Upper St. Clair, Mt. Lebanon win to set up semifinal showdown
By Eleanor Bailey/The Almanac
Natalie Wetzel (left) battles Kate Robbins (right) for the rebound during Peters Township’s loss to Upper St. Clair, 60-43, in the WPIAL Class 6A playoffs. Wetzel finished with eight points for the Indians while Robbins fired in 10 for the Panthers.
Eleanor Bailey/The Almanac
Sam Prunzik (14) goes up for a layup against Grace Kail during WPIAL playoff action. In Upper St. Clair’s 60-43 win against Peters Township, Prunzik racked up a dozen points.
For the third time this basketball season, Upper St. Clair (20-2) and Mt. Lebanon (17-6) dispatched familiar opponents and advanced to a showdown set for 6 p.m. Feb. 27 at Bethel Park High School.
On the line is a berth in the WPIAL Class 6A championship game set for 7 p.m. March 3 at the Petersen Events Center on the University of Pittsburgh campus.
While the Lady Panthers overcame a slow start and some poor shooting, they rebounded to defeat Peters Township (13-11) in a quarterfinal clash played Feb. 23 at USC.
It was the third time USC had defeated the Indians. In winning the Section 2 title, the Panthers disposed of Peters Township twice, 73-56 and 61-47. They had also beaten Lebo in sectional play, 57-39 and 52-44.
Meanwhile, the Blue Devils came from behind to beat Chartiers Valley, 47-46, in their quarterfinal clash. Among their nine section wins were two previous triumphs against the Colts, 43-32 and 37-31.
In 2022, Lebo bested USC, 55-44, for the Class 6A title. The Blue Devils finished as PIAA runners-up.
After scoring the first five points, Lebo trailed for much of the game. The Blue Devils fell behind, 16-13, after one frame and 26-17 at halftime. CV stretched a 32-24 advantage to 42-27 midway through the final frame. Lebo even trailed, 43-35, with 1:50 remaining.
Payton Collins waged the uprising. The sophomore scored a game-high 25 points, 17 of which came in the final 3:30 of play. With 27.9 to play, Collins converted a 4-point play, burying a 3-pointer and the ensuing free throw. She added the game-winning free throw with 0.4 remaining on the clock.
For the Colts, who finished the season at 12-10 overall, Emma Reynolds and Lilah Turnbull each scored 15 points.
Meanwhile USC struggled early because its shots would not drop. The Panthers were tied at nine with the Lady Indians before forging some separation when Paige Dellicarri buried a pair of 3-point field goals providing a 28-20 halftime edge.
Though PT pulled within one, 30-29, midway through the third quarter, Sam Prunzik pushed the margin to 40-33 with 1:16 left in the frame on back-to-back layups.
The USC widened to 46-35 with 6:28 to play thanks to a 3-pointer from Rylee Kalocay and on another pair of layups by Prunzik.
Kalocay was the big gun for the Panthers, firing in a game-high 27 points. Prunzik followed with 12 tallies while Kate Robbins finished with 10 markers.
Gemma Walker led PT with 16 tallies. Brianna Morreale followed with 11.