Oakland Catholic (7-2) vs. Altoona (6-1)
CLASS AAAA
Records: Oakland Catholic Lady Eagles (24-2); Altoona Lady Lions (19-4)
Site, time: Hollidaysburg Area Senior High School, 6 p.m., tonight.
The coaches: Oakland Catholic - Shannon Boyle (54-15 in three years at Oakland Catholic; 64-49 in five years overall). Altoona - Jill Helsel (39-9 in two years).
Playoff path: Oakland Catholic - defeated Peters Township, 49-30, in the District 7 second round; defeated Bethel Park, 40-35, in the District 7 quarterfinals; defeated Baldwin, 58-41, in the District 7 semifinals; lost to Mount Lebanon, 58-49, in the District 7 championship. Altoona - defeated State College, 62-38, in the District 6 championship.
Starting lineups: Oakland Catholic - G Jess Mrdjenovich (3, 5-6 sr., 8.0), G Bobbi Baker (14, 5-7 sr., 15.0), G Rachel Vigliotti (21, 5-7 sr., 6.8), F Chrissy Berenato (15, 6-1 sr., 3.7), F Corey Taglianetti (5, 5-7 sr., 4.2). Altoona - G Alexia Servello (12, 5-4 jr., 4.8), G Kaycie Reffner (15, 5-5 jr., 6.1), G Kayla DeCriscio (22, 5-7 sr., 12.6), F Lauren Hippo (13, 5-10 sr., 9.4), F Kayla Grimme (35, 6-1 jr., 10.7).
Key reserves: Oakland Catholic - G Mara Fitzgerald (1, 5-7 jr., 7.3), G/F Audra Phibbs (12, 5-8 sr., 4.8), F Iffie Uwazie (25, 5-11 sr., 1.2), G Madison Caufield (33, 5-10 so., 1.6). Altoona - F Darby Lee (32, 6-0 so., 9.7), G McKenzie Hatch (11, 5-5 so., 0.8).
Who they get: The winner plays winner of the game between Upper St. Clair (7-3) and McDowell (10-1) on Tuesday at a site to be announced.
Notable: This is a rematch from the first round of the 2011 tournament, when Oakland Catholic avenged a regular season loss to oust the Lady Lions, 62-49. DeCriscio's 67 3-pointers this season are second only to Katy Oblinger's 85 on the all-time Altoona charts. Oakland Catholic holds a 10-5 lead in the all-time series. ... The teams also met earlier this season, with the Lady Eagles prevailing, 50-33. Aside from the WPIAL championship game, Oakland Catholic's only other loss was to Seton-LaSalle. Oakland Catholic has several interesting family ties: Taglianetti and Caufield are the daughters of former Pittsburgh Penguins hockey players, and Berenato's mother coaches the Pitt women's basketball team. Altoona has scored at least 50 points in every win and is 19-1 when reaching that point total.
Tussey Mountain (5-2) vs. Forest Hills (6-1)
CLASS AA
Teams: Tussey Mountain Lady Titans (19-6); Forest Hills Lady Rangers (24-2)
Site, time: Richland High School, Johnstown, 6 p.m., tonight.
The coaches: Tussey Mountain - Todd Gates (113-44 in six years). Forest Hills - Carol Cecere (career record not available in 16 years).
Path to the finals: Tussey Mountain - defeated Northern Bedford, 51-44, in the District 5 semifinals; lost to Conemaugh Township, 65-57, in the District 5 championship; defeated Greensburg Central Catholic, 60-59, in the PIAA play-in round. Forest Hills - defeated Bishop McCort, 61-50, in the District 6 quarterfinals; defeated Westmont Hilltop, 64-53, in the District 6 semifinals; defeated Richland, 50-38, in the District 6 championship.
Starting lineups: Tussey Mountain - G Caitlin Foster (34, 5-3 sr., 7.5), G Katie Runk (10, 5-3 sr., 7.6), G Abby Abbott-Watkins (2, 5-6 sr., 7.0), F Morgan Gates (21, 5-7 sr., 5.6), F Morgan Lemin (11, 5-7 sr., 16.1). Forest Hills - G Casey Gallaher (13, 5-3 jr., 12.9), G Becky Bard (20, 5-3 sr., 14.6), G Briana Kostan (10, 5-9 jr., 7.7), F Jessica DiFlauro (23, 5-9 sr., 7.9), F Marlee Zubek (24, 5-8 jr., 6.4).
Key reserves: Tussey Mountain - F Olivia Claycomb (24, 5-6 jr., 4.1), G Courtney Rupert (13, 5-5 fr., 2.4), F Morgan Lynn (3, 5-7 so., 2.4), G Breana Kendrick (12, 5-6 fr., 2.8), G Paige Reed (15, 5-7 so., 2.2), G Sam Coffman (14, so., 5-5, 0.3). Forest Hills - G Caitlyn Gallaher (15, 5-4 so., 3.8), F Amanda Meier (21, 5-9 so., 3.6), G Julie Marks (33, 5-7 sr., 3.2), G Megan Gould (11, 5-1 sr., 3.5).
Who they get: The winner plays the winner of Moniteau (9-2) and Keystone Oaks (7-3) on Tuesday at a site to be announced.
Notable: Tussey Mountain, in the PIAA tournament for the third time in four years, is 11-2 this season against Class AA opponents. ... The Lady Titans and Lady Rangers have three common opponents - Westmont Hilltop, Bedford and Everett. Both teams posted perfect records against those schools. ... Abbott-Watkins, who scored 10 points or more four times heading into the 5-AA championship game, has reached double digits in each of the last two contests. ... Seven Lady Titans have at least 24 steals this season. ... Forest Hills is 4-2 against PIAA playoff teams this season, having beaten State College in their only meeting and split two meetings with Bishop Guilfoyle. ... Three Lady Rangers average at least 2.5 assists per game. Forest Hills advanced to the second round of states two years ago in Class AAA.
