Defending champions advance in WPIAL soccer playoffs
Laurel Carpenter (No. 9) is focused on the soccer ball despite the defensive efforts of Danielle Lippl from Baldwin.
Gino Pezzone (No. 16) of Upper St. Clair battles Jeremy Scholze (No. 12) of North Hills for the soccer ball during first-round WPIAL Class AAA boys’ playoff action. The Panthers defeated the Indians, 2-0, on goals by Stefano Paulina and Robbie Mertz.
Defending WPIAL champion Peters Township and reigning state champion Upper St. Clair began their 2014 title quests with first-round victories in the district men’s soccer tournament. Their female counterparts also advanced to the quarterfinals. Canon-McMillan and South Fayette, likewise, progressed both boys’ and girls’ teams to the Elite Eight round of the playoffs.
While the Lady Indians outgunned Baldwin, 6-3, the Indians dispatched Fox Chapel, 7-0.
The girls will play Canon-McMillan at 8 p.m. Oct. 22 at Elizabeth-Forward while the boys will take on crosstown rival Bethel Park in a quarterfinal clash set for Oct. 23 at a site and time to be determined.
The Lady Macs moved on with a 2-1 victory at Franklin Regional in their tournament opener. Sabrina Bryan and Abby Gillespie scored the tallies for Canon-Mac, which improved to 14-3-1 overall.
The Hawks (9-9-1) used a shootout to win their first-round playoff contest, 1-0, at Franklin Regional. Matt Kotkiewicz, Dominick Galietta, Alex Baker and Anthony Rack scored penalty kicks for the Hawks while Cory Wiard made critical saves in the nets during the session and posted the shutout.
Meanwhile, the PT and USC men posted shutouts in their home playoff openers. The Indians blanked Fox Chapel, 7-0, while the Panthers beat North Hills, 2-nil.
Mario Mastrangelo recorded a hat trick for Peters Township. Nicco Mastrangelo scored twice while Matt Massucci and Bennett Faloni provided single scores for the Indians. Wes Ward, Sean Harrison and Jonathon Sion collected assists while Josh Deyarmin and Phil Davis combined for the shutout in the nets, PT’s 14th blanking of the season.
In rolling up a 15-2 record, which included a mid-September triumph against Bethel Park, 3-0, the Indians have outscored the opposition, 60-4. Their lone losses were to USC in Section 5 play, 1-0 and 2-1.
USC and PT met in last year’s WPIAL championship match with the Indians posting a 1-0 victory.
The Panthers, who won this year’s Section 5 banner with an unblemished, 10-0, mark, improved to 17-0-1 overall with their playoff win against North Hills. After 51 minutes of scoreless action, Stefano Paulina scored the gamewinner off assists from Garrett Blake and Ryan Mertz. With 18:39 to play, Robbie Mertz tacked on an insurance goal for the Panthers, who will play North Allegheny Oct. 23 at a site and time to be determined.
Meanwhile, the Lady Panthers take on Penn-Trafford at 6 p.m. Oct. 22 at Elizabeth-Forward in their quarterfinal match-up.
The USC girls defeated Latrobe, 5-0, in their playoff opener. MacKenzie Shaeffer scored twice while Emma Hasco, Elaina Walnoha and Maddy Rocks supplied single tallies. Hasco also earned an assist.
With the win, the Lady Panthers improved to 12-2-5 overall. They were the Section 5-AAA champions with a 10-0-2 record.
Bethel Park finished runner-up to the Lady Panthers in the section standings with a 9-1-2 record, but the Lady Hawks’ playoff run was brief as they dropped a 5-1 decision to Moon. Bailey Farabaugh scored the lone goal for Bethel Park, which finished 10-5-4 overall.
Baldwin also represented Section 5 but also succumbed to a Section 4 club, falling to the champions from Peters Township, 6-3. Mia Toscano registered the hat trick for the Lady Indians, who are 16-1-2 overall. Carly Johns, Erin Helbig and Breeanne Latsko accounted for the other tallies. Latsko, Madeline LaVigna and Madison Schwerzler registered assists.
The Lady Indians’ quarterfinal opponent is a familiar one. Twice Peters Township beat Canon-McMillan, 2-1 and 1-0, to claim the section banner with an 11-1 record.
Meanwhile, the Big Mac boys blanked Norwin, 2-0. Luke Maher and Alex Ablack scored the tallies. With the win, Canon-Mac improved to 13-5-1 overall and moved on to face Central Catholic in the quarterfinals set for Oct. 23.
In Class AA action, the South Fayette boys began their quest to return to Highmark Stadium to compete for the WPIAL championship by blanking Central Valley, 2-0. Nick McKee provided both goals for the Lions, who are 15-3-1 overall and the Section 5 runner-up. Andrew Pine recorded the shutout in the nets.
Meanwhile, the Lady Lions dispatched Mount Pleasant, 3-0, at Belle Vernon. Maddie Burnside, Autm Heineman and Sarah Rofosko scored for South Fayette, which faces Yough at 6 p.m. Oct. 22 at Thomas Jefferson in the district quarterfinals.