NA Prevails Over Pine-Richland For Section Win, 3-1
by Randy Gore
North Allegheny and Pine-Richland entered Thursday night’s contest at UPMC Court in a three-way tie for first place atop the Section 2-AAA standings. The Tigers, bouncing back from a loss earlier in the week to Seneca Valley, returned to the win column with a 3-1 triumph over the Rams. NA prevailed by set scores of 25-21, 25-27, 25-12 and 25-20.
The Tigers jumped out to a quick 7-0 lead in set one, thanks in part to the serving of junior Nicholas DiPrato. Despite the early deficit, the Rams did not go away quietly and trimmed NA’s lead to three points on four separate occasions. With NA holding a 24-21 advantage, junior Nathan May put away PR in set one with a kill to secure a 25-21 victory. May tallied four kills in the opening game and totaled six on the night.
Set two was a role reversal as Pine-Richland held a significant lead and needed to stave off an NA rally. Powered by seven kills from Ohio State commit Doolin Stober, the Rams constructed a 19-11 lead. Down 20-13, the Tigers inched their way back on the strength of six kills from junior Will Robertson and cut the deficit to 22-20. After back-to-back points by senior Matteo Rotelli increased the PR lead to 24-20, North Allegheny rallied once more and put together a 5-0 run sparked by Robertson and the serves of junior Jackson Failla. While it appeared the Tigers were destined for an improbable win, Stober spoiled the comeback bid with a rally-stopping kill and the Rams scored three straight points to eke out a 27-25 victory in set two.
North Allegheny dominated the third set as Robertson tallied three more kills and an ace to lift the Tigers to a 25-12 rout. Junior Brendan Moore added two kills and a block, while senior Garen White posted a kill and a pair of timely blocks. Moore finished with seven kills on the evening. He, along with White and junior Peter Bratich, clogged the middle of the net with a team-high five blocks each.
While set four was a bit tighter than the third, the Tigers still led wire to wire en route to a 25-20 win. Bratich led the charge with three kills and two blocks, and senior Eli Braun muscled his way to three kills. Robertson notched a pair of aces and three more kills to finish off the Rams. Robertson totaled 13 kills, 18 digs and three aces, all-team highs, to secure Wright Automotive Player of the Match honors.
With the win, North Allegheny improves to 6-1 overall and 3-1 in Section 2-AAA. Pine-Richland falls to 5-2 overall and 2-2 in the section. The Tigers will take their annual trip to Central York High School on Saturday to compete in the prestigious York Invitational beginning at 8:30 a.m.
BOYS VOLLEYBALL SUMMARY VS. PINE-RICHLAND, 4-10-25
| SCORE BY SETS | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | FINAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PINE-RICHLAND | 21 | 27 | 12 | 20 | 1 |
| NORTH ALLEGHENY | 25 | 25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
