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Seven things to watch for the week of Dec. 31 - Jan. 5 * After a few days off (or at least without games), WPIAL basketball teams return to the court Wednesday. As we head into 2019, here are the top teams in the WPIAL … For the boys, the Post-Gazette’s No. 1 teams are Class 6A Latrobe, Class 5A Mars, Class 4A Quaker Valley, Class 3A Lincoln Park, Class 2A Our Lady of the Sacred Heart and Class 1A Vincentian. On the girls side, it’s Class 6A North Allegheny, Class 5A Chartiers Valley, Class 4A North Catholic, Class 3A Shady Side Academy, Class 2A Bishop Canevin and Class 1A West Greene. * There’s only one section basketball game Wednesday, but it’s a pretty good one. Defending WPIAL champion Mars (7-1) hosts Shaler (7-2) in Section 3. Both teams are 2-0 in section action. It will be the first game for Mars against a district team in more than two weeks. The Planets recently went 3-1 in the Tarkanian Classic in Las Vegas. Their loss was to a team from California. Shaler, meanwhile, is off to one of its best starts in years. The Titans had won seven games in a row before dropping a non-section game at Seneca Valley last Friday. * There are two girls basketball showdowns between undefeated Class 6A teams this week. The first comes Thursday when Bethel Park (8-0) hosts Peters Township (8-0). The teams are both 3-0 in Section 2. Peters Township reached the WPIAL final last season. Along the way it beat Bethel Park in the semifinals. The Indians feature reigning Post-Gazette player of the year Makenna Marisa, and have been bolstered by the addition of talented freshman Journey Thompson. Bethel Park is led by Maria Cerro and star sophomore Olivia Westphal. * The other big matchup will take place Friday when North Allegheny (10-0) plays host to Norwin (8-0) in Section 1. Both teams have gotten off to 3-0 starts in section play. The Tigers and Knights have won the last four WPIAL titles in the largest class — Norwin in Class 4A in 2015 and 2016, and North Allegheny in Class 6A in 2017 and 2018. North Allegheny is the favorite in this game. The Tigers boast a balanced offense which includes a dynamite guard tandem in Rachel Martindale and Lizzy Groetsch. Norwin has been paced by leading scorer Olivia Gribble. * Quaker Valley (8-0) hosts New Castle (7-1) Friday in what might be the best boys game this week. The two have met for the WPIAL Class 4A title two years in a row, with New Castle winning both times. Quaker Valley won both regular-season meetings against its Section 2 rival last season. The teams are both 2-0 in the section so far this season. Quaker Valley will carry a 19-game section win streak into this game. The Quakers have been led by Ryan Stowers and Danny Conlan, while Drew Cox and Demetris McKnight have led the way for New Castle. * The Westmoreland County Coaches Association Wrestling Tournament will be held Jan. 4-5 at Norwin High School. Six individuals are returning champions: Norwin's Kurtis Phipps, Hempfield's Kyle Burkholder, Kiski Area's Darren Miller, Franklin Regional's Colton Camacho, Belle Vernon's Scott Joll, Derry's Dominic DeLuca, and Valley's Dave Schuffert. * The Tri-County Wrestling Tournament will be held Jan. 4-5 at Trinity High School. Canon-McMillan has three returning champs: Jimmy Baxter, Tanner Rohaley, and Gerrit Nijenhuis. Other returning champs are: Trinity's Gianni Martini, Frazier's Thayne Lawrence, McGuffey's Christian Clutter, and South Fayette's Quentin Franklin. |