Mt. Lebanon prepares for playoff run as No. 1 seed
Mt. Lebanon's Ashleigh Connor makes her move to the hoop against Upper St. Clair's Kate Robbins.
Eleanor Bailey/The Almanac
Dori Oldaker has the Mt. Lebanon girls basketball team poised to challenge for the WPIAL Class 6A title. The Blue Devils are seeded No. 1 with a 20-1 record.
Mt. Lebanon received the No. 1 seed in Class 6A for the WPIAL girls basketball tournament.
“We are excited to be the No. 1 seed but realize that it doesn’t truly mean anything once this tournament begins,” said Lebo head coach Dori Oldaker.
Action commenced Feb. 18 with Peters Township hosting Butler. The winner would face the Blue Devils at 7 p.m. Feb. 23 at Mt. Lebanon.
“Both teams are talented,” said Oldaker.
Peters Township is the more familiar foe. The Indians were 12-10 overall heading into their battle with Butler (13-9).
PT finished fourth in Section 2 with a 7-5 record, while two of those losses were to Lebo, 54-40 and 68-54.
Peters Township features Journey Thompson. She is averaging 16.2 points per game.
A 6-1 center, Thompson is committed to the University of Delaware. A four-year starter, she is one of the remaining links to PT’s state championship team.
“We know Peters and I’ve watched some film on Butler but right now we are focused on our team,” said Oldaker.
The Blue Devils are concentrating on correcting the things that went wrong when they suffered their first loss of the season. Lebo was 21-0 before succumbing to Upper St. Clair, 58-53, Feb. 10.
“It’s too soon to tell,” Oldaker said of whether the loss will help her team, adding “We need to focus on all the little fixable things that we can improve on.”
The Blue Devils finished as the Section 2 champions with an 11-1 record.
Ashleigh Connor leads the teamwith a 21.6-point average. She is a St. Louis recruit.
Reagan Murdoch, an American University lacrosse recruit, and freshman Payton Collins, also spearhead the team.
The Blue Devils last won WPIAL titles from 2009-12.
North Allegheny (20-2) is the defending champion. The Tigers are seeded second in the tournament.
USC earned the No. 3 spot. The Panthers were WPIAL runners-up last winter.
USC posted a 9-3 record in the section in 2022 and are 18-4 overall.
USC will host Penn-Trafford at 7 p.m. Feb. 23 in its first-round playoff game.
The Warriors finished third in Section 1 behind NA and Norwin with a 9-5 slate. Penn-Trafford is 12-9 overall.
“They are a very well-coached team,” said USC head coach Pete Serio. “They play hard and they come at you defensively. They also are a team that likes to get to the rim.”
The Panthers need to execute the fundamentals well in order to advance to the quarterfinals set for Feb. 26 at a site and time to be determined.
“We need to play good man-to-man defense and stop penetration,” Serio said. “Offensively, we need to limit turnovers and execute our sets.”
The Panthers prepped for their playoff contest by beating Wheeling Park, 61-53.
Paige Dellicarri and Rylee Kalocay led the charge with 15 and 12 points, respectively.
In other Class 6A playoff action, Bethel Park (11-9) will visit Norwin (15-6) at 7 p.m. Feb. 23.
The Hawks have won eight of their past 10 games while the Knights own an upset win against North Allegheny in their recent contests.
BP is led by Wheeling recruit Emma Dziezgowski (20 ppg.) and Riley Miller, a St. Joe’s lacrosse recruit.
Juniors Sophia Nath and Mary Boff supplement the offense and Ella Sabatos has been a force in her freshman season. Rebecca Gillenberger, Isabella Bomar and Olivia Willig have also made a difference in BP’s second-half surge.
Norwin ranks among the league’s top defensive clubs, allowing just 33.4 points per game.
“We are looking forward to our match up with Norwin,” said BP coach Sam Loadman. “There are some similarities between us and I expect a very competitive game.
“Limiting turnovers, controlling the rebounds, and solid team defense will be keys to the game because Norwin has some height inside.
“We are excited about being in the playoffs though especially since we have had a strong second half of the regular season. The players continue to work hard and get better every day. We have the opportunity to make a playoff run.”