Boys' Volleyball Game Summaries

North Allegheny’s five-year reign as WPIAL champions came to an end on Thursday night with a 3-0 loss to Shaler at AHN Arena. The Tigers fell in the WPIAL Class 3A championship by set scores of 25-12, 25-22 and 25-19.

Appearing in the WPIAL title tilt for the first time in program history, the top-seeded Titans jumped out to a 6-0 lead in set one and cruised to a 25-12 win. Junior Logan Peterson belted out nine kills in the opening set, on his way to a game-high 25 kill performance.

Despite the loss in game one, the Tigers seemed poised to bounce back in set two and grabbed a 5-4 lead on a kill by senior Varun Kaveti. The one-point lead, however, was the first and only lead of the night for North Allegheny. Five kills in the set by Kaveti and four by junior Jeremiah Satcho kept the Tigers in the hunt, but in the end the Titans prevailed, 25-22. Kaveti totaled nine kills on the evening.

In set three, Shaler built a 19-9 lead before NA staged a late rally. Senior Jax Wilhite did his best to keep the Tigers afloat with four kills in the set and finished with a team-high 10 kills. However, Peterson continued to power the Titans with seven kills in the final set and Shaler earned the victory, 25-19, to complete the sweep.

Junior libero Will Hahn led the NA defense with 21 digs. Junior setter Nicolas Carioto distributed 27 assists.

With the loss, North Allegheny slips to 11-4 on the season, while Shaler improves to 16-1. Both teams qualify for the PIAA playoffs, which begin on Tuesday, June 6.

Boys Volleyball Summary vs. Shaler, 5-25-23

by Jared Barton

For the sixth season in a row, the North Allegheny Tigers boys’ volleyball program has advanced to the WPIAL title game. NA beat Penn-Trafford in the WPIAL semifinals, 3-1, from Fox Chapel Area High School on Tuesday.

Penn-Trafford scored the opening point of set one, but North Allegheny never looked back for the rest of the opening stanza. Junior Stone Gaertner and senior Varun Kaveti were important factors early on with kills to give the Tigers a 6-3 edge. Senior Jax Wilhite recorded five total kills in the first set, while Gaertner had three and Kaveti tallied two. Junior Sam Kinzler ended the set with an ace as the Tigers took the first frame 25-12.

The Warriors kept the scoring close in set two, leading the match 6-4 early on. The Tigers scored five straight points to climb back into the lead courtesy of kills from Kaveti, Gaertner, freshman Will Robertson and junior Nicholas Carioto. Penn-Trafford would keep the set tight, but ultimately North Allegheny took the victory, 25-19. Wilhite recorded a block and eight kills, including the set clincher. Gaertner tallied four more kills while Robertson finished with an ace and a kill. Junior Will Hahn was the master of the dig throughout the night, and also recorded an ace in the frame.

Penn-Trafford earned a hard fought set win in the third stanza 25-21. NA trailed 19-12 in the late stages of the set, but was able to make a late run. Wilhite tallied four more kills.

The Tigers kept the Warriors at bay in set four 25-14 to clinch the trip to the title game. Wilhite added five more kills, Kaveti recorded two kills and two blocks, Gaertner had two additional kills, junior Jeremiah Satcho had a block and a kill and junior Ryan Quatman scored an ace. Wilhite ended the fourth set with back-to-back kills to finish the match. He took home Wright Automotive Player of the Game laurels with 22 total kills and a block. Gaertner had 11 total kills. Kaveti totaled four kills and four blocks.

With the win, North Allegheny improves to 12-3 on the season and will face Shaler for the WPIAL 3A Championship at Peters Township High School on Thursday. That game will be broadcast live on the North Allegheny Sports Network at a time to be determined.

Penn-Trafford falls to 17-2 on the year and will have a chance at making the PIAA Tournament. PT faces Canon-McMillan in the Third-Place Consolation match at a time, date and place to be determined.

Boys Volleyball Summary vs. Penn-Trafford, 5-23-23

For the third straight season, the North Allegheny boys’ volleyball team met up with section rival Seneca Valley in the WPIAL playoffs. After defeating the Raiders in the WPIAL championship the past two seasons, the Tigers earned another hard-fought postseason victory over Seneca Valley with a 3-1 triumph in the WPIAL Class 3A quarterfinals at UPMC Court on Thursday night.

The Tigers, ranked No. 2 in the state by the PVCA, pounced on the Raiders in the opening set and jumped out to an 8-1 lead with the help of four aces by sophomore Matthew LeMay. Seneca Valley chipped away and trimmed the deficit to 20-16 on the strength of five kills by senior Grant Hoover. Despite the Raiders comeback bid, the Tigers put game one away with some timely kills by senior Jax Wilhite down the stretch for a 25-22 victory.

North Allegheny trailed 11-10 in set two before a 5-0 run gave the Tigers control. Wilhite continued to punish the Raiders with five more kills on his way to a 17-kill performance as NA pulled out a 25-20 victory in the second game.

In set three, Seneca Valley grabbed a 7-2 advantage in the early going before North Allegheny put together a rally. In a nip-and-tuck battle that featured 15 ties, the Tigers’ only lead in the set was 25-24 with a chance to sweep the Raiders. To their credit, the Raiders staved off defeat thanks to seven kills by Hoover and SV earned a 30-28 win.

While North Allegheny took an early 8-4 lead in set four, the game played out in similar fashion to set three with the contest tied 19-19. Junior Stone Gaertner decked the Raiders with eight kills in the final set to propel the Tigers to a 25-21 victory and a 3-1 triumph. Gaertner totaled a team-high 18 kills and added four blocks, earning Wright Automotive Player of the Match honors.

In one of NA’s best overall performances of the season, senior Varun Kaveti tallied nine kills and a team-best five blocks. Junior middle blocker Jeremiah Satcho provided a spark in sets three and four with two kills and two blocks. Junior libero Will Hahn posted a team-best 34 digs and junior setter Nicolas Carioto dished out a team-high 55 assists.

With the win, North Allegheny improves to 10-3 on the season and will take on Penn-Trafford in the WPIAL Class 3A semifinals next week. The match will be broadcast live by the North Allegheny Sports Network.

Boys Volleyball Summary vs. Seneca Valley, 5-18-23

The North Allegheny boys’ volleyball team wrapped up the regular season on Saturday with a third place finish at the Shaler Invitational. The Tigers, the No. 2 seed in the upcoming WPIAL playoffs, defeated Penn-Trafford in the tournament quarterfinals, 1-0 (25-19) before bowing out in the semifinals to host Shaler, 1-0 (25-23).

Individually, senior Jax Wilhite had a strong all-around performance with a team-high 35 kills, four blocks and 12 digs. Junior Stone Gaertner tallied 32 kills, two aces, tied for a team-best five blocks. Senior Varun Kaveti posted a team-best five blocks and added 17 kills on offense. Freshman Will Robertson delivered a team-high three aces to go along with 15 kills, 12 digs and four blocks.

Junior setter Nicolas Carioto dished out 82 assists and added 12 digs. Junior setter Brady Quatman posted 17 assists and a pair of aces. On defense, junior libero Will Hahn notched a team-high 46 digs.

North Allegheny has a first-round bye in the upcoming WPIAL Class AAA playoffs and will host a quarterfinal matchup on Thursday at 7:00 p.m. The contest will be broadcast live by the North Allegheny Sports Network.

The North Allegheny boys’ volleyball team wrapped up the regular season with a 3-0 sweep at Pine-Richland on Thursday night in a Section 2-AAA contest. The Tigers prevailed by set scores of 25-11, 25-15 and 25-10.

Leading the charge for North Allegheny’s attack was junior Sam Kinzler with a team-high seven kills. Freshman Will Robertson and senior Jax Wilhite delivered six kills each. At the net, senior Varun Kaveti and junior Jeremiah Satcho each totaled three blocks. The Tigers serve/receive hampered the host Rams as Josh Farr, Will Hahn and Matthew LaMay each totaled three aces. Defensively, Hahn led with 13 digs and junior Ryan Quatman dished out a team-high 14 assists.

North Allegheny concludes the section slate with a 9-3 record and sole possession of second place. Pine-Richland finishes section play with a 1-11 mark. The Tigers await the WPIAL playoff pairings on Friday to find out who they will take on next in the postseason.

Boys Volleyball Summary vs. Pine-Richland, 5-11-23