Washington, Pa. – The Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League (WPIAL) held its WPIAL/UPMC Sports Medicine Baseball Championships presented by the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday and Wednesday at Wild Things Park. On Tuesday, Seton LaSalle claimed the 2A title, Hopewell was victorious in 4A, and Shaler took home the 5A crown. The next day, Bishop Canevin won in 1A, Riverside captured the 3A trophy, and Mt. Lebanon went back-to-back at 6A.
 
All six champions were previous WPIAL winners, with Bishop Canevin’s drought of 23 seasons being the longest. Hopewell, Mt. Lebanon, Riverside, and Shaler are four of 12 different schools to win at least five WPIAL championships, while Seton LaSalle’s crown was its third.
 
The top four teams in the 3A and 4A classifications, top three teams in the 1A, 2A, and 5A classifications, and top two teams in the 6A classification have qualified for the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) Baseball Championships, which will begin with first round games on Monday, June 5. The championship games will be held at Medlar Field at Lubrano Park on the campus of Penn State University on June 15-16.
 
6A RECAP
Mt. Lebanon sophomore pitcher David Shields threw a seven-inning no-hitter in the WPIAL 6A Baseball Championship Game, lifting the fifth-seeded Blue Devils to their second consecutive WPIAL title a 4-0 win over second-seeded North Allegheny on Wednesday night.
 
Shields struck out nine for Mt. Lebanon (13-10), allowing a walk and two hit-by-pitches. The Blue Devils opened up a 3-0 lead in the top of the second and tacked on an insurance run in the fourth.
 
After a scoreless opening frame, Mt. Lebanon took a 1-0 lead after Jacob Tinnemeyer’s single scored Nathaniel Girod. Tanner Donati then lined a two-run triple into right field, scoring Tinnemeyer and Brett Hamel.
 
The Blue Devils made it 4-0 in the top of the fourth, as Hamel put the ball in play with two outs and Tinnemeyer crossed home plate following an error.
 
John Costanzo started for North Allegheny (16-7), going six innings with six strikeouts and three earned runs allowed. David Posey threw a perfect seventh inning with a strikeout.
 
Mt. Lebanon is the first school to win consecutive titles at 6A and now has six overall, with trophies from 1959, 1993, 2002, 2006, and 2022. The Blue Devils defeated Seneca Valley (2-1) and Pine-Richland (3-0) to make it back to Wild Things Park, while the Tigers topped Norwin (3-0) and Butler (5-2).
 
In the PIAA Championships first round, Mt. Lebanon will take on the third qualifier from District III, while North Allegheny plays the champion from District VI or District X.
 
5A RECAP
Shaler scored seven runs in the first three innings to take full control of the WPIAL 5A Baseball Championship Game, as the top-seeded Titans defeated second-seeded Bethel Park, 10-1, in the final game of the Tuesday slate.
 
Shaler (19-4) added three runs in the bottom half of the fifth inning after Bethel Park (17-5) scored one to trim the deficit to 7-1. Titans pitcher Miguel Hugas went the full seven innings, striking out eight while allowing five hits, a walk, and an earned run to pick up the win.
 
The first two innings saw Shaler runs on a Derek Leas RBI single and Luke Jarzynka bases-loaded walk. In the third inning, Elijah Muckle and Ben Yeckel scored on an error, Colby McGuire and Connor Hamrick crossed the plate on another error, and Hugas made it 7-0 with a single to right.
 
The Blackhawks’ lone run came in the top of the fifth inning when Raymond Altmeyer led the frame off with a triple and then scored on a wild pitch. That would be as close as Bethel Park got however, as the Titans responded with a Hugas sacrifice fly and two-run double from Max Saban to make it 10-1.
 
Jarzynka was the lone Shaler player with multiple hits, going 2-for-3 with two runs scored and an RBI. Muckle, Hamrick, and McGuire all crossed the plate twice.
 
Evan Holewinski allowed one earned run on six hits and two walks in four innings, striking out two, and had one of Bethel Park’s five hits with a double.
 
Shaler – previously WPIAL champions in 1964, 1980, 1981, 1999, and 2019 – opened the WPIAL playoffs with a bye, then defeated Fox Chapel (11-1, 6 innings) and Plum (2-0) to punch its ticket to Wild Things Park. Bethel Park also received a bye before defeating Upper St. Clair (6-0) and Penn-Trafford (8-5) in its run-up to the final.
 
In the third-place consolation game on Wednesday, third-seeded Penn-Trafford topped fourth-seeded Plum, 3-1, to qualify for the PIAA Championships.
 
Shaler will play the fifth qualifier from District III in the first round of the PIAA Championships, while Bethel Park will begin its trek for a third consecutive state title against the District III champion. Penn-Trafford is set to play the champion from either District VI, District VIII, or District IX.
 
4A RECAP
Hopewell completed a Cinderella run through the WPIAL 4A bracket, as the 14th-seeded Vikings defeated fifth-seeded Greater Latrobe in the WPIAL 4A Baseball Championship Game on Tuesday.
 
Hopewell (12-11) entered the playoffs as the third-lowest seeded team to qualify, but quickly made its presence known with a 2-1 win over reigning champion West Mifflin in the first round. The Vikings then topped sixth-seeded North Catholic (6-2) and seventh-seeded Indiana (7-5) to punch their ticket to Wild Things Park.
 
Greater Latrobe (17-7) opened the scoring in the bottom of the first inning with two runs as Anthony Massari punched a one-out single into right that scored Erick Batista and Logan Bradish.
 
That lead would be short-lived however, as Hopewell answered with a three-run second inning. John Vescio drew a bases-loaded hit-by-pitch to make it 2-1, then Zachary Gigliotti ripped an RBI single to right. Ty Eberhardt gave the Vikings the lead with a sacrifice fly to right field, scoring Kingston Krotec.
 
Hopewell tacked another run on in the top of fourth inning, as Lucas Walton scored on a Gigliotti sacrifice fly. The Wildcats responded in the bottom half of the fifth with their own RBI sacrifice fly – this one from Louie Amatucci scoring Batista – to make it 4-3, but Vikings senior pitcher Landon Fox stranded two runners to end the threat.
 
Fox went all seven innings to earn the win, allowing seven hits and three earned runs while striking out six. Both he and Barlion had two hits to lead Hopewell offensively.
 
For Greater Latrobe, Bradish struck out two in seven innings and allowed four earned runs. He, Batista, and Massari all collected two hits at the dish.
 
The championship is Hopewell’s fifth in school history, as it previously won in 1979, 2000, 2010, and 2021.
 
Greater Latrobe made it to Wild Things Park with victories over Kiski Area (7-6), Chartiers Valley (4-2), and Montour (10-7).
 
Top-seeded Montour and seventh-seeded Indiana both qualified for the PIAA Championships, with the Spartans earning the third WPIAL seed thanks to an 8-6 triumph over the Little Indians on Wednesday.
 
Hopewell opens the PIAA Championships against the third-place team from District III, while Greater Latrobe will play the champion from either District VI, District VIII, or District IX. Montour will play the District X champion and Indiana gets the District III winner.
 
3A RECAP
Top-seeded Riverside completed an undefeated season in WPIAL play, defeating sixth-seeded Neshannock, 6-1, in the WPIAL 3A Baseball Championship Game on Wednesday.
 
Tied 1-1 in the bottom of the sixth, Riverside (21-0) broke it open with five runs off seven hits and an error. Mitch Garvin opened the frame with a two-run single, and Drake Fox scored on a throwing error. Sean Hayes added an RBI sacrifice fly to make it 5-1, and Evan Burry completed the five-run inning with a single to right.
 
Both pitchers kept their opponents off balance for four innings before Neshannock (18-5) struck first in the top of the fifth. Nathan Rynd roped a two-out single into center and stole second on the next batter. After Nathan Rynd was walked intentionally, Andrew Frye lined an RBI single to center to give the Lancers a 1-0 advantage.
 
The Panthers answered back in the bottom half of the frame. After Fox worked a lead-off walk and was sacrificed to second, Sam Barber ripped an RBI double into the gap to tie the game at 1-1.
 
Christian Lucarelli started the game on the mound for Riverside and threw 4.2 innings of one-run ball, striking out eight with four hits and six walks allowed. Hunter Garvin took over to finish the fifth and struck out three over 2.1 frames. Bo Fornataro had three singles at the dish for the Panthers.
 
For the Lancers, Frye allowed a run on two hits and two walks in five innings and struck out two. Rynd had two hits offensively.
 
This is the sixth WPIAL championship for Riverside, as it previously raised the trophy in 1996, 2006, 2011, 2016, and 2017. The Panthers defeated Valley (9-0), Freeport (9-1), and East Allegheny (11-2) to reach the title tilt, while Neshannock topped Shady Side Academy (6-5, 10 innings), Yough (2-1), and Avonworth (2-1).
 
Second-seeded Avonworth was 9-0 winners over fourth-seeded East Allegheny in the third-place consolation game on Tuesday to determine PIAA seeding.
 
Riverside begins the PIAA Championships by facing the District VI runner-up, while Neshannock will play the champion from either District V, District VIII, or District IV. Avonworth gets the District VI champion and East Allegheny will play the District X winner.
 
2A RECAP
Carrying a 2-1 lead, second-seeded Seton LaSalle scored six runs in the top of the sixth inning to break the game open, capturing its third WPIAL championship with an 8-1 victory over top-seeded Serra Catholic in the WPIAL 2A Baseball Championship Game on Tuesday.
 
Seton LaSalle (17-4) showed patience at the plate in the aforementioned frame, opening up a seven-run lead after working six walks, three hits, a balk, and a wild pitch. The Rebels grabbed a 2-0 advantage in the top of the third with an RBI double from Nate Georgiana and an RBI single from DiMaggio LoNero.
 
Serra Catholic (19-3) pulled one run back in the bottom of the fourth when Zach Karp roped a single to third base, scoring Michael Schanck.
 
In the sixth inning, Seton LaSalle received an RBI single from Cole Starrett and bases-loaded walks from Aric White, Corey Meyers, and Georgiana. Roman LoNero crossed home plate on a balk, and White scored on a wild pitch to make it 8-1.
 
Brian Reed picked up the win for the Rebels, striking out 11 in 5.1 innings while allowing four hits, four walks, and an earned run. Georgiana, White, and DiMaggio LoNero all went 2-for-3 at the dish. LoNero also posted the last five outs on the mound for Seton LaSalle, with two of them coming via strikeout.
 
Karp collected three strikeouts in 5.1 innings and allowed five earned runs. Schanck went 2-for-2 at the plate with a run scored for the Eagles.
 
This is Seton LaSalle’s third WPIAL championship, previously winning in 1995 and 2019. The Rebels received a bye in the first round, then defeated Riverview (6-3) and New Brighton (2-0) to qualify for the final. Serra Catholic also earned a bye for the first round before collecting wins against Our Lady of the Sacred Heart (8-3) and Burgettstown (10-0, 5 innings).
 
Fourth-seeded Burgettstown defeated third-seeded New Brighton, 5-1, in the third-place consolation game on Tuesday to claim the final PIAA spot.
 
In the first round of the PIAA Championships, Seton LaSalle will play the District IX runner-up, Serra Catholic faces the District X champion, and Burgettstown takes on the District IX champion.
 
1A RECAP
Holding a narrow 2-1 lead through three innings, Bishop Canevin scored six runs over the next three frames to withstand a late comeback attempt, as the sixth-seeded Crusaders bested fourth-seeded California, 8-5, in the WPIAL 1A Baseball Championship Game on Wednesday.
 
Bishop Canevin (15-3) opened a 2-0 lead after its first at-bats, as Mason Glover ripped an RBI single and Tyler Maddix came home on a wild pitch. California (14-8) answered with a run in the bottom half of the inning, as Kris Weston lifted a sacrifice fly to center, scoring Caden Powell.
 
The Crusaders opened up a 7-1 advantage in the fourth and fifth innings. In the fourth frame, Aidan Didion hit an RBI single to right field, and Lucas Golembiewski scored on an error. Quentin White, Kellen Andruscik, and Golembiewski all provided run-scoring base hits in the fifth.
 
Cam Scrip brought the Trojans to 7-2 after scoring on an error from a Powell single, but Andruscik answered with an RBI sacrifice fly in the top of the sixth inning. Chase Cicchitto made the deficit 8-3 with a run-scoring fielder’s choice, then brought California within three in the bottom of the seventh with a two-run double, but that would be as close as the Trojans would get.
 
Maddix threw six innings for Bishop Canevin, allowing two earned runs on four hits and three walks while striking out eight. Kole Olszewski went 3-for-5 at the plate and scored twice, while Maddix, Glover, White, and Didion all tallied two hits each.
 
Addison Panepinto started on the mound for California, going four innings with three earned runs and a strikeout. Cicchitto was the only Trojan with multiple hits, finishing 2-for-4 at the dish.
 
Bishop Canevin now has three WPIAL titles, previously winning in 1993 and 2000. The Crusaders were victorious over Western Beaver (10-0, 5 innings), Leechburg (4-1), and Rochester (9-4) to make it to Wild Things Park, and California defeated Carmichaels (3-0) and Union (9-6) following a first-round bye.
 
In the third-place consolation game on Tuesday, top-seeded Union defeated seventh-seeded Rochester, 4-0, to claim the final PIAA spot.
 
Bishop Canevin will begin PIAA Championships action against the District X runner-up, California will play the District V champion, and Union is matched against the District X champion.
 
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