News

by: Don Rebel

TOP CATS

Central Mountain won the District 6 Class 5A championship this spring while Thomas Jefferson was the runner-up in District 7.

Now the Wildcats and the Jaguars scrap to determine the top cat in the wild west of Class 5A.

TJ has relied on several players in its two state playoff wins.

Senior Zoe Krizan was 3 for 4 and junior Allie Chalovich had two hits, while the two combined to drive in nine runs as Thomas Jefferson crushed Solanco in the opening-round win, 17-4.

In the quarterfinals, junior Hannah Alonso was 3 for 3 with an RBI, junior Morgan Alisesky was 2 for 3 and sophomore Adalina Bracco delivered the tiebreaking two-run double in the sixth inning as TJ edged West Chester East, 3-1.

Central Mountain has already knocked out two teams from the WPIAL on its path to Penn State.

The Wildcats ousted Penn-Trafford in the first round, 10-0, then stunned WPIAL champion Armstrong in the quarterfinals, 4-1.

Central Mountain (16-5) faces Thomas Jefferson (14-8) at 4:30 p.m. at Mount Aloysius College.

The Jaguars have lost twice before in the PIAA semifinals, losing to WPIAL teams each time. The Jaguars lost to Riverside in the 2001 semifinals, 1-0, and then fell to West Allegheny in the 2018 final four, 7-5.

The Wildcats have never played in a PIAA semifinals game.