Mirror photo by Patrick Waksmunski Claysburg-Kimmel coach Mike Barbarini greets Payton Hinish at third base after her home run on Wednesday.

Claysburg-Kimmel softball coach Mike Barbarini has built his program into an elite one over his 26 seasons in the dugout and achieved just about everything there is to do — except win a PIAA championship.

After losing in the state semifinals in two of the last three years, Barbarini and his Lady Bulldogs will take another shot beginning Monday at home against Meyersdale.

“They are all tough draws when you get into the state tournament,” Barbarini said. “We played Meyersdale earlier this year. That’s a good match for us. I’m looking forward to it. The whole bracket is full of tough teams.”

C-K beat the District 5 runner-up, 19-4, on March 30 on the road. Monday’s PIAA first-round game will be in Claysburg at 4 p.m. thanks to the Lady Bulldogs’ 5-0 win over Juniata Valley in the District 6 championship — a critical victory for Claysburg’s state playoff run according to Barbarini.

“If we would have lost, we would have to go play DuBois Central Catholic, which is very tough,” Barbarini said. “That bracket down there, we were glad to stay away from. There are a lot of good teams. If you beat DuBois, you would probably have to play (WPIAL champion) Union. That would have been a tough draw. The third seed out of District 6 has to play Union first, which is another tough draw. We were glad to be the District 6 champion and get into the tournament that way and see what happens.”

Juniata Valley will have to play that game against DuBois Central Catholic at Heindl Field at 4 p.m. on Monday in a rematch of last year’s 4-3 loss.

The winner of that game will take on either District 6 third-place finisher Purchase Line or Union, also a rematch of last year’s 12-0 Union win.

If Claysburg-Kimmel beats Meyersdale, the Lady Bulldogs might get a rematch of their own in the Class 1A quarterfinals.

District 2 champion Holy Cross will take on District 4 champion Montgomery.

“Experience is very important,” Barbarini said. “Whenever you get to this level, knowing the competition is also important. If we win our first round, we would probably play Holy Cross that we played last year and won in eight innings. They have pretty much everyone back and only have one loss this year. We are looking forward to the competition.”

Either matchup should be tough. Claysburg-Kimmel fell to the District 4 champion a year ago, Northeast Bradford, 1-0 in eight innings, in the PIAA semifinals. Two years ago, Claysburg held a late lead before Union rallied for a 10-8 win to advance to the state championship.

“We have been so close the last few years,” Barbarini said. “We have been in the semifinals two of the past three years. We just haven’t been able to get over the hump. Hopefully this year a little bit of luck goes our way and we can get over that hump.”

The Lady Bulldogs are among the premier softball programs at the Class 1A level in the state and have been for a long time.

Barbarini expects that to continue.

“It feels good year in and year out knowing that you are going to be able to compete for a district title and go play in the states,” Barbarini said. “We rebuild every year, and we rebuild with good players that are dedicated and willing to put the time in to get to that level. It looks bright for the future also. Our junior high team only lost two games all year and has a lot of talent. I brought all the ninth graders up this year, so they are ready for next year. It looks good for Claysburg in the future also.”

Class 2A softball

The Bellwood-Antis softball team competed one of the biggest turnarounds in the area by winning the District 6 Class 2A championship on Thursday and will take on WPIAL fourth-place finisher Chartiers-Houston at Mount Aloysius in Cresson at 4 p.m. on Monday in the first round of the PIAA tournament.

Chartiers-Houston was the second-seeded team going into the WPIAL playoffs but lost to third-seeded Bentworth, 2-1, in the semifinals before losing to Laurel in the consolation game.

In this round a year ago, District 6 champion West Shamokin defeated Bentworth, 11-5.

In the bottom half of the bracket, District 5 champion Everett will host District 9 runner-up Cranberry at 4:30 p.m.

Class 5A baseball

The most recent team from the Mirror’s core coverage area to play for a PIAA championship in baseball or softball is Hollidaysburg, which fell in the 2024 Class 5A final, 2-1, against Governor Mifflin.

The Golden Tigers are hoping now that they are back in the state playoffs, a return trip to the final is in store.

“That’s the goal,” Hollidaysburg senior Josh Banks said. “We want nothing less. We have to play good baseball, play together and play as a team.”

Hollidaysburg will host WPIAL runner-up South Fayette at 4 p.m. on Monday in the PIAA Class 5A first round.

Central Mountain lost to Pine-Richland in this round last year, 8-5.

“It’s hard to predict, because you don’t really know what’s out there,” Hollidaysburg coach Jon Szynal said. “We have really focused on ourselves all year and tried to get better at practice each day. This group has done that.”

South Fayette lost to Upper St. Clair, 3-2, in the District 7 championship game and was the No. 10 seed going into the district playoffs.

Trey Skeen pitched six innings and allowed three runs, and Colton Cloherty had two of Fayette’s five hits.

“I think we can compete with anybody on any given day,” Szynal said. “That’s their goal, and they are going to keep fighting for that.”

If Hollidaysburg wins, it will play either District 3 champion Lampeter-Strasburg or WPIAL fourth-place finisher Thomas Jefferson on Thursday.

“Ever since we were there, we have been hungry to get back,” Hollidaysburg junior pitcher Vince Boland said. “I think we have a great chance if we keep working hard as a team and doing our thing.”

Class 3A baseball

Tyrone, coming off its first District 6 championship since 1992, will host WPIAL third-place finisher Avonworth at the Harry K. Sickler Sports Complex on Monday at 4 p.m. in the first round of the PIAA Class 3A baseball playoffs.

Last year’s District 6 champion, Forest Hills, lost to South Park, 5-3, in the same round in 2025.

The Golden Eagles are back in the state playoffs for the first time since 2023 when they fell, 3-2, to eventual state champion Riverside as the District 6 runner-up.

Tyrone won its only state championship in 2021.

Philipsburg-Osceola will travel to WPIAL champion Ellwood City for a 4 p.m. game, and District 5 champion Bedford will host WPIAL runner-up South Park at 4:30 p.m.

“I think both of us (Tyrone and Philipsburg) can make a nice run in states too,” Tyrone baseball coach Kevin Soellner said. “It’s going to be rough, but I think we have seen the pitching that we need to see in our league. I think it has us ready.”

Class 1A baseball

Claysburg-Kimmel won its first District 6 championship since 2007, but the Bulldogs will face a stiff challenge in the first round of the PIAA Class 1A playoffs when they host WPIAL runner-up Greensburg Central Catholic at 6:30 p.m. on Monday.

“At the beginning of the season, we had everyone write on a card what their season goal was,” Claysburg-Kimmel coach Kyle Glass said. “The main goal was to win a District 6 title and compete at the state level. I believe our seniors really helped install that belief into a lot of our sophomores. They really mixed well throughout the season.”

Greensburg Central Catholic suffered its first loss of the season in the WPIAL final, 5-1, to Eden Christian.

Losing pitcher Tyler Samide gave up four earned runs, and Anthony Grippo had two of Greensburg’s four hits.

“We have competed against a lot of teams this year that competed in states last year or will be going into the state playoffs this year,” Glass said. “I feel like our strength of schedule this year was really good, and that should help us compete at the state level.”

A year ago, District 6 champion Homer-Center won in this round 10-0 before falling by 10 in the quarterfinals to Eden Christian.

Glass is pleased Claysburg will get to host a doubleheader Monday with the softball team playing before the Bulldogs’ game and is expecting a big crowd.

“It’s so exciting,” Glass said. “Our girls always have a great chance to make the state playoffs, but the community has shown up this year and definitely for the championship game for us and the baseball team. It’s great to see the entire community out here supporting us.”