Tigers Sweep Trojanettes To Cap Regular Season
By Randy Gore
Having already locked up the Section 2-4A title with a win at Butler on Tuesday, the North Allegheny girls’ volleyball team made it a perfect 10 wins with a 3-0 sweep over North Catholic in the regular season finale at UPMC Court. The Tigers prevailed by set scores of 25-19, 25-18 and 25-16.
In the opening set, senior Dede Alualu delivered five aces, four in the early stages, to help North Allegheny build a 14-8 lead. North Catholic used a 4-0 run to trim the NA lead to 14-12, prompting head coach Russ Hoburg to call a timeout. The Tigers responded by going on a 6-0 run for a 20-12 lead and seized control of the set. The big swings of Penn State recruit Molly Robertson, who finished with a team-high 19 kills, allowed the Tigers to pull away for a 25-19 win.
In similar fashion, in set two, NA led 14-13 before a steady bombardment of offense, facilitated by senior setter Keely McMahon-Regan, led to a 25-18 victory. Sophomore Paige Shanahan capped the set with a well-located tip. KMR, a Duquesne University commit, finished with a team-high 35 assists and added three blocks.
The third set was controlled by the Tigers, who pounced on the Trojanettes for an immediate 8-1 lead. Junior Alicia Mokube led the charge with eight kills and NA cruised to a 25-16 win and a 3-0 sweep. A steady presence in the middle, Mokube totaled 13 kills and three blocks to earn Wright Automotive Player of the Match honors.
Along with Mokube’s offensive success, sophomore Carena Schiller contributed nine kills. On defense, Robertson posted a team-best 12 digs, followed by senior libero Reagan Riordan and Alualu with 11 and 10 digs, respectively.
With the win, North Allegheny improves to 12-2 overall and finishes section play at 10-0. North Catholic slips to 7-6 overall and 6-4 in the section. Both teams are playoff-bound and will await the WPIAL playoff pairings on Friday afternoon.
Girls Volleyball Summary vs. North Catholic, 10-16-25
| SCORE BY SETS | 1 | 2 | 3 | FINAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Catholic | 19 | 18 | 16 | 0 |
| North Allegheny | 25 | 25 | 16 | 3 |
