The first round of the 2018 WPIAL Playoffs took place tonight. In 6A where 6 teams made the playoffs, 4 teams played tonight in the quarterfinals and 2 got byes to the semifinals. In 4A, 3A, and 1A, 8 teams made the playoffs and tonight’s games were quarterfinal matchups. In 5A and 2A, 16 teams made the playoffs so the quarterfinals will not take place until next week. Here are the results of tonight’s along with the matchups that we will see next Friday. Starting next week, all of the games will be at neutral sites (except for the 6A games), which the WPIAL will announce in a few days.
Class 6A
Quarterfinal Results
5. Seneca Valley 15, 4. Central Catholic 14
Central Catholic got out to a 14-3 lead but Seneca Valley battled back in the second half and scored the go-ahead TD after an INT with 10 minutes to go. From there, the top defense in 6A stepped up and shut down the Vikings offense to deal Central Catholic their first one-and-down trip to the playoffs since 1997.
3. Mt Lebanon 38, 6. Canon-McMillan 31
Canon-McMillan made the playoffs for the first time since 2008 and held a halftime lead, but the Blue Devils came back to reach their first semifinal since 2005.
Semifinal Matchups
1. North Allegheny vs 5. Seneca Valley
2. Pine-Richland vs 3. Mt. Lebanon
Note: Due to North Allegheny and Pine-Richland getting first round byes, these games will be hosted by North Allegheny and Pine-Richland, not at neutral sites.
Class 5A
First Round Results
1. Gateway 63, 16. Kiski 7
The top seed in 5A looked the part with a dominant performance over Kiski.
9. Franklin Regional 56, Bethel Park 28
Franklin Regional just kept scoring and scoring against Bethel Park’s defense to set up a rematch with conference foe Gateway.
13. Woodland Hills 14, 4. Mars 0
The upset of the night in 5A with Woody High’s defense shutting down 5A’s leading rusher and keeping Mars off the scoreboard.
5. West Allegheny 37, 12. Shaler 0
Bob Palko’s final playoff run as West Allegheny’s head coach gets off to a strong start with a win over Shaler.
2. Penn Hills 55, 15. Latrobe 7
RB Tank Smith had 2 carries for over 100 yards and 2 TDs in the first half and Daequan Hardy scored on a long run and on a punt return as Penn Hills cruised past Latrobe.
7. McKeesport 13, 10. Upper St Clair 7
After a tightly-fought game, McKessport scored with a minute and a half left to take the lead then got an interception to seal the victory.
3. Peters Twp 35, 14. Armstrong 7
Peters Twp enacted the mercy rule on Armstrong to get their first playoff victory since 2003.
6. Penn-Trafford 42, 11. North Hills 7
The Warriors dominated the Indians
Quarterfinal Matchups
1. Gateway vs 9. Franklin Regional
5. West Allegheny vs 13. Woodland Hills
2. Penn Hills vs 7. McKeesport
3. Peters Twp vs 6. Penn-Trafford
Class 4A
Quarterfinal Results
1. Thomas Jefferson 49, 8. New Castle 16
In a rematch of the 2016 4A Championship Game, Thomas Jefferson got the victory and continues their quest to be the 3rd WPIAL team to win 4 consecutive titles.
4. Blackhawk 23, 5. West Mifflin 21
The run-heavy Cougars got 3 touchdown PASSES from Chance Liptak to lead Blackhawk to their first playoff victory since they reached the WPIAL AAA final in 2008.
2. South Fayette 42, 7. Greensburg Salem 6
Jamie Diven threw for 3 TDs and ran for another to lead South Fayette to the semifinals.
3. Belle Vernon 49, 6. Beaver 11
Belle Vernon showed that they can still dominate since QB Jared Hartman’s injury and had two different players throw TD passes tonight along with an impressive performance on the ground.
Semifinal Matchups
1. Thomas Jefferson vs 4. Blackhawk
2. South Fayette vs 3. Belle Vernon
Class 3A
Quarterfinal Results
1. Aliquippa 40, 8. Freeport 17
Avante McKenzie scored 5 TDs to lead the Quips to their 12th straight semifinals appearance.
4. Beaver Falls 33, 5. Elizabeth Forward 14
The Tigers get a rematch with rival Aliquippa after breezing past Elizabeth Forward in a battle of dual-threat QBs.
2. Derry 46, 7. Central Valley 0
In a rematch of a 2016 quarterfinal, Derry topped Central Valley for the second time in 3 seasons.
3. North Catholic 31, 6. Quaker Valley 24
North Catholic turned the ball over 6 times, two of which Quaker Valley turned into defensive touchdowns. The game opened up in the second half and North Catholic QB Zack Rocco took things over, scoring 2 TDs on the ground, the second coming with just 38 seconds to go. Rocco also intercepted a pass on Quaker Valley’s final drive to seal the victory.
Semifinal Matchups
1. Aliquippa vs 4. Beaver Falls
2. Derry vs 3. North Catholic
Class 2A
First Round Results
1. Shady Side Academy 22, 16. Serra Catholic 20
After a tough battle with Avonworth last week, Shady Side held on to beat Serra tonight and advance to the quarterfinals for the first time since 2011.
8. South Side Beaver 36, 9. McGuffey 27
Two strong rushing attacks squared off and South Side Beaver was able to limit the WPIAL’s leading scorer Christian Clutter and advance to face Shady Side Academy.
4. Charleroi 35, 13. Riverside 21
Charleroi comes from behind to pull away from the Panthers and get their first playoff win since 1998.
5. Mohawk 48, 12. Seton LaSalle 0
Mohawk gets their first playoff win since 2005 with a mercy rule victory over Seton LaSalle
2. Burgettstown 33, vs 15. East Allegheny 10
Another impressive performance for Burgettstown’s defense and running game as the Blue Devils got the first home playoff win in school history.
7. Freedom 24, 10. Avonworth 21
Avonworth drove into Freedom territory in the waning moments of the game but failed on 4th down to seal the win for the Bulldogs.
3. Steel Valley 49, 14. Beth-Center 0
Both of these teams had two players that ran for over 1000 yards this season, but Steel Valley’s defense was able to clamp down on Beth-Center.
6. Washington 54, 11. New Brighton 20
Wash High’s Zahmere Robinson had over 300 yards from scrimmage and 2 TDs to lead the Prexies to a rematch of last year’s WPIAL Championship Game against Steel Valley
Quarterfinal Matchups
1. Shady Side Academy vs 9. South Side Beaver
4. Charleroi 5. Mohawk
2. Burgettstown vs 7. Freedom
3. Steel Valley vs 6. Washington
Class 1A
Quarterfinal Results
1. Jeannette 18, 8. Monessen 14
Monessen scored on the first drive of the game then Jeannette built an 18-8 lead. Monessen scored again to cut the lead to 4 and was driving late in the 4th quarter before Jeannette’s defense came up with a stop that sealed the win for the defending 1A Champions.
5. Rochester 52, 4. West Greene 14
Rochester’s ground game dominated the Pioneers, who were looking for their first playoff victory since 1993.
2. Clairton 27 7. California 17
Clairton got a touchdown right before halftime to take a 20-17 lead then after a scoreless third quarter got another defensive touchdown (as has been their M.O.) to stretch out the lead.
3. OLSH 60, 6. Imani Christian 6
Imani Christian had knocked OLSH out of the playoffs each of the last two seasons, but Tyler Bradley and the Chargers got their revenge tonight in a big way.
Semifinal Matchups
1. Jeannette vs 5. Rochester
2. Clairton vs 3. OLSH
