Leopards Set WPIAL Soccer Final

Belle Vernon secured a spot in the WPIAL Class 2A boys soccer championship by defeating No. 3 North Catholic 2-0 on Tuesday night. Landon Bell scored in the first half, and Dominic Pireaux added a second-half goal to seal the victory for the 10th-seeded Leopards.

The win moves Belle Vernon to the finals, where it will face No. 9 Quaker Valley at 11 a.m. Saturday at F.N.B. Stadium. This is the first time since 2011 that Belle Vernon has reached the WPIAL championship match. In 2011, the Leopards lost the Class 2A final 3-0 to Hampton.

Quaker Valley earned its place in the final by defeating No. 13 Ambridge 3-2 in overtime. Freshman Isaiah Graham scored the winning goal for the Quakers. Connor West had two goals in regulation for Quaker Valley, which finished the season with a 13-5-2 record. Emmitt Olenic and Aaron Scheib scored for Ambridge, which finished 15-5-2.

Other WPIAL semifinals took place on Tuesday and Wednesday. In girls soccer, top-seeded Sewickley Academy defeated No. 5 Bentworth 4-1. Sophomore midfielder Claire Karsman scored all four goals for the undefeated Panthers. Sewickley Academy will play No. 2 Winchester Thurston in Friday's championship game.

In girls volleyball, No. 3 Frazier won a five-set match against No. 2 Fort Cherry to advance to the Class 2A finals. Frazier will face No. 1 OLSH on Saturday at Peters Township. OLSH also advanced to the Class 2A finals by sweeping No. 4 Shenango. In Class 4A, top-seeded Oakland Catholic defeated No. 5 Central Valley to reach its first WPIAL final, where it will face No. 2 Greensburg Salem.

Hockey semifinals also concluded. Bethel Park defeated Shaler 14-1 in Class 2A. Ezra Kozak recorded a hat trick, while Emerson Faust and Lochlan Kennedy each contributed multiple points for Bethel Park. Andrew Mainiero scored the lone goal for Shaler.