All season long, fans have clamored for a champion vs. champion showdown in the WPIAL Class 4A final between Blackhawk and North Catholic.
Turns out, sometimes you get what you wish for.
No. 1-seeded Blackhawk (21-3) did its part to set up the much-hyped showdown with a 51-40 win against No. 4 Quaker Valley (16-8) Tuesday night at North Allegheny High School, controlling the game from start to finish despite several attempts to rally by the Quakers.
Blackhawk is the defending Class 4A champion and North Catholic won the 3A title last season before moving up.
“I think we’ve been talking about it for a while, and we just have to come prepared and ready to play,” junior guard Alena Fusetti said. “I definitely think we’re the underdog. We’re not big. No one is a top D-I player, but we come home hungry and we come to play, so that’s what we’ll do.”
The Cougars advanced to their second consecutive WPIAL championship game despite playing without standout senior Quinn Borroni, who averaged 11 points and nine rebounds during the regular season. Borroni ruptured her Achilles tendon in practice just before the start of the playoffs.
“Obviously, losing someone like Quinn Borroni was a little bit of a scare for us,” Cougars coach Steve Lodovico said. “We miss her a ton.”
Fusetti led the way against the Quakers with 22 points, knocking down several key 3-pointers in the first half to help build an early lead. She also came through in the clutch with four free throws to seal the win late in the fourth quarter. Maria Helkowski added 15 points while Kassie Potts finished with 13 points to go with 10 from 6-3 freshman Mimi Thiero.
The Quakers made it a four-point game with less than two minutes to play, but that was as close as they would come with Potts and Fusetti finishing the game off from the free-throw line. North Catholic now stands in the way of Blackhawk attempting to win back-to-back WPIAL titles for the fourth time in school history and the first time since the 2014-15 seasons.
The two teams did not meet in the regular season.
“I know we’re the No. 1 seed, but what they have on that side of the floor with two Division I players, maybe more than that — I like us where we’re at,” Lodovico said. “I don’t think anyone right now is looking at us to win this, so we love it.”
Other Class 4A semifinal
• No. 2 North Catholic (21-3), winner of five WPIAL titles in the past six years and a league-best 21 overall, is going back to its “home away from home” at Pitt’s Petersen Events Center to face Blackhawk at 3 p.m. Saturday. The Trojanettes withstood a valiant effort early from No. 6 Highlands (16-8) before pulling away for a 63-45 win at Gateway High School. This was the third matchup of the season between the two section foes, with North Catholic sweeping the season series. Alayna Rocco scored a game-high 19 points for the Trojanettes to go with 14 from Anna Waskiewicz and 13 from Ava Walker. Katelyn Myers led the Golden Rams with 14 points in the defeat.
Class 5A semifinals
• Defending Class 5A champion and No. 1 seed South Fayette (23-2) had no trouble earning a return trip to the title game with a 68-25 blowout against No. 12 Woodland Hills (13-12) at Peters Township High School. The Lions raced to a 25-2 lead in the first quarter before activating the mercy rule and cruising to victory in the second half, extending their winning streak to 17 games in a row. Maddie Webber and Ava Leroux finished with 14 points apiece in the win for South Fayette.
• Another No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchup is set for 5 p.m. Saturday at Petersen Events Center, as No. 2 Oakland Catholic (22-3) took down section rival and No. 3 McKeesport (20-5) for the third time this season with a 58-51 win at Gateway. Alexa Washington led all scorers with 26 points for Oakland Catholic while making six 3-pointers, including a pair of crucial 3s in the fourth quarter. Jill Gallo added 13 and Rachel Haver tallied 10 for the Eagles, while Rachael Manfredo finished with 17 for McKeesport. The Eagles have won 20 of their past 21 games after a 2-2 start and will play in the WPIAL title game for the first time since 2017.
For WPIAL postseason basketball brackets, results and schedules, go here.
Steve is a sports writer at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at srotstein@unionprogress.com.
