NA Falls To Warwick In PIAA First Round, 3-1
Facing off with Warwick in the state playoffs for the first time since 2018, the North Allegheny boys’ volleyball team dropped a 3-1 decision to the host Warriors in the first round of the PIAA Class AAA playoffs. The District 3 runners-up prevailed over the Tigers by set scores of 25-21, 25-22, 25-20 and 27-25.
Warwick started strong in set one by opening up a 6-1 lead and holding an advantage for the remainder of the game. Senior Parker Gooding was a catalyst for the Warriors in the first set with three kills, a block and an ace. Sophomore middle blocker Peter Bratich provided a spark late in the set with four kills for the Tigers.
Bratich and fellow sophomore Will Robertson helped power the Tigers to leads of 17-15 and 19-16 in set two. However, a 5-0 run by Warwick was spearheaded by the serves and an ace from senior Nathan Wenger. Saint Francis University commit Kyle Charles tallied three kills and a block down the stretch for Warwick in a 25-22 victory. Charles finished with an unofficial 11 kills.
The sophomore duo of Robertson and Bratich who finished with 17 and 15 kills, respectively, continued to pound away at Warwick with their big swings and helped NA prevail in set three, 25-20. For his consistent efforts throughout the night, Bratich was selected as the Wright Automotive Player of the Match.
In the fourth set, North Allegheny trailed 18-13 and began a comeback bid by winning a marathon volley to trim the deficit to 18-14. From there, the Tigers went on a 6-1 run that tied the score 19-19. Timely kills by senior Stone Gaertner (7) and junior Garen White (5) contributed to the NA rally. Late in the set, the Tigers led 25-24 and were a point away from forcing a fifth set. Unfortunately, Warwick sophomore Thomas Mejia provided four of the final five points to allow the Warriors to pull out a 27-25 victory. Mejia tallied two kills and two blocks, including the match-winner, down the stretch.
Other statistical leaders for NA included senior libero Will Hahn with 21 digs and senior setter Nicolas Carioto with 39 assists.
The loss ends North Allegheny’s season with a 13-3 record, while Warwick advances to the PIAA quarterfinals with a 15-4 record. Congratulations to head coach Dan Long and the entire boy’s volleyball team for a memorable 2024 season.
BOYS VOLLEYBALL SUMMARY VS. WARWICK, 6-4-24
| GAME SUMMARY | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SCORE BY SETS | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | FINAL |
| North Allegheny | 21 | 22 | 25 | 25 | 1 |
| Warwick | 25 | 25 | 19 | 27 | 3 |
