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Monday, May 23, 2022 | 11:50 pm
Chazpara | Tribune-Review
Armstrong’s Emmasmeric lags North Hills catcher Abigail Scheller in last season’s PIAA Class 5A semifinals.
Some of the best rivals in sports came from post-season clashes.
The Steelers vs. Raiders in the 70’s and the 49ers vs. Cowboys in the 90’s are two examples.
Perhaps Armstrong and North Hills are preparing for a third match in the last two postseasons, so rivals in the up-and-coming district are blooming with softball.
The first meeting took place in the 2021 WPIAL Class 5A Championship Game.
No. 8 North Hills defeated Armstrong 12-2, completing an improbable run to District Gold. Hannah Murphy scored three RBIs and three RBIs for the Indian, who won the WPIAL crown for the first time in 21 years.
However, the Hawks River knocked out the Indians 7-4, resulting in a revenge in the PIAA semifinals. When Armstrong reached the state final for the first time in school history, Emma Smerrick hit two home runs and four home runs.
The rematch of last year’s title game will take place on Tuesday at 3:00 pm on Mars.
The other Class 5A semi-finals are characterized by Penn Trafford trying to reach an elusive final against the No. 11 Chartie’s Valley.
The Warriors lost to Connelsville in the 2019 semifinals and fell to North Hills in the 2021 quarterfinals as a top seed.
Colts recorded 17 total runs in the turmoil of Fox Chapel and Trinity in the first two rounds.
The 5A Semifinal will take place in West Mifflin at 5pm.
3A and A Softball Semifinals
It’s been seven years since the Dee Lakes Softball Team won the WPIAL Championship.
Lancers has won the gold medal for the second time in 2015 and one win since returning to the final for the first time in five years.
Interfering with them on Tuesday is South Allegheny, a program that has never won a softball title.
Lancers defeated the gladiator 4-2 in the first round of the 2015 playoffs.
In the other 3A semi-finals, 2018 Class 3A winner Southmoreland will face 2019 Class 3A champion Avon Worth, and former champions will clash.
Five-time defending class A champion West Green will face Springdale, and Union will face Greensburg Central Catholic in two A semifinals.
All six WPIAL softball semi-final games on Tuesday can be heard on Trib HSSN.
6A New Blood in Baseball
A new champion will be crowned in Class 6A in 2022 as North Alagainy loses in an additional inning in the quarterfinals on Monday.
Whichever of the last four teams wins all, it will break the drought of the long title of the program.
Nine of the last 12 baseball champions in WPIAL’s highest category were North Allegheny, Pine Richland, or Seneca Valley. All three of these teams lost in the district quarterfinals.
On Tuesday, top-seeded Mount Lebanon will fight Central Catholicism while Butler faces Apercent Claire.
Of these four, Central Catholics won all in 2015, Mount Lebanon appeared in 2006, and the only crown of Apercent Claire in 1992.
Thirty years have been a long time, but Butler is trying to win the first WPIAL baseball crown.
4A Semifinal fray
The last four of 4A baseball feature two section champions playing against two runners on Tuesday.
Topseed and Section 2 Champion Montur will be the Laurel Highlands Section 3 to 2nd place team.
On the other side of the bracket, Section 3 champion West Mifflin will face Knock, the team that finished second in Section 1.
All four 6A and 4A semifinal games will be available on Tuesday at Trib HSSN.
Tags: Armstrong, North Hills
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