WPIAL 2024 boys soccer playoff preview: Predicted champs, top seeds and teams to watch
Keith Barnes / Tri-State Sports & News Service
Prior to Tuesday night, the WPIAL soccer committee was going to have a quandary seeding the top of the Class 2A bracket.
On one hand, there was South Park, the reigning champion that lost one game all season to undefeated Class 3A Moon and had won 11 consecutive matches to end the season. On the other was Charleroi, which had not lost a match all year.
But when the Cougars dropped a 3-2 overtime decision to Mount Pleasant in their season finale, the choice of the committee became clear and South Park was given the No. 1 seed when the postseason brackets were announced Wednesday.
In addition to Moon, two other teams, Plum in Class 4A and reigning Class 1A champion Bentworth, ran the gauntlet and capped an unbeaten regular season.
South Fayette in Class 3A is the only one of last year’s four WPIAL champions that did not qualify for the playoffs. It was also the only one of the 2023 finalists that did not make it through.
The playoffs begin Saturday. Here is a breakdown and analysis of all four classifications:
Class 4A
Defending champion: Norwin
Top seeds: Plum first; Peters Township second; Fox Chapel third; North Allegheny fourth
Winner will be: Plum. There are a lot of reasons why the undefeated Mustangs should be the team that holds the trophy aloft at Highmark Stadium. Senior Gage Adinolfi leads the team with 10 goals, but he is far from the only scoring threat. This is a team that can put the ball in the back of the net from various sources and keeps the ball out of its own end. Plum has nine clean sheets in 18 matches and only allowed two goals in a match once all year. Plum already has critical wins against Peters Township, Fox Chapel and Norwin.
Team that could surprise: Seneca Valley. No, this isn’t the Raiders team that dominated with six consecutive section titles, won the 2020 and 2021 WPIAL titles and the 2020 and 2022 PIAA titles, but the No. 7 seed is still a dangerous team. Seneca Valley had a stretch when it lost three of four matches in the middle of the season but since then won six of its past seven matches and has an All-State player in striker Tyler Prex. The bracket also lines up in its favor to get to the final with a potential semifinal matchup against Fox Chapel on the horizon — if it can get past Peters Township in the quarters.
The scoop: This is going to be deja vu because the circumstances around Class 4A are exactly where they were a year ago. Even with 12 teams in the tournament instead of eight, every team that qualified has a chance to win it all. Don’t believe it? Norwin was the No. 8 seed last year, yet it upset No. 1 Seneca Valley in the first round and won its first title. ... Fox Chapel coach Erik Ingram has done a masterful job with the Foxes this year. Weeks before the season, the team lost All-State senior striker Pablo Linzoain, a Davidson recruit who opted not to play this year after signing with Riverhounds SC in May. Despite that, the team tied for the Section 3 title and swept co-champion North Allegheny to take the No. 3 seed. ... Peters Township has quietly put together a remarkable season with an offense led by Alex Parise and Jeven Kelly. The Indians’ only loss was to Plum on Aug. 29, and they are riding a 13-game winning streak.
Class 3A
Defending champion: South Fayette
Top seeds: Moon first; Thomas Jefferson second; Indiana third; Latrobe fourth
Winner will be: Moon. This is a team on a mission following its shocking quarterfinal loss to No. 11 seed Franklin Regional in the 2023 playoffs. Not only did that loss end the Tigers’ opportunity for a repeat, it ended their season, as only three teams qualified for the state playoffs. This season, Moon has a plus-92 goal differential that is second best in the WPIAL, and its 100 goals are fourth in the WPIAL. Senior Marc Haupt leads four Tigers goalscorers in double figures with 14.
Team that could surprise: Mars. The Planets lost one match this year, a 1-0 surprise against Armstrong, but have two wins against third-seeded Indiana along with a critical victory against Allderdice. Mars has played six overtime matches this season — they were 2-0-4 — and knows how to play in crunch time.
The scoop: Thomas Jefferson tied Bethel Park with 33 points in Section 2 but swept the Black Hawks in the season series. Thomas Jefferson, which has not won a title since 2004, also had a pair of wins against South Fayette, which helped knock the reigning champions out of playoff contention. ... Latrobe has to be considered a dangerous team. Not only did the Wildcats have a 31-goalscorer in senior Roman Agostoni, but they finished unbeaten in section play and have two wins against a very good Franklin Regional team. Speaking of the No. 7 Panthers, they were the team that knocked out Moon last year, so they know how to pull off an upset.
Class 2A
Defending champion: South Park.
Top seeds: South Park first; Avonworth second; Deer Lakes third; Quaker Valley fourth
Winner will be: South Park. As well as the Eagles have played — and, make no mistake, they have played very well — the jury was out on them early in the season. South Park rolls into the postseason riding an 11-game winning streak, following its only loss of the season to undefeated Moon.
Team that could surprise: Shady Side Academy. To say the Bulldogs got off to a subpar start (for them) would be an understatement. But since that 3-3-1 start, Shady Side Academy is 8-1-0 with six shutouts and its only loss a one-goal heartbreaker against Deer Lakes.
The scoop: The top four seeds this year are also the top four seeds from 2023. The only difference is Quaker Valley and Avonworth switched positions. The Quakers are 13-0-1 in their last 14 matches with 10 clean sheets. ... Charleroi was the last Class 2A unbeaten to fall and dropped all the way to the No. 5 seed. It also meant the Cougars, who played in the Class 1A final a year ago, got an extremely tough draw against a talented Seton LaSalle team that has only lost to South Park and Elizabeth Forward.
Class 1A
Defending champion: Bentworth
Top seeds: Bentworth first; Winchester Thurston second; Our Lady of the Sacred Heart third; Beaver County Christian fourth
Winner will be: Bentworth. The undefeated defending champion Bearcats outscored their Section 1 opponents 73-1, had a plus-102 goal differential and gave up just four goals all season. Strikers Ryan and Adam Moessner combined for 60 goals this season.
Team that could surprise: Springdale. It depends on which Dynamos team shows up — the one that won its first seven matches and allowed only three goals or the one that dropped two of its final three matches.
The scoop: Winchester Thurston only lost two matches this season — to Class 2A challenger Central Valley and undefeated Moon. Beaver County Christian caught fire down the stretch with seven straight wins. Our Lady of the Sacred Heart probably would have been the No. 2 seed had it not lost to Aquinas Academy in its regular season finale.
Keith Barnes: [email protected] and X @kbarnes_pghsprt