls hope defense shines against Bethlehem Catholic
Chris Harlan is a TribLive reporter covering sports. He joined the Trib in 2009 after seven years as a reporter at the Beaver County Times. He can be reached at charlan@triblive.com.
Tags: North Catholic
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