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Friday, May 10, 2024 | 5:01 PM
christopher horner relive
April 2: Shaler's Payton Plantz scores against Butler's Coulton Welter and Ben Miller.
The regular season matchup between the top two teams in WPIAL Class 3A boys volleyball resolved nothing.
A third matchup is being considered, perhaps in the WPIAL championship game.
Shaler and North Allegheny faced off in last year's finals, which the Titans won 3-0, and this year they split two regular season games between Section 2 and Section 3A, leading to the WPIAL men's volleyball playoffs. They are the top two seeds in Class 3A. It begins with first-round games on Tuesday.
The third seed also participated in the second round, and Butler received a first-round bye.
Norwin, who won the first match undefeated, emerged as the fourth seed. Undefeated Section 3 champion Canon McMillan fell to 7th place.
In Class 2A, last year's WPIAL finalists, champion North Catholic and runner-up Ambridge, are also from the same section and played in two games this year, with both games going to five sets. But neither are top seeds.
That honor goes to the Section 2 champion Mars, who are the only undefeated team in either bracket at 17-0. North Catholic is the second seed and Ambridge is the fourth seed.
After Mars, the next four teams in Section 2 (Latrobe, Gateway, Armstrong and Derry) finished with records of 5-5. Derry needed a win over Deer Lakes on the final day of the regular season to qualify, but they earned the top seed from this quartet, earning them a No. 3 spot and a corresponding first-round bye.
South Fayette, the winner of Section 3, is the fifth seed.
The finals will be held on Thursday, May 23rd in Peters Township.
WPIAL Playoffs
class 3A
first round
Tuesday schedule
Scherer (13-1) Bye
Hempfield (9-6) vs. Baldwin (10-8), 7 p.m.
Norwin (15-1) by default
Mon (8-8), Seneca Valley (12-6), 7 p.m.
North Allegheny (11-1) Bye
Central Catholic (9-8), Cannon-McMillan (13-2), 7 p.m.
Butler (10-6) Bye
Upper St. Clair (7-8), Penn-Trafford (13-3), 7 p.m.
class 2A
first round
Tuesday schedule
Mars (17-0) Bye-bye
Seton LaSalle (11-9), Gateway (8-5), 7 p.m.
Trinity (8-9) Ambridge (11-3), 7 p.m.
Montour (7-11) at South Fayette (15-2), 7 p.m.
North Catholic (14-2) Bye-bye
Thomas Jefferson (11-4) Latrobe (6-9), 7 p.m.
Delhi (9-7) Bye-bye
Our Lady of the Sacred Heart (9-6) Armstrong (8-8), 7 p.m.
